The last ten minutes of the third period were probably the most fun I've had watching the Canucks in awhile. The action was rapid and the Canucks were constantly on the forecheck, causing turnovers and creating scoring chances. But where was that all game? The Canucks have been plagued with inconsistency all year and no wonder they're still sitting outside the playoff picture - they can't play a full 60 minutes of solid hockey. The first period was forgettable to say the least, but only when the Canucks were down did they realize they had a game to play. I'm not exactly sure what's wrong here - maybe it's the players, maybe it's the schedule, maybe it's the coach. In John Tortorella's colourful words, "I can't [expletive] explain it."

Did anyone see spark plug Rick Rypien anywhere tonight? I sure didn't but that's probably because he only played 4:15. Total. For a team that lacked any sort of energy I'm a little stunned that Rypien was underused. Tanner Glass has been a really nice pick-up after Florida declined to qualify a bunch of their young players and he was arguably one of the better Canucks tonight. Darcy Hordichuk made his mark with a good hit on George Parros which was quickly answered by dropping the gloves with one of the league's biggest heavyweights. Speaking of the bout, why do all hockey players find it acceptable to follow up a good hit with a fight? Hordichuk obviously accepted the invitation but I'm getting sick of some of these meaningless fights. Shane O'Brien's tilt with Kyle Chipchura had a much bigger effect on the game.

The Sedins extended their streaks but Alain Vigneault made a great point before the game - it's not that they're playing any better than before, it's just that they're getting the bounces. Henrik's marker in the first period was a shot that I think caught Jonas Hiller off-guard because he was playing the pass. The Sedins are getting the chances and really capitalizing on them but it's a bit of a stretch to think that this will continue for the rest of the season. For the better portion of the second period and parts of the first, the Sedins actually remained quite invisible.

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My boy Steve Bernier was also invisible for stretches throughout the game, but the sequence in which he knocked down Nick Boynton twice really got his game going. He eventually scored the second goal to tie things up but he's one of the more underrated young players in the league. He uses his body very, very well and has the ability to become a 30-goal scorer one day. He won't wow you with his skill or skating, and probably never will, but he's a player that is willing to do the dirty work in front of the net and keeps the game nice and simple. If Bernier can give efforts like his

every night, there's no question he'd be one of the most coveted players in the league with his rare blend of skill and size.

The Canucks' relatively lacklustre offensive production tonight was, I think, in part because they were trying to be too cute. They tried to go for the pretty puck-control, tip-in plays but they didn't work against a stronger, more motivated Anaheim squad. Alex Burrows' best shifts came when he forechecked and carried the puck into the offensive zone with reckless abandon. It's easy to play with the Sedins because they can get you the puck so easily, but it's also easy to get lost in the cycling, give-and-go game and forget to puck your stick on the ice.

For a guy who really prides himself on positional play, I've been pretty disappointed with Willie Mitchell thus far. I think sometimes his extra long stick gets in the way of his skating and puck-handling, although admittedly he doesn't have to do a lot of either to be effective. I think too many times already this season he's been caught out of position or scrambling to get back into the play. The best defenseman tonight was Christian Ehrhoff and his 23:26 TOI led all Vancouver skaters. His defensive play is something to improve on, that is certain, but offensively no one else is as good a playmaker as he is. While he isn't as brash or flashy, his ability to create plays in the offensive zone is quite reminiscent of Ed Jovanovski. I hope that Ehrhoff remains a Canuck for some time - San Jose's loss is our gain.

For Mathieu Schneider, I think we're still seeing a guy who's still trying to get into game shape. His 10:44 TOI on even strength was a bit of an adventure sometimes and I wish he'd hit the net on the powerplay. The Canucks have two guys that can really fire the puck but Sami Salo and Schneider combined for only 4 shots and the team went 0-5 on the powerplay, whose recent trend of feast or famine continues.

Craig MacTavish believes the Canucks are one of the best teams in the West, and he's right, but only on paper. At some point, something has to give and the Canucks have to realize that they cannot win games by playing half the game.