GDT: R1G1 - Canucks host Kings - 7:30

[Corb]

Waffle, I'm not saying the refs didn't miss any calls. But to use the example of the Lou spear, if he wasn't known for dropping like he's been shot when he's barely touched, he might have gotten the call. And yes, he was speared.

Last year I saw some of the antics as gamesmanship, this year I can't tolerate it.

[rats19]

Couldn't watch...horse & buggy trip to chetwynd for rodeo. Got 1040 once here though. Not good..not good at all, few highlights luongo the first of them. Those who know me also know I am glass half full, rose colored glasses kind of guy.

I believe still we win in 6.....

And for those who doubt rd and his fanmanship...if we win the sc...he would piss from the back end of a vista cruiser clear over it, end to end and get nigh a drop on the car....and spell his Initials at the other end..

[ODB]

Agreed ODB.

Kes was off his game last night. We really need Dank back so we can normalize the lines and generate some chemistry. Right now the 2nd line feels like two old people who hate being married but dont' know any other way to be.

Its just sad ;(

The sad part is last night was the best game Kesler has played in months. And you say he was off his game last night. Not a shot at you at all. It just shows how far his game has dropped since last spring. His first multi point game in something like four months! To be honest his line look promising... We need him to play better to stand a chance. He for lack of a better word has sucked this season. Let’s hope last night was an indication of things to come to Kesler. He needs to get back to where he was last spring before the injury that effectively ended his playoffs and fucked his 2011/2012 season!

[mathonwy]

A big positive to take from last night was we were tied 2-2 going into the 3rd and the two goals that had gotten past Luo were tips that he had no chance on.

The winning goal was a thing of beauty as well. A fortuitous bounce right off the stick of Edler and a fantastic pass from Carter's skate to Penner's stick. How often do you see Alex Edler fuck up a pass up the middle? The answer is never.

Last night was NOT Canucks hockey period. We never take that many penalties and the probability of it happening again next game is infinitesimally small.

AV, your mission is to figure out how to not fuck up the zone entry on a power play. Don't worry about anything else except that. Get our fucking powerless play on track for gods sake.

[the Dogsalmon]

fuck...it ruined a perfectly good stone...

[mathonwy]

And for those who doubt rd and his fanmanship...if we win the sc...he would piss from the back end of a vista cruiser clear over it, end to end and get nigh a drop on the car....and spell his Initials at the other end..

I have no idea what this means but it sounds intriguing.

[ODB]

And for those who doubt rd and his fanmanship...if we win the sc...he would piss from the back end of a vista cruiser clear over it, end to end and get nigh a drop on the car....and spell his Initials at the other end..

I have no idea what this means but it sounds intriguing.

LOL!

[Mr.Miyagi]

Hi everybody ... Miyagi here.

For those of you that don't know me, here are some things you should know:

I rarely post on an emotional high or low when it comes to the Canucks and their trials and tribulations.
I am a Luongo supporter through thick and thin.
I am from Saskatchewan but live in Edmonton.
I love this damn hockey team more than anything. (Girlfriend won't see this, and I have no kids. )

The reason for the introduction is a simple one. I need you to understand where my heart is coming from when I say calm the f***k down. There is no switch to be flipped. There is no secret PP system in the works that is specifically designed for playoff hockey. There are no "extra gears" for players to grab all of a sudden and reach the next level.

The truth is, the Canucks haven't played a meaningful game in the last 10 overall... I would say the Chicago game had some meaning and purpose but barely what I would call a "playoff style" game.

The team had the division wrapped up before Christmas. They then beat Boston in the biggest game of the year, then beat Detroit , St.Louis, and Chicago over the course of the next 3 1/2 months and that is it. IMO that was the only big games they played in all of 2012.

The LA Kings on the other hand, have scratched and clawed all year to get into the playoffs. They have literally been fighting for their lives. Is it a surprise to anyone that they play a near-flawless system? Is anyone surprised that they have already "found the next gear" ?

Look. I was as disappointed with the effort as much as anyone last night but you won't hear me bitch. We took too many dumb penalties, end of story. They are a momentum killer. The entire 2nd period was killed by two 5 on 3's and a 5 minute major.

It pains me to hear the regulars whine about the officiating and the announcers. In my opinion, the players are responsible to decide the outcome of the game. If they deserve to win, they will.

Does anyone think the Canuck's coaches and players are panicking right now? Sitting around missing Hodgson and Ehrhoff?

They are a veteran team that will bounce back. Within the next two games they will have found the key to beating the Kings. They aren't stupid, although MANY of you seem to think they are. I'm sure you all have the answers to winning the games but
believe me, the Canuck staff and players will have better ones.

I'm not trying to call anyone out here but in general, the attitude of this thread sure sucks. We lost one game. OMG we haven't trailed a series in like three years .... . Guess who we were playing last time that happened? How did that work out?

Support the team people. It's only one game.

[wafflecombine]

Waffle, I'm not saying the refs didn't miss any calls. But to use the example of the Lou spear, if he wasn't known for dropping like he's been shot when he's barely touched, he might have gotten the call. And yes, he was speared.

