How about them Canucks!
- Thread starter #juan
- Start date
playing these teams who are fighting for their lives does have a tendency to shut down the games, and
they do turn into defensive battles, thats just the way it goes.
At least canucks had the goal, and didn't have to try catch up, like l.a. did. I notice l.a. didn't
score, so that is the bottom line, (2 points), and if you ask the team and vineault, that is the
goal for them, doesn't matter if we like it or not.
Sekeres, on team 1040, this morning is just trashing the style of the game by the canucks, called it
'boring and hideous', but I find that to be very sad, as that totally dismisses the blood, sweat and
tears that the players have to go through, while many are sitting on their buttsin
their living rooms, criticizing.
I wonder what they could have done last night, while l.a. was checking them so so close. It is impossible
to turn that game into an offensive game, no one has control of the puck long enough to do much of
anything, as there is always a player right there, who wants the puck back.
Johnathan Quick is a fabulous goalie, who did let in an early goal, and that made him tighten up even
more, and he wasn't about to let anything past him after that, and luongo was the same.
How on earth can a team score lots of goals in that type of game.
When playoffs start, the games will be similar, as playoffs are usually like that, always have been.
Its all about defense first, and the goals will come.
I watched the game from beginning to end, and didn't see anything boring or hideous at all, didn't even
think about it, but I was totally emmersed in 'how' hard it was for any player to do anything, then
try to get the puck past either goalie, a real battle, I enjoyed it, and appreciated it.
They do need to work on the 'power play', it is looking a bit disconbobulated.
Their best goal scorer, daniel seden is not in the lineup, so they have to regroup, and play slightly
different, till he comes back, but unless i'm forgetting, they haven't lost since he was injured.
I just felt that L.A. played much more poorly than I recall in recent history!
it probably seems that way because the offense partially dissapears, and defense is the big part of the
game. The team just doesn't want to get scored against, so they defend, and wait for their chances to
put one in the net, but canucks were so good last night defensively, they didn't give them many chances
at all, sure l.a. had lots of shots, but the majority of those shots were from the outside, and not big
scoring threats at all.
I don't think they see that at all, they see the chance they have, and they will battle for
that until it is no longer there, that is the nature of the player, but not us, I have many times seen the end for a team, and figured 'well this is it', and they have
fought thru the problem and come out OK, it just shows me that one should never give up or throw
in the towel, if there is even a tiny opening left.
Guess thats why I was never in the NHL, and oh yeah, there is also another small reason, I am a woman. lol
The Vancouver Canucks have handed the Colorado Avalanche five losses this season. A sixth would seemingly dash any chance the Avs have of reaching the playoffs.
Slumping Colorado looks to avoid being swept in the season series by the Canucks for the first time in more than 20 years when it visits the Northwest Division champions Wednesday night.
The Avalanche (40-32-6) are one point behind eighth-place Phoenix in the Western Conference, but the Coyotes have a game in hand. Colorado also must move past ninth-place Los Angeles, which is tied with the Avs with 86 points but has two games in hand.
With four games remaining, Colorado has little margin for error - especially after a 5-1 defeat to San Jose on Monday pushed the club's losing streak to three.
"Four games left, you have to win them all and hope other things work out our way," forward Paul Stastny said. "It's a guaranteed must win."
Colorado went 7-1-1 from March 4-20 to get back in the playoff picture, but the three consecutive losses since have badly damaged its postseason hopes. One of the defeats was 3-2 in overtime to the Canucks on Saturday, a result that gave Vancouver a fourth straight Northwest title.
Chris Higgins scored his second goal of the game in OT as Vancouver (46-21-9) rallied from a 2-0 second-period deficit. It was the Canucks' sixth straight victory over the Avs and moved them to 14-0-2 in the last 16 matchups.
Vancouver is looking to sweep the season series for the first time since winning all three games from the Quebec Nordiques in 1987-88.
The Canucks have outscored the Avs 18-5 in 2011-12, with Jannik Hansen and Daniel Sedin leading the way with three goals apiece.
