Top 5 Canuck Hipchecks of 2010-11

Some say the hipcheck is a lost art in the NHL, but you'd be hard pressed to find a Vancouver fan that feels this way. The offseason additions of Keith Ballard and Dan Hamhuis, two defenders that love to hip check, made going wide versus the Canucks a downright dicey proposition. Eventually, even Aaron Rome fell in love with the hit, giving the Canucks three guys who could surprise with a hipcheck at seemingly any moment. The result: perhaps the only team in the NHL for whom the hipcheck was common.

I'm not sure Canucks fans realized how spoiled they were this season. With that in mind, PITB has compiled a countdown of the five finest hipchecks thrown by the boys in blue and green in the 2010-11:

5 Keith Ballard on Viktor Stalberg

This is a perfectly timed hit, as Ballard comes across the defensive zone to meet Stalberg at the exact moment he reaches the puck. Stalberg is likely expecting a simply bodycheck, but Ballard turns and throws the hip into him instead, absolutely stapling him to the boards.

4 Aaron Rome on Ladislav Smid

Rome didn't hipcheck much last season, but Hamhuis and Ballard have clearly inspired him. This is his best of many thrown hips, as he steps into Smid and earns extra points on the follow through.

3 Keith Ballard on Evgeni Malkin

This is a monster hip check on a monster guy. It's also a beautiful defensive play. Malkin's beaten a lot of d-men one on one with his size and speed, but Ballard recovers quickly to take away his lane, then takes the big Penguins center to the corner with a completely unexpected hit.

2 Dan Hamhuis on Douglas Murray

My goodness, this is a beautiful hit. Hamhuis times this perfectly, leading Murray to the boards with his body position, and then sending him ass over teakettle the moment he reaches the glass.

1 Keith Ballard on Drew Miller

The finest hipcheck of the year comes when Keith Ballard steps into Drew Miller. It's similar to the one Ballard put on Malkin, but this one is downright obscene. Miller goes flying, and the look on his face when he gets up is priceless. He has no idea what just happened.

- - - - - - - - - - Bonus Hipchecks! - - - - - - - - - -

If those five stellar hipchecks aren't enough for you, or if maybe you thought I was kidding when I said the hit was common in Vancouver, here are ten more.

• Keith Ballard on Niclas Wallin
• Keith Ballard on Carlo Colaiacovo
• Keith Ballard on Ales Hemsky
• Keith Ballard on Tomas Kopecky
• Keith Ballard on David Krejci
• Dan Hamhuis on Jakub Voracek
• Dan Hamhuis on Tom Gilbert
• Aaron Rome on Sean Avery
• Aaron Rome on Antoine Vermette
• Aaron Rome on JF Jacques

Slewfoot on Keith Ballard Showcases One of the Many Ways a Player Can Needlessly Injure Another Player

If you haven't seen it yet, here's a clip of the Keith Ballard injury, via Kukla's Korner. Last night, during the game, I wondered aloud to my wife if Milan Michalek was guilty of a slewfoot here. Kukla's Korner asks the same question. Ben Kuzma also asked. Mike Gillis straight up said it was. Let me tell you: if it looks like a slewfoot and quacks like a duck, well, it's probably a slewfoot, but then why the Hell is it quacking?

Anyway, this is probably a slewfoot, one of the many oft-overlooked ways one player can give another player a completely needless, totally avoidable, longterm injury. Word is Ballard will miss 2-4 weeks with an MCL sprain, and if the MRI reveals a tear, well, longer. Frankly, Hips is lucky his knee didn't pop clean off--the fate that befell my poseable MC Hammer action figure when I was nine.

And if it is a slewfoot, where's the outrage? I don't like the way this is being brushed off. Slewfoots are exceedingly dangerous, just like the headshots that dominate the daily discussions of NHL issues. They happen surprisingly often, and yet nobody really talks about cracking down on them.

Today would have been a great day to discuss yet one more way hockey players aren't showing each other enough respect on the ice, one more dirty play on which the league needs to crack down. But instead, when I turned on the radio, I was dropped into yet another rant about headshots. Let's get serious, radio guys. You had a major slewfoot in your market and you go right back to the well of overplayed topics? Granted, Cam Cole's article on headshots and the Code is brilliant and worth discussing, but if the above video tells me anything, it's that headshots aren't the only way to shorten a guy's career, and the others deserve some discussion as well.

