After a seemingly endless road to the Stanley Cup the Canucks now go into Boston just one win away from the biggest moment in Vancouver history. Yes, bigger than any moment of the Olympics. While it is a great position to be in, it's not a very comfortable position. I found it quite amusing that the ridiculously biased Boston media basically wrote off the Canucks chances with the series 2-2. Now that it's 3-2 Canucks they are not quite so arrogant. The reality is that this series still could go
If there wasn't a Boston-Vancouver rivalry before, I think it's safe to say we have one now. I find it quite laughable that the Canucks are now looked upon as the bad guys. I realize that most Americans are somewhat new to Hockey, but you don't have to be Scotty Bowman to see what's happening out there on the ice. (To you Americans, he's widely regarded as the Einstein of Hockey, winning several Cups with Montreal and Detroit) The simple fact is that Boston CANNOT win this series unless they tak
The Sharks began game 3 like a team possessed. They put the Canucks on their heels from the opening faceoff and won puck battles all over the ice. Their top 6 forwards played like the players that they are. Even goalie Antti Niemi was spectacular when he needed to be. Add to that the fact that the Canucks were average at best in their own end for the first 40 minutes and that the refs followed Gary Bettman's orders (allegedly) and gave the Sharks 10 PP's. On top of all that Ehrhoff got injured l
Well you knew it had to happen. After an epic opening round series against the Blackhawks, you knew there was going to be a letdown for the Canuck fans and the viewers across the country. It's kind of like watching the brilliant opening scene of Raiders Of The Lost Ark and then waiting patiently, frustratingly for a scene to match that one. Luckily, however, the Canucks themselves didn't suffer from a letdown. Far from it. They kept their work ethic at a high level and stuck to their game plan.
Forget about the Sidney Crosby goal in the Olympics. 'The Goal' at GM Arena (sorry Rogers Place, okay, whatever), is now Alex Burrows' in game 7 OT against the Blackhawks. In what will go down in History as one of the most intense games in the Canucks 40 years, their 2-1 victory allowed them to exorcise the demons, or as John Shorthouse said in his great call of the goal, slay the dragon.
Does anybody else feel like they actually played this game? I think I was more tired than most of the pl
It's time to throw history out the window. Forget about the past two seasons. Forget about losing 3 straight and facing the dire possibility of becoming only the 4th team in history to blow a 3-0 lead in the playoffs. Forget about winning the President's Trophy. Now, it's just about winning one game. It's about giving everything you have and finding a way to get it done.
This series has more than lived up to expectations. While games 3 and 4 were a letdown to even the most objective hockey f
I know the road to the Stanley Cup is always a long journey, filled with peaks and valleys, disasters and moments of elation. But I didn't expect this journey to involve stepping on a land mine and then getting hit by an Atom bomb. I think that's about how most of us Canuck fans are feeling right now, and I didn't even fork out a few hundred dollars to have to sit in the Rog and have to witness this catastrophe.
Am I overstating things? Maybe slightly. The Canucks still have 2 more chances t
I knew it wasn't going to be easy. I fully expected Chicago to come out and play great in game 4. I also expected that the Canucks would have a killer instinct that has been missing for most of 40 years. Clearly I was wrong. Why awake a sleeping giant? (Okay maybe giant is the wrong word, these aren't last years Hawks but they certainly have some confidence back). The best way to go deep in the Playoffs is to finish teams off as early as possible so you can rest. I guess you could say the Hawks
The Canucks head into game one of the first round of the 2011 NHL Playoffs against the Blackhawks in great shape. They've had their most solid, most consistent regular season in their History. The numbers, the stats and the awards are well documented. I don't think I need to waste time here going over them once again. Let's just say the numbers have been astounding, and leave it at that. The Hawks on the other hand have crawled into the Playoffs, almost against their will. They played that last
Frustration. Disappointment. Anger. I felt all of the above after the Canucks fell 5-1 at home in game 6 to a Hawks team that took us by the throat and squeezed. That's it. Series over. You can blame a lot of people for losing this series. You can point to Luongo for his below average play through at least a few of the games. You can look at Vigneault who just can't figure out how to win in the Playoffs. You could lay the blame on Kesler or Burrows or Daniel Sedin. I, however, blame myself. I we
After playing a solid and composed game 5 in Chicago, and finally showing what this team is capable of, is this Canuck team just setting us up once again for our annual heartbreak? I've shed more tears on my '94 White Hot Canucks towel than I care to remember. They always suck us in, and then just when we start believing, and start discussing that damned parade, they fall apart.
