Wednesday October 30 Detroit Red Wings 2 - Vancouver Canucks 1
Happy Halloween!
It was a bit of a scary showing on Wednesday night at Rogers Arena as the Detroit Red Wings snapped their four-game winless streak with a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks.
I'm not so sure that the loss was a result of fatigue on the part of the top forwards—I think it's more about the opposition. After three days off, Detroit looked energized, especially in the early going, and executed a tactical defensive strategy.
After Monday's game, John Tortorella talked about how Vancouver defended well against Alex Ovechkin by keeping possession of the puck. The Wings took the same approach in the first period on Wednesday, taking a 6-0 lead in shots before the Canucks even got their legs under them.
Roberto Luongo kept his team in it through the early stages and made some great saves in the third as Vancouver attempted to mount a comeback.
The Canucks were lucky to get the lead when the Sedins combined for a highlight-reel goal late in the first period. The team's record is phenomenal when both twins score a point but on Wednesday, it was not enough for the win.
Daniel Alfredsson tied it for Detroit on a goalmouth scramble midway through the game, and the eventual winner was a clunker. As Slovak rookie Tomas Tatar fluttered a weak shot towards the goal from the right wing, Chris Tanev uncharacteristically lifted his foot rather than making the block, but Luongo didn't pick up the puck in time. It went five-hole—and that was the game.
Quick Hits:
- Alex Burrows is working hard to shake off the rust from his injury. On a night when the Canucks tallied just 20 shots on goal, Burrows had six of them, and had another four blocked. He re-joined the Sedins when Tortorella started juggling his lines in the third period, but was also on the ice for both Detroit goals. Burrows should keep improving with each passing game.
- I saw a noticeable drop-off in Mike Santorelli's play compared to Monday night against Washington. Though he still logged more than 20 minutes, he seemed to be mostly stuck between the blue lines. He didn't get a shot on goal, though he did win 60 percent of his faceoffs on a night when Vancouver got schooled in the circle.
- Pavel Datsyuk was named first star despite finishing the game with no points. Still an elite talent, Datsyuk logged 23:21 of ice time and was a force at both ends of the ice. As a fan, it's a treat to watch great players at the top of their games, no matter who they play for.
- If the power play was effective, I'd be outraged about Henrik Zetterberg's careless stick to the mouth of Dan Hamhuis in the first period, which went unpenalized. The play looked a lot like Zack Kassian's stick that broke Sam Gagner's jaw, but in this case the damage was much less severe. Hamhuis went to the dressing room for repairs and was back in action for the second period.
- In a one-goal game, the power play could have made the difference, but the Canucks went 0-for-3. After their goal, the Canucks had some momentum late in the first before Brendan Smith took an interference penalty, but spun their wheels with the man advantage. I was relieved when Henrik took a holding penalty a minute later to get them back to 4-on-4, where I thought they had a better chance of being effective. Unlike the Washington game, the power play didn't get a sniff against Detroit.
- The Canucks are off on Thursday, but will practice Friday ahead of the Toronto game. They're now down to 29th place with a 9.3 percent power-play conversion rate. Maybe with a little work they'll be able to find the key to get 'er going on Saturday.
Bure Bure
On Saturday, the Vancouver Canucks will finally raise Pavel Bure's number 10 to the rafters at Rogers Arena. Bure was the first pure offensive talent ever to suit up for the Canucks when he joined the team in 1991. To me, he bisects the franchise's history, helping to move the Canucks from the ranks of perennial losers to a team that can contend with the best.
Bure's arrival in Vancouver was a cloak-and-dagger affair. It was generally believed that the 18-year-old wasn't eligible for the 1989 draft because he had not yet played enough pro games in Russia. The official story is that Canucks scout Mike Penney uncovered some additional games, so Vancouver picked him in the sixth round.
The Canucks Army website has an even more scandalous version of affairs, courtesy of Tony Gallagher of
The Province. Not sure I buy it—John Ziegler had a lot to answer for by the time he was turfed from his office—but
click here to check it out.
Off the ice, Bure was a controversial figure during his time in Vancouver. Rumours swirled constantly around his personal life, his connections back home in Russia, and his contract and trade demands. On the ice, he was magic.
This is still one of my favourite goals of all time. A stunner—and in pre-season!
During Wednesday's game, the Canucks ran a Bure feature on the jumbotron during a TV timeout. Teammates Greg Adams, Sergio Momesso and Trevor Linden talked about what it was like to play with the Russian Rocket. It got me thinking about who will be on hand Saturday to pay tribute, and the moments we'll get to re-live.
What do you think? Is Pavel the greatest player ever to wear a Canuck jersey? Or would you give the honour to Henrik Sedin, or someone else?
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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