I Watched This Game: Canucks vs. Blackhawks, February 4, 2011

Canucks 4 - 3 Blackhawks

Was that an exciting game or what? The correct answer is not "what." Chicago came out flying tonight and put the Canucks on their heels through most of this game. It can be argued that they deserved the win: a questionable no-goal call went against the 'Hawks and the Canucks' first goal was demonstrably offside. Having felt the burn of poor officiating in the past, I certainly sympathize with Blackhawks' fans. At the same time, the 'Hawks had ample opportunity to win this game and gave up two leads, so it's a little unfair to place the blame solely on the referees.

In any case, the Canucks were, arguably, outplayed in this game. But, their best players were their best players and they won. It was marvelous. I watched this game.

• We at PITB have frequently complained about Luongo's tendency to use his glove to punch pucks rather than catch them. Tonight Luongo proved that Rollie Melanson reads Pass it to Bulis. Clearly Melanson took our complaints to heart and taught Luongo the proper use of his trapper. One of his finest glove saves can be seen above, but there seemed to be dozens of slick glove stops from Lu in this game. He was very, very good. It took a wide-open all-star and two rather unfortunate bounces tonight to get the puck past him.

• Chris Tanev made up for Luongo's lack of punchiness by punching in the Blackhawks' third goal. It was an unfortunate moment for the rookie who has played remarkably well since being called up. Unfortunately, with Andrew Alberts set to return soon and Sami Salo remaining remarkably uninjured during his first game for the Manitoba Moose, Tanev won't be with the Canucks for much longer. Still, he has vaulted his way up the depth chart like an angry pole vaulter and I have a feeling we'll see a lot more of him in the future.

• The Canucks' top line combined for 12 shots on goal and had another 9 attempts blocked or miss the net. They seemed to be the only line that was able to create sustained offensive pressure. Henrik finished with a goal and two assists to earn first-star honors. His bloodthirsty brother not only became the NHL's leading scorer tonight, he also passed Markus Naslund to become the Canucks' all-time record holder for game-winning goals. Remember when people used to claim the Sedins weren't clutch?

• Cody Hodgson had a decent game despite barely playing. A big reason for Ehrhoff's goal was Hodgson's smart play in gaining the zone and throwing the puck on net, which Tanner Glass reciprocated, creating the massive rebound for Ehrhoff to blast past Turco. Discussions of the offside nature of the goal aside, that was a hell of a slapshot. It ripped a hole in time, love and space, and was behind Turco before Ehrhoff even shot it.

• On the other hand, Hodgson went 1-for-5 in the faceoff circle and only played 7:11. And he left the ice too quickly to get a +1 in his plus-minus column. Kesler, Malhotra, and Henrik made up for Hodgson's lack in the circle, going 14-for-21, 10-for-15, and 12-for-16 respectively. Unfortunately, the Canucks went 8-for-20 in the defensive zone, a big reason why the Blackhawks always seemed to be there.

• The TSN intermission crew did a great job analyzing the two controversial plays, one highlighting the fact that Ehrhoff's goal was indeed offside and one showing that Troy Brouwer did in fact make contact with Luongo's blocker on Bolland's controversial disallowed Chicago goal. Still, the fact that it was such a minuscule piece of contact means it's still a bit of a sketchy call.

• Rough night for the third line, as they all finished on the minus side of the ledger. Particularly rough for Hansen, who finished a game-low -3 as he was on the ice for all three Chicago goals. It's unfortunate for Torres, as he was very noticeable on the ice tonight, throwing a couple solid checks and blocking 3 shots. Malhotra was solid in the faceoff circle, but was thoroughly victimized by Jonathan Toews on the Blackhawks' first goal, as he was squeezed off the puck against the boards and wasn't able to recover to pressure Toews before the shot.

• Aaron Rome played a physical game: he was only credited with 2 hits, but they were big, noticeable hits. Unfortunately, he also was credited with 3 giveaways and almost cost the Canucks a goal when he tried to give Luongo a hug behind the net. To his credit, he recovered and slid behind Luongo to make a knee save on the subsequent goalscoring chance, but it was a clear sign that he has missed a few games and is a bit out of sync. That by itself is a reason to get him back into the game ahead of Lee Sweatt. An out-of-sync Rome in the playoffs would be potentially disastrous.