That's all in the past, and today's a new day. When Roberto Luongo plays like Roberto Luongo, there is no telling
It seems like only a year ago that we saw what occurred on Friday night at GM Place. As usual the original was better. This sequel was a waste of time. And money. While this nightmare hasn't ended yet, it's obvious and hauntingly sad ending seems all but a foregone conclusion.
Canucks coach Alain Vigneault has apparently learned nothing from last years loss to the Hawks. He still clearly has no answer for Byfuglien. Or any other Blackhawk for that matter. On paper I think these are two pretty
As a Canucks fan I was very nervous going into game 2. I put a little extra Vodka in my Coke Zero to try to steady the nerves. My fingernails were already long gone. After the Canucks found a way to win game 1 in Chicago, I knew that the Hawks would approach this like a must-win game and I just hoped the Canucks could weather the early storm. That, of course, didn't happen. Quite the opposite actually. The Canucks pinned the Hawks deep in their own zone for the better part of 7 minutes waiting f
It may be a little premature to say that this Blackhawk team is in trouble, but they don't look like the dominant superpower that they think they are. In fact there are only two teams in the playoffs that have given up more goals than they've scored. Montreal is the obvious one, but the other is Chicago. Doesn't sound like a superpower to me. I don't think it's a stretch to call this a must win for the Hawks. Going into Vancouver, where the Canucks have been all but unbeatable, down 2-0 would be
One of the more famous lines from Jurassic Park came from Samuel L. Jackson. "Hold on to your butts" basically warned the audience to strap on your seat belts and get ready for a hell of a ride. Seventeen years later I think that same phrase could apply in the second round series between Chicago and Vancouver. Jim Hughson might want to say those words before the puck drops in game one. There will likely be no introduction and no character development. There will certainly be no love story. No, t
Less than 24 hours after the Washington Capitals proved that I am not sniffing glue or huffing unleaded gas (if you read my earlier predictions, I said that the Capitals weren't that good and were going to exit early) it's time for the second round.
The first round had some of the best and most entertaining hockey I've seen in years. Seven of the eight series went to at least six games and the only one that didn't (Philadelphia beat New Jersey in five) was a pretty big upset. Montreal beat Wa
Gary Bruce Bettman was born on a stormy Spring morning on June 2, 1952 in Queens, New York to a Jewish, ahh screw it. If you want to know his entire pathetic history, try Wikipedia. I'm more interested in his time as Commissioner of the National Hockey League, which began in 1993 and inexplicably continues to this day. Inexplicably is probably the wrong word. The reason he is still there is because of money. I'm sure if you were to ask him about it he would give you his usual Lawyer jargon and n
Our best players have to be our best players. There's nothing better than starting a blog with an overused cliche. However, truer words were never spoken. In an act of desperation Vigneault put Samuelsson back with the Sedin twins in the third period of game 4 and that third period is the turning point in this series thus far. This line has been on fire and Samuelsson is picking corners like he's hitting targets at a skills competition. The Kings simply have no answer for him. 7 goals in 5 games
Now is not the time to push the panic button, but for those bandwagoners out there, good to know you. Take care. The Canucks-Kings series has been one that the Canucks have virtually dominated in every aspect except for special teams and goaltending. Unfortunately, those are probably the two most important. If the Canucks don't figure out there penalty killing and Luongo can't raise his game to at least a solid if unspectacular level, the Canucks will not win this series. Where is that panic but
