Katie Maximick

How fitting is it for the Canucks to wrap up their 11-day roadtrip on 11-11-11?

On a solemn day like Remembrance Day, I thought I would brighten things up with a lighter post to sum up the Canucks' roadtrip, which finishes tonight in Anaheim.

I present to you a collection of fun postcards from each city the Canucks visited in the past two weeks. Addresses have been blanked out to protect the privacy of those receiving these totally real and authentic pieces of mail.

The Canucks kicked off against their rivals in Calgary with a decisive 5-1 victory, scoring three goals in the first period and quickly dousing what excitement the Sea of Red had showed up with.

Unfortunately, the joy was sucked right out of that win when the Canucks stopped in Minnesota. Because of Luongo's dismal record of 3-9-2 at the Xcel Energy Center, Vigneault decided to start Cory Schneider. Much to the entire team's (and fan base's) dismay, the Canucks soon found out that it wasn't only Luongo who played poorly in Minnesota.

Schneider faced an onslaught of 45 shots and the team played one of their worst games in recent history, losing 5-1.

Still hurting from their beating in Minnesota, the Canucks jetted off to St. Louis to play the following night. Although their play was much improved against the Blues, the Canucks didn't have what it took to hold onto a lead.

TJ Oshie scored twice, and David Backes, an old friend of Ryan Kesler's, scored the third.

With two back-to-back losses nipping at their heels, the Canucks braved enemy territory to play their biggest rival, the Chicago Blackhawks. Canucks fans watched from home with bated breath, praying that their team wouldn't embarrass them in front of excited, blood thirsty Blackhawks fans.

Thankfully to the surprise of everyone, the Canucks came out of the gate like a team possessed, wholloping the Hawks 6-2 in their own arena. The Madhouse was quickly the Sadhouse, as the Canucks' powerplay finally got its groove back.

Toews, who often looks pensive and petulant anyway, looked even more so that night.

"Our power play, as usual of late, wasn't very good, the penalty kill too," Toews said. "But it went beyond that. We didn't play a very good game all around."

Some worried it would be hard for the Canucks to carry over the momentum from the win into Los Angeles. The Canucks had three full days off between games, but the rest didn't build up rust.

Salo, who had been off with a groin injury, made a triumphant return to the ice and opened scoring for Vancouver at the beginning of the first, followed by Ebbett and Rome (who actually had two goals, but a questionable call ruled one out).

All three goals for the Canucks were scored in the first, and slowly the Kings found momentum closing the Canucks' lead to one, but Luongo stood tall stopping 28 shots and the Canucks walked away with a 3-2 win.

Even Don Cherry was impressed.

The Canucks wrap up their roadtrip tonight in Anaheim. No one knows which Canucks team will show up tonight, the good, the bad or the ugly, but one thing's for sure: George Parros will be schooling the Canucks in the Movember campaign.

 

Last week on the phone my dad brought up online dating after he saw a feature on the news. He's never done it, and he was wondering how on earth he'd ever describe himself using their profile format.

With this in mind, I hung out with my hockey-loving friends this weekend and the subject of the Canucks and online dating came up (don't ask me, because I still don't know why).

We ended up joking around about what Roberto Luongo's and Sami Salo's profiles for e-harmony or match.com would look like if they were single, including their "About Me" descriptions or ideas of a perfect date.

Here's the result of that conversation:

And of course I had to throw in these two:

With quite a few controversies this week, the NHL is quickly turning into its own version of a bad soap opera. I mean, sure we’re used to them every once in a while, but these controversies are coming at us so fast that we can’t decide which one to furiously argue over while hiding behind computer screens and anonymous login names.

So where do we start with all the drama? Let’s do this in chronological order.

1) Controversy #1: Luongo vs. Schneider. This one is clearly ongoing and neverending. Despite stopping 28 of 29 shots against Calgary last night, Luongo allowed one goal with 30 seconds to go in the game, which had some fans saying, “Schneider would’ve got the shut out!” It’s like Luongo haters were just sitting there, waiting for the guy to screw up so they could carry their Crusade banners around with their “I told you so” battle cries.

For most of us, it’s getting annoying and embarrassing, and really, it’s only a huge controversy here because it’s Vancouver. I bet most of the fans in this city don’t remember how in the 2009/2010 season, Tim Thomas was benched in favour of backup goalie Tuukka Rask going into the playoffs. Vezina-winning Thomas wasn’t playing at his best, so the Bruins were leaning on Rask down the stretch. That March in a game against Buffalo, Thomas was pulled for allowing 3 goals in 14 shots, and threw a tantrum worse than Luongo’s, shattering his goalie stick down the hallway to the locker room.