• Hips laid out Kopecky with a solid hipcheck, then followed it up with a picture perfect shotblock, also on Kopecky. You may have also noticed Luongo's enormous glove save on Kopecky at the top of the page. Basically, it wasn't a good night to be Kopecky. It was almost as bad as the Olympics, when the closed captioning spelled out his name as "Could Pets Ski." Unfortunate.

• Ehrhoff doesn't seem to get angry very often, but when he does, look out. He flipped out on Stalberg, flailing around like a Flail Snail. I admit, I only wanted to mention this so I could link to the Flail Snail. Seriously. Flail Snail.

• Samuelsson has been fantastic lately: he had 5 shots on goal, including this blast from the point on the powerplay that deflected past Turco. Even prettier, however, was his pass on Henrik's goal. Leading up to the goal were, of course, two Sedin backpasses, but those are so routine that pointing them out seems superfluous. Meanwhile, Kesler braved the crotch-hacking dangers of the front of the net, and set a perfect screen on Turco. So everyone was involved except Ehrhoff, who was too busy daydreaming about punching Stalberg.

• Daniel's gamewinning goal was a prime example of Wizardous Sedinerie: Daniel clearly used Mage Hand to levitate that puck over Turco. Now, since there were no somatic or verbal components, he must have both Silent Spell and Still Spell as feats. Applying both feats would increase the level of the spell by 2, meaning that Daniel Sedin must be, at minimum, a third-level Wizard.

• I'm a big fan of Ray Ferraro. He's one of the best colour commentators in the business. I don't have a joke here, I just felt like it needed to be said.

• An indication of how good a game Luongo had can be found by looking at the Blackhawks' four leading shooters: Patrick Sharp and Brian Campbell had 6 shots apiece and Marian Hossa and Patrick Kane had 7 each. Not one of them scored. Luongo answered the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything with 42 saves.

I Find This Quote Odd: Keith Ballard Edition

The following quote comes from Iain MacIntyre's postgame article on the Canucks' shootout loss to the Red Wings on Saturday night. Maybe it's just me, but I find it really strange. Let's examine it.

“It was a good game,” Vancouver defenceman Keith Ballard said. “I think everyone who watched it was fairly satisfied. Both teams had good [scoring] opportunities and it was decided by a breakaway contest, which fans like.”

Is Ballard being sarcastic here? I've never heard anyone refer to the shootout as a "breakaway contest" without soaking the phrase in ridiculous sarcasm. When he says, "which fans like," I feel like he's being exclusionary on purpose. Fans, not hockey players, and not Keith Ballard.

It would make complete sense if Ballard was being sarcastic. He has no interest in the shootout. We both know that he has no place in proceedings. You can't hip check a goalie, and you definitely can't bludgeon him. If there's anybody who recognizes the shootout has no place in real hockey games, it's a depth guy like Ballard, whose skills are only on display in a team setting.

I know I wasn't alone in thinking that holding a shootout to decide a sawoff between the best two overall teams in the league was a complete travesty (maybe not a national travesty, but still highly travestous). It has nothing to do with the fact that the Canucks lost, either. It's the simple matter that the game is over, and a "breakaway contest" is a completely different fish. It'd be like if you forced two Old West gunslingers to settle a dispute shooting tin cans. Or forced Zoolander and Hansel to settle a dispute racewalking. It's not the same.

With this quote, I'm getting the distinct sense Ballard felt the same way, but his tone was lost when the sentence went to print.

Watch Keith Ballard Demolish Drew Miller Again

My favourite thing about following a hockey team closely is getting to know the unique tendencies of its players. I've watched Keith "Hips" Ballard for half an NHL season now, and unlike Drew Miller, I saw this hit coming.

I wasn't surprised, just like I'm never surprised when Jannik Hansen causes a turnover on the forecheck, or Kevin Bieksa keeps the puck in at the blue line. I can tell when these guys are in their element. It amazes me how every member of a hockey team can be so very, very different, and it's rewarding to me, as a fan, when I become cognizant of those differences. Keith Ballard seizes every opportunity to throw a hip check. It's his thing. It excites me every time. Golly, what a hit this is.