Sedin, the team leader with 30 goals, is recovering from a concussion sustained last Wednesday and is uncertain to return before the playoffs.
Vancouver has won three straight, with Monday's 1-0 victory over Los Angeles guaranteeing it will finish no worse than second in the West.
Manny Malhotra scored his first goal since Feb. 18 and Roberto Luongo made 38 saves for his fourth shutout of the season. Luongo appears refreshed, posting a 1.30 goals-against average and stopping 111 of 115 shots in his last three starts after receiving a week off.
"Sometimes you just need to reset everything," said Luongo, who was 0-3-0 with a 5.28 GAA and .845 save percentage in his previous four starts. "Obviously, mentally, I wasn't where I wanted to be, and I was fighting it a little bit. But sometimes you have to put things in perspective and start from scratch - and that's what I did and I'm feeling good right now."
Luongo stopped 38 shots against Colorado over the weekend and has posted a 1.43 GAA in four games against them this season. He has gone 10-0-2 with a 2.24 GAA in his last 12 starts versus the Avs, who have scored two or fewer goals in each of their last four games overall.
Colorado's Gabriel Landeskog and Jami McGinn beat Luongo for power-play goals Saturday. Forward Chuck Kobasew's hit on Aaron Rome left the Canucks defenseman with an injured knee, and Kobasew was fined $2,500 by the NHL on Sunday for causing the injury that sidelined Rome for Monday's game.
The Avs' Semyon Varlamov, who made 29 saves Saturday, is 0-4-1 with a 3.29 GAA lifetime versus the Canucks. Varlamov, who has started five straight games, has a 3.34 GAA during his losing streak after posting a 1.91 GAA in winning his previous five.
Slumping Colorado looks to avoid being swept in the season series by the Canucks for the first time in more than 20 years when it visits the Northwest Division champions Wednesday night.
The Avalanche (40-32-6) are one point behind eighth-place Phoenix in the Western Conference, but the Coyotes have a game in hand. Colorado also must move past ninth-place Los Angeles, which is tied with the Avs with 86 points but has two games in hand.
With four games remaining, Colorado has little margin for error - especially after a 5-1 defeat to San Jose on Monday pushed the club's losing streak to three.
"Four games left, you have to win them all and hope other things work out our way," forward Paul Stastny said. "It's a guaranteed must win."
Colorado went 7-1-1 from March 4-20 to get back in the playoff picture, but the three consecutive losses since have badly damaged its postseason hopes. One of the defeats was 3-2 in overtime to the Canucks on Saturday, a result that gave Vancouver a fourth straight Northwest title.
Chris Higgins scored his second goal of the game in OT as Vancouver (46-21-9) rallied from a 2-0 second-period deficit. It was the Canucks' sixth straight victory over the Avs and moved them to 14-0-2 in the last 16 matchups.
Vancouver is looking to sweep the season series for the first time since winning all three games from the Quebec Nordiques in 1987-88.
The Canucks have outscored the Avs 18-5 in 2011-12, with Jannik Hansen and Daniel Sedin leading the way with three goals apiece.
Sedin, the team leader with 30 goals, is recovering from a concussion sustained last Wednesday and is uncertain to return before the playoffs.
Vancouver has won three straight, with Monday's 1-0 victory over Los Angeles guaranteeing it will finish no worse than second in the West.
Manny Malhotra scored his first goal since Feb. 18 and Roberto Luongo made 38 saves for his fourth shutout of the season. Luongo appears refreshed, posting a 1.30 goals-against average and stopping 111 of 115 shots in his last three starts after receiving a week off.
"Sometimes you just need to reset everything," said Luongo, who was 0-3-0 with a 5.28 GAA and .845 save percentage in his previous four starts. "Obviously, mentally, I wasn't where I wanted to be, and I was fighting it a little bit. But sometimes you have to put things in perspective and start from scratch - and that's what I did and I'm feeling good right now."
