Ryan Kesler returns to the lineup and scores the game-winning goal. Cory Schneider gets his 11th straight start and records his 4th shutout in 9 games.
Ginger Brick by Ginger Brick the C-Wall continues to grow!!!! #Canucks #TGATT
— Sean Holmes-Smith (@holmes156) April 9, 2013
With the win, the Canucks are now 10 points clear of the 9th place Coyotes.
Yes, it was a good night.
In my first Clay’s Canucks Commentary since my trip to Rome 3 weeks ago, I look at Vancouver’s 2-0 win over Phoenix at Rogers Arena and in particular the return of Ryan Kesler.
Kesler returned to the line-up after missing 19 games and he made an immediate impact by scoring the game-winning goal just 7 minutes in.
Kesler’s return, coupled with the acquisition of Derek Roy at the trade deadline, bolsters the Canucks down the middle and gives some much needed strength and firepower to the forward group overall.
Photo credit: Globe and Mail
Only 3 points back of the 8th place Detroit Red Wings and with a game in hand on them, the Desert Dogs are hungry for a win – Hehe. See what I did there? – and still fighting for the last and final playoff spot in the West. The Coyotes may not be one of the most exciting teams to watch, but give them credit, they’ve found a way in recent years to stay relevant in the wild, wild, West. Heading into tonight’s game, they’ve won 3 straight games and have points in 6 straight games (4-0-2).
But enough about the Coyotes, tonight could see the return of a player that has been missing in the Canucks lineup for quite some time. He’s suffered a few injuries in his last couple of years here, but yes, Keith Ballard could return tonight. I can feel AV’s heart filling with pride and joy. (Though that he’s coming into the lineup in place of the injured Chris Tanev probably tempers that joy a bit.)
But in all seriousness, Ryan Kesler seems to be healed and ready to get a few games under his belt before the real season starts. After leading the stretches at this morning’s game-day skate, the Canucks announced he would be back tonight and playing on a line with Mason Raymond and Zack Kassian.
My gosh, do the Canucks actually have 3 scoring lines now?
Canucks Record
21-11-6, 48 points (1st in the Northwest Division, 3rd in the Western Conference)
Season Series
The Canucks and the Coyotes split their first 2 games against each other this season. The Coyotes won the first meeting in February by a 4-2 score. The Canucks won the most recent meeting on March 21 by a 2-1 score.
Who’s Hot
For all the angst in Vancouver over the last few weeks, they’re actually 8-2-0 in their last 10 games. Despite some low-scoring – and no-scoring – efforts in some of those games, they’ve held in – thanks in large part to the play of Cory Schneider – and taken points anyway.
The first line of Henrik Sedin, Daniel Sedin and Alex Burrows had great games against the two Alberta teams and combined for 11 points. Hank had 5 points (2G-3A), Dank had 4 points (0G-4A) and Burr had 2 points (1G-1A).
Mikkel Boedker is currently on a 3-game point streak (1G-3A) and has recorded at least a point in 4 of his last 5 games. Despite the shortened schedule, he’s only 4 points away from matching his career-high in points (28 points in 2008/2009, his first season in the league). He’s currently tied for the team lead with 24 points (7G-17A).
Who’s Not
Alex Edler scored against the Flames on Saturday, but prior to that, he had just 1 assist in 9 games.
The Coyotes have won just 1 or their 7 road games since the beginning of March, and are a woeful 4-8-5 away from Jobing.com Arena this season. So of course, while they’re chasing a playoff spot, 7 of their last 10 games are on the road.
(@cherry_grant is new to CHB and will be sharing with us her Canucks or NHL-themed photos, photoshops and comics.)
I believe he will.
Photo credit: AP
For GM Jay Feaster and the Calgary Flames, the NHL trade deadline resembled more of a fire sale than anything. In a span of a week, they dealt their long-time captain, Jarome Iginla, to the Pittsburgh Penguins, and their no. 1 defenseman, Jay Bouwmeester, to the St. Louis Blues. In return, the Flames received nothing more than some depth prospects, a couple of first round picks, and perhaps some hockey tape and a used water bottle. But don’t fret, Calgarians, this is all part of the rebuild, right? RIGHT?!
If Flames fans can take comfort in anything, it’s that the team has finally admitted it needs to gut its aging core and move forward. After years of denying it needed to rebuild – even Feaster admitted he should have started this process earlier – it finally made the moves to start stockpiling younger assets. And in today’s NHL, where 19 of the top 25 scorers are under 30 years old, that’s a good thing.
Of course, the Flames will experience some growing pains. Since Iginla was traded on March 27, they’ve lost all 4 games and have been outscored 20-8. Against the Edmonton Oilers on trade deadline day, they blew a 2-0 lead and ended up losing 8-2. Last night against the San Jose Sharks, they took a 1-0 into the second intermission only to let the Sharks score twice in the third period – one a couple of minutes in and the other with a couple of minutes left – en route to a 2-1 loss.
And it doesn’t get any easier for the Flames the rest of the way. 7 of their remaining 12 games are on the road, where they’ve won just 3 times all season (3-12-3). They’re a dismal 0-11-1 in their last 12 games away from the Saddledome, including 10 straight losses.
Canucks Record
20-11-6, 46 points (1st in the Northwest Division, 3rd in the Western Conference)
Season Series
The Canucks are 16 points ahead of the Flames in the standings, but the Flames did win the last meeting between the two teams. In that game, Alain Vigneault took a questionable abuse of official penalty in the third period, and while the Canucks technically killed the penalty, the Flames scored 2 seconds after it expired to break what was a 2-2 tie at that point.
Cory Schneider and company have won 4 straight games at Rogers Arena, outscoring their opponents 11-3. Schneider posted shutouts in 2 of those games.
