I Watched This Game: Canucks vs. Red Wings, January 08, 2011

Canucks 1 - 2 Red Wings (Shootout)

You hate to see a game like this go to a shootout. I did. After 60 minutes of the top two teams in the NHL strutting their excellent puck movement, remarkable defense, and fabulous systems play, suddenly everything that made the game so stellar is taken away and a coin is flipped. Because that's what the shootout is, really: a coin toss,--a crapshoot. So before you go blaming anybody for the loss (i.e. Tambellini, for missing on that breakaway, or Luongo, for getting beat by Hudler), take a deep breath and recognize that this game, like all games decided in a shootout, was a tie with an extra point pulled out of a hat.

Then recognize that, in their sixth games in nine nights, the Canucks still skated away with a point, just as they did in the other five, and just as they did in this season's other two intense games versus these Red Wings. I tell you, if we're lucky enough to see these two teams in the playoffs, I'd cancel Christmas to watch every second of it. I'm serious. I'd watch so freaking hard, much like how I watched this game:

• Jimmy Howard was the game's deserving first star. He made 32 saves, many of the incredible variety. He flatly robbed Henrik and Daniel once each, controlled rebounds, and swallowed up shots like they were merchant ships floating above the nest of the Krakken. Then he stoned all three shooters in the shootout. He stoned them just like Jelly Roll. Howard was out of this world tonight, not unlike another famous Howard in red.

• Were it not for Howard's play, you'd be hearing a lot of talk about the Sedins (or, the Wizards of the Coast, as per @victoriado, brilliantly). They were consistently dangerous tonight, especially on that lob play that they seem to have perfected. I counted about three times that Burrows or Henrik vaulted the puck into the air, only to have Daniel glove it down and start an odd-man rush. There should be a law against lobs that sweet. That's right. A Lob Law.

• By the way, we've seen that play a lot this year. We take for granted the way the Sedins innovate ways to create offense. They're always scheming, from their set faceoff plays to the slap-pass to these lobs. I guess that's what happens when you share a duplex with a perma-linemate.
  

• Chris Osgood is nearing forty, but you'd never know it. Not because he plays like a younger man, but because he looks like a younger man. Osgood didn't play tonight, but the HNIC producer couldn't stay away from shots of him sulking in the hallway, and he looks about sixteen. He also looks a lot like Ian Walker. Think Bif Naked is the victim of a brilliant switcheroo? Probably. Foxy celebrities marry athletes, not writers. Who does Walker think he is? Arthur Miller?
  

• Keith Ballard had a fantastic game tonight. He was named the game's second star, which was enough to earn him about a whole two extra minutes of icetime. Not too shabby. Though he was only credited with 3 hits, one of the hits looked like this. That's good for an extra minute right there. Ballard had a solid overall game. He rushed the puck out of his own zone well, played physical, and rang a shot off the post that might have put Vancouver over the top. If we get this kind of play regularly from our fifth defenseman, we'll probably do all right.

• Ballard didn't actually deserve the second star, though--Kevin Bieksa did. Juice played 24 minutes, seemingly all of them engaged in a cross-check fight with Tomas Holmstrom. Despite battling the big jackass all night, Bieksa managed to get off five shots, attempt another five, block three, and collect three takeaways. Apparently, like the marriage of Stanley and Stella Kowalski, Kevin Bieksa is better when he's fighting.

• Both teams were clearly exhausted tonight, but I really recognized it in the Canucks. Mason Raymond and Jeff Tambellini, who normally fly, instead did whatever it is turkeys do to get around. The rest of the Canucks, too, seemed to lack jump, especially in the third. After limiting the Red Wings to less than ten shots in both the first and second, they Canucks looked like they just ran out of the steam. This is a team known for their ability to #WinDaTurd, but they couldn't keep pace with Detroit in the third period tonight. Detroit rattled off seventeen shots and had the Canucks scrambling in the defensive zone for most of the final frame. Were it not for the stellar play of Roberto Luongo, I don't think this one would have gotten to overtime. Like Kanye West, the Canucks were all over the place, but like Mike Myers, Luongo seemed desperate to salvage the point.

• Jim Hughson with the Lord of the Rings reference of the night: "Helm couldn't smeagol by him along the boards." How does one smeagol, exactly? I've never heard this term before in my life. I take this to mean Helm tried to bite Alberts's finger off.

• Though the Canucks' powerplay only scored one time (above) in five opportunities, they looked absolutely awe-inspiring at times. At times the Sedins threw the puck around. At times Kesler tried to muscle the puck through. At times, Christian Ehrhoff showed why he's the motor of the back end, zipping around the zone like Ben Stiller only wished he could have. It was fun to watch.

