The Canucks Playoff Chase As it Stands on Good Friday

The Canucks appear to be in good shape to get into the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year after missing last year.  With 4 games to go in the regular season, the Canucks hold down 2nd place in the Pacific Division and sit 4 points up on 3rd place Calgary and 5 points clear of the 4th place Los Angeles Kings. However, last night's regulation loss to the Blackhawks couples with LA's win over Edmonton, makes things even more tricky for the Canucks.

The Canucks currently hold the 1st tie-breaker (ROWs) on both Calgary and LA.


The remaining schedule for Vancouver looks like this:

@Nashville (WIN 5-4 in shootout)
@Chicago (LOSS 3-1)
@Winnipeg
Los Angeles
Arizona
Edmonton

Compared to Calgary and LA, the Canucks have the toughest remaining schedule

Canucks Trump the Kings in Crucial 4 Pointer

The Canucks came into the Staples Center for a key battle against the Los Angeles Kings with both teams jockeying for playoff position in the NHL's tight Western Conference.  Still smarting from a blowout loss at home to the lowly Columbus Blue Jackets and having been owned by the Kings in recent years, things didn't look good early on as LA took a 1-0 lead 7 seconds into their first power play of the game.  Usually a 1-0 lead is all the Stanley Cup Champions need to cement a win. Especially at home. Especially, especially against the Vancouver Canucks.

But not today.

No today, would be different.  The Canucks came alive

Canucks Face Do or Die vs Arch Nemesis

Dating back to Round One of the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the LA Kings have absolutely owned the Vancouver Canucks.

Yes, the Canucks have had difficulty with all of the California based teams in recent years, but the LA Kings it seems, have proved to be kryptonite to the Canucks Superman

Canucks Continue to Collapse

The Vancouver Canucks lost tonight to the Montreal Paciorettys.

Let's try this again...

The Vancouver Canucks lost to the Montreal Canadiens --powered by Max Pacioretty, who netted a hat-trick on Sochi-bound Roberto Luongo.  Luongo, going head to head with fellow Team Canada goalie Carey Price, stoned Max Pacioretty on not one, but two penalty shots in the second period.  Pacioretty was the first player to get

Canucks Dropping Like Flies

Ahead of tonight's big tilt against the Chicago Blackhawks, comes word that Chris Tanev will miss at least one game with a  broken thumb, and likely won't be ready until after the Olympic break.

GREAT!  Just what they needed!  Another injury!

In what is quickly becoming a season

Canucks Explosion of Scoring

Canucks Explosion of Scoring

The Vancouver Canucks, somehow, managed 5 goals tonight at home against Mike Smith and the Phoenix Coyotes, a team chasing them for a playoff spot in the NHL's Western Conference.  This comes on the heels of a run of games that has seen the team's scoring drying up of late, further exacerbated by injuries to Henrik Sedin and Mike Santorelli -courtesy of Martin Hanzal of these same Phoenix Coyotes.  

Though none of the Canucks players risked a $5000 fine (the penalty that the NHL levied on Hanzal for committing stick fouls on 3 Canucks players in one game shaking up one and seriously injuring two) to go after Hanzal or his teammates in earnest, they did exact some revenge by beating them on the score sheet with a 5-4 overtime win, albeit in overtime.  The Canucks once again gave up a 3rd period lead, something that has plagued them this season especially of late, but managed to get it together in time to pull 2 points out of the fire courtesy of a Kevin Bieksa overtime goal.  Bieksa had two on the night doubling his season total.

The team faces another division rival tomorrow, the lowly Edmonton Oilers before battling the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday.

Canucks 2012-2013 Aftermath

Here's my take on the end of the Canucks season.  I've given it a couple of days.  I've digested it.  I've calmed down.  Much like Vancouver Canucks GM Mike Gillis intimated in his end of season media address about not making emotional decisions, I didn't want to write this in the heat of the moment in a heightened emotional state.  You won't read a hysterical rant about the Canucks' terrible play and the absolutely abysmal and game-affecting officiating throughout their 1st round series with the San Jose Sharks.  For that, you can read my twitter feed leading up to and immediately after whatever that was that Kelly Sutherland thought he saw

Sporting Vancouver 1st Round Playoff Prognostications - Eastern Conference

After a lock-out shortened regular season we finally get down to business...the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs are upon us.  This year's shortened season produced some new entrants in the NHL's tournament.  After a 9 year hiatus the Toronto Maple Leafs finally

Time To Channel Your Hated for the Sharks

Remember the Canucks 2010-2011 Stanley Cup Run? Of course you do.

1 game short.

