The Canucks did the unthinkable. They skated into the United Center and beat the Hawks with a near perfect game… Well maybe not near perfect but they played a solid Team Game. Now the question begs…

Can they do it again? Vancouver needs to be even better on home ice where they have only won 2 games and have not extended a best of 7 series to the last game when down 3-2 in their History of second rounds. The Hawks will be pissed off. They will be hungry to end this and not put it into a game 7 situation where anything can happen. This will be a game for the ages for the Canucks they will need to continue to do the little things in order to control the game and get the bounces.

It will be harder should Sami Salo not be able to nut up…. terrible pun, terrible injury. The Severity of his injury is unknown but being taken to the hospital surely bolds well for Chicago as Aaron Rome will slot back in the lineup as reported he was healthy as of yesterdays game.

Roberto Luongo was finally able to fight through the traffic and bodies and make the saves when needed. The Canucks were finally able to fight through the non calls and soft calls to get the game they wanted to play. This combination is good for the Canucks but again they will just need to be plain better.

The Question Also Begs: Was Bieksa on the verge of greatness last game or pure disaster. The plays he made in the neutral zone repeatley got lucky bounces that if the hawks got the puck it surely would have seen several breakaways or odd man rushes. Does Bieksa need to play like that in order to be able to produce? Getting 3 goals in one game from your Defensemen will win you LOTS of hockey games at this time of year. A Perfect PK (4 for 4) sure helps alot too.

Hey Daniel/Henrik – Stay out of the box… Never thought I would be saying that.

GO CANUCKS GO

Not every team that faces a elimination in game 5 needs to hang their heads in shame? The Red Wings and Flyers both had games that could have gone either way and did not. They simply got some bad bounces and made minor mistakes that cost them. They should not be going into a game where they needed to look themselves in the mirror.

The Canucks are not in the same boat. They need to look long and hard and search deep into their very beings to understand the embarrassment that this loss will encompass this franchise! Its not losing that will hurt what this team has tried to accomplish this past season, not at all, losing is part of the game everyone understands that going into a playoffs that anything can and generally will happen that the team that finds the “zone” fastest will be the one that plays the longest and probably wins the last game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. If the Canucks lose this round they will go out with the most disappointing loss in Franchise history.

Yes the most disappointing, you see the Canucks had become the most unravelled in a series that this fanbase has every seen. They have lost 100% composure in the most critical time of the year. This team prided itself on being able to handle every situation this year. They became a team that saw them come back from 3rd period deficits 12 times, 12, that is impressive. They had won their 3rd division title in 4 years, that is impressive. They had advanced to the 2nd round for the same time period. However that is where is stops. They lose, they find a way to lose when they shouldn’t. The year they lost to the Ducks was expected, the Canucks were in the playoffs with a newer team and the Ducks were unstoppable, they only lost 4 games in the playoffs that year, they dominated everyone. Last year we lost on being outplayed in the crease. We know it wasnt all Luongos fault however that game 6 was a below average game that should not be seen in a playoff.

This year is all different, there is not ONE player that you look at and go man he was a huge reason we lost? This was as big a meltdown as any have seen. They have lost, fallen apart, melted down, collapsed as a team and its not just in how they played. Its how they have acted. They came into this series talking about swagger, confidence, being the better team, learning from last year, and they failed completely…. Well not YET.

The Canucks still have a chance at redemption, a very slim one but they have one. Until that 4th game is lost the Canucks still have life. The Blackhawks are 13-0 when leading 3-1 in the 2nd round, the Canucks have never come back from a 3-1 deficit in the 2nd round but again this is not the same players from the past. These are players that have a chance to change history, these are players that have a chance to redeem themselves, Lose like this and the memory of this playoff will last maybe the longest of them all.

Find your glory Canucks, Find your HEART.

GO CANUCKS GO

If the Canucks continue to let the Hawks get into their heads (Refs as well) we wont be playing past Sunday.

That was TERRIBLE. The officiating was horrendous and our control of the panic button pathetic. This team is not mentally tough enough and are very fragile or at least are showing these signs. In our opinion they have to win 3 straight to win this series one Hawks win and it will be incredibly difficult to beat them in 7.

Worst part is the Hawks are doing it without kane, toews and hossa. When a team has no answer for a scrub like bufflin we are in trouble. its frustrating.

We predicted this series would be determined by the 3rd and 4th lines and theirs are FAR superior to ours. We have to find a way to get through their pests and move buffalo man out of Lou’s crease. Win tomorrow or face heading back to Chicago with a almost insurmountable 3-1 deficit….

GO CANUCKS GO