• @GutsMcTavish24 observed that Todd Bertuzzi still has moments of soft perimeter play. Almost immediately upon tweeting that Bertuzzi wasn't "willing to sacrifice," DJ Dave threw on Foreigner's "Cold as Ice." How he knew to do that is beyond me.

• I'm interested in Ryan Kesler only taking 12 faceoffs. He won 6, but for a guy who's top ten in the circle, you'd think he'd take more. Any theories? Here's mine: Kesler is the best skater on the team, and Vigneault wanted to start him on the fly.

• Speaking of faceoffs, after narrowly gaining his coach's trust in the faceoff circle, Alex Bolduc is clearly back to square one. A few games ago, he was taking eight faceoffs. Problem was, he lost all eight. Tonight he took two, and he won them both, but do you know who else took two? Mason Raymond. Bolduc's got his work cut out for him; it'll take some time to regain that trust.

• Manny Malhotra, on the other hand, was a faceoff machine, and in a playoff-atmosphere game like this, it was impossible not to notice. He went 18-for-28, but it seemed like he never lost, especially in the defensive zone, where he was 13-for-18. Red Wing centermen tried everything to combat his technique; they seemed highly irritated with how low he was getting. Nothing worked. Like a guy who wants to be startin' something, Malhotra was too low to get under.

Alex Bolduc Looks a Lot Like Howard Moon

We at PITB have made no secret of our love for the Mighty Boosh, the completely ridiculous and ridiculously awesome British comedy series featuring Vince Noir and Howard Moon. And forgive me if the reference is too obscure for you, but for the very small group of our very small readership who have ever watched the Mighty Boosh, here's a treat: Alex Bolduc looks a lot like Howard Moon, the vain but generic-looking writer and musician who spends part of every day in a jazz trance.

Even moreso nowadays, as he's let his reddish-brown hair grow disheveled in much the same way. Duker's a dead ringer for Moon. It's a shame Bolduc wasn't with the team during Movember, as a moustache would have clinched it. These guys could be twins.

Not convinced? Further proof, after the jump:



And in case you don't love the Boosh, here's video evidence that it's worth tracking down. the DVDs were just released in America, and I'm sure there's whole episodes online, peddled by Boosh-loving Net pirates.

Canucks Training Camp Roster VII

Apparently unaware that the Sabbath is a day of rest, Alain Vigneault and his staff answered a lot of questions on Sunday about the opening night lineup. Sent to the minors were Victor Oreskovich and the Sweatt brothers (forward Billy and defenseman Lee), and Brendan Morrison was released from his player tryout. And if that wasn't enough for you on a weekend afternoon, AV went on the record, stating that the Canucks' would open the season with a fourth line consisting of Alex Bolduc between Guillaume Desbiens and Tanner Glass.

It's no surprise about the Sweatt brothers. I wold argue that both Billy and Lee have NHL talent, but neither is quite ready for regular action. Ironically, Lee the defenseman needs to work on his defensive coverage, and Billy the forward needs to work on his hands. Still, Billy's checking speed and Lee's poise and puck-moving ability are excellent assets to have down on the farm. They're sure to make that team better, as well as push one another to see which can get to the NHL level first. Here's hoping we see another brother tandem on the Canucks someday soon. We seem to have good success with brothers.

Victor Oreskovich's demotion was a disappointment, but he'll play games with the Canucks this season. Count on that. He has great skating ability and he hits like a truck, but his defensive coverage was suspect. Oreskovich is a real wild-card and could have paid off in spades, but I like that Vigneault and the coaching staff avoided the risky, sexy pick and went with big guys they were confident weren't going to get scored on.

Brendan Morrison's release is really disappointing, both for fans and for B-Mo himself. But, like Skeeter said earlier in the preseason, the only available job is one he wasn't quite cut out for. He could have brought wing depth, but so can Jannik Hansen and Jeff Tambellini, who were already Canucks property. Unlike Edmonton, Vancouver is aware you can only have so many small forwards under contract, and Morrison's lack of a contract coming into training camp made it easy not to give him one. Here's hoping he can land on his feet somewhere. As much as it pains me to say it, Calgary would be a good fit for him.

There are a few more questions, but they're all likely be resolved in exactly the way we think they will. Joel Perrault, Eddie Lack, and Cody Hodgson are more than likely headed to Manitoba. Peter Schaefer is more than likely being released. But, if Alex Burrows goes on LTI, and with Rypien hurt to start the season, the Canucks could keep 15 of the 17 forwards below. Something to think about if you're wondering, like I am, why Hodgson hasn't yet been spotted at YVR. Here are the 28 guys who remain in training camp.

Forwards (17)
Alex Bolduc, Alex Burrows, Guillaume Desbiens, Tanner Glass, Jannik Hansen, Cody Hodgson, Ryan Kesler, Manny Malhotra, Joel Perrault, Mason Raymond, Rick Rypien, Mikael Samuelsson, Peter Schaefer, Daniel Sedin, Henrik Sedin, Jeff Tambellini, Raffi Torres.