Luongo stopped 38 shots against Colorado over the weekend and has posted a 1.43 GAA in four games against them this season. He has gone 10-0-2 with a 2.24 GAA in his last 12 starts versus the Avs, who have scored two or fewer goals in each of their last four games overall.
Colorado's Gabriel Landeskog and Jami McGinn beat Luongo for power-play goals Saturday. Forward Chuck Kobasew's hit on Aaron Rome left the Canucks defenseman with an injured knee, and Kobasew was fined $2,500 by the NHL on Sunday for causing the injury that sidelined Rome for Monday's game.
The Avs' Semyon Varlamov, who made 29 saves Saturday, is 0-4-1 with a 3.29 GAA lifetime versus the Canucks. Varlamov, who has started five straight games, has a 3.34 GAA during his losing streak after posting a 1.91 GAA in winning his previous five.
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schneider is in goal tonight, and I think bieksa is having a night off, just some maintenance, not an
injury.
not sure about salo
yes, schneider is building his future as we speak, the whole NHL know about him now, so if canucks decide to make a trade, they will get something very good in return, or, if they decide to trade luongo, and keep schneider, they will get something very good for him as well, so it is a positive thing for the canucks with their goalies right now.
Higgins ruled last night.........first he scored the short-handed goal, then he made the big play in the final seconds to cancel the icing call! Rock on Higgins.
yep, higgins is back, love his game.
I will be glad when these desperate teams have finally won their spots, then may be the games will settle down a bit and not be so damn defensive, and wild, even those teams will then settle back a tad, and try to find their own offense.
the battle by colorado last night was impressive, it was their last hurrah, and schneider stoned them.
colorado/calgary are toast now and tonight phoenix and san jose are playing, so that will be a defensive battle royal, as they are battling for the last two spots.
l.a./phoenix/san jose and dallas have to figure it out now.
I will be glad when these desperate teams have finally won their spots, then may be the games will settle down a bit and not be so damn defensive, and wild, even those teams will then settle back a tad, and try to find their own offense.
the battle by colorado last night was impressive, it was their last hurrah, and schneider stoned them.
colorado/calgary are toast now and tonight phoenix and san jose are playing, so that will be a defensive battle royal, as they are battling for the last two spots.
l.a./phoenix/san jose and dallas have to figure it out now.
LIVE ON TSN, NBCSN(HD) Radio: 1040 Stars Fri 30/03/2012 7:00 PM Canucks-Stars
Preview Stars need points as they visit CanucksDavid Kalan - NHL.com Staff Writer
Date Vis/Home Final
22 Mar 2012 VAN@DAL VAN, 2 - 1
6 Mar 2012 DAL@VAN DAL, 5 - 2
26 Feb 2012 VAN@DAL DAL, 3 - 2
STARS (42-30-5) at CANUCKS (48-20-9)
TV: NBCSN (HD), TSN, FS-SW+ (HD)
Last 10: Dallas 6-4-0; Vancouver 6-3-1
Season Series: The Stars have won two of their three meetings with the Canucks this season, but Vancouver took the most recent game, a 2-1 victory on March 22 at American Airlines Center.
Big Story: Vancouver already has the Northwest Division title sewn up but is playing for the top spot in the Western Conference and first in the overall standings. The Canucks won't have an easy time against the Stars, who are playing well and embroiled in one of the wildest postseason runs in recent memory.
Team Scope:
Stars: The phrase "Wild, Wild West" may not even come close to describe just how wild the Pacific Division is right now. With Dallas, Los Angeles, San Jose and Phoenix all jockeying for a total of three spots, the division routinely has a new leader -- and teams have dropped from third in the West to outside the top eight in one night.
Dallas might not even be in the playoff conversation were it not for a six-game winning streak to start the month of March. Since then, however, they've won three of seven games. A four-game road trip hasn't made that much easier, but the Stars' fate is still very much in their hands. After Friday's visit to Vancouver the team will start a home-and-home with division-rival San Jose.
The Stars will stick with Kari Lehtonen in goal. He made 31 saves in Wednesday's 3-1 win at Edmonton and will be making his seventh straight start.
