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spottoOkay here's the deal.
Vancouver Canucks vs. Chicago Blackhawks.
The history? We've lost to them twice in the last two playoffs. They won the Stanley Cup last year. A lot of their key players were traded or left via free agency due to cap issues, so this year they only barely made it into the playoffs because Dallas failed. They developed their players by being bottom-feeders for half-a-decade, collecting several high draft picks that instantly made an impact into the NHL. Their original rookie contracts allowed them to have enough cap space for several overachieving players, thus why they won the cup last season. Their group of young, flashy star players give them a lot of media attention, but at the same time the players who have won early went through little hardships compared to a few other teams have caused them to be rather cocky, classless players, probably not all of them but there have been several incidents of unsportsmanlike behaviour from that team.
The Canucks? We've hovered around the top eight for a while, missing once a few years back. We've had to develop players because we never got high draft picks (not since the Sedins, who we had to develop for a few years despite being top two and three overall anyway) and have not gone past the second round since the '94 playoffs. Our core has flourished under our system and this season we've had a dream year, breaking several franchise records and leading in many categories overall in the NHL. Our top two players have won back-to-back Art Ross trophies. The only thing left that still eludes and has been throughout our entire forty-year history is the Stanley Cup.
And yet here we are.
We led 3-0 in the series against the Blackhawks. THREE-ZERO. We only have to win ONE single game to advance to the second round, but now we're in very real danger of being knocked out in the first round. For the entire 10-11 season, we only had our top six defensemen for ONE game, and that was the last game. We finally got to ice them all in this series and our solid, possibly top-core defensemen in the entire league disappear for games four and five, leaving our goaltender out to dry to embarrassing results like 7-2 and 5-0. Our goaltender, long touted as the "saviour of the Canucks" when he arrived, is paid the highest salary among all goaltenders in the league, and has for the third time in the same amount of years, failed against the Blackhawks. The defence may not have been there, but for someone who is considered elite and paid such a huge amount, you'd think he would be better. You'd think the scores would be 2-0 or 4-1 instead.
We decide for once to put our backup in for game six. The backup is a rookie who has played an amazing season for us this year, but to be thrown into the wolves in such a high-pressure game, his anxiety overcomes him. He played well, but due to inexperienced jitters, caused two to go in the net by gaffs behind the net, while overextending and hurting himself during the penalty shot. Injured, we now had to re-insert our expensive number one goaltender.
Our defence decides to play extremely-well defence for the most-part, keeping the Blackhawks to only two shots of the third period. Our goaltender is barely tested if at all, and despite the many shots and chances we had in both the third and overtime, the few chances the Blackhawks get end the game, and they win it in a frustrating 4-3 loss in overtime.
Why?
People say that those who win the cup, deserve to win the cup. You must go through hardships and obstacles and overcome them to win. It was one thing to take a break for a single game, losing 7-2. You would think that such a score would motivate our team to play better and not be embarrassed again the very next game...and yet they did. If the Canucks believe they can take a break for two games and still win a series, they're really pushing their chances. If we win game seven, we will have achieved victory just barely. If we lose, then this playoffs will be the biggest disappointment of franchise history.
Other teams' fans may laugh at us, may make fun of us. I too looked down upon the failures of other teams, but this year when I saw teams like Toronto and Calgary just sink lower and lower, instead of laughing at them I began to have pity. How can management be so ridiculous as to lose two first-round draft picks for Kessel? How can management re-sign Jokinen of all people!? Why do the Calgarian coaches continue to ride Kiprusoff until his engine blows up? I began to miss the hatred and rivalry the Canucks and Flames had, when both teams were of similar skill, but now it feels like we'll be in their shoes too, especially if we lose this next game. Doesn't it seem worse to be so high up in the standings, so strong as a team, but to fail once again for the third time to a team that is only a shadow of its old self? The bigger they are, the harder they fall?
The key here though is the coaching. We keep scratching our four-million dollar defenseman. We keep leaving our goaltenders in long after the game is lost. Why do you pull Luongo at 6-0? Why not at 3-0 (especially after 3 goals in one period) so we still have a chance to win? The purpose of relieving a goaltender is not only to keep the score from being ridiculous, but to also give the team a chance to still climb back up the score. I don't understand the moves the coaching staff makes. You would think things like these would be common sense, and yet I cannot think of one reason why this is. The past two years we have been out-coached by the Blackhawks.
This sense of urgency. This sense of anxiety. The playoffs is never easy. I wish this team would stop treating it this way. At first I thought their businesslike approach to everything was doing well. After all, it gave us that magnificent season, but when the playoffs come, especially against such a hated rival like the Blackhawks...why do you still act business-like? Where is the heart and passion that every winning team requires to reach the top? Torres does not need to deliver a controversial hit every game that could motivate the opponent. The hits the other players on the team had done during the first two games were fine, but ever since that incident it's like the teams switched identities.
I hope for the sake of these players, sake of these coaches (and their jobs), and especially for these fans, those who have been with the team for as long as they were alive that we win game seven. Even if we were first overall in the standings, somehow we have become the underdogs again these last few games, not because of lack of skill, but lack of heart.
I must commend those fans who have followed this team for forty cupless years. I don't know how they do it. I've only been doing so for seven, but this sad, depressing feeling in the pit of my stomach...I don't want to continue feeling like this every single year.
