Archive for April, 2009

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Canucks Take Game 1: 5-3 on Slammin Samis Game Winner!

Thursday, April 30th, 2009

The first period of game one was exactly what the Canucks needed to do, they needed to come out and try to get their game back after a lengthy layoff and come out tied or with a lead. The Lead they got. The issue in that period was with how they got it. They got it on their 4th PP of the period and on the last of the 6 straight minutes of a PP that saw the Chicago PK unit very tired and chasing the puck. Pavol Demitra connected on a Mats Sundin pass to make it 1-0 in the Period.

The Second period took off where the first period ended. The Canucks continued to become more and more dominate as the Hawks took some stupid penalties to allow the Canucks to score another 2 goals to take a 3-0 lead. While the Hawks do boast coming back from the Flames down 3 goals in a game in 1 minute and 30 something seconds the Canucks would need to come up with an even bigger 3rd period in game 1.

And the Canucks came out in the third period and became the new Cardiac team. The Cardiac Canucks gave up 3 goals to allow Chicago to tie it 3-3 before Sami Salo scored with just over 1 minute to play to allow the Canucks the time to score the empty netter by Ryan Johnson to win 5-3 in Game 1. The Blackhawks became relentless after Dustin Byfuglien single handidly took over the game on one shift to turn the tide. But the Canucks as whole came back to put it away as a team and to possibly crush some Blackhawk hearts from a game one come back…..

This was the best victory for the Canucks this playoffs as the Canucks blew a 3-0 lead and lost momentum on arrogance and were able to overcome it and get a big win in a big game for the second round of the playoffs. Wake Up Call was just sounded off with a big alarm………..

Canucks Republic Three Stars

1. Sami Salo ~ Game winner and big shots all night

2. Dustin Byfuglien ~ A huge shift that really turned the momentum to Chicago’s for all the 3rd period.

3. Kyle Wellwood ~ 7-0 in faceoffs.

Quotable ~ “Im surprise I played 20 mins I didnt think I was out there that much, but it gets me into the game and we came out on top” Kyle Wellwood

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Game One: Blackhawks @ Canucks 6PM PST CBCHD – Lets Get it ON!

Thursday, April 30th, 2009

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The quest for the Stanley Cup resumes tonight at General Motors Place when the Vancouver Canucks (series tied 0-0) open their best-of-seven Western Conference Semi-Final series with the Chicago Blackhawks.

It has been eight days since the Canucks dispatched the St. Louis Blues in Game 4 of their Western Conference Quarter-Final series and earned the franchise’s first ever sweep of a best-of-seven series. For the second time in the last three years and the ninth time in team history (first-round byes inclusive), the Canucks have advanced to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs and tonight they can take the first step towards advancing past Round Two for the first time since 1994. The Canucks come into this series on a roll having won their last seven games in a row dating back to the regular season. However, the question of ‘rest versus rust’ will be answered tonight when the Canucks tangle with a Blackhawks team that has had just a two-day break between the end of Round One and the start of Round Two.

After making the playoffs for the first time in seven years, the upstart young Blackhawks decided to go one better by advancing to the second round for the first time in 13 years at the expense of the Calgary Flames. The ‘Hawks dumped the Flames in six games, recording their first road victory of the post-season on Monday with a 4-1 win at the Pengrowth Saddledome, and will need to find a way to continue posting wins away from the United Center if they hope to advance to the Western Conference Final. The Canucks, by virtue of their Northwest Division Championship, are seeded third and have home-ice advantage against the Blackhawks despite finishing with four fewer points than Chicago during the regular season.

Tonight’s game faces off at 6:00pm PST and can be seen coast-to-coast in Canada on CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada and on VERSUS for fans in the United States.