"We're going to run with Kari," Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said. "Kari is feeling pretty good right now. ... He wants to play and we need at least three more wins, so we've got to find them anywhere we can."
Canucks: Vancouver looks like it will be the only Northwest Division team in the postseason field. The division title has been wrapped up for a while, but the Canucks are chasing St. Louis for the West's top overall seed as well as the Presidents' Trophy. The Canucks will have a game in hand on St. Louis when they take the ice Friday night, but they may need to run the table to have a good chance of overtaking the Blues for the League's best mark.
The Canucks have helped their cause by winning four straight games and play four of their final five at home. All four wins have come by one goal, including back-to-back 1-0 victories against Los Angeles and Colorado this week.
"We've done a good job keeping pace with them our last four games and I think we both have five left, so it'll be interesting," Schneider said of the race with the Blues. "We're hitting our stride defensively and playing well and so are they; we'd love to get the No. 1 seed, but we're just worried about us right now."
Who's Hot: Not many players are hotter than Dallas' Michael Ryder, who has five goals and three assists in his last five games, including two goals and an assist on Wednesday. ... The Canucks may not be scoring much, what scoring they are getting all seems to be coming from Chris Higgins. He has three goals, including two game-winners, in the last three games.
Injury Report : Radek Dvorak (ankle) and Eric Nystrom (lacerated leg) are both questionable for Dallas, which is also missing Mark Fistric, who has been out since March 21 with a strained abdominal muscle but has resumed skating. … Vancouver recently lost defenseman Aaron Rome for a week or two with a sprained knee, but the larger concern is the considerable void left by Daniel Sedin, who is out indefinitely with a concussion.
Stat Pack: Certainly Vancouver would prefer to grab the No. 1 seed in the West, but after losing last season's Stanley Cup Final despite having Game 7 on home ice, the Canucks know the top seed doesn't guarantee a championship. Perhaps more importantly, however, is that few teams can match Vancouver's consistency both at home and on the road. The Canucks' home record of 23-10-4 is nearly identical to their 24-11-5 road mark.
Puck Drop: Given how competitive the Pacific Division is, the Stars will desperately need the two points Friday night, but the Canucks are unlikely to make it easy on them even with a top-three seed already sealed. The Canucks are actually chasing some history as the season winds down. No team has won the Presidents' Trophy in consecutive seasons since the Dallas Stars did it in 1998 and 1999. The Canucks wouldn't mind following in those footsteps: The 1999 Stars took home the first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history.
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I think bieksa will miss another game, ongoing maintenance.
schneider and luongo will share these back to back games, assuming it is luongo
tonight.
if canucks win tonight they will be tied with the rangers, and only one point
behind st. louis for the overall lead.
Preview Stars need points as they visit CanucksDavid Kalan - NHL.com Staff Writer
Date Vis/Home Final
22 Mar 2012 VAN@DAL VAN, 2 - 1
6 Mar 2012 DAL@VAN DAL, 5 - 2
26 Feb 2012 VAN@DAL DAL, 3 - 2
STARS (42-30-5) at CANUCKS (48-20-9)
TV: NBCSN (HD), TSN, FS-SW+ (HD)
Last 10: Dallas 6-4-0; Vancouver 6-3-1
Season Series: The Stars have won two of their three meetings with the Canucks this season, but Vancouver took the most recent game, a 2-1 victory on March 22 at American Airlines Center.
Big Story: Vancouver already has the Northwest Division title sewn up but is playing for the top spot in the Western Conference and first in the overall standings. The Canucks won't have an easy time against the Stars, who are playing well and embroiled in one of the wildest postseason runs in recent memory.
Team Scope:
Stars: The phrase "Wild, Wild West" may not even come close to describe just how wild the Pacific Division is right now. With Dallas, Los Angeles, San Jose and Phoenix all jockeying for a total of three spots, the division routinely has a new leader -- and teams have dropped from third in the West to outside the top eight in one night.
