Canucks Minni GDT

[rustybadcock]

Wild-Canucks Preview
Mar 21, 2008, 7:00 PM PT
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A three-game winning streak has moved the Vancouver Canucks within one point of the Northwest Division-leading Minnesota Wild.

A victory over the team they're chasing, though, will give the Canucks sole possession of the top spot.

Surging Vancouver looks to extend its run and move past the Wild when they meet on Friday night at GM Place.

Daniel Sedin and Matt Pettinger scored unassisted goals in the second period, and Taylor Pyatt and Trevor Linden each tallied in the third for the Canucks (38-26-10) in their 4-1 win over Edmonton on Thursday night.

"The teams that get timely goals from guys that don't usually get them are the teams that win," Vancouver's Willie Mitchell said. "Legends are made off that in the playoffs, and to be honest in the Northwest the playoffs are right now. Hopefully that kind of thing continues."

Roberto Luongo made 33 saves for Vancouver, which has won three straight and six of its last eight to tie Calgary for sixth in the Western Conference.

The Canucks are trying to reach the playoffs for the sixth time in seven seasons, but the defending division champions would like to get there with a third Northwest title in hand. They'll continue their pursuit of that crown against Minnesota (36-26-9), which seeks to win the franchise's first division title in its seven-year history and reach the postseason for the third time.

The Wild hold a one-point lead on both Vancouver and Calgary, which beat Colorado on Thursday, keeping the Avalanche three back in the division. The Flames and Avs are idle until Saturday.

Vancouver's and Minnesota's remaining eight games are against division foes, including one more head-to-head matchup on March 28. The Canucks are 3-2-1 against the Wild this season, and three of those meetings have been decided by one goal.

Vancouver came way with a 3-2 win at Minnesota on Feb. 19 in the teams' most recent matchup. Daniel Sedin assisted on Markus Naslund's tying goal in the third period before scoring in overtime.

Minnesota also seeks to win three straight in Vancouver for the first time. But the Wild have dropped their last three road games - their longest skid since going 0-4-1 from Oct. 24-Nov.13.

Minnesota opened its four-game swing with a 4-3 shootout loss to San Jose on Wednesday. Marian Gaborik scored twice for the Wild, who have earned at least a point in six straight games. Niklas Backstrom made 29 saves before surrendering two of three shootout goals for Minnesota, which is just 2-2-4 since a three-game winning streak from Feb. 27-March 2.

The Wild, though, lost defenseman Kurtis Foster for the rest of the season and playoffs after he underwent surgery to repair a displaced fracture in his femur on Thursday. Foster, who had a stabilizing rod inserted, was hurt after crashing into the boards while chasing a puck in Wednesday's game.

"When a guy goes down, you have to battle through it," fellow defenseman Kim Johnsson said. "You have to keep winning games."

Gaborik, who leads the Wild with 38 goals and 73 points, has five goals and five assists in his last 10 contests. He also has four goals and an assist in six games this season, and 17 goals and 28 points in 33 all-time meetings with Vancouver.

I never like playing Minnie for a multitude of reasons. However I like to think the boys have their eye on embedding that winning feeling a little deeper into their own craws. They're playing some real good hockey now that guys like Mo and Bieksa are settling back into their roles and Pettinger gets more comfortable in his new environment. Should be a good one.

RB

[gordphish]

I can't remember Vancouver's record in the 2nd game of back-to-backs over the least two seasons, but I seem to recall that it was very good. I think they'll carry this momentum they have from their last three games over and win 4-2.

[TimmyTabasco]

Agreed

4-2 Canucks

With the loss of Foster, look for the twins to have a big night

[rustybadcock]

bah, minnie, I just hate playing these guys.

Was a pretty good game until the 17 min mark of the first eh?! Once again the glare of bad call after bad call burned us. I am all for calling penalties but if you're gonna call one, call em all. Fair is fair. These refs are pathetic. What this game has become because of it....well, you get the picture. I am trying this morning to recall one legitimate penalty? Maybe the Fedorik pick on Bieksa....which later in the game happened again and went uncalled. I especially loved watching Henick get slew footed late in the third to no avail! And speaking of Fedorik....how do you call penalties in which he apparently drew when in fact, he can't skate? Was that a trip? OR is Fedorik that bad a skater? :slant: :laughing:

Terrible.

