VANCOUVER, British Columbia – This month, the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics have given the Canucks the boot from GM Place, resulting in a record 14 ‐ game road trip for the team, and allowing only seven lucky Olympians to make appearances on their home ice competing for their respective countries. Only the San Jose Sharks are sending more men to the Olympics; as Roberto Luongo, Sami Salo, Christian Ehrhoff, Daniel and Henrik Sedin, Ryan Kesler, and Pavol Demitra have all recently hit the ice at the temporarily renamed Canada Hockey Place. While the Olympics have the Vancouver press abuzz, there are no shortages of NHL ‐ related musings about whether or not the Canucks have or will be adversely affected by the Games.
The Canucks now sit 4 and 4 for the first 8 games of 14 in the road trip. Things could certainly be worse, and with the Sedins under pressure, Luongo inconsistent and Pavol Demitra still lagging, the Olympics should provide an opportunity on familiar ice for the Canuck Olympians to fine tune the game before the remainder of the team’s road stretch. Only Kesler and Ehrhoff seem at the top of their game right now and will no doubt be valuable contributors for their respective National teams. The Canucks’ big farewell to GM Place was a late January win over the St. Louis Blues, which saw them heading confidently to Toronto with 7 ‐ 2 ‐ 1 in 10.
The dreaded road trip began with the kind of bizarre turnaround that could only plague the dejected Toronto Maple Leafs. While the Leafs’ Phil Kessel solved a hapless Luongo to see his team up 3 ‐ 0 after a pitiful first period, Alain Vigneault wisely threw in an excellent Andrew Raycroft. The Sedins responded with Burrows to amass 9 points between them, resulting in a 5 ‐ 3 victory and what fans hoped was an auspicious beginning to the long trip.
Things got dicey from there when the Canucks went on to lose in Montreal, despite Salo returning from injury with a 2 ‐ assist game and the second line excelling with goals from Kesler and Samuelsson. Back in Ontario, the Sedins and Burrows were highly criticized after a loss to the Ottawa Senators, when Ontario ‐ native 3rd ‐ line centerman Kyle Wellwood managed to get the only puck in the net for Vancouver while the rest of the team failed to pay back starting ‐ goalie Raycroft for his game saving efforts in Toronto. An arguably undeserved win in Boston then preceded a pitiful loss to Tampa Bay. The Canucks offense finally woke up in the second Florida game, and the Canucks managed to defeat both the Panthers and the Blue Jackets before heading North to play their Division rivals the Minnesota Wild.
This last game before the Olympic break was a frustrating affair demonstrating some very uninspired Canucks registering a less than optimistic end to the first part of the epic road trip. The Wild took the game 6 ‐ 2.
A slumping Calgary Flames have made it easier for the Canucks to sit gingerly at the top of the Northwest Division, but they are tied in points with nothing more than two games won separating them from the impressive Colorado Avalanche. And with 6 games in 9 days still remaining on the hellish road trip before the Canucks finally reclaim their home ice on March 13th; there are some serious setbacks to consider.
Kevin Bieksa and Willie Mitchell’s injuries along with contracts impending with first and second place top power ‐ play producers and line mates Ryan Kesler and Mason Raymond leave Canucks General Manager Mike Gillis with more to worry about than Steve Bernier’s reliably ineffective game. With a stack of talented right ‐ wingers, a blue line possibly in need of bolstering, and the many injured and injury ‐ prone state of the main Canucks defensemen, some shuffling may be in order.
There is no doubt, however, that there has been much improvement in the Canucks’ game since the latter part of 2009. After being snubbed by the Swedish Olympic team, Mikael Samuelsson has been excellent. Defenseman Christian Ehrhoff, who takes lengthy ice times in stride and is effective on the power play, has proved a valuable pick ‐ up (certainly more so than Brad Lukowich) from the San Jose Sharks.
Criticized ruthlessly when they go pointless in a game, the Sedins and Burrows are a line that will soar in the playoffs, and will no doubt get another big jump when the fans at GM place welcome back their stars.
Regarding the playoffs, though uncertain earlier on in the season, the Canucks are a tremendously talented team who have been sitting comfortably in a spot (they are now 3rd in the West), and will likely surprise the league with a stormy playoff performance after surviving such a grueling regular season. Canucks Assistant General Manager Laurence Gilman had expressed before departing on the road trip that the trip will be a positive challenge for this Stanley ‐ Cup competing team, and after managing to go into the break still Division leaders (and now expecting ample time for rest and healing), Gilman was likely on the mark.
Colorado is hot and the Flames are building a powerhouse roster, but barring no new injuries, it’s likely that captain Luongo will see his team cinching the division and heading stalwartly into the playoffs. It’s hard to imagine that the driven Canucks goaltender isn’t picturing both a gold medal and a Stanley cup among his 2010 achievements, and though one seems likelier than the other, there is no indication yet that both are not possible.
Contact Gabrielle.Pope@prohockeynews.com
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