Vancouver Canucks

Hard line in hard times

Playing their cards out on the table and ‘playing-in-your-face’ hockey at this time of year, the Vancouver Canucks have found success. Games against Phoenix and Edmonton, teams which find themselves in similar situations in the Western Conference playoff picture, had a lot to do with deciding the Canucks’ fate. Phoenix is reeling after only 3 wins in the past ten and Edmonton has pushed themselves back into the postseason conversation with 7 wins in the last ten games.

The Vancouver Canucks have been slowly coming around despite injuries and leadership questions running rampant among the team’s denizens. With three straight wins posted after a shutout loss earlier to Wayne Gretzky and his Coyotes, the Canucks have gone a long way to securing a playoff berth in the rugged West.

The Sedin twins and Taylor Pyatt busted out of slumps, securing a win against the Coyotes on Monday evening. Roberto Luongo took care of the rest, allowing only Daniel Carcillo’s goal, denying 25 other shots for the critical 3-1 victory on home ice.

Toughness, which had been in question by media and fans alike, has come to the forefront with timely, and I stress timely, decisions for the most part by Vancouver. Rick Rypien, a seldom used forward has added some muscle and has chipped in with some face-off wins when called upon as well. The tandem of Willie Mitchell and Kevin Bieksa cannot be understated in the defensive zone and the efforts of Ryan Kesler and Alexandre Burrows have been magnificent.

In Edmonton on Thursday night, the Oilers welcomed the Canucks to Rexall Place, in order to test their hot streak against a Canucks team that is one of a number of teams the Oil must usurp.

A somewhat uneventful first period, was a scoreless and tough period, as both teams tried to get a handle on the other teams’ designs. Dustin Penner established a presence in front of Luongo, yet the Oilers did not build on that much, as the game progressed. Both netminders were proficient, as Luongo stopped 14 shots and Dwayne Roloson steered the nine shots directed at the Oiler net, away.

Just over a minute into the second frame, Daniel Sedin’s play along the right side finished with his shot being saved nicely by Roloson (though it seemed Burrows tucked in the rebound), and it caromed into the net for a 1-0 Vancouver lead. Jarrett Stoll and Zack Stortini did their best to punish the Canucks, with Stortini challenged by recent Canuck call-up Nathan McIver. Mitchell was instrumental in refusing rushes by star Oiler Ales Hemsky. The game had a lot of bruising play, by this time, with Jeff Cowan, Mike Weaver and the usual Canucks such as Bieksa and Kesler applying hits in response to the physical play of Matt Greene, Fernando Pisani and Stortini.

Matt Pettinger added his 5th goal of the season and third since becoming a Canuck at the deadline, to give Vancouver a 2-0 lead. In a cagey maneuver, Pettinger chipped the puck past a trapped Steve Staios and showed considerable speed on the ensuing 2-on-1. Joni Pitkanen, the lone Oiler defender, played the pass and a beautiful wrist-shot Pettinger snapped over Roloson’s glove.

A somewhat rare face-off win by the Canucks (by Trevor Linden, who has had another good % this season) resulted in a chance for Vancouver and a 3-0 lead, shortly into the third period. As the play unfolded, the new line of Henrik Sedin, Ryan Shannon and Taylor Pyatt came onto the ice and a gorgeous offensive move by Shannon on the left-wing, dazzled Ladislav Smid and Shannon’s arising pass was spot on to Pyatt, who one-timed a low shot that beat Roloson between the legs. Eighteen-year-old Edmonton forward Sam Gagner nearly broke the play up on the back-check, but was the recipient of a game-low -4 rating.

The Oilers started to turn the tide with strong play from Kyle Brodziak, Andrew Cogliano and Gagner, perhaps a glimpse into the future. On the points, defender Denis Grebeshkov prepared a pass to partner Tom Gilbert who wristed a shot through the traffic provided by Stortini and Curtis Glencross, into the Vancouver goal. The goal extended Gilbert’s team record for goals by a rookie Oilers defenseman with his 12th of the campaign. Luongo’s value shined through at this point, as Edmonton made a pitch to decrease the lead. The Oilers line of Robert Nilsson, Cogliano and Gagner was adept with stick handling in the offensive zone, controlling play and involving Gilbert. Glencross and Brodziak were dangerous until a missed tripping call on an impressive power-play shift by Hemsky led directly to Sami Salo gaining a loose puck along the boards and rushing up ice. Salo forehanded a pass to Linden, who let a wrist-shot fly, effectively dashing the Oilers’ hopes and locking up a 4-1 decision.

The win moves the Canucks into a tie with the Calgary Flames, who dispatched Colorado last night as well. Vancouver sits in 6th place with Calgary 7th. Both have identical records, the Canucks prevailing with a superior head-to-head performance thus far. Both clubs are just one point back of the #3 seeded Minnesota Wild, with Vancouver facing off against the Wild for the division lead tonight at 7 p.m. (PST).

March 21, 2008
Robin Keith Thompson