Vancouver Canucks vs. Chicago Blackhawks.
The history? We've lost to them twice in the last two playoffs. They won the Stanley Cup last year. A lot of their key players were traded or left via free agency due to cap issues, so this year they only barely made it into the playoffs because Dallas failed. They developed their players by being bottom-feeders for half-a-decade, collecting several high draft picks that instantly made an impact into the NHL. Their original rookie contracts allowed them to have enough cap space for several overachieving players, thus why they won the cup last season. Their group of young, flashy star players give them a lot of media attention, but at the same time the players who have won early went through little hardships compared to a few other teams have caused them to be rather cocky, classless players, probably not all of them but there have been several incidents of unsportsmanlike behaviour from that team.
The Canucks? We've hovered around the top eight for a while, missing once a few years back. We've had to develop players because we never got high draft picks (not since the Sedins, who we had to develop for a few years despite being top two and three overall anyway) and have not gone past the second round since the '94 playoffs. Our core has flourished under our system and this season we've had a dream year, breaking several franchise records and leading in many categories overall in the NHL. Our top two players have won back-to-back Art Ross trophies. The only thing left that still eludes and has been throughout our entire forty-year history is the Stanley Cup.
And yet here we are.
We led 3-0 in the series against the Blackhawks. THREE-ZERO. We only have to win ONE single game to advance to the second round, but now we're in very real danger of being knocked out in the first round. For the entire 10-11 season, we only had our top six defensemen for ONE game, and that was the last game. We finally got to ice them all in this series and our solid, possibly top-core defensemen in the entire league disappear for games four and five, leaving our goaltender out to dry to embarrassing results like 7-2 and 5-0. Our goaltender, long touted as the "saviour of the Canucks" when he arrived, is paid the highest salary among all goaltenders in the league, and has for the third time in the same amount of years, failed against the Blackhawks. The defence may not have been there, but for someone who is considered elite and paid such a huge amount, you'd think he would be better. You'd think the scores would be 2-0 or 4-1 instead.
We decide for once to put our backup in for game six. The backup is a rookie who has played an amazing season for us this year, but to be thrown into the wolves in such a high-pressure game, his anxiety overcomes him. He played well, but due to inexperienced jitters, caused two to go in the net by gaffs behind the net, while overextending and hurting himself during the penalty shot. Injured, we now had to re-insert our expensive number one goaltender.
Our defence decides to play extremely-well defence for the most-part, keeping the Blackhawks to only two shots of the third period. Our goaltender is barely tested if at all, and despite the many shots and chances we had in both the third and overtime, the few chances the Blackhawks get end the game, and they win it in a frustrating 4-3 loss in overtime.
Why?
People say that those who win the cup, deserve to win the cup. You must go through hardships and obstacles and overcome them to win. It was one thing to take a break for a single game, losing 7-2. You would think that such a score would motivate our team to play better and not be embarrassed again the very next game...and yet they did. If the Canucks believe they can take a break for two games and still win a series, they're really pushing their chances. If we win game seven, we will have achieved victory just barely. If we lose, then this playoffs will be the biggest disappointment of franchise history.
Other teams' fans may laugh at us, may make fun of us. I too looked down upon the failures of other teams, but this year when I saw teams like Toronto and Calgary just sink lower and lower, instead of laughing at them I began to have pity. How can management be so ridiculous as to lose two first-round draft picks for Kessel? How can management re-sign Jokinen of all people!? Why do the Calgarian coaches continue to ride Kiprusoff until his engine blows up? I began to miss the hatred and rivalry the Canucks and Flames had, when both teams were of similar skill, but now it feels like we'll be in their shoes too, especially if we lose this next game. Doesn't it seem worse to be so high up in the standings, so strong as a team, but to fail once again for the third time to a team that is only a shadow of its old self? The bigger they are, the harder they fall?
The key here though is the coaching. We keep scratching our four-million dollar defenseman. We keep leaving our goaltenders in long after the game is lost. Why do you pull Luongo at 6-0? Why not at 3-0 (especially after 3 goals in one period) so we still have a chance to win? The purpose of relieving a goaltender is not only to keep the score from being ridiculous, but to also give the team a chance to still climb back up the score. I don't understand the moves the coaching staff makes. You would think things like these would be common sense, and yet I cannot think of one reason why this is. The past two years we have been out-coached by the Blackhawks.
This sense of urgency. This sense of anxiety. The playoffs is never easy. I wish this team would stop treating it this way. At first I thought their businesslike approach to everything was doing well. After all, it gave us that magnificent season, but when the playoffs come, especially against such a hated rival like the Blackhawks...why do you still act business-like? Where is the heart and passion that every winning team requires to reach the top? Torres does not need to deliver a controversial hit every game that could motivate the opponent. The hits the other players on the team had done during the first two games were fine, but ever since that incident it's like the teams switched identities.
I hope for the sake of these players, sake of these coaches (and their jobs), and especially for these fans, those who have been with the team for as long as they were alive that we win game seven. Even if we were first overall in the standings, somehow we have become the underdogs again these last few games, not because of lack of skill, but lack of heart.
I must commend those fans who have followed this team for forty cupless years. I don't know how they do it. I've only been doing so for seven, but this sad, depressing feeling in the pit of my stomach...I don't want to continue feeling like this every single year.