Dallas might not even be in the playoff conversation were it not for a six-game winning streak to start the month of March. Since then, however, they've won three of seven games. A four-game road trip hasn't made that much easier, but the Stars' fate is still very much in their hands. After Friday's visit to Vancouver the team will start a home-and-home with division-rival San Jose.
The Stars will stick with Kari Lehtonen in goal. He made 31 saves in Wednesday's 3-1 win at Edmonton and will be making his seventh straight start.
"We're going to run with Kari," Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said. "Kari is feeling pretty good right now. ... He wants to play and we need at least three more wins, so we've got to find them anywhere we can."
Canucks: Vancouver looks like it will be the only Northwest Division team in the postseason field. The division title has been wrapped up for a while, but the Canucks are chasing St. Louis for the West's top overall seed as well as the Presidents' Trophy. The Canucks will have a game in hand on St. Louis when they take the ice Friday night, but they may need to run the table to have a good chance of overtaking the Blues for the League's best mark.
The Canucks have helped their cause by winning four straight games and play four of their final five at home. All four wins have come by one goal, including back-to-back 1-0 victories against Los Angeles and Colorado this week.
"We've done a good job keeping pace with them our last four games and I think we both have five left, so it'll be interesting," Schneider said of the race with the Blues. "We're hitting our stride defensively and playing well and so are they; we'd love to get the No. 1 seed, but we're just worried about us right now."
Who's Hot: Not many players are hotter than Dallas' Michael Ryder, who has five goals and three assists in his last five games, including two goals and an assist on Wednesday. ... The Canucks may not be scoring much, what scoring they are getting all seems to be coming from Chris Higgins. He has three goals, including two game-winners, in the last three games.
Injury Report : Radek Dvorak (ankle) and Eric Nystrom (lacerated leg) are both questionable for Dallas, which is also missing Mark Fistric, who has been out since March 21 with a strained abdominal muscle but has resumed skating. … Vancouver recently lost defenseman Aaron Rome for a week or two with a sprained knee, but the larger concern is the considerable void left by Daniel Sedin, who is out indefinitely with a concussion.
Stat Pack: Certainly Vancouver would prefer to grab the No. 1 seed in the West, but after losing last season's Stanley Cup Final despite having Game 7 on home ice, the Canucks know the top seed doesn't guarantee a championship. Perhaps more importantly, however, is that few teams can match Vancouver's consistency both at home and on the road. The Canucks' home record of 23-10-4 is nearly identical to their 24-11-5 road mark.
Puck Drop: Given how competitive the Pacific Division is, the Stars will desperately need the two points Friday night, but the Canucks are unlikely to make it easy on them even with a top-three seed already sealed. The Canucks are actually chasing some history as the season winds down. No team has won the Presidents' Trophy in consecutive seasons since the Dallas Stars did it in 1998 and 1999. The Canucks wouldn't mind following in those footsteps: The 1999 Stars took home the first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history.
____________________________________________________________________________________
I think bieksa will miss another game, ongoing maintenance.
schneider and luongo will share these back to back games, assuming it is luongo
tonight.
if canucks win tonight they will be tied with the rangers, and only one point
behind st. louis for the overall lead.
Now that was a most entertaining game! Well done, Canucks............just when some fans start whining about too few goals you show them that you still have a few tricks up your sleeve. LOL!
5 - 2 over Dallas and the Canucks are just one back of St. Louis...........rock on Canucks!
Kudos to Schneider, Albertson, Higgins (again - first goal of game), Lapierre and Burrows and Sami Salo.
5 - 2 over Dallas and the Canucks are just one back of St. Louis...........rock on Canucks!
Kudos to Schneider, Albertson, Higgins (again - first goal of game), Lapierre and Burrows and Sami Salo.
good game for canucks, nice to see a few more goals scored, and there could have been more. schneider played very well.
luongo has a sore neck, woke up with it this morning, planned to play, but neck didn't loosen up at all, so he took warm up then decided he couldn't, or shouldn't play. lots of good looking play tonight, could name lots of canuck players, they looked good.
canucks 1 behind st. louis now, and rangers won tonight so canucks are still 2 behind them.
luongo has a sore neck, woke up with it this morning, planned to play, but neck didn't loosen up at all, so he took warm up then decided he couldn't, or shouldn't play. lots of good looking play tonight, could name lots of canuck players, they looked good.
canucks 1 behind st. louis now, and rangers won tonight so canucks are still 2 behind them.
