Caught the highlights.
Lou's head was elsewhere tonight on 3 of them, maybe 4. Can't fault him on the winner though, hard shot from in close is always going to give up a rebound like that unless the shooter is a moron and puts it right into the goalie's chest.....enter Mason Raymond.
Since I didn't see it I can't harp on Raymond. All I know is that when I heard he was being tried with the Sedin's I just hung my head. There are several better options, like Kassian, Higgins, Booth, Hansen, Lapierre, and Weise. Although, I guess using Booth or Higgins would mean breaking up what it currently our most effective line. Raymond has been our most ineffective forward overall since returning to the lineup.
A Bieksa brain-fart during a period where the team is in sleepwalk mode is nothing new.
Also not surprised to hear that, despite the fact that they put up a few points, the Sedin's wouldn't really engage physically tonight. I'm going to stay optimistic here and go with my gut which is telling me that they are the two guys saving the most for the playoffs.
I'm not going to hang this one on Luongo, even though the team did get him 4 goals. I pity the guy. If HW's source is on the level and Lou really is going through some serious domestic shit on the home front, then he gets an automatic pass in my books. Nobody, regardless of salary, vocation, or location, is going to be able to maintain the focus required to be 100% effective at anything they do.....unless they completely despise their spouse. So in this case the loss that would normally rest on Louie gets dumped on Vigneault and/or Gillis. They should have given Luongo a leave of absence from the team for the remainder of the season to go and work through things with the missus. No team could ever be in a better position to do this than the Canucks are right now. They are all but locked into #2 in the West, and have been since mid February thanks to 3 very weak NW division teams and a Minnesota Wild team that shit the bed in epic fashion back at the mid-season mark. The team has a backup goalie that many other GM's are probably salivating over as the day approaches when they can drop an offer sheet in Gillis' lap. The core is a close knit group and the room is rumored to be one of the tightest in the NHL. The team would carry on and be there for Luongo
away from the rink, rather than being distracted by his home life issues at the rink. There should have been no question posed to Luongo about this, it should have been cut and dry. Just about every guy in his situation, with his personality type, is going to try and be there for the team and not bail on his buddies. It's the wrong move. Instead of fighting through just one battle Luongo is taking on several at once. The relationship war, the win/lose game of hockey, and (what has been for him at least) the lose/lose battle with the fans and media. On top of that he is fighting himself as he shoulders more and more blame for the team's recent woes. All this is compounding and it is killing the team, and at this point putting him on the shelf will only make matter worse on the hockey front. Gillis needs to level with him and just tell him to take the time he needs and not come back until the stuff between him and Mrs. Luongo is sorted out one way or the other because last time anyone checked "I DO" wasn't "until a shot at the Stanley Cup do us part".
If logic, psychology, and compassion aren't enough to convince the team, coaching staff, and management that this is the way to go, then past history had better do the trick. Every time Vigneault has left Louie in to "play his way out of it" the team has ended up mired in a slump. A couple of nights off and/or a walk on the sea wall have been the only things that have really snapped Lou out of it and let him settle and get his focus back on the ice. This time it's different only in that it is going to be much harder.
Relationship problems and pro hockey don't mix well, especially for goaltenders. Just ask Kirk McLean.