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Vancouver Canucks Game Review/Game Day: 6th Pick in Reach, Hate is Fading |
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Combined with a healthy serving of humble pie, it sounds like the outside perception of the Canucks organization is starting to change.
Ryan Smyth's retirement made for an emotional night at Rexall Place on Saturday, and served as a good reminder of how even losing teams can continue to make emotional connections with their fans. The Canuck weren't quite gracious enough to allow Smyth to break the Edmonton record for power-play goals, but they did let the Oilers lead from wire to wire and allow the fans to enjoy a win as they feted one of their team's great characters.
Henrik Sedin made quite the honourable gesture when he led his team back onto the ice after the final buzzer for one last round of handshakes and hugs with a guy who has spent all but 18 games of his 20-year career in the Western Conference.
The officials got in on the action; so did Canucks' trainer Mike Burnstein and equipment manager Pat O'Neill, who worked with Smyth during the Olympics. The only face we didn't see was Torts, who has previously informed us that he is "not a hugger."
John Tortorella did pop up on Hockey Night in Canada after the game, speaking with Scott Oake. He wouldn't address the whispers about his future employment in Vancouver, but did attempt to reposition the playing style he preaches as a "hybrid" rather than a strictly defensive system.
The address—outside the regular confines of the Canucks' regular media conferences—didn't hit the same tones as Mike Gillis' last radio appearance before his firing, but it struck me as serving a similar purpose: like a lawyer's closing argument at the end of the trial, Torts was making one last attempt to sway the jury of public opinion in his favour.
Trevor Linden also appeared on the broadcast in the first intermission, with Ron McLean. He says he's waiting until next week to start analyzing the coaching situation, but sounds like he's leaving a lot of room for the a possible future announcement that the team is "going in a different direction."
St. Louis ended their season on a six game losing streak after being shut out by Detroit on Sunday. They also handed over the Central Division championship to Colorado and will face a tough first-round matchup with the defending Stanley Cup Champions Chicago. I wonder if Ken Hitchcock will suddenly become available if St. Louis loses that series? What would you think of Hitch behind the Canucks bench?
Yesterday's comment section was buzzing after Linden directly acknowledged the "Boston model" as the template he wants to follow to re-shape the Canucks going forward. Name-checking Shawn Thornton seemed like a bit of a blast from the past—the "Merlot Line" was so 2011, weren't they?
Still, you can't argue with Boston's success. As the Canucks' freefall has dropped them near the bottom of the league, the Bruins have been back to the Stanley Cup Final and clinched the 2014 Presidents' Trophy on Saturday. Another successful postseason likely awaits.
Not much point in talking about last night's game in detail. Jacob Markstrom didn't get a whole lot of help from the team in front of him, and Alex Edler had another stunningly awkward night. He was on the ice for three Oilers goals, but one was the power-play marker so he only picked up another minus-two.
With that, he's now tied with Steve Ott for the worst plus/minus in the league at minus-38. Edler has a chance to take sole possession of the title during tonight's game against Calgary. That's one record I think the Canucks can achieve this year!
Of course, the Canucks face the Calgary Flames on Sunday night at Rogers Arena. Puck drop's at 6:00.
Pat Quinn will be inducted into the Ring of Honour, with the ceremony starting at 5:45 p.m. I'm sure President Linden will be part of the festivities and while I didn't get any hint from his comments on HNIC last night, I wouldn't be especially surprised if there was an announcement about Quinn's role with the team going forward.
The Canucks will also present their usual end-of-season awards, which should be a bit awkward. Share your thoughts in the comments on who you think should receive:
• Cyclone Taylor - "Most Valuable Player"
• Walter (Babe) Pratt - "Best Defenceman"
• Pavel Bure - “Most Exciting Player”
• Fred J. Hume - "Unsung Hero "
• Three Star Award - “Most Three Stars Selections”
• Cyrus H. McLean - "Leading Scorer"
Henrik will receive the Leading Scorer award, with 11 goals and 48 points going into the final game of the year—barely half of what he posted when he won the Art Ross Trophy four seasons ago.
What about the rest?
The Canucks and Carolina are currently tied in the NHL standings with 81 points. With an outright loss tonight, the Canucks can guarantee the sixth-seed in the draft lottery on Tuesday. Carolina's up 2-1 on Philadelphia in the first period as I type this; if the Hurricanes win, it won't matter what the Canucks do tonight. Only if Carolina ties or loses will the Canucks be at risk of climbing up to the seventh seed if they get any points against the Flames.
I can still hardly believe *this* is the scoreboard watching we're doing now.
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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