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LIVE ON CBC Radio: 1040 Flames Sat 31/03/2012 7:00 PM Canucks Flames Canucks
Preview Canucks go for 6 in a row as Flames come to townKevin Woodley - NHL.com Correspondent
Date Vis/Home Final
11 Feb 2012 VAN@CGY CGY, 3 - 2
23 Dec 2011 CGY@VAN CGY, 3 - 1
4 Dec 2011 CGY@VAN VAN, 5 - 1
1 Nov 2011 VAN@CGY VAN, 5 - 1
FLAMES (35-29-15) at CANUCKS (48-21-9)
TV: CBC
Last 10: Flames 3-4-3; Canucks 6-3-1
Season Series: It's the fifth of six meetings between the Northwest Division rivals, with the Canucks holding a slight edge in the season series. Vancouver won the first two meetings in early November and early December by a combined 10-2 score, and the Flames won the next two, 3-1 two days before Christmas and 3-2 in a shootout on Feb. 11. Vancouver No.1 Roberto Luongo has been in goal for all four games, but missed Friday's with a sore neck and may watch Cory Schneider again Saturday, which is the second half of back-to-back games for both teams.
Big Story: With the playoff run for the Flames all but officially over after a 4-1 loss to Colorado on Friday night, the most intriguing story Saturday may be who plays goal for the Canucks. As of Friday night, they didn't have a clue. But the way things have been going of late in Vancouver it probably doesn't matter.
Schneider was thrust into action after Luongo aggravated a sore neck during the pregame warm up Friday against Dallas, and responded with several timely, sometimes spectacular stops among 28 saves to backstop a 5-2 win over the Stars. But coach Alain Vigneault has made it clear that Schneider is still No. 2 behind Luongo, and with the original intent of splitting the back-to-back games, could play against the Flames.
"If Louie gets up tomorrow and is good to go, he'll go," Vigneault said.
Team Scope:
Canucks: With top goal scorer Daniel Sedin out five games with a concussion, Vancouver had been struggling to score before finding goals from an unlikely source Friday night. Maxim Lapierre, a fourth-line center known more for his ability to get under opponent's skin than put pucks in the net, scored once and added two assists as a new-look top line with Henrik Sedin and Alexandre Burrows combined for seven points in the win against Dallas. For a team that had only scored five times the previous three games and was coming off consecutive 1-0 wins, it was a welcome offensive outburst.
"We've been nursing some 1-0 leads lately but I think it shows this team plays to the situation," Schneider said after the first five-game win streak in more than four months. "If we need to sit on that lead we can do it, but if we need some goals we'll do that too and find that urgency to pull away. We completely dominated that third period and sent a message that's the team we can be."
Flames: Calgary picked a terrible time for a long funk, losing for the seventh time in eight games against Colorado at home on Friday night to all but end its playoff hopes. With 85 points, the Flames are four points behind Dallas and Phoenix for the final playoff spots in the Western Conference and have just three games left.
Shaking off the disappointment after Friday's loss may not be easy.
"You prepare all season long to give yourself a chance in the playoffs and to maybe not get there, it just feels like it was almost all for nothing and you just showed up and went about your business and went home," defenseman Chris Butler said. "It's not any fun watching other teams compete and get a chance to reach that ultimate goal."
Who's Hot: Schneider may be the No.2 in Vancouver, but he's also second in the entire NHL with a .937 save percentage, fifth in the League with a 1.97 goals-against average, and 12-1-1 in 14 starts since Christmas.
