Historically, a Canucks vs Red Wings game is like the 2011 Cup Finals. Either it's a close win for the Canucks, or a total blowout win for the Wings. With a single point tonight, Vancouver can clinch a playoff spot. Couple of lineup changes tonight, but no one returns yet from the injury list. Kesler centred the second line between Raymond and Kassian, while Roy returned to centre the 3rd line with Ebbett and Hansen. Higgins will most likely take Ebbett's spot once he returns. On the defensive side, Alberts was bumped to the second pairing with Edler, and Barker was put on the third with Ballard. Higgins is supposed to be returning for Monday's game against the Hawks, while Bieksa and Tanev are to return before the playoffs start. Booth has no return date.
Spot on with the last 3 games, the Canucks let the first period rest on Schneider. Wasn't much action in the beginning, more end to end hockey than intense zone play, but by the 10 minute mark the Wings had a 6-1 shot advantage. And it wasn't that the Canucks weren't trying. No, they just seemed... Uncoordinated? Vancouver had their best chance to capitalize, on a 5 on 3 powerplay midway through the first. They didn't score with a 2 man advantage, but they managed to get one past Howard before the second penalty expired. After Roy won the initial faceoff, Hamhuis fed Edler with a cross ice pass, and he blasted it past a screened Howard.
Despite the goal, the Canucks were playing like it was a charity game. On a defensive miscue, Cleary snuck behind Elder on a breakaway. Thankfully, Cleary missed by a mile, but it goes to show how out of sync they are. Later in the period, on an Edler, penalty, Burrows got a great short handed chance. After poking the puck off the sideboards, Burrows pushed past the defense and cut to the center on Howard. But because Howard was out so far, Burrows ended up tripping over him and couldn't finish his deke. It looked like Vancouver would take the lead to the dressing room, but then with 21 seconds left, Brunner beat Hamhuis to a loose puck on the sideboards. Brunners shot, not all that hard, was tipped by Emmerton just in front of Schneider. It squeaked 5 hole, and put the Wings on the board. Through 20, tied at 1. Shots 9-4 in favor of the bad guys.
The Sedins seemed to be the only ones trying in the second, but they had nothing to show for it. Lot's of good puck movement, lots of chances, but no goals. Towards the midway mark, the fury of Ballard showed itself for the first time since St Louis. After being dumped in the corner by Abdelkader, Ballard came charging back and pretty much sat on him in front of the net for a good 30 seconds. After an exchange of cross checks, the pair dropped the gloves. I'd give the fight to Abdelkader, who landed more punches but was the first down. Later, Franzen beat the living daylights out of Daniel Sedin in front of the Vancouver net. Franzen had a good 10 seconds to cross check poor Daniel before the Swedish Mafia arrived. Franzen received 2 penalties, Burrows got 1. Despite the advantage, the only real chance on the powerplay came from an individual effort on the rush by Kesler.
By the 30 minute mark of the game, Vancouver had just 2 even strength shots, and 5 on the powerplay. If you can't math, that's 7. 7 shots in 30 minutes. Gives you an indication of where this game is going. Second period over, still tied at 1. Shots 13-11 for the Wings.
Thankfully, we got one good period of hockey out of this game. Unforunately, it was pretty one sided in favor of the wings. Schneider was forced to be sharp more than once, and got lucky more than once. In one case, Datsyuks shot went off Hamhuis' skate, off Schneiders stick and off the crossbar. At the other end, one of the few Canuck chances of the third, Roy did the crossbar on a wide open net. In the final six minutes, Vancouver was under siege. Schneider became a one man, show, stopping pucks and clearing them before the Wings could pounce. Somewhere in there, Ballard sustained an injury and left to the dressing room. Somehow, the Canucks made it to the final buzzer and OT. With that one point, the Canucks clinched a playoff spot.
More of the same in OT, as Schneider became a freaking brick wall. No goals, off to the shootout!
Up first, Kesler! Fast up the middle, tries moving to the right and 5 hole... Stopped by the pad.
Datsyuk: Dipsy Doodles up the centre, tries to flip it over Schneider.... Bobbles it.
Roy: In from the left, tries to move to the right, in too close... Pokechecked
Zetterberg: Fake shot, tries to deke backhand... Stopped by the pad
Lapierre: In slow, left to right, sudden change to the left again, backhand shot... SCORES! Over a sprawling Howard!
Brunner: In fast, tries to shot 5 hole... stopped by the paddle.
Canucks win! They didn't deserve it, but it STILL counts!