Tell me, did a goalie controversy continue in Boston?

More importantly, how did Thomas play the following season?

Goalies are some of the most unpredictable performers in hockey. Had Schneider been in net against Calgary last night, who knows, he might’ve actually let a couple in. Or he could've shut the door. That's the thing; no one can guarantee a goalie’s performance. 

So in the meantime, Canucks fans, why don’t you support whoever happens to be on the ice (like the whole team) and enjoy the game? It is November, after all, and we all know what that means.

 

2) Controversy #2: The Raffi Torres Costume Scandal. I said I wasn’t going to touch this with a 10-foot pole, aaaaaaand I’m still not going to, so I'll just leave it open.

Was it racist, or just a bit of Halloween fun?

 

3) Controversy # 3: Sean Avery’s return to the Rangers. I was surprised to see him released from the Rangers during the preaseason, and I'm even more surprised to see him called back now. Obviously Tortorella saw some mistake sending the agitator packing to the AHL since he’s coached more than a couple frustrating games so far this season.

But what I can’t help wonder is what the relationship between Torts and Avery will be from now on? Knowing both men are often volatile, I’d predict strained, and I’m not sure how either of them are going to keep their mouths shut about it in the long run.

"This is the same situation as any other player being brought up and we want to conduct it that way," Tortorella said this morning. "That's what is fair to Sean -- let's just conduct our business."

The thing is, Avery isn't just "any other player."

Sure, Avery was on his best behaviour in a press conference this morning, saying (over and over) how much he loves playing for the Rangers, but when all the smoke and mirrors are gone and Avery inevitably returns to his normal self, something’s got to give. It has to.

Torts and Avery are both ticking time bombs, often lacking the discipline to prevent their own explosions to the media. That might mean things are going to get good. Oh, the anticipation!

But you’ll have to wait a little longer for Avery’s “debut” since he will not be playing Thursday night.

 

4) Controversy #4: Ovechkin’s “fat” mouth. Apparently last night, when Caps coach Boudreau decided to bench a lacklustre Ovechkin late in the game, Ovechkin’s displeasure was caught on tape.

It’s being speculated that Ovie called Boudreau a “fat f*ck.”  See for yourself:

 

Boudreau was in the right to bench Ovechkin. Ovie was practically invisible for most of that game, and Boudreau was trying to send a message that those who deserve to play will play. Clearly, the Russian Superstar had an issue with that decision which led to his disrespectful behaviour.

Did Ovechkin have a momentary lapse of judgment and forget that cameras are constantly on the bench? Hello!

Personally I’m proud of Boudreau for sticking to his values and standing up to a star player we all know can be a little, let’s say, pouty.

Sidenote: Ovechkin did not address the media following last night’s controversy.

In other news, imagine Keith Ballard said something like that to Alain Vigneault? Yikes. #benchedforlife

That just about wraps it up for this week's episode of "NHL Drama." What will happen next week?

Stay tuned.

I woke up this morning, stretching in my bed and thought to myself, “I wonder how full the Canucks bandwagon is this morning?”

(Actually, that’s a lie. As usual, the first thing on my mind on any given morning is, “Coffee.”)

So after my coffee(s), I couldn’t help but gloat a little, as I’m sure most fans who never left the bandwagon this early on were also doing. We knew it was too soon to give up on this team; after all, it’s October. And that’s all we need to say.

But on their eleventh game of the season, the last of the dreaded month, the Canucks finally gave their doubtful, fearful fans something to cheer about and, at least until Tuesday, the pitchforks were put away in Vancouver.

It was as if the Canucks were fed up with it all; fed up with their fans' lack of faith and with their own lack of scoring, defending and “Great save, Luongos!”

And last night they got it all back.

On Friday, Henrik Sedin had said that playing Washington would either bring out their best, or humiliate them. Yes, there were moments (like that awkward penalty shot on Luongo), but the Canucks were far from embarrassed about their performance by the end of the night.

They left the ice with a 7-4 victory to the cheers, not jeers, of a packed Rogers Arena.

It was a night of redemption when it comes down to it.

Alex Edler dragged down Mike Knuble five minutes into the second period, which led to a penalty shot (admit it, we were all nervous) and a goal (which explains our nervousness) as the puck hit Luongo’s glove and bobbled over into the net. Edler would make up for it less than three minutes later, scoring his second goal of the game and giving the Canucks a 4-3 lead.