Who’s Hot
The only things “hot” about Calgary right now are the flames coming out of their logo.
Chris Higgins has a 4-game point streak that includes scoring in 3 of those 4 games. Fresh from signing a 4-year/$10 million contract extension, he had a particularly good game on Thursday against the Oilers, and if that game is any indication, his line with Derek Roy and Jannik Hansen could be the perfect tonic to the Canucks’ scoring woes.
What’s Not
The Canucks finally connected on the powerplay on Thursday – they scored during a lengthy two-man advantage – but they still rank 28th in the NHL in powerplay efficiency (13.1%).
Likewise, their penalty kill has been better (81.7%), but ranked 15th in the league, it’s still quite average.
With just 11 games left in the season, the Canucks may want to start getting their special teams in order, especially if they want to make a deep run in the playoffs.
Quickies
The Canucks really couldn’t start a game than they did against the Edmonton Oilers last Saturday. I mean, they gave up 3 goals on 3 shots in the first 3 minutes. Would love for that not to happen again.
It’s really nice to see that the #Canucks showed up for this game. Phew. #TGATT
— Robyn Crystal (@RobynCrystal11) April 5, 2013
It really was an entertaining game. A 4-0 win against a streaking divisional rival, some big plays, big goals… and a return visit by the most exciting player to ever put on a Canucks jersey, Pavel Bure.
Here’s the game in your tweets.
Tonight, the Vancouver Canucks are hosting their 23rd annual Canucks for Kids Telethon. And representing CHB, I’ll be manning the phones for the Telethon post-game.
But what really excites us is what we can do to help this fantastic cause!
Over the past few seasons, a number of us Canucks bloggers have pledged to donate a few bucks during the Canucks for Kids Fund Telethon based on different criteria – goals scored, faceoff wins, and other such sports props. And after helping raise over $400 last season, we want to figuratively blow the roof of this blog by raising even more!
In the famous words of Barney Stinson, “It’s gonna be legend-… wait for it… and I hope you’re not lactose intolerant because the second half of that word is DAIRY!!”
So for tonight’s telethon, the following contributors have also pledged the following:
We hope you’ll support a worthy cause as well. Match one (or more or all) of our pledges or create a pledge of your own, and then ask your friends and followers to match it. Let us know via Twitter or our comments that you’re stepping up and helping raise funds for a cause very close to every Canucks fan and player’s heart.
To make an online donation to this great cause, you can call 1-85-KIDSFUND (1-855-437-3863) or by heading to canucks.com.
Photo credit: The Globe and Mail
After last night’s 8-2 whooping of the Calgary Flames, the Edmonton Oilers woke up this morning to find themselves in a playoff spot – in 8th place in the Western Conference. After falling out of the playoff picture with a 3-6-3 stretch in the beginning of March, the Oilers have clawed their way back and are now one of several teams fighting for the last couple of playoff spots in the West. With most teams having only 11-14 games left in their schedule, the difference between 8th and 13th place in the West is just 4 points and the difference between 3rd and 10th place is just 6 points.
While the Oilers are on the second game of a back-to-back, the Canucks have had two days of rest, or for some, two days to think about their long weekend no-shows against these same Oilers (a 4-0 loss on Saturday) and the San Jose Sharks (a 3-2 loss on Monday). Not that the Canucks should need any more motivation, but I hope atoning for giving Taylor Hall a hat trick just 8 minutes into the game on Saturday and allowing the Sharks to score 3 goals in under 3 minutes on Monday would be on their agenda tonight.
The addition of Derek Roy should help. Cory Schneider is getting the start tonight – on Roberto Luongo’s birthday.
Canucks Record
19-11-6, 44 points (2nd in the Northwest Division, 4th in the Western Conference)
Season Series
Offensively, the Canucks and Oilers are going in opposite directions. The Canucks have lost 2 straight games, and dating back to the Vancouver Millionaires night against the Detroit Red Wings, have only scored 15 goals (plus 2 empty-net goals) in 10 games. The Oilers, on the other hand, have won 5 straight games and have outscored their opponents 25-7 in that span.
Who’s Hot
2010 1st overall pick, Taylor Hall, has been exceptional. Currently on a 6-game point streak (7G-8A-15P), Hall leads the Oilers in scoring and sits 5th in the NHL in assists (28) and 7th in overall scoring (41).
Who’s Not
Daniel Sedin has just 2 points in his last 7 games.
Quickies
Photo credit: CBC
Sometimes, life gets in the away. So my trade deadline thoughts are a bit belated. Here they are:
| Luongo retires in: | Penalty to Canucks | Penalty to other team | Penalty duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 (age 39) | $1,857,500 | $1,725,833 | 4 seasons (2018-19 to 2021-22) |
| 2019 (age 40) | $2,476,667 | $2,301,111 | 3 seasons (2019-20 to 2021-22) |
| 2020 (age 41) | $3,715,000 | $3,451,667 | 2 seasons (2020-21 to 2021-22) |
Luongo’s contract starts diving after the 2017-18 season. If he retires after that (he turns 39 in 2018), the Canucks will incur a cap penalty of $1,857,500 in each of the 4 seasons left in his contract (2018-19 to 2021-22); the team that acquires him will incur a cap penalty of $1,725,833 in each of those same 4 seasons. IMHO, these are fairly insignificant amounts, and even more insignificant when you consider the salary cap may well be in the mid-to-upper $70 million (if not more) by then.
(@cherry_grant is new to CHB and will be sharing with us her Canucks or NHL-themed photos, photoshops and comics.)
I, for one, am particularly stoked to see that Roy has joined the Canucks!