Tidbits:
- PP: 1/4 Terrible. Spent the whole time chasing the puck. Only goal was off of a faceoff.
- PK:3/3 Good at getting puck out, and putting it deep in Red Wings zone.
- Defense: Will be better when Edler/Ballard can both be on their left sides again. Bieksa and Tanev are supposed to be back before the playoffs start.
- Schneider: Again, only reason we won. Didn't do bad with his stickhandling either.
- Kassian/Raymond: Didn't notice them, even with increased minutes. Bad sign, when Kesler was on for most of the game.
Next game is Monday, April 22nd vs the Blackhawks.
Showing posts with label Red Wings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Red Wings. Show all posts
Saturday, 20 April 2013
Thursday, 18 April 2013
Canucks at Stars, Apr 18/13
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.
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.
Saturday, 16 March 2013
Game in Review: Canucks vs Red Wings, Mar 16/13
You probably already knew this, but there was an NHL team in Vancouver before the Canucks. The Vancouver Millionaires came into the league in 1912, and won Vancouver's only cup in 1915. In honor of 100 years of pro hockey in BC, the Canucks wore the ugliest maroon/white jerseys, which I wrote about some time ago. Notice how no one is smiling in any of those photos? These jerseys would get you bullied in hockey school.
Kassian was out with an injured back, so Sestito was in. He played on the 4th, and Weise was bumped up to the 3rd line with Higgins and Booth. Vancouver was looking to bury the bad memory of a recent 8-3 loss to Detroit, and came out strong.
Just off the opening faceoff, Daniel Sedin broke the Detroit line and passed to Burrows, who one timed it past Howard and in. Past that Burrows was on fire, moving through the Detroit defense like they were standing still. All seemed well, until Detroit lucked out 6 minutes in. Datsyuk cut down the right wing, pushed away from Hamhuis, and threw the puck to the net. Abdelkader was in front of the net, battling with Garrison, and the puck went off his skate and in. For once, a terrible goal didn't come at the expense of Bieksa.
Minutes later, on a delayed call, Burrows almost got his 2nd of the evening. Henrik rounded the net and tossed the puck crease to Burrows, whose wrister was labeled top shelf, but was somehow stopped by Howard. Late in the first, Booth was taken down in the corner. He took a while to get up, and when he did, he skated gingerly back to the bench. Judging by the way he held his leg up, it was either a skate problem or ankle injury. Other than that, the first was a great period for Vancouver. The passing was there, everyone was in position, they just had a few unlucky bounces.
Booth wasn't on the ice to start the 2nd, and it was revealed that he wouldn't return to the game. Early on, Bieksa put the Canucks on the powerplay, and they looked ridiculously dangerous. They might've scored, but Burrows took a high sticking penalty in the final minute of the man advantage. Moments later, Lappiere took a tripping penalty, giving Detroit a 5 on 3. The Canucks didn't just hold the Wings off, they didn't allow them a single shot. Burrows had a great short handed breakaway, but bobbled the puck.
6 left in the 2nd, and Detroit took the lead. A passing flurry involving Datsyuk, Franzen and Zetterrberg ended in Zetterberg burying the puck out front. Moments later, Hansen sprung past the Detroit defense and was hauled down, penalty shot. After deking Howard just out of position, Hansen's wrist shot hit the post.
Wings up 2-1 after 40 minutes.
Almost off the puck drop, the Canucks fell apart. With Vancouver's forwards off in la-la land, Detroit's veterans were left to pick apart the defense. Filppula shot a perfect cross ice pass on the rush to Zetterberg, whose shot beat Luongo going the wrong way. From there, the Canucks literally just gave the puck to the Wings. 6 minutes in, Cleary's shot beat a screened Luongo on the rush, 4-1 Wings. All hope seemed lost. Then, a 5 on 3 with 8 minutes left in the game. Ah wait, I forgot. This is the cursed Canucks powerplay. Nothing on it, and then Detroit scored again. Another lucky bounce, this time off Adbelkader's chest and into the net.
Burrows potted his second of the night, backhanded off of a rebound, late in the third. It didn't matter, because with only a few minutes left on the clock, there was no chance of a come back. Game over 5-2 Wings.
Tidbits:
- PP: 0/5. Honestly not all that bad, seemed like it had it mostly together from the first attempt. Got Garrison's point shot off a few times.
- PK: 2/3. Killed off a 5 on 3, but was picked apart on the third one.
- Bieksa: Looked a heck of a lot better than Thursday night, was joining rushes, and didn't turn the puck over. Drew a penalty or two.
