If you missed it, click here for Sunday's blog, which includes a recap of the Leafs game, highlights from Pavel Bure's ceremony and a link to Sunday's "Pacific Buzz" podcast.
Leafs Fallout
- After a lively weekend on the message boards, most of the key points about Saturday's game have now been well covered. The Leafs' smoke-and-mirrors show started to crack while the Canucks came out hard and played a full 60 minutes.
- John Tortorella suggested that the hot start on Saturday had more to do with frustration from a lackluster showing against Detroit on Wednesday than from anything to do with Toronto or the Pavel Bure ceremony.
- After his strong early play with the Leafs, Mason Raymond looked a lot like the player that confounded fans during his time here in Vancouver. MayRay was a minus-1 in 19 minutes of ice time, with two shots on goal and one terrible first-period giveaway. Basically, a non-factor.
- If the Canucks played the Leafs more often, they'd probably be a lot higher up the list of power-play opportunities. The Leafs were stunningly undisciplined and put a number of Canucks in danger over the course of the game—Frazer MacLaren's boarding penalty on Alex Edler in the second period and Joffrey Lupul's missed elbow directed at Henrik Sedin come immediately to mind. Vancouver is lucky to have escaped the game without any new injuries.
Murderer's Row
I watched the first episode of the new season of Edmonton's reality show Oil Change over the weekend. Craig MacTavish referred to an Oilers' road trip to San Jose, Los Angeles and Anaheim last year as "Murderer's Row" and the name seems mighty appropriate. Add in the surprising Phoenix Coyotes and the Canucks have their biggest challenge of the season in store this week.
The Kings are the only one of these four Pacific Division rivals who have lost a home game in regulation so far this year. They're 5-3-0 at home, while the Coyotes are 6-0-1, the Sharks are 5-0-1 and the Ducks are a perfect 5-0-0.
These four games are all proverbial four-pointers. Even though it's early in the season, this trip could go a long way towards determining the final playoff seedings in the Pacific.
Normally, I'd say if the Canucks can get four points out of the trip it would be a success. Right now, I think they have to do better if they hope to keep pace with these rivals.
To start, a win on Tuesday would allow them to leapfrog the Coyotes back into third place in the Pacific. One game at a time.
Were the Sedins Soft in Their Contract Negotiation?
Don't get me wrong—I'm happy that the Sedins signed their new contracts. And I appreciated Tortortella's impassioned defense of the twins' grit over the weekend. But I think they left money and term on the table in their new deal.
We admire the fact that they're loyal, look at the big picture and are about more than the almighty dollar. But does this attitude extend to their play on the ice? If they're not willing to fight for the very best contract, does it also mean that they're not willing to fight for every last goal, point—opportunity?
Pro athletes need a healthy dose of ego to be successful. They're driven by the desire to prove that they're "the greatest"—think of Muhammad Ali. Even Sidney Crosby burns with that will to win. Do Daniel and Henrik Sedin have enough fire that they truly want to be at the top of the heap?
I appreciate the twins' even-keeled nature and I'm glad the negotiations won't be a distraction as the season progresses. The signing is also a vote of confidence from both sides for the new regime—Daniel and Henrik were in a position to get out of Dodge at the end of the year if they didn't like the way things were going under Tortorella. In just one month, they saw enough to commit, and management saw enough from the twins to believe that they'll be valuable contributors until 2018.
We've seen quiet leaders like Joe Sakic and Nick Lidstrom win Stanley Cups. Those two also spent their entire careers with the same teams, going about their business without ever testing free agency and maximizing their cash return. Maybe, with the right supporting cast, it is possible.
What do you think?
Quick Hits:
- The Canucks will practice Monday morning at Rogers Arena before heading to Phoenix. Zac Dalpe was recalled from his conditioning assignment over the weekend, so the team will have 12 forwards available on the road trip. David Booth is also said to be close to rejoining the lineup.
- It looks like Alex Burrows had a fun day off on Sunday, taking in the Seahawks game from the sidelines:
Guess which @VanCanucks player woke up early on his day off to cheer on the @Seahawks ? #TBvsSEA #12North pic.twitter.com/2cxGlxZG6G
— Seahawks Canada (@SeahawksCanada) November 3, 2013
I'll be back tomorrow with a preview of the Coyotes game.
Follow me on Twitter @pool88.