I like Drew Miller's reaction. He gets up and looks at the ref like, I don't remember what happened, exactly that had to be a penalty. Nope. So fresh, so clean.

How does it stack up against this season's other fine ruinations? Is it the best? Is it in the top three?

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.

I Watched This Game: Canucks at Blackhawks, December 3, 2010

Canucks 3 - 0 Blackhawks

What a relief. I was getting tired of hearing people say that the Blackhawks were in Luongo's head. Apparently, not only are they not, but we learned what is: beatnik poetry. Louie thinks he's Allen Ginsburg.

Yes, Roberto Luongo's poetry off the ice was about as bad as Vogon poetry (3rd worst in the universe), but his poetry on the ice was downright Keatsian. He made 32 saves for the shutout, including more than a handful of the genus spectacular. His padstack on Pat Kane was reminiscent of Kirk McLean, and his toe kick on Tomas Kopecky was as great a desperation save as we've ever seen him make. I'm a shortsighted guy and prone to superlative, so take this for what it's worth, but this was one of the best games Roberto Luongo has ever played. And I watched it:

• As far as I'm concerned, the intermission poetry gag actually played right into how the Canucks are beginning to approach the Blackhawks: lightly. Apart from the sleepy Voldemort game (which shall not be named), Vancouver has taken 3 of a possible 4 points in two games with the Blackhawks. Interestingly, neither game has been particularly filled with bad blood. I'll touch on this later in a guest post for Canucks Hockey Blog, but this year's Canucks seem to be playing lighter and with a lot less emotion. It's very zen. Is it the calming captaincy of robot Henrik (Robotrik)? Is is an organizational mandate from Gillis on down? I speculate that it's both. Either way, the Canucks have quietly beaten their two worst rivals in back-to-back games with calm and collected efforts. Luongo even asked mortal enemy Pat Kane if he was all right after a stick caught him in the face. That's like Wario offering Mario a fire flower. Kane seemed bemused, to put it mildly.
  
  
• Jeff Tambellini didn't net a goal last night, thereby ending his point streak, but he had a couple of incredible chances, and he led the team with 6 hits. 6 hits! I think he's earned a permanent spot in the lineup. He better have. The Canucks are now 9-0-1 when he plays, and their forward lines are considerably better.
  
  
• That includes the fourth line, responsible for last night's game winner (above). I've caught some flack for my insistence that Tanner Glass remains on the fourth line, but the truth is, as much as I don't like him on the third, I love him on the fourth. He's done some yeomanly work there considering his rotating cast, but now that he's been paired with Jannik Hansen and a center that isn't terrible, we're beginning see why the Canucks were so high on him. Speaking of yeomanly, I once played that word in a game of Scrabble. Huge points. Look out, Tanner. I'm coming for you.
  
  
• That kid from the tunnel who hit Luongo in the face (#headpokekid) is obviously good luck. Here's my proposal: Fly him to Vancouver, give him season's tickets, and let himsmear his grubby hands all over our starting goaltender before games. Apart from when Luongo comes down with weird kid sicknesses like chicken pox, head lice, mono, and whooping cough, we'll be unstoppable.
  
  
• In the faceoff circle, Manny Malhotra went 15-5 last night. You've likely heard this stat elsewhere last night, as faceoffs only ever seem to get talked about when Alternate Captain Mal has a good night. Also of note: of Malhotra's 20 draws, none were in the offensive zone, and 13 were defensive zone faceoffs. The rest of the team, collectively, took nine behind their blue line. Henrik had a rough night, only winning 5-of-15, but he took seven of the Canucks eleven offensive zone draws. There is an interesting, unwritten article about zone faceoffs, the Canucks uniquely multi-faceted faceoff trio, and Vigneault's personnel preferences. One day PITB will write it.
  
  
• The best defenseman on the ice last night: Christian Ehrhoff. I noticed him on every shift, and since he played 23:15, it was a whole lot of noticing. Ehrhoff played with a grit I've never seen and an intensity I've never seen. He even stood up for Luongo when Toews got in his crease. When has Christian Ehrhoff ever done that? On the offensive end, it was his excellent transitional work that led to the Henrik Sedin goal, and his seeing-eye wrist shot that buried the Blackhawks on the powerplay. Ehrhoff had been playing a bit spotty of late, and I was beginning to hear concerning murmurs about which Canuck defenseman was on the block. But, if Ehrhoff can play like he did last night on a regular basis, he'll be beyond invaluable.
  
