After a terrible performance in St Louis, the Canucks finished off their 5 game road trip against Dallas. A win meant that the Canucks would clinch a playoff spot. The only lineup change was Pinizzotto in for Sestito, on the fourth line.
If you were hoping that the Canucks would pick up their play tonight, as we all were, then prepare for disappointment. From the start, their defense was just as porous as previous nights. Schneider was forced to bail out his defenders multiple times, and made saves from his belly more than once. Despite that, Vancouver still managed to have a little offense. By the 10 minute mark, the shots were only 6-4, and certainly not indicative of play. Past the midway point, though, that little offense died out, and an already mangled defense was forced to play the rest of the period in it's own zone. Tied at 0 after 1, shots 12-10 in favor of the Canucks. Again, Schneider was the only reason that Vancouver was still alive at this point.
If AV gave the guys a pep talk in between periods, it did nothing. But fear not, because Derek Roy rang the wakeup bell 6 minutes in. Goligoski and Roy were both going for the puck, no one else but the goalie in the Dallas zone. Roy chipped the puck past the lone defender and went backhand-forehand on Lehtonen, 1-0 Canucks. That goal seemed to be the boost Vancouver needed, because the shots were 10-3 at the midway point in favor of the blue. Despite all the glorious offense, it was only a matter of time before the one man defense show of Schneider broke down. With the Canucks shorthanded, Edler managed to lose his stick, leaving him all but useless. As the penalty expired, Nystrom passed to a wide open Fiddler, who slammed it past Schneider to tie it up.
Unlike the first period, the Canucks offense didn't die out after 10 minutes in the second. No other goals to show for it, but it kept the Stars busy in their own end. All seemed OK, until the end of the period. With less than 2 minutes left, Daniel Sedin took a tripping penalty. Vancouver was able to hold them off right until the very end, when with only seconds left, a shot from 20 feet out hit the crossbar and trickled towards the open net. Thankfully, Andrew Alberts dove cross-crease and batted the puck away. As the period ended, Robidas took Hamhuis hard into the boards, and a brawl ensued. Both Robidas and Hamhuis ended up with minor penalties.
Just a minute and a half in, the Stars picked up where they left off. A minute and a half in, Aaron Rome broke up a promising Kassian/Raymond rush, and pushed it the other way. Smith pushed the puck past the Vancouver defense to an open Eakin, who snapped it blocker side on Schneider. 2 and a half later, Burrows tried a drop pass to Ballard at his own blueline, but Ballard missed it. Benn grabbed the loose puck and snapped it top corner, 3-1 Stars. Only 3 minutes later, Whitney was wide open at the side of the net, and buried the rebound off of a tipped shot. Kassian had a shot off the post late in the third, but other than that, nothing worth noting. Game over, 5-1 Stars
I hate to say I told you so, but, well, I don't. I love to be right. The Canucks crappy play finally caught up with them. All the giveaways, terrible passing, a lack of offense, combined with relying on Schneider to always save the day, was just a recipe for failure. Sure, they were at the end of their road trip, and probably exhausted, but they've played this way for most of the trip.
Tidbits:
- PP: 0/2 Just chased the puck. No cycle, no form, no goals.
- PK: 4/5 Sloppy as my dinner tonight. In case you were wondering, I had Sloppy Joes.
- Schneider: Can't blame him for any of those, or the loss. Has held us in the last few games with no help at all.
- Kassian: Couple of good chances, actually looked decent tonight. Might be ready to play top 6 again.
Next game is Saturday Apr 20th vs Detroit.
No comments:
Post a Comment