Do you remember how much anger and hatred you (assuming you're a Canuck fan) felt towards those evil thug knuckle-dragging Boston Bruins?  Of course you do.

Everyone remembers

Canucks Smell Playoffs Around the Corner

The Vancouver Canucks extended their winning streak to 4 games and are now 10 - 2 in their last 12.  Pretty decent considering they haven't played any of those games without their full complement of starters.  In fact, the line-up they dressed in some of those games closer resembled an AHL team then the usual Canucks squad we've gotten used to.
Even with a full line-up, 10 - 2 is impressive.  To do it with a depleted roster is almost jaw-dropping.  I've been critical of Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault in the past, and I'm still not convinced he can fully get the job done, however, credit where credit is due.  He's managed to not only keep the team competitive while missing multiple starters, dealing with the 2 headed goalie "champagne problem" as well as rampant trade deadline speculation, he has kept them absolutely rolling.  So I lay bouquets at the feet of the coach.

                                                                         

If the Canucks Didn't Have Bad Luck they Wouldn't Have Any Luck at All

Much was made yesterday about the return of Ryan Kesler --- the straw that stirs the Canucks drink, the engine of the Canuck-mobile.  Kesler's much anticipated return certainly lived up to expectations as the team's Selke winning centre came flying out of the gates on his first with a shot and a hit, showing no lasting effects of his lengthy absence due to a broken foot bone.  Kesler opened the scoring banging in a rebound from his office right in front of the net with a  goal that turned out to be the game winner as Cory Schneider went on to post his 4th shutout in the last  9 games (yes you read that correctly).
Kesler's return also bumped newly acquired Derek Roy down to the "3rd line" if you will where he has been impressive playing with Chris Higgins and Jannik Hansen.
The team looked good offensively, carrying much of the play, creating several chances,and getting off over 40 shots for their highest total of the season.  The score, in my opinion, greatly flattered the Phoenix Coyotes due mainly to goalie Mike Smith being up to the task and stopping everything the Canucks threw at him except for the previously mentioned Kesler effort.
One might say that with Kelser's return and the addition of Derek Roy that the Canucks look as deep offensively as they have all year and probably in the last few years.  Perfect.  Let's get this thing rolling.  Just in time for the playoffs.
But wait.  In what is becoming an almost expected occurrence, we find out this morning that Chris Higgins and Chris Tanev will be out indefinitely and will more than likely miss the rest of the regular season and perhaps the playoffs.
They just can't seem to get a break...unless its a bone.

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Heard in Canucks dressing room during last year's playoffs...

ALAIN VIGNEAULT after 1st intermission of Rd 1 Gm 3 vs the LA Kings:

"OK, guys. We busted our ass, and totally outplayed them. We had them running around in their own zone and we got a hard-earned 1 goal lead...NOW, let's spend the next 2 periods in our own zone and hope they don't get one by us.
What's that Henrik? We're one of the highest scoring teams in the league and we've been very successful with our aggressive fore-check and our incredible puck possession game?

OK...let's just forget that and play 'dump-it-out, dump-it-in' the rest of the way and hope for the best."

Henrik Sedin: But, you've got the last 2 Art Ross trophy winners and a bunch of career 30 goal scorers up front and some decent offensive defensemen too! You're turning us into checkers?
You can play that style with Minnesota's roster...what do you need us for?"

ALAIN VIGNEAULT: "OK, MayRay...I'm gonna double-shift you for the rest of the game. Try to keep the falling-down-for-absolutely-no-reason down to 3 times per shift, k?
And if I catch ANY of you carrying the puck into the other team's zone, driving the puck to the net, or setting up in the offensive zone, you're getting benched the rest of the way.
Oh! And Scheids, expect to be under fire for the rest of the game, k?"

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What if... we lose another season?

With labour talks between the NHL and the NHLPA appearing as though they have met another impasse, and more and more October days tick off the calendar, it looks like we might have to start bracing ourselves for the possibility that we might lose another season.

With now over 100 NHLPA members seeking employment in Europe, and the NHL owners keeping in line behind their fearless leader Gary Bettman, it looks more and more like we are in for another pissing contest instead of a constructive negotiation.

From this humble blogger's standpoint, having been a huge NHL fan long before Mr. Bettman arrived on the scene, I have noticed that the league just hasn't been the same since he became league commissioner.  The man carries himself with a certain arrogance that, frankly, makes me want to hurl.  He constantly talks down to people and answers reporters questions as though they are something he just scraped off the bottom of his shoe.  This is not a pleasant man.  Just the kind of guy you want leading your negotiation team if you're an NHL owner, but certainly not who you want running your favourite sports league if you're an NHL fan.

