The more things change, the more they remain the same.
How many times did we see Todd Bertuzzi give a lackluster effort in his own zone at GM Place? About 20 seconds after missing the net on a clear breakaway, there was Bert half-heartedly waving his stick one-handed in the direction of his old sidekick Markus Naslund as the Canuck captain unleashed his reborn wrister top corner.
There’s some replays you don’t want to be part of, and that was definitely one of ‘em for Bert who finally made his return to Vancouver a year and a half after Mike Keenan so graciously invited him to Florida and sent Roberto Luongo here.
There he was, less than 5 feet away from his check in the slot and he made absolutely no effort to make the play that all peewee hockey players are taught to make. Maybe he was confused and forgot that Naslund isn’t on his line anymore, or maybe it was just a Bertuzzi play.
Out of all the things Bertuzzi did while wearing a Canucks uniform, it was plays like this one that drove me nuts. No matter how good you are offensively, you have to at least try when the other team has the puck. The irony of course, is that it was Naslund he didn’t check, the player who has completely reworked his game to ensure that he is responsible on the defensive side of the puck … a very sweet irony, if you ask me.
Naslund has now scored 7 goals in his last 7 game and appears to be having almost as much fun as he did in the fabled West Coast Express days. He is a very smart player and it has taken some time to learn how to play with the Sedins, but I think we can now consider him learned.
In previous experiments of the O-Line, he would have the puck too much; similar to how he’s always done. The Sedins would also defer to him too much, trying to adapt to him. Now all 3 of them fully understand that it must be the twins who control the disc as that is their strength, then Naslund reads what they’re doing and goes to the right places waiting for the puck.
That shot he made, clanging it off the post into the net to give the Canucks a 1-0 lead, was vintage Naslund. That is the 3rd time in the last 4 games that he has scored a goal with that shot. Canuck fans have been waiting for that shot to make its reappearance … isn’t confidence a wonderful thing?
Confidence abounds on this Vancouver team as there are only 5 players on the roster that haven’t scored a goal in the last 7 games and the team now sits 15th in the league in the goals per game category at 2.75.
There’s some more sweet irony in that coach Vigneault goes for an all-the-eggs-in-one-basket #1 line and ends up getting balanced scoring throughout the lineup.
Ryan Kesler continued his breakout season with 2 more tallies and has scored 4 in the last 4 games. He now has 7 on the season, leaving him 3 short of his modest career-high of 10. Kesler is one of the best players on the ice every game he plays and he doesn’t have to get points to do it. Last night he played over 23 minutes, had 6 shots on goal, was a plus 2 and won a mere 85% of his face-offs.
Kesler did all of that while, once again, spending most of the game going head-to-head against the other guy’s top line which consisted of Ryan Getzlaf and Cory Perry last night, who, of course, we’re kept off the score sheet in the 4-0 shutout loss to the Canucks.
The goose-egg for our Bertuzzi replacement (insert smiley-happy-face here!) was Luongo’s second consecutive, and 3rd of the campaign. He was stellar in the 1st period when the Ducks dominated the home side out-shooting them 15-5. Lui’s stats are starting to catch up to his stature as he now is sporting a 2.28 GAA and a .919 SV% after stopping somewhere around 95% of the shots sent his way in the last 10 games.
This game was a lot more than just Bertuzzi coming back. This was a game that the Canucks needed to show that they could compete with the Stanley Cup Champions, the team that eliminated them from the playoffs last year.
Coming in, the Ducks were 7-2-2 in their last 11 and had won 6 in a row at The Garage going 10-3 overall against the Canucks in the last two years. Anaheim is the most physical team in the league and they certainly weren’t shy about putting that on display last night.
Led by Chris Pronger, the Ducks pretty-much self-destructed in the final two periods taking ridiculously undisciplined penalties that left them little chance of getting back into the game.
Pronger’s cross-check into Kesler’s ribs after he scored the goal to put Vancouver up 2-0 wasn’t penalized, but it was the headliner. Clearly well after the puck was in the net and with Kesler spinning away arms raised in celebration Pronger unloaded his lumber into the young centre’s exposed ribs.
It was a dirty, dirty, play. Pronger has never been a favourite here in Vancouver, but his reputation as one of the most-hated is now firmly cemented in stone. There’s no turning back now … that is, until he’s playing in front of Luongo at GM Place in the Olympics just over 2 years from now!
Naslund called it a “statement game” in the room afterwards and he’s right. The Canucks showed the Champs that they can do all the extra curricular crap they want and that this team will not back down.
The Sedins, criticized for their performance against the Ducks last spring (when they were taking intravenous to keep hydrated due to illness) took the Swinging Sherwoods all night long and just played their game. They ended up with a combined 3 points in the game, but were almost always dangerous on every shift.
The Canucks just played their game, and that alone, was a statement.
Bertuzzi was a non factor during the game with his best performance coming earlier in the day at his meet and greet with the Vancouver Media. During the press conference he said many things, but his most profound statement was easily …
“It was tough to leave, but at the same time I understand … and you guys got yourself a pretty good goaltender.”
Yes, Todd, that we did! And by the way, thanks for that … all the best!
The Grades …
A Luongo, Cooke, Kesler, Henrik, Daniel, Naslund
B Ohlund, Mitchell, Morrison, Cowan, Burrows
C+ Edler, Salo, Krajicek, Miller, Linden, Pyatt, Ritchie
C Isbister
Next up another home-coming of sorts with Gilbert Brule and his Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday, who are already here after playing in Edmonton on Monday. The Canucks will be looking to solidify their position atop the Northwest and take their November record to 9-2-2.
One of those two losses was on the first day of the month against Nashville … anyone remember that game and the team they watched get humiliated on home ice? Seems like a long, long, time ago … time sure flies when you’re having fun!
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