Injury Report: The Flames had veteran defenseman Cory Sarich back Friday against Colorado after missing four games with an upper-body injury, but are still missing defenders Derek Smith (upper body) andTJ Brodie (upper body). Center Mikael Backlund (shoulder) is also out. … Luongo may play Saturday if his neck feels better, but Vancouver will be without top goal scorer Daniel Sedin (concussion) for a sixth straight game. Top-four defenseman Kevin Bieksa is expected to miss a third-straight game to rest up for the playoffs. Fellow blueliner Aaron Rome (knee) still hasn't skated since getting hurt in Colorado March 24, while defenseman Keith Ballard (concussion) is skating but still not cleared for full contact. Forward Andrew Ebbett (collarbone) is also skating but still on injured reserve.
Stat Pack: Canucks winger Chris Higgins opened the scoring Friday against Dallas, giving him four goals in four games despite playing on a shutdown third line that has been going up against the opposition's best forwards on a regular basis. … Vancouver's power play ended a 1-for-23 funk over seven games after Sami Salo, moved back onto the point of the first unit, fired his first goal in 16 games through a double screen. … Calgary captain Jarome Iginla spoiled the shutout bid of Colorado's Semyon Varlamov with 38 seconds left Friday and Miikka Kiprusoff pulled to create a 6-on-4. It also ended the Flames scoring drought at 139:50 and snapped a seven-game dry spell for Iginla.
Puck Drop: Vancouver's top center Henrik Sedin had three assists Friday to match his total the previous six games, part of one of the worst droughts in a decade for the 2010 Hart and Art Ross Trophy winner. One assist helped snap the Canucks' 2-for-23 funk on the power play. But just as he said when the points weren't coming, the Canucks captain was more concerned with how he played than what he produced. And for a change he wasn't talking about himself with any concern.
"If you look past the assists, personally, I played my best game in a while," Sedin said. "I felt good, I felt strong on the puck, I tried to make plays, I wanted the puck, and that's where I'm at my best."
Preview Canucks go for 6 in a row as Flames come to townKevin Woodley - NHL.com Correspondent
Date Vis/Home Final
11 Feb 2012 VAN@CGY CGY, 3 - 2
23 Dec 2011 CGY@VAN CGY, 3 - 1
4 Dec 2011 CGY@VAN VAN, 5 - 1
1 Nov 2011 VAN@CGY VAN, 5 - 1
FLAMES (35-29-15) at CANUCKS (48-21-9)
TV: CBC
Last 10: Flames 3-4-3; Canucks 6-3-1
Season Series: It's the fifth of six meetings between the Northwest Division rivals, with the Canucks holding a slight edge in the season series. Vancouver won the first two meetings in early November and early December by a combined 10-2 score, and the Flames won the next two, 3-1 two days before Christmas and 3-2 in a shootout on Feb. 11. Vancouver No.1 Roberto Luongo has been in goal for all four games, but missed Friday's with a sore neck and may watch Cory Schneider again Saturday, which is the second half of back-to-back games for both teams.
Big Story: With the playoff run for the Flames all but officially over after a 4-1 loss to Colorado on Friday night, the most intriguing story Saturday may be who plays goal for the Canucks. As of Friday night, they didn't have a clue. But the way things have been going of late in Vancouver it probably doesn't matter.
Schneider was thrust into action after Luongo aggravated a sore neck during the pregame warm up Friday against Dallas, and responded with several timely, sometimes spectacular stops among 28 saves to backstop a 5-2 win over the Stars. But coach Alain Vigneault has made it clear that Schneider is still No. 2 behind Luongo, and with the original intent of splitting the back-to-back games, could play against the Flames.
"If Louie gets up tomorrow and is good to go, he'll go," Vigneault said.
Team Scope:
Canucks: With top goal scorer Daniel Sedin out five games with a concussion, Vancouver had been struggling to score before finding goals from an unlikely source Friday night. Maxim Lapierre, a fourth-line center known more for his ability to get under opponent's skin than put pucks in the net, scored once and added two assists as a new-look top line with Henrik Sedin and Alexandre Burrows combined for seven points in the win against Dallas. For a team that had only scored five times the previous three games and was coming off consecutive 1-0 wins, it was a welcome offensive outburst.