Edler walked away with three points last night.

Although Luongo didn't have a fantastic night, you could maybe say that he redeemed himself a little as well. Sure, he allowed four, but when you review most of those goals, it’s hard to lynch him for them all, like the first goal. It literally jumped over everyone’s heads in the crease, out of sight, and dribbled in off Luongo’s back into the net.

But it was that highlight-reel glovesave on Ovechkin that everyone's still talking about today. You know the one. That was a classic Roberto Luongo right there, even winning excited praise from Lu’s biggest critics (as I witnessed on my Twitter feed). And what a difference it made in our goalie; it gave him the confidence he needed to stay solid for the rest of the game and shut the door.

 

Will his confidence carry over? Too soon to say, we all know that. But it gave most Canucks fans hope that November will bring out the best in Luongo, as it has in the past.

It was clear by the third that the Caps lost their cool and the Canucks got theirs back. Ovechkin began to throw a bit of a tantrum and took it out on Kevin Bieksa, which sent him to the box and earned deafening “Ovie” taunts from the jubilant crowd (I think partly because the crowd didn’t know how exactly to chant the name Neuvirth). Lapierre managed to get his second goal halfway through the third, giving the Canucks their seventh and sealing the deal.

For me, the biggest form of redemption last night was the entire team’s.

They knew, as a unit, they had been performing poorly. They had a team meeting Saturday morning to discuss their issues and formulate a game plan, knowing their hotheaded fans would be watching closely. The Canucks were suffering from their Stanley Cup Hangover, one that clearly lasts longer than the infamous Roxy Effect. Just look at Boston.

So to beat a red-hot team like the Caps, who walked into that game with a wicked powerplay and only one loss this season, was a big statement to make.

And they made it loud.

Is the Hangover gone? I’m not sure yet, but what I do know is Toronto and Edmonton are first in their divisions, so really, it wouldn’t be too farfetched to believe that October has been just a bad dream after all.

 

 

 

 

 

For many Canucks fans, the 2011/2012 season has kicked off like a bad nightmare. The Canucks are sitting fourth in the Northwest Division at 4-5-1, they’ve been shut out three times already and Roberto Luongo walks the streets of Vancouver, shunned like a leper.

But think of the big picture -- Vancouver's record this early into the season isn’t as scary as this: 

Seriously Chara, did you think being a 6’9” bunny for Halloween was a GOOD idea? Those poor children are never going to look at Easter the same. Way to go, Big Guy.

Anyway, back to the Canucks and this spoooooky start to the season.

Bieksa’s minus-9 rating is not only the worst on the team; it’s the worst in the NHL among defensemen.

"It's embarrassing,” he said yesterday, “Especially for someone who takes pride on playing other teams’ top lines and shutting them down."

Could it be that Bieksa’s critics are right? That he only performs well in the final year of his contract, then once re-signed, returns to mediocrity?

I think even his worst critics are hoping this isn’t the case. Talk about a nightmare.

And despite what appeared to be a stronger start this year, Ballard isn’t far behind at minus-7, and even Uncle Manny is minus-6! In the past three weeks the Canucks have been shut out three times, either due to a lack of finish by Vancouver’s forwards or, in Lundqvist’s case, a goalie completely shutting the door.

To sum things up, they can’t score, they can’t seem to defend against scoring and their goalies are either hung out to dry or manage to hang themselves.

The entire team knows it has to step up, and soon, before Canucks fans take to the streets with pitchforks and torches to hunt them all down like Frankenstein's monster.With this city, even this Halloween metaphor isn’t that far from the truth.

"It's good the Capitals are coming to town,” said Henrik Sedin about tonight’s game. “It'll bring everyone up to the level we need to be at. If not, it'll be embarrassing.”

Right now the Canucks are looking like the main character in a horror movie, the one who runs up the stairs in the house, while everyone watching is yelling, “No, you idiot!”

But the thing is, despite the audience’s fear for the main character early on in the movie, the hero always triumphs in the end.

You see what I’m getting at, Canucks fans?

What needs to happen here is someone on the team (or everyone, whichever) needs to revive their inner 1996-era Neve Campbell, turn off the phone, turn on their attackers (critics) and shoot the bad guy.

Like anyone watching a horror flick run its course, Canucks fans just have to clutch their blankets, hold on tight to loved ones and hope that their favourite character comes out alive in the end.

At least the already-infamous Kesler Pumpkin is lightening the mood around here. Talk about a scandalous squash.

Enjoy tonight's game, and have a great Halloween weekend!