  
• Keith "Hips" Ballard only played 12:45 last night, but he registered 6 blocked shots and 4 hits in that time, including one big hip check on Tomas Kopecky. Ballard appears to be finding his legs, which is more than I can say for Lady Helen Port-Huntley. In fact, the whole defense corps is rounding into form. It's about time.
  
  
• Speaking of blocked shots, the Canucks had 19 last night. Couple that with Luongo's 32 saves and you can see why the Blackhawks and their fans left frustrated. Add that to the 9 missed, and you've got 60 shots directed at the Canucks net and nothing to show for it.
  
  
• I loved Chris Cuthbert's call last night, especially when he was complaining about how many players on the Hawks had names that began with the letter B (Bolland, Boynton, Brouwer, Bickell). Cuthbert: "It's like they drafted alphabetically for four years."
  
  
• I talked yesterday about Ryan Kesler as the team's top powerplay skater. He is the catalyst for this powerplay goal, as he gets the winger win on the faceoff, and then gets to the net quickly for a perfect screen. While he doesn't get a point out of it, this one's all Kesler.
  
  
• And finally: can I gush over the many set plays the Sedins and Alex Burrows have? We all know about the one they do off the faceoff, but how about their lob pass for the breakout? We see this work for a scoring chance--usually a 2-on-1 or a breakaway--about once a game. Here it results in a goal when Patrick Sharp takes the shift off, and Henrik glides in alone to clean up Daniel Sedin's rebound.
  

I Watched This Game: Canucks vs. Avalanche, November 24, 2010

Canucks 4 - 2 Avalanche

Last night was an excellent return to form for Vancouver, who did something they haven't done in ages: they won a game with sound defensive play and sustained offensive pressure. The stat sheet tells us that Colorado outshot Vancouver 23-19, but it doesn't tell the whole story: the puck spent far more time in the Avalanche zone than it did the Canucks' end. The Canucks were leaps and bounds better 5-on-5. It was nice to see the Sedins cycle return, and it was nice to see all three members of the second line looking dangerous and sharing some chemistry. The line juggling appeared to be a success, as the new-look trios all did a good job of maintaining momentum and keeping the puck out of their zone. Here's hoping they stay together awhile.

But enough looking ahead. This series is about dwelling on the very recent past. You see, not too long ago, I watched this game:

• The sustained offensive pressure meant diminished pressure on the defense corps, which played better, but still looked shaky. Hammy and Hips are still trying to find their legs, but everyone else was solid last night. Edler was jumping into rushes smartly, Ehrhoff was carrying the puck out of his zone and starting them with regularity, and Andrew Alberts' work on the penalty-kill was top-notch. In one late 2nd-period kill, he blocked two shots, hit everything in sight, and downright picked on Matt Duchene and John-Michael Liles. AV justified sitting Rome over Andy Alby by pointing to Alberts' penalty killing, and we saw it on display last night.
  
  
• That said, the best defenseman on the ice was Kevin Bieksa. It's strange to say, especially in a game that featured two potential Western Conference all-star d-men in Edler and Liles, but Bieksa really was at the top of the heap. He scored his first goal of the season on a beautiful tip-in after smartly going to the net on a delayed penalty. He made some other dangerous offensive rushes as well, and he always seemed to be the first man back when the Canucks got into a spot. If he played like this every game, he'd be a fan favourite.
  
  
• Through his first ten games, Alex Burrows had looked a little off. He scored a goal (above), factored into another, and caused his special brand of positive disarray in the offensive zone all night. Last night he looked a little on. This is a good sign, and it is entirely possible that he will soon be a lot on. Eventually, with a little luck, he might be full on, all the way across the sky.
  
  
• Yes, the triple rainbow line was, as it should be, the Canucks' best line. A spoonful of wizardous sedinerie led to 2 points for each linemate and a plus-6. A good recipe for success: score twice and don't get scored on. I've personally found that if you score and the other team doesn't, you'll win most of the time. When won't you? Collecting abstinence pledges.
  