- Burrows game opening goal was just 6 seconds in, and is now the club record for fastest goal. Previous was held by Trevor Linden, 9 seconds. Fastest opening goal in NHL was 5 seconds.
After the first period, it seemed like the Canucks, well... Gave up? No chance they're tired, playing the last few games at home, with a days break in between. So what happened? I've decided this post is too long, so i'm gonna write my "WTF Happened" post tomorrow afternoon.
Next game is Monday against the Wild at 7.
Kassian was out with an injured back, so Sestito was in. He played on the 4th, and Weise was bumped up to the 3rd line with Higgins and Booth. Vancouver was looking to bury the bad memory of a recent 8-3 loss to Detroit, and came out strong.
Just off the opening faceoff, Daniel Sedin broke the Detroit line and passed to Burrows, who one timed it past Howard and in. Past that Burrows was on fire, moving through the Detroit defense like they were standing still. All seemed well, until Detroit lucked out 6 minutes in. Datsyuk cut down the right wing, pushed away from Hamhuis, and threw the puck to the net. Abdelkader was in front of the net, battling with Garrison, and the puck went off his skate and in. For once, a terrible goal didn't come at the expense of Bieksa.
Minutes later, on a delayed call, Burrows almost got his 2nd of the evening. Henrik rounded the net and tossed the puck crease to Burrows, whose wrister was labeled top shelf, but was somehow stopped by Howard. Late in the first, Booth was taken down in the corner. He took a while to get up, and when he did, he skated gingerly back to the bench. Judging by the way he held his leg up, it was either a skate problem or ankle injury. Other than that, the first was a great period for Vancouver. The passing was there, everyone was in position, they just had a few unlucky bounces.
Booth wasn't on the ice to start the 2nd, and it was revealed that he wouldn't return to the game. Early on, Bieksa put the Canucks on the powerplay, and they looked ridiculously dangerous. They might've scored, but Burrows took a high sticking penalty in the final minute of the man advantage. Moments later, Lappiere took a tripping penalty, giving Detroit a 5 on 3. The Canucks didn't just hold the Wings off, they didn't allow them a single shot. Burrows had a great short handed breakaway, but bobbled the puck.
6 left in the 2nd, and Detroit took the lead. A passing flurry involving Datsyuk, Franzen and Zetterrberg ended in Zetterberg burying the puck out front. Moments later, Hansen sprung past the Detroit defense and was hauled down, penalty shot. After deking Howard just out of position, Hansen's wrist shot hit the post.
Wings up 2-1 after 40 minutes.
Almost off the puck drop, the Canucks fell apart. With Vancouver's forwards off in la-la land, Detroit's veterans were left to pick apart the defense. Filppula shot a perfect cross ice pass on the rush to Zetterberg, whose shot beat Luongo going the wrong way. From there, the Canucks literally just gave the puck to the Wings. 6 minutes in, Cleary's shot beat a screened Luongo on the rush, 4-1 Wings. All hope seemed lost. Then, a 5 on 3 with 8 minutes left in the game. Ah wait, I forgot. This is the cursed Canucks powerplay. Nothing on it, and then Detroit scored again. Another lucky bounce, this time off Adbelkader's chest and into the net.
Burrows potted his second of the night, backhanded off of a rebound, late in the third. It didn't matter, because with only a few minutes left on the clock, there was no chance of a come back. Game over 5-2 Wings.
Tidbits:
- PP: 0/5. Honestly not all that bad, seemed like it had it mostly together from the first attempt. Got Garrison's point shot off a few times.
- PK: 2/3. Killed off a 5 on 3, but was picked apart on the third one.
- Bieksa: Looked a heck of a lot better than Thursday night, was joining rushes, and didn't turn the puck over. Drew a penalty or two.
- Burrows game opening goal was just 6 seconds in, and is now the club record for fastest goal. Previous was held by Trevor Linden, 9 seconds. Fastest opening goal in NHL was 5 seconds.
After the first period, it seemed like the Canucks, well... Gave up? No chance they're tired, playing the last few games at home, with a days break in between. So what happened? I've decided this post is too long, so i'm gonna write my "WTF Happened" post tomorrow afternoon.
Next game is Monday against the Wild at 7.
Sunday, 24 February 2013
Game in Review: Canucks at Red Wings, Feb 24/13
David Booth was a scratch tonight, after feeling "under the weather" and skipping the morning skate. Volpatti played on the fourth to replace him. Bieksa was also out, after experiencing some sort of groin problem Friday night in Nashville, and AV was forced to bring up either Alberts or Barker to replace. So the lesser of two evils was brought up, and Alberts was paired with Ballard. Alberts hasn't played in 11 months. Rather than attempting to explain the lineups, I just wrote them out.
