Oilers Play Spoilers and Canucks Clinch From Couch

Canucks Nation was abuzz all day Tuesday after a huge Canucks come from behind shootout win over the reeling LA Kings.  The win put the Canucks firmly in control of their own destiny and, even though they picked up a loser point, put the Kings in a spot of trouble.

However, the season wasn't over yet and the Canucks hadn't officially clinched, after all.  They could clinch with another win on Thursday versus the lowly Arizona Coyotes.  Or, with a little help from the out-of-town scoreboard, they could clinch beforehand.  There were multiple scenarios that would put them in.  The least likely was the Spoilers, err.. Oilers beating the Kings in regulation.

Canucks followers, myself included, basically ignored that possibility.  The Los Angeles Kings had only lost in regulation ONCE in the last 27 games against the Oilers.  The Oilers are having a terrible season even by their standards.  The Kings thumped the Oilers 8-2 in their last meeting. You could basically chalk up 2 points

Evander and the Jets

Evander Kane missed the game against the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday night at Rogers Arena because: (vote for your favourite in the comment section below)

a) he was late for the team bus
b) he went drinking at a bar on a game day
c) he wore sweat pants to the arena
d) he's injured
e) coach's decision
f) Dustin Byfuglien threw his pants in the shower
g) he wants out
h) his balls were deflated while getting a lap dance
i) all of the above

Depending on any number of reports, or what time of the day it was, one could believe

Whitecaps Eke One Out in Edmonton

The Vancouver WhitecapsFC started the 2013 AmWay Canadian Championship with a 3-2 victory over EdmontonFC of the 2nd tier North American Soccer League.
The Whitecaps were expected to easily handle Edmonton but this game

Canucks Playoff Ready? They Better Be

Last night's game between the Vancouver Canucks and the Chicago Blackhawks can be looked at in two ways depending on your perspective.

One might say that the Vancouver Canucks played one of their best games of the season thus far against the top team in the NHL and soon to be crowned President's Trophy winners the Chicago Blackhawks. One might say that the Canucks, despite missing 3 of their top 6 defensemen shut down the explosive Blackhawks save for a fluky rarely seen ref-assisted goal.  One might say

Khalif Mitchell Might Need to Rethink Some Decisions

The latest from the outspoken Khalif Mitchell came in the form of a televised sit-down interview with Craig McEwen on Rogers Sportsnet. In the interview, Mitchell re-affirmed his stance that he took when he was traded by the BC Lions to the Toronto Argonauts, stating that he would not report to Toronto and would like to be released from his contract.
He cited his love of the west-coast lifestyle and an apparently lucrative business arrangement with a west-coast beverage company.
Khalif Mitchell has always been, what one might describe, a free-thinker. One need not look any further than his twitter account @Truthwillfree96 for evidence of that. In his Twitter bio he
describes himself as, among other things, a "Believer in TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE CONCEPT". I think it will take a lot more than that to set him free from his contract, and truth is he is either getting bad advice or he needs to grow up a little.
I think he is a fantastic player and from all accounts a great guy and truly unique and gifted person. As a season ticket holder I've shaken his hands after games a few times and he has signed autographs for me and countless other fans. From what I've seen, he has always made a point of greeting fans after games on the way to the dressing room and will sign for anyone who asks.

Khalif Mitchell still has 1 year left on his contract with the Argos and it would probably be in his best interest to honour it, go play for a year for them and make a good impression and either take a crack at playing again down south in the NFL or get on with another CFL team, of his choosing, as a free agent.  Then he will truly be free...and that's the TRUTH!

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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.

                                                                         

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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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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Lions hold off Stamps for 1st in West

The BC Lions strengthened their hold on first place in the CFL's Western Division by holding off the Calgary Stampeders by a score of 27-22.  Calgary threatened late, driving the ball upfield looking for a game-winning touchdown, but a fantastic interception by Ryan Phillips thwarted the Stampeders late charge.
Despite not having star regulars Geroy Simon, Arland Bruce III, and Khalif Mitchell in the lineup, the Lions powered through behind strong performances from Phillips, Travis Lulay, Andrew Harris and Adam Bighill.
The BC Lions improve their record to 10-4 with 4 games to play in the regular season, while Calgary falls to 8-6.

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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...

You can follow Sporting Vancouver on Twitter @vansport