This is now Mr. Bettman's THIRD lockout in less than 20 years.  It took him about 7 minutes to fire up the first one when he got the job back in 1993.  Everyone knew we were headed for another lockout this year because this is Gary Bettman's negotiation style.  He could care less about the game.  He has no time for a reasonable negotiation where both sides come away with something.  No.  He wants the players to grovel.  he wants the players to kiss his shiny loafers AND thank him for the privilege.  This is what Gary Bettman wants.  During the last lockout, after losing an entire season, the owners got the players to finally agree to a hard cap.  Fast forward 6 years and, somehow, this is not good enough for our friend Gary.  In fact, it is so terrible that he was forced to lock the players out rather than start the season and continue to negotiate...this is WITH a cap!  If the owners can't figure it out with a hard cap in place, maybe they need to take a look in the mirror, or better yet have a good long look at the man who is leading them down this path.

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NHLers loitering on the sidelines

I attended the BC Lions v Calgary Stampeders game at BC Place on Saturday night and I noticed that a group of Vancouver Canucks had been invited to watch part of the game from the BC Lions sideline.  If I'm not mistaken Kevin Bieksa, Ryan Kesler, Jason Garrison, Alex Edler, Mason Raymond and Cory Schneider.

Everyone knows that the Canucks have a lot of extra time on their hands due to the NHL lockout.  It seemed surreal to me to see them standing there in street clothes, supporting another local team, which, by the way, I thought to be a classy move.  They were supposed to be playing a game at Rogers Arena, or on a road trip, or resting up for another game.  It really was quite bizarre to see them there instead of on the ice all because of Gary Bettman's 3rd lockout.

Then it hit me....the 2012 CFL team salary cap is $4.3M.  Yup.  If you add up the salaries of the entire BC Lions roster it is equal to, or less than, $4.3M.  Ryan Kesler makes $5M.   Jason Garrison makes $6M+ per season.  Edler and Bieksa aren't that far behind.

What must that have been like for them?  Watching 2 teams go at it 100% banging heads, sacrificing limbs, and giving it their all in front of 30,000+ at BCPlace and hundreds of thousands more on TSN, knowing that their annual salary is more than the entire payroll of each of the two teams they were watching.  It kinda puts things into perspective as far as how much money NHLers really make.

The thing is, we can't look at NHL players as just athletes playing a game and being compensated with massive amounts of money.  It is important to realize that the players are a product.  They are a product that generates large amounts of money for the owners and they should get their piece of the pie.  The sooner the owners stop treating the players as employees, or cattle, and become business partners with them, the sooner we can get hockey players off of CFL sidelines.

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Sporting Vancouver now on Blogger

Hello gracious readers,

Thanks for following the Sporting Vancouver blog to its new home here at blogger.  Just seems like a better fit.

Let's get down to it.  Here's what's going on in the Vancouver sports world.

The Vancouver Whitecaps hammered Chivas USA 4-0 on Wednesday on the Bell Pitch at BCPlace Stadium.  It was a much needed win for the Caps who have gone win-less for too long and were in danger of falling out of the 5th and final playoff spot in the West.  ever since their mid-season roster shake-up, the team seems to have had difficulty finding its identity and flow in their game.  Here's hoping that this game is their turning point heading into the playoffs.

The BC Lions head into a crucial game tomorrow against the Calgary Stampeders at BCPlace without several key starters.  Among them Geroy Simon, Arland Bruce III, and Khalif Mitchell.  These key injuries come at  an unfortunate time with Calgary only 2 points behind them in the race for first in the division.  The Lions will need key contributions from other receivers such as Nik Moore, Marco Ianuzzi, and Kierie Johnson, not to mention a big game from Andrew Harris to attempt to make up for the loss of 2 of the greatest receivers the CFL has ever seen.

The hockey world was taken by surprise to find out that Gary Bettman and Bill Daly met with Donald Fehr at the NHLPA headquarters in Toronto.  Just a few short days after the NHL cancelled its first two weeks of the regular season, wiping out a total of 82 games it looked like lines had been drawn in the sand and the two sides were waiting for the other  to blink.  This surprising and seemingly unscheduled meeting has some in the hockey world cautiously optimistic about the possibility of an agreement bringing hockey back before Christmas.
Colour me pessimistic, but I think there is a long way to go before these two sides get on the same page.  The NHL, led by the ever arrogant Bettman appears to want the NHLPA to not only kiss their feet but also thank them for the privilege to do so.  If I were the players, I would just assume the season is lost and look for work elsewhere.  Maybe another lost season is just what the zombie owners need to realize they need to get rid of Gary Bettman.  One can only hope...

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