Sedin-Sedin-Burrows
Higgins-Kesler-Hansen
Raymond-Schroeder-Kassian
Volpatti-Lappiere-Weise
Hamhuis-Tanev
Edler-Garrison
Ballard-Albert
Much like Nashville, this game started off a little slow. Unlike Nashville, we didn't get killed in shots and chances departments. Lappiere had a good chance 1 on 1 with Howard early on, but Howard stretched out and made the pad save. Five and a bit into the period, Henrik and Daniel caught fire. After cycling the puck along the boards, Henrik took it behind the net and passed it to Daniel at the front, who buried it. Detroit got a brief 5 on 3 off penalties from Kesler and Tanev, and despite their chances, didn't bury anything. They managed to hit the post, and miss with Luongo out of position, but no goals. In fact, at the 10 minute mark, Detroit only had 1 shot on net, yet had 4 or 5 chances that could've been goals. So it was fitting that Detroit's tying goal was the worst chance of the night. After bouncing the puck off Garrisons skates a few times, Tootoo's shot finally bounced off Ballard's foot at the front of the net and in.
A minute and a half later, Datsyuk almost put the puck past Luongo, but drew a penalty in the process. On the delayed call, Kronwall ripped a shot from the point passed a screened Luongo. With less than 4 minutes left in the period, Henrik shot the puck from his own zone all the way down the ice, for what would be an icing call. But because it was outside of the trapezoid painted on the ice, Howard couldn't play it without taking a penalty. So Howard had to watch as the puck bounced right to Daniel Sedin, and then past him as Daniel roofed it. A few minutes later, Higgins managed to recover the puck in the Detroit zone, and pulled a wraparound out of his bag of tricks. The puck was put just inside the far post, which Howard wasn't prepared for. 3-2 Canucks, end of the first.
Early in the 2nd, Kassian and Huskins got locked up heading towards Howard. Kassian got clear, but Huskins collided with Howard. Somehow, Kassian ended up with a penalty on the play, and of course Detroit capitalized on the powerplay. Zetterberg brought the puck around the net and passed to Brunner at the front, whose own rebound came back to him. Brunner's next shot went right to Cleary, who batted it out of mid air and past Luongo to tie the game up. A few minutes later, Jordan Tootoo took a late run at Tanev, and Kassian intervened. Tootoo turtled as soon as the gloves came off. Both received 2 minute minors for their work. Detroit took the lead with less than 5 minutes left in the period, as Zetterberg snapped the puck past Luongo. 30 seconds later, Datsyuk batted the puck over Luongo and in, but Luongo asked for a review. After review, the refs determined that Datsyuk`s stick was too high, no goal. After Kesler was hauled down in the corner, the Canucks bench hollered at the refs for a penalty. Did they get one? You bet, but against the Canucks. Unsportsmanlike conduct, they called it. Against the whole team but served by Kassian. Of course Detroit scored on the man advantage, Brunner roofed the puck over an outstretched Luongo to make it 5-3, end of the 2nd. Vancouver managed only 3 shots in the period.
Not much happened n the 3rd, but Vancouver did have some good pressure for the first 10 minutes. Despite that, Brunner made it 6-3 just past the halfway point. Alberts was screening Luongo, and the shot hit his blocker and went in. 3 and a half left, and it's 7-3. Ballard got his stick in front of an Adbelkader shot, and it flicked up, then down as it went past Luongo. Less than a minute later it was 8-3, as Andersson slapped it past Luongo. Game over, 8-3 Wings.
Tidbits:
- Refs: Made stupid, lopsided calls all night in favor of Detroit. Lost count of the amount of times I wrote "WHY, EXACTLY?!" in my game notes.
- Luongo: Can't blame a lot of those goals on him. Goals 1, 2, 6 and 7 were a direct result of a complete screen or tip from his own defenceman. Not surprised he wasn't pulled, wouldn't of helped.
- Kassian: No problem with the penalty he took for defending Tanev, and the 2 others he took were crap. Despite the stats, he had a decent game.
- PP: 0/2, played the worst it has all season.
- PK: 2/5. Just bloody awful.
So we can blame part of this on the fact that the Canucks played 3 games in 4 nights, and that the refs called a bunch of crap penalties. But excuses aside, Vancouver played terrible hockey tonight and didn't deserve a point, no matter how bad the refs were.
Next game is Tuesday against Phoenix at 7.
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