Once again the Canucks came up short last night and while their effort was better, it still is not where it needs to be. The Canucks worked fairly hard in the Blues zone, but seemed not willing to put the same work in, in their own end. The result was three goals, all of which were score from about a total of 10 feet in front of Lu. They need to work harder in that area and make that area tough to play in. The goalie can't do all the work in the paint; the team has to help him out too.
Luongo
Lu was decent, he made some nice stops and was not the reason the Canucks lost last night. All three goals were as a result of the players in front of him not tying their man up or putting them on their ass. Nothing Lu could have done about any of the goals. On the last goal though I think Lu should have been upset at his team and not the referee. Where the hell was the D? They just let Backes stand there and wack away with no one doing a thing about it.
Hansen
Ask most Canucks fans and they will tell you we need Jannik Hansen to win. They will tell you he has amazing speed and he should be getting top 6 minutes. While I agree he has the talent to justify these comments, the fact is, since he signed a three year deal this summer, he has been unnoticeable almost every night. Once again a player that is counted on to bring grit to the line-up had another no hitter (I think that's 6 now in 14 games, he a regular Nolan Ryan).
What he has done to earn a spot playing with two of the best players in the game? He has done nothing this season, aside from a couple of good games. He hasn't shown he can finish yet and I'm questioning now if he'll ever figure it out. Some will say he's on the same path as Burrows and Kesler and that he just needs time. I disagree with that statement. Burrows and Kesler got better each year; Hansen has not developed at all over the last two seasons. In fact he may have gotten worse because he seems no longer to be willing to finish checks.
I'm guessing how he found himself on the top line last night was just a miscommunication between Gillis and AV. Gillis said we need to move Hansen up, meaning the up to the press box. And AV took that as move Hansen up to the top line. It's time he was benched and the Canucks get some who will hit and play hard. There's a long list of guys in Chicago to call up, who may not be as talented as Hansen, but can do what Hansen is doing right now (absolutely nothing). Why not call up one of them (Oreskovich, Duco, Archibald, Ebbett, Sweatt, Rodin)? They couldn't play much worse, and they might actually finish a check.
Alberts
While Alberts was again a bit of a pylon last night, I just wanted to highlight how much effort he puts in every night. If every Canuck played with Albert's effort they would be 14-0. Last night he was the Canucks D (that should tell you how bad everyone was) and is the only D who is tough to play against every night. He is the only guy on this team that finishes every check and will block shots. Last night he had 3 hit and almost half the teams blocked shots (6 of the 13). If every one of our D played with the edge, heart and toughness Alberts has, the toughness issue on the back end would be solved.
Sedins Outplayed Again
Once again the Sedins showed when they face a tough match up, they do nothing. They were a non-factor for the second time against the Blues. I know they are not tough players and I don't expect them to drill guys, but can they play learn how to play a little D, rather then just hooking guys all the time. They need to man up and be a bit harder to play against. I think on one of the goals I saw Henrik give Backes a hug after. Take your stick and drill him in the numbers. Make him pay the price to be in front. Tomorrow night I expect more of the same soft, insignificant play as they will be matched up against Keith and Seabrooke. Hopefully Kesler can carry the load because I don't have much faith in the Twins scoring.
Line Juggling
I wasn't surprised the Lines got juggled last night but I was a little annoyed at who got moved where. Here's how I would have had them set up with the players who have played the best getting the most playing time and the others riding the pine a bit more.
Sedin/Sedin/Weise
Burrows/Kesler/Booth
Lapierre/Hodgson/Higgins
Ebbett/Malhotra/Volpatti
I think Weise has been great in his role as a fourth line player and he works as hard as anyone on the team. His hard work should be rewarded. His size and speed would open up a lot more room for the Twins. His toughness would make whoever is on the ice more accountable and who knows; maybe having a tough guy on their wing the Sedins might play a bit tougher as well. While he may not be a great finisher I think he could get to the net and finish every now and then.
Burrows and Kes are always great together and Booth has worked hard and finishes checks. I think this line would be a pain to play against and could score as well. Let's hope Burrows is back next game, the Canucks need him big time.
Lapierre, Hodgson, and Higgins are all playing well and working hard therefore they should get the third most ice-time.
Ebbett, Malhotra, and Volpatti would make up the forth line. I love the effort level Volpatti brings every night and he deserves to play based on that. Malhotra has been crap this year but he can still win faceoffs, I'm fine with playing him 6-8min until he starts playing better. Ebbett in because Hansen need to wake up and play the way he can. Why AV rewarded a player who has been one of the teams biggest under achievers with more ice time I will never know. What kind of message does that send the team?
Canucks 3 Stars
1- Luongo
2- Kesler
3- Alberts
Thanks for reading.
Enjoy your day.
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