Last year I saw some of the antics as gamesmanship, this year I can't tolerate it.

All cool Corb. I actually don't think the refs saw the spear (giving them the benefit of the doubt). I was iffy on Kesler selling the butt end in the face but it did look to me like did he got it in the beak. Burrows definately tried to sell a call. I'm unsure on Hank cause despite the crap spewed from other teams Hank is a classy player and doesn't go down easy. I do hope AV gives them shit and tells them to cut out the sold calls. Doesn't matter that all season we were good on this point because last year's smear campaign was successful (and on occassion partly true)--- not like every other team doesn't sell calls though.

In any event - bad calls, good calls, missed calls - killing all those penalties ate up a lot of energy and severely disrupted any attempt at offense on our part. We also had no puck luck - really exemplified on the open net goal where the puck jumped over Burrow's stick.

I wasn't happy with the reffing but wth, not much can be done except play better next game.

Now if I were in Pittsburg... I'd be steamed. 4 feet offside is hard to miss...but miss it they did and it turned the tide of the game.

[dbr]

Great post Mr. Miyagi. Wax on, wax off, wax philosophical.

We got outplayed. Which is a shame, I hope the Canucks don't think they can win games where they are not the hardest working team (because when you are playing Shut Down Hockey, short your best scorer, you cannot) and we see better concentration from them in game two. What the hell is Ryan Kesler doing getting tangled up with Mike Richards when he could be blowing past him?

The officiating stunk but by no means did it turn the tide of the game.

Is it just me or do the Canucks utterly fail to control the front of the net (to varying extents) in both zones? When the puck was bouncing around in front of Luongo my heard was in my throat hoping it could be chipped out of trouble, but even in the Kings zone when it bounced into the slot I found myself hoping it'd find its way to the side or the point so a Canuck would actually have a chance to gain control and put it on net.

Anyway. Speed was absolutely not a factor last night, the Canucks need to abuse the Kings lack of mobility on home ice because when they play on slush in the Staples Center their advantage will be significantly hampered.

One positive I took out of last nights game is Richards goal aside, caught Lou cheating, Lou looked great. The team played horrible and yet the game was tied with less than five minutes left.

Agree Lou shouldn't have been leaning for the pass, but Richards release was lightning quick.

Anyway Luongo was fantastic.. certainly the best goaltender on the ice last night.

[Blob Mckenzie]

In my drunken stupor last night i did bitch about the officiating but I didn't once cry and say the Canucks got shafted. My beef was the call on Kassian and the one on Kesler ...they weren't penalties. The reffing in the NHL is so inconsistent from period to period let alone from game to game. They didn't call anything league wide for 6 weeks , and now they want to call everything. It makes no sense.

Now that I have seen the Bitz hit sober he did deserve a major for that hit. Too bad it wasn't one of their better players he smashed like that.

All in all Vancouver has to play better and AV has to tinker with the lineup. I might give Raymond one more shot but not on the top line. Chris Tanev is cool under pressure but the kid is going to get creamed out there and I fear for his life when those big LA forwards are bearing down on him.

That's LA's top gear and if the Canucks can ramp up their play 10 -15 % they will be ok.

[Listercat]

Game was all about discipline and the Canucks did not show it, I have no issue with the way the game was called. The Canucks looked like the Kings have on many games between the clubs in recent years. The penalties changed the flow of the game and sat the best player on the bench. I think "nerves" was a big part of the problem especially where Kassian and Bitz were concerned. They have a mindset of "finishing checks" and did so without fully reading the situation.

The PP looked better in the 3rd period with quicker passes. LA like most teams basically ignore Hank when he has the puck and look to block his passing lanes. He needs to shoot or make a move to the net to bring some unpredictability.

The "breakout" will continue to be a problem as long as the Canucks continue to have all the forwards in the neutral zone standing still. For a team built for/on speed this is not the way to utilize that speed. This allows the other team's D to stand up at the blue line and lets them send one or even two forecheckers in deep. Our D have no time or space to move the puck and there is no speed generated through the middle of the ice to force the other D to back up. Even the KIngs use a forward as the Pivot point in exiting their zone.

[dbr]

In my drunken stupor last night i did bitch about the officiating but I didn't once cry and say the Canucks got shafted. My beef was the call on Kassian and the one on Kesler ...they weren't penalties. The reffing in the NHL is so inconsistent from period to period let alone from game to game. They didn't call anything league wide for 6 weeks , and now they want to call everything. It makes no sense.

Someone on another board predicted a penalty filled affair based on the officials assigned to the game.

Figures - the Canucks are finally built to win without the powerplay (good thing considering how bad it's been) and we finally get a playoff game called to the letter and then some.

Do we get the same pair all series?

[Blob Mckenzie]

I'm not too sympathetic for Kyle Clifford's situation if he has a concussion. He could have killed Tanev last year when he burried him from behind with a dirtier play than Bitz's hit last night.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dv6ExX2-1uE

[dbr]

I thought the call on Bitz (the major anyway) was pretty chintzy last night.

I guess if the officials thought they were taking control of the game before things got out of hand (which is something the zebras have failed to do so many times) and Bitz sure did hit him in the head..