"We've been nursing some 1-0 leads lately but I think it shows this team plays to the situation," Schneider said after the first five-game win streak in more than four months. "If we need to sit on that lead we can do it, but if we need some goals we'll do that too and find that urgency to pull away. We completely dominated that third period and sent a message that's the team we can be."
Flames: Calgary picked a terrible time for a long funk, losing for the seventh time in eight games against Colorado at home on Friday night to all but end its playoff hopes. With 85 points, the Flames are four points behind Dallas and Phoenix for the final playoff spots in the Western Conference and have just three games left.
Shaking off the disappointment after Friday's loss may not be easy.
"You prepare all season long to give yourself a chance in the playoffs and to maybe not get there, it just feels like it was almost all for nothing and you just showed up and went about your business and went home," defenseman Chris Butler said. "It's not any fun watching other teams compete and get a chance to reach that ultimate goal."
Who's Hot: Schneider may be the No.2 in Vancouver, but he's also second in the entire NHL with a .937 save percentage, fifth in the League with a 1.97 goals-against average, and 12-1-1 in 14 starts since Christmas.
Injury Report: The Flames had veteran defenseman Cory Sarich back Friday against Colorado after missing four games with an upper-body injury, but are still missing defenders Derek Smith (upper body) andTJ Brodie (upper body). Center Mikael Backlund (shoulder) is also out. … Luongo may play Saturday if his neck feels better, but Vancouver will be without top goal scorer Daniel Sedin (concussion) for a sixth straight game. Top-four defenseman Kevin Bieksa is expected to miss a third-straight game to rest up for the playoffs. Fellow blueliner Aaron Rome (knee) still hasn't skated since getting hurt in Colorado March 24, while defenseman Keith Ballard (concussion) is skating but still not cleared for full contact. Forward Andrew Ebbett (collarbone) is also skating but still on injured reserve.
Stat Pack: Canucks winger Chris Higgins opened the scoring Friday against Dallas, giving him four goals in four games despite playing on a shutdown third line that has been going up against the opposition's best forwards on a regular basis. … Vancouver's power play ended a 1-for-23 funk over seven games after Sami Salo, moved back onto the point of the first unit, fired his first goal in 16 games through a double screen. … Calgary captain Jarome Iginla spoiled the shutout bid of Colorado's Semyon Varlamov with 38 seconds left Friday and Miikka Kiprusoff pulled to create a 6-on-4. It also ended the Flames scoring drought at 139:50 and snapped a seven-game dry spell for Iginla.
Puck Drop: Vancouver's top center Henrik Sedin had three assists Friday to match his total the previous six games, part of one of the worst droughts in a decade for the 2010 Hart and Art Ross Trophy winner. One assist helped snap the Canucks' 2-for-23 funk on the power play. But just as he said when the points weren't coming, the Canucks captain was more concerned with how he played than what he produced. And for a change he wasn't talking about himself with any concern.
"If you look past the assists, personally, I played my best game in a while," Sedin said. "I felt good, I felt strong on the puck, I tried to make plays, I wanted the puck, and that's where I'm at my best."
I knew st. louis had lost to columbus, and I couldn't believe that canucks were on their way to a loss playing against the flames, but glad I hung in there, cause the tieing goal came, then canucks started to look like they really wanted to win this game, and in overtime andrew ebbet, his first game back, scored the winning goal, putting canucks on top of the western conference.
just those pesky rangers sitting just ahead now, on top of the league, so these last few games will be interesting to see , which of the 3 teams will cross the finish line in front, to capture that presidents' cup.
3-2 OT
just those pesky rangers sitting just ahead now, on top of the league, so these last few games will be interesting to see , which of the 3 teams will cross the finish line in front, to capture that presidents' cup.
3-2 OT
I like it when games go the way that one did, just proves the Canucks are a character team, there were spells when Cgy. outplayed them, but all in all Van was the far superior team, and WITHOUT Dan'l or it would have been 7 to 2. :lol: They are now within reach of N.Y.R.