Anyway, the bottom line is we had our chances. Rypien could have had a gimmie, Kesler gaffed on an open net and Morrison made Backstrom look like God by firing it right into his pad and not lofting the puck! We simply need to be better and perhaps this will remind the boys of that. Minnie got down right lucky last night, if I were them I'd be getting the phuck outta dodge respectfully cause the hockey God's will make them pay this bill sooner or later. They played an "okay" game, not a "great" or even "good" game. They got lucky IMO and should be thankful for it. They got 6 BS PP in which only one shot managed to punt itself off our best defender. AND they played 3 lines all night! That might in itself be the worst part of this loss, the Fedorik, Simon and Boogaard line sat most of the game! Brutal.

Anyway, it just goes to prove once again that in hockey, one doesn't deserve anything. When you hear people say, or they did or did not deserve to win it means nothing to the Gods above. Last night the Wild DID NOT deserve 2 points, let alone one. They got both, whereas the Canucks deserved, by effort alone, the whole entire prize. Instead they left the dance without their shoes.

Bah - hard to swallow sometimes.

RB

[AtLossForWords]

I don't know it's as much of hockey gods smiling on Minnesota as much as it is terribly obvious this team can't score let alone carry the puck to the net when they're set up in the zone.

This team is just too small to attack the goal crease. Sure they had great puck posession on Minnesota all night, but they can't take the puck to the net, they just hope of open up a shot from the point and snag a break on a deflection or rebound.

That's why a team like the Sharks or the Ducks can be so good, they don't hope for those deflections and lucky rebounds to get goals, they can carry the puck to the net and cause havoc. There's not a single forward on this team that is threatning from the hash marks to goal crease and that really showed last night.

[gordphish]

I don't know it's as much of hockey gods smiling on Minnesota as much as it is terribly obvious this team can't score let alone carry the puck to the net when they're set up in the zone.

This team is just too small to attack the goal crease. Sure they had great puck posession on Minnesota all night, but they can't take the puck to the net, they just hope of open up a shot from the point and snag a break on a deflection or rebound.

That's why a team like the Sharks or the Ducks can be so good, they don't hope for those deflections and lucky rebounds to get goals, they can carry the puck to the net and cause havoc. There's not a single forward on this team that is threatning from the hash marks to goal crease and that really showed last night.

And that's the risk they are taking right now. Sure, with the twins split up they have three lines that CAN find the back of the net, but no lines and no forwards that can be game breakers any given night. Take Anaheim last year. They got consistent production from the Pahlsson line, but had 6 forwards that could be individual game breakers any given night in Selanne, Getzlaf, MacDonald, Perry, Penner and Kunitz.

And I got news for Dave Nonis. In the hunt for the Stanley Cup, slow and steady DOES NOT win the race.

A lot of times at this point in the season, it's not about how much a guy like Richards can get you, it's when he gets them. As I've pointed out all year, they've had a lot of games this season that have mimicked their series against Anaheim last year, where just one more top 6 producer could make a HUGE difference.

But if they continue to be kept to the outside, get burned for taking those stupid, lazy-ass swedish hooking penalties instead of moving their feet, and can't find ways to make the opposition pay when they take penalties, there is no reason to expect any different result from this year than what we saw last year.

Really all we can hope for is that they avoid the Sharks in the first round so that their playoff show this season isn't a complete and miserable slaughter.

[KB in Kelowna]

I was in Harrison Hot Springs and I promised my wife I would not turn on the TV all weekend. From what I gather they played well enough but the old problem of a lack of scoring finish did them in again:( :mad:

From what I did read the rest of the weekend went in their favour score board wise, and after this road trip they finish at home while everyone else seems to have to travel in and out of their time zone at least once. :thumb:

[rustybadcock]

I was in Harrison Hot Springs and I promised my wife I would not turn on the TV all weekend. From what I gather they played well enough but the old problem of a lack of scoring finish did them in again:( :mad:

From what I did read the rest of the weekend went in their favour score board wise, and after this road trip they finish at home while everyone else seems to have to travel in and out of their time zone at least once. :thumb:

We had our honeymoon there....:thumb: A gift from the new parents...whom are also Canuck fans. :pimp:

RB