sleddy2008
04-21-2010, 01:58 PM
C/P from The Calgary Herald
Let's pretend you're a diehard Canucks' fan who's just returned to Earth after spending the last six and a half months on a space probe to Mars.
You pick up the paper and see the Canucks have finished first in the Northwest Division with 103 points. Not bad, you think. Then you glance over to the scoring leaders and see Henrik Sedin has led the NHL with 112 points. Can this be true? Then you look at the Canucks' team scoring and see they produced six 20-goal scorers and, not only that, they scored more goals than any team in the Western Conference.
I missed an incredible season, you say to yourself, maybe the best-ever Canucks regular season. Then you start talking to friends. Roberto Luongo did what during the Olympics? And Ryan Kesler? I didn't know about any of this. So tell me. Is the parade route going down Georgia or Pacific?
That, at least, would be the reaction if you take an objective look at everything the Canucks accomplished this season. But, as you may be aware, folks around here are anything but objective about their hockey team and that tends to make this time of year very interesting.
As the Canucks prepare for their Grail-quest, there is an undeniable sense of optimism about their chances in these environs. The fact is the Canucks' record speaks for itself and, when you put all the pieces together, a very compelling case can be made that this is the best team in franchise history.
They've also absorbed the requisite character-building loss in last year's playoffs, their core players are all in their prime and they're well-coached. So, add it all up and it means they have to be in the conversation about the Stanley Cup favourite. Right?
But you know it's never that easy with this team. As much as the faithful want to give themselves over to their heroes, there is a history here which stands in the way of unconditional love. The fans have seen this act before. They've had our hopes raised before. And they've had their hearts crushed like a beer can before.
When it happens enough times, that experience tends to cool the ardour between fans and their team. And this year, there have been a couple of other developments — Luongo's inconsistency, the lack of blueline depth — which have further complicated that relationship.
But let's return to our space traveller for a minute. Let's try to look at this team objectively, particularly as it pertains to the series which starts tonight against the L.A. Kings. And let's, for once, try to keep history and the rest of the Canucks' baggage out of the discussion.
For the Canucks to fall to the Kings — and there are more than a few pundits who believe it will happen — a bunch of things have to transpire. For starters, Luongo has to be outplayed by playoff rookie Jonathan Quick. And Anze Kopitar, another playoff rookie, has to outplay Henrik Sedin. The Canucks also have to be concerned with big-body forwards Ryan Smyth, Alexander Frolov and Dustin Brown and those three could easily trump the Canucks' advantage in scoring depth.
There's also the remarkable Drew Doughty to consider on the Kings' blueline. The Canucks don't have a defenceman who can match up with Doughty. And the Kings will bring the league's seventh-ranked power play to this series against the Canucks' 17th-ranked penalty killing.
So if all those storylines play out, the Canucks will lose the series. If half of them occur, it will be too close to call. But all that presumes the Canucks don't have a say in this matter and that's where we get back to objectivity.
Through 82 games this season and the final 32 games of last season, (a 23-7-2 finish) the Canucks have demonstrated they're a superior NHL team. The numbers don't lie. And they don't lie in the case of the Sedins or the rest of the lineup.
As for Luongo, he's earned the benefit of the doubt over a career in which he's been recognized as one of the top-five goalies in the game. Admittedly, the last couple of months have been disconcerting. But he's also been a pretty good goalie for the other nine and a half years. That's a little more telling sample size.
That doesn't mean the Canucks can't be beaten. It just means when you stand back and look at this series coldly and analytically, it isn't probable.
Try it. It's a lot easier on your nerves.
Read more:XXXp://www.calgaryherald.com/business/fp/money/Willes+numbers+Canucks+superiority/2909173/story.html#ixzz0lk80VsoM[/url]
Let's pretend you're a diehard Canucks' fan who's just returned to Earth after spending the last six and a half months on a space probe to Mars.
You pick up the paper and see the Canucks have finished first in the Northwest Division with 103 points. Not bad, you think. Then you glance over to the scoring leaders and see Henrik Sedin has led the NHL with 112 points. Can this be true? Then you look at the Canucks' team scoring and see they produced six 20-goal scorers and, not only that, they scored more goals than any team in the Western Conference.
I missed an incredible season, you say to yourself, maybe the best-ever Canucks regular season. Then you start talking to friends. Roberto Luongo did what during the Olympics? And Ryan Kesler? I didn't know about any of this. So tell me. Is the parade route going down Georgia or Pacific?
That, at least, would be the reaction if you take an objective look at everything the Canucks accomplished this season. But, as you may be aware, folks around here are anything but objective about their hockey team and that tends to make this time of year very interesting.
As the Canucks prepare for their Grail-quest, there is an undeniable sense of optimism about their chances in these environs. The fact is the Canucks' record speaks for itself and, when you put all the pieces together, a very compelling case can be made that this is the best team in franchise history.
They've also absorbed the requisite character-building loss in last year's playoffs, their core players are all in their prime and they're well-coached. So, add it all up and it means they have to be in the conversation about the Stanley Cup favourite. Right?
But you know it's never that easy with this team. As much as the faithful want to give themselves over to their heroes, there is a history here which stands in the way of unconditional love. The fans have seen this act before. They've had our hopes raised before. And they've had their hearts crushed like a beer can before.
When it happens enough times, that experience tends to cool the ardour between fans and their team. And this year, there have been a couple of other developments — Luongo's inconsistency, the lack of blueline depth — which have further complicated that relationship.
But let's return to our space traveller for a minute. Let's try to look at this team objectively, particularly as it pertains to the series which starts tonight against the L.A. Kings. And let's, for once, try to keep history and the rest of the Canucks' baggage out of the discussion.
For the Canucks to fall to the Kings — and there are more than a few pundits who believe it will happen — a bunch of things have to transpire. For starters, Luongo has to be outplayed by playoff rookie Jonathan Quick. And Anze Kopitar, another playoff rookie, has to outplay Henrik Sedin. The Canucks also have to be concerned with big-body forwards Ryan Smyth, Alexander Frolov and Dustin Brown and those three could easily trump the Canucks' advantage in scoring depth.
There's also the remarkable Drew Doughty to consider on the Kings' blueline. The Canucks don't have a defenceman who can match up with Doughty. And the Kings will bring the league's seventh-ranked power play to this series against the Canucks' 17th-ranked penalty killing.
So if all those storylines play out, the Canucks will lose the series. If half of them occur, it will be too close to call. But all that presumes the Canucks don't have a say in this matter and that's where we get back to objectivity.
Through 82 games this season and the final 32 games of last season, (a 23-7-2 finish) the Canucks have demonstrated they're a superior NHL team. The numbers don't lie. And they don't lie in the case of the Sedins or the rest of the lineup.
As for Luongo, he's earned the benefit of the doubt over a career in which he's been recognized as one of the top-five goalies in the game. Admittedly, the last couple of months have been disconcerting. But he's also been a pretty good goalie for the other nine and a half years. That's a little more telling sample size.
That doesn't mean the Canucks can't be beaten. It just means when you stand back and look at this series coldly and analytically, it isn't probable.
Try it. It's a lot easier on your nerves.
Read more:XXXp://www.calgaryherald.com/business/fp/money/Willes+numbers+Canucks+superiority/2909173/story.html#ixzz0lk80VsoM[/url]