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rawrnnrant
Feb. 4th, 2009 02:00 amThe following was written during the Canucks vs. Wild game...
Almost (written in first intermission) eight games without a win...what's wrong with them out there? Clearly they are showing their frustration, even taking a few penalties because of it (Mitchell >.>)...
Well, let's access these past nine or so games and figure out what seems to have happened. Before Sundin came at the early goings of January and late December, the team was doing fine. Not as great as early season, but good enough to keep themselves inside the playoff race and in fifth. Unfortunately, since Luongo was down at the time the wins weren't coming in as much as they used to. Sanford, Schneider, and LaBarbara did the best they could and it was a job well-done by three goalies who either weren't experienced or just weren't starters. When Luongo went down, the team's mentality changed from relying on an all-star calibre goalie to "covering the net" as much as possible because the goalie isn't as capable as before. The goals diminished and the defensive style started to change. Once Sundin came, many of the fans and analysts predicted that the Canucks were now a top-four hockey team in the West...so far that hasn't been so.
So what happened?
Perhaps the 'forced' style change of their defensive style caused many of the defensemen to go out of loop. Bieksa was doing well in the early-goings, though Edler hasn't been that great all year...he has been at his worst at a team when the entire team is in its worst, which is logical but clearly does not help the team. The wins they did muster when the three backups played were hard-fought battles...a team with heart and integrity, something we all see in playoff-performance teams. Not all of them were like that, but as far as performance went during that span...it was probably the most they had the entire season. They were always happy when they got a win for Sanford, "Woo'ing" as if they were destined to make the playoffs this year. Look where Sanford is now? He's in the minors...his job replaced by a newcomer named LaBarbara. He, too, made many valiant saves to try to help the Canucks...but where was that mentality then? Why did such a great performance by a native player not help spark the Canucks? They were relying on him so much as if he were actually Luongo, but it wasn't the same kind as early in the season. This style looked more like Luongo's first year, where they made the second round largely because of Luongo's stellar play...unfortunately, LaBarbera is not Luongo.
So, the answer to their problems? An old aging former superstar who played most of his career in a mediocre Toronto team: Mats Sundin. I was never really a fan of him all that much before he came here...largely because of the Canucks bias towards the Leafs, but at the moment I don't seem to mind them as much. However, I remember his first game back in the NHL with the Canucks, a win against the Edmonton Oilers. On Sportsnet, Gary Valk said something I found interesting that I never saw anybody in the community seem to pick up: That Mats Sundin takes more penalties than everybody thinks.
He was right.
I believe Sundin disrupted this team's chemistry. Yes, AV does juggle lines as if it were some religious ritual, but Sundin has been on almost every line, if you could call them lines. The Sedin Line, the second line which rotates players from first and third and sometimes even fourth and the third line, filled with many two-way players. I would rather someone from the minors like Jaffray to come up and center the fourth line then to have Sundin plugging up the top two lines.
ZOMFG THEY WON AGAINST CAROLINA! OOO: (forgets the criticism like a good little bandwagoner fan)
So I just got NHL 09, and Be a Pro mode is fun. :D You get to either create a player or choose an existing player and try to play through games with just that player, to rise up the ranks and become the best player you can be. I obviously chose Steve Bernier, xDDD. My first game I took three penalties >.>. Yes, I fail.
Also, the rumour of a third Negima anime series? I personally believe it's true, like REALLY believe, almost as if I KNOW it will happen. This isn't just wishful thinking, but a movie really doesn't fit Negima...besides a few arcs and I'm sure the market for Negima is Negi + his 31 students. The one arc that would fit a movie excludes quite a number of students, especially since characters like Ako are really popular, so...
The number of copies the LE versions sold surpassed their expectations anyway...didn't hit 90,000, but combined it's over 200k! So yeah, I really think it'll happen. (And if it does...IT WILL BE AWESOME.)
Almost (written in first intermission) eight games without a win...what's wrong with them out there? Clearly they are showing their frustration, even taking a few penalties because of it (Mitchell >.>)...
Well, let's access these past nine or so games and figure out what seems to have happened. Before Sundin came at the early goings of January and late December, the team was doing fine. Not as great as early season, but good enough to keep themselves inside the playoff race and in fifth. Unfortunately, since Luongo was down at the time the wins weren't coming in as much as they used to. Sanford, Schneider, and LaBarbara did the best they could and it was a job well-done by three goalies who either weren't experienced or just weren't starters. When Luongo went down, the team's mentality changed from relying on an all-star calibre goalie to "covering the net" as much as possible because the goalie isn't as capable as before. The goals diminished and the defensive style started to change. Once Sundin came, many of the fans and analysts predicted that the Canucks were now a top-four hockey team in the West...so far that hasn't been so.
So what happened?
Perhaps the 'forced' style change of their defensive style caused many of the defensemen to go out of loop. Bieksa was doing well in the early-goings, though Edler hasn't been that great all year...he has been at his worst at a team when the entire team is in its worst, which is logical but clearly does not help the team. The wins they did muster when the three backups played were hard-fought battles...a team with heart and integrity, something we all see in playoff-performance teams. Not all of them were like that, but as far as performance went during that span...it was probably the most they had the entire season. They were always happy when they got a win for Sanford, "Woo'ing" as if they were destined to make the playoffs this year. Look where Sanford is now? He's in the minors...his job replaced by a newcomer named LaBarbara. He, too, made many valiant saves to try to help the Canucks...but where was that mentality then? Why did such a great performance by a native player not help spark the Canucks? They were relying on him so much as if he were actually Luongo, but it wasn't the same kind as early in the season. This style looked more like Luongo's first year, where they made the second round largely because of Luongo's stellar play...unfortunately, LaBarbera is not Luongo.
So, the answer to their problems? An old aging former superstar who played most of his career in a mediocre Toronto team: Mats Sundin. I was never really a fan of him all that much before he came here...largely because of the Canucks bias towards the Leafs, but at the moment I don't seem to mind them as much. However, I remember his first game back in the NHL with the Canucks, a win against the Edmonton Oilers. On Sportsnet, Gary Valk said something I found interesting that I never saw anybody in the community seem to pick up: That Mats Sundin takes more penalties than everybody thinks.
He was right.
I believe Sundin disrupted this team's chemistry. Yes, AV does juggle lines as if it were some religious ritual, but Sundin has been on almost every line, if you could call them lines. The Sedin Line, the second line which rotates players from first and third and sometimes even fourth and the third line, filled with many two-way players. I would rather someone from the minors like Jaffray to come up and center the fourth line then to have Sundin plugging up the top two lines.
ZOMFG THEY WON AGAINST CAROLINA! OOO: (forgets the criticism like a good little bandwagoner fan)
So I just got NHL 09, and Be a Pro mode is fun. :D You get to either create a player or choose an existing player and try to play through games with just that player, to rise up the ranks and become the best player you can be. I obviously chose Steve Bernier, xDDD. My first game I took three penalties >.>. Yes, I fail.
Also, the rumour of a third Negima anime series? I personally believe it's true, like REALLY believe, almost as if I KNOW it will happen. This isn't just wishful thinking, but a movie really doesn't fit Negima...besides a few arcs and I'm sure the market for Negima is Negi + his 31 students. The one arc that would fit a movie excludes quite a number of students, especially since characters like Ako are really popular, so...
The number of copies the LE versions sold surpassed their expectations anyway...didn't hit 90,000, but combined it's over 200k! So yeah, I really think it'll happen. (And if it does...IT WILL BE AWESOME.)