Defensemen (8)
Andrew Alberts, Keith Ballard, Kevin Bieksa, Alex Edler, Christian Ehrhoff, Dan Hamhuis, Aaron Rome, Sami Salo.

Goalies (3)
Eddie Lack, Roberto Luongo, Cory Schneider.

I Watched This Game: Canucks at Ducks, October 1, 2010

I Watched This Game is a recurring feature on Pass it to Bulis that chronicles that insights and observations of two guys who watched a hockey game.

For those of you who balk at our preseason record, consider that, if the Sedins are in the preseason lineup, we win, and when they aren't, we don't. They were in the lineup tonight. If you knew this advance, and you were following the if A, then B model of philosophy (Modus Ponens, for you amateur forward chainers), you knew we were going to win.

I apologize to multitude of readers (actually, just one guy in the comments) who were clamoring for this last night and didn't get it. Skeeter and I both had busy evenings, relegating this one to the PVR. Let me just say that I hate watching games the next day. Part of the joy of being a Canucks fan is knowing that, when the Canucks score, my joy is shared by thousands of people I don't know, and when the Canucks scored on, I am part of a secret collective of groans. By the next day, however, all those emotions have faded, and I know that I'm alone. It's hard to be nearly as excited. Nevertheless, here are my thoughts:

• I wasn't the only one struggling to get excited about this game. Neither the Canucks nor the Ducks seemed particularly interested in playing hockey for sixty minutes. As a result, the best part of the game was probably the lively stick-checking. Good job, Canucks, at breaking up cycles and rushes with good sticks.
• Cody Hodgson was nearly invisible in this game, and by now, I'm downright happy about it. He'll go to Manitoba and hone his game, and, likely be the first callup if one of our top two centers goes down with an injury.
• What is up with the Sedins taking so many slap shots? Daniel took about five today, which is all I need to prove, unequivocally, that he is out for blood. And, if you think there's no friendly competition between brothers, I saw Henrik take a slapshot as well, which is not unlike seeing a unicorn mating with a chimaera while a triad of suns are setting at the edge of the flat world.
• Andrew Alberts put Shane O'Brien on waivers with his play tonight. Alberts has been a steady defensive presence, caused forwards to think twice before making a play, and broken up chances by taking the body. In one particular instance, Bobby Ryan (who was great tonight) made a little inside-outside move and put the puck past Alberts. Rather than being made to look silly, as we saw last year in a similar play by Jason Spezza, Alberts simply stepped into Ryan and took him off the puck. It was perfectly played.
• I just killed a fruitfly. Just now.
• Alex Bolduc's play tonight might have settled the question of who will be the fourth-line center. Bolduc isn't a sexy pick, and he's not the right fit as a guy to fight John Scott, but he showed tonight that he can be good defensively, and reliable in the last minute of a game. He set up the empty-netter by skating hard onto the puck, holding onto it under pressure, and centering to Kesler. It was poise we haven't seen by a fourth-line center for quite some time.
• Against my wishes, the Ballard-Bieksa pair continues to be a possibility. AV is likely thinking of them as old-school Starsky and Hutch: unorthodox, but kinda badass. Problem is, they're new-school Starsky and Hutch: a frustratingly inept comedy duo. While Starsky and Hutch didn't get burned tonight, it will, and nearly did when Bieksa made a dumb pinch and the Ducks went back on a 2-on-1. Nothing came of it, but still.
• Cory Schneider was very good tonight. He's not a flashy goalie by any means, but he's big and he cuts off angles. When you do that, you don't have to dive all over the place. I look forward to seeing Schneider in a Canucks uniform all season. I'm also enjoying his neck beard. Speaking of beards, I have a theory: if you're a young prospect, but you can grow a beard, do it. Grow that beard. It will confuse the coaching staff and make them think you've matured as a player.
• John Garrett: "125 seconds left." Passive aggressive Shorty: "Two minutes if you don't want to do the math." Shut up, Garrett.
• I love that Ryan Kesler and Corey Perry hate each other. Don't ask me why. It's just great to see a couple guys have such ostensible, unbridled hate for one another, like my ongoing feud with Justin Bieber's backup dancers. Mind you, mine is driven by jealousy. #iwannadanceforyoubieb
• Aaron Rome is such a seventh defensemen. He does nothing overly well, never stands out, is the worst person to pass to on a 4-on-2, but he's steady. It's possible that, when Alberts locked himself in at that sixth spot, Shane O'Brien got bumped to eighth, simply because Rome is the very essence of a seventh defenseman.
• Mason Raymond's shorthanded goal was a thing of beauty. Think Burrows is choked that MayRay bogarted his deke?