“I’m at that point with that [Sedin] line that I’ll make the other team work for it. In my mind, they can face anyone and hit the challenge. And the Sundin line has the dimension to be the difference in games and in a series”- Canucks’ head coach Alain Vigneault on his confidence in his top two lines to match up against any defensive pairing. (The Province)

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Round 2: Canucks vs Blackhawks – Conference Semi finals

Tuesday, April 28th, 2009

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Conference Position (3) Vancouver Record (45-27-10, 100 pts) (246 GF, 220 GA)
Conference Position (4) Chicago Record (46-24-12, 104 pts) (254 GF, 248 GA)
REGULAR SEASON SERIES
Tied 2-2
@ Chicago L 2-4
vs Chicago L 1-3
vs Chicago W 7-3
@ Chicago W 4-0

PP – Chicago 2nd (29.2%) in NHL , Vancouver 5th (22.2%) in NHL.
PK – Chicago T-4th (88.9%) in NHL, Vancouver 2nd (95.8%) in NHL.

Canucks Last Series – 4-0 over the St Louis Blues
Hawks Series 6 – 4-2 over the Calgary Flames
Canucks Last game a 3-2 win over the Blues
Hawks Last game a 4-1 win over the Flames

The Match Up:

Another great match up for the Canucks in the second round. One that we wanted to see for the first round to test their mettle. This allows the Canucks to play a team even to them but with the Canucks holding an edge in Goal and experience. Assuming the Canucks are fully healthy this can be a pick em series and will fall upon Luongo vs Khabibulin.

The Last time the Blackhawks saw the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks were firmly in the heads of the Hawks players and had shut down their offense in a 4-0 win. the time before that the Hawks were shelled in a 7-3 loss. The other 2 games were Hawk victories when they were at their best. The Canucks were at their best when they beat Chicago. They are now both at their best starting round 2. The Canucks are now firmly healthy so they should be able to boast their best lineup. Mats Sundin is a question mark? Will he play? Will he play well? This is the time that he is needed to step up his game. He will need to be a difference maker in this series for the Canucks to return to the Conference Finals for the first time since 1994.

Vancouver Canucks Who’s hot

Daniel Sedin 2G-3A in 4GP
Sami Salo 1G-3A in 3GP
Roberto Luongo 4-0 in last 4 games 1.16GAA .962sv%

Vancouver Canucks Who’s Cold

Mats Sundin 2GP – 1G

Chicago Blackhawks Who’s Hot

Kris Versteeg 2G-5A in 6GP
Martin Havlat 3G-3A in 6GP
Nikolai Khabibulin 4-2 2.52GAA .914sv% in last 6 games

Chicago Blackhawks Who’s Cold

Duncan Keith 0 points in 6GP

Conference Semi-finals Schedule

Thursday, April 30, 6pm pt Blackhawks at Canucks
Saturday, May 2, 6pm pt Blackhawks at Canucks
Tuesday, May 5, 5pm pt Canucks at Blackhawks
Thursday, May 7, 5pm pt Canucks at Blackhawks
Saturday, May 9, 7:30pm pt Blackhawks at Canucks if necessary
Monday, May 11, 6pm pt Canucks at Blackhawks if necessary
Thursday, May 14, TBD Blackhawks at Canucks if necessary

Quotable ~ “Chicago is a team that skates really well, they’re very creative and they have a good mix of talent and grit. They have some big defencemen who can move the puck and also some smaller, very agile players. So they’re a well rounded team and, with their goaltending, it will make for another great series.” – Ryan Johnson sizing up the Chicago Blackhawks and looking forward to their Round Two series. (Vancouver Sun)

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Ryan Kesler nominated for Selke Trophy

Tuesday, April 28th, 2009

Once again, Datsyuk is a finalist for the Selke Award, along with Philadelphia Flyers center Mike Richards and Vancouver Canucks center/right winger Ryan Kesler of the Vancouver Canucks. All three have excellent credentials and define the concept “hard to play against.”

congrats Ryan

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PYATT THANKS FANS, TEAM FOR SUPPORT AFTER DEATH OF FIANCEE

Friday, April 24th, 2009

“I would like to thank my teammates, coaches and the entire Canucks organization for their tremendous compassion and support during this very difficult time for myself, my family and the entire Bragnalo family,” Pyatt said in a release Friday.

Read More Here!

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