• That said, Burrows' second assist was bogus. Daniel centered the puck for him and he missed it. Henrik pick it up on the half-wall, then pulled off the slap-pass play with his brother. During that give-and-go, Burrows never touched the puck. So why does he get an assist simply for being nearby? I'm happy for the guy, but, let us please try to protect the sanctity of the second assist before some idiot suggests we abolish it. This ain't no Russian hockey league.
  
  
• It's not always readily apparent what Jannik Hansen brings to this team. We know it's not hands, which are a bit like the Swedish Chef's in that they're never quite in sync with the rest of him. Upon hearing that he was bumped down to the fourth line, opinion vacillated between Good, he's only got four points this season, and Why Hansen? He was playing really well. The truth is that Hansen's best asset is his skating. Often we talk about skating like it's just top-end speed, but there's more than that. Hansen is a master at puck tracking--he skates fast, but he can also change directions and get back to a high speed better than anybody else. Since nobody expects the fourth line to score, Hansen's team-best skating ability can stand on its own while he's down there.
  
  
• During one of the intermissions, the Sportsnet ticker told us the final score of the FC Kobenhavn vs. Rubin Kazan UEFA game. It read: RUB -1 FCK - 0. Take from this what you will.
  
  
• My favourite moment: Jeff Tambellini, waiting for the referee to reverse the decisions on Ryan Kesler's disallowed goal. Tamby was visibly pumped when the puck went in, and you could see him waiting breathlessly for it to count. When the referee came away from the booth, the camera catches Tamby mouthing "Come on, you motherf... come on." Hilarious and sweet. I love his elation when the call goes his way.
  
  
• That was, by the by, Ryan Kesler's 100th career goal. Congratulations are in order. And now, here they are: congratulations.
  
  
• But seriously, the fact that his goal was legal is ridiculous. Here's why the puck goes in: Tambellini whacks Budaj in the side of the head with his stick. As Budaj recoils from being bludgeoned, he actually butts the puck with the other side of his head and it falls into the net. Apparently, you're allowed to do that. Tamby, on the whack: “I pulled a Keith Ballard there [...]" Hilarious.
  
  
• Reason to sigh: now some people are complaining that the Canucks powerplay is bad. Oh, shut up, some people.
  
  
• And speaking of Budaj, poor Craig Anderson. For the second straight game, he had to leave the game with an injury suffered in the warm-up. Anderson can't catch a break, save the part of his body that does exactly that whenever he comes to town. Even the NBA is laughing at his problems with Vancouver.
  
  
• Joel Perrault is a forgettable guy, ain't he? I forgot he was even playing last night, and apparently, so did Alain Vigneault. Perrault logged a team low 5:15, and I don't remember hearing his name once. I don't think I've ever missed Alex Bolduc so much and, all things considered, I likely never will again.
  
  
• In the faceoff circle, the Canucks were very good and the Avalanche were a gallon of fail. Vancouver won 34 of the game's 52 draws, led by an 11-for-15 showing by Manny Malhotra that included 6 out of 6 in the defensive zone. Faceoff goat? Paul Stastny, who only won 6 in 21 tries. Sidenote: having coined the term "Faceoff goat" I am now envisioning a live goat who takes faceoffs. And now, I'm envisioning the classic John Woo movie, Face/Off. But with goats.
  
  
• I really like the way the Canucks do the Ring of Honour tributes. Short, sweet, and classy. Apart from a terrifying moment where the tarp professed its love for the plaque beneath it and refused to leave it behind, it was a perfect pre-game ceremony.
  
  
• And finally: I thought today about what a ridiculous idea Fin is. An anthropomorphic killer whale who playfully tries to murder fans by biting their skulls open? Not awesome. You know if his teeth weren't made of foam, Brody, Quint, and Hooper would be looking for him.
  

I Watched This Game: Canucks at Penguins, November 17, 2010

Canucks 1 - 3 Penguins

After a bit of a tumultuous day for Pass it to Bulis, the Canucks played a hockey game. I watched it. It was a sloppy game filled with turnovers, bad bounces, and a certain degree of boneheadedness. There were, however, some positives. Not many, but some, as in an unknown, unspecified, or undetermined unit. One of those positives? I'm wearing new jeans! They're pretty sweet. Another positive: Modern Family is on! What a great show.

• Let's start with a negative. One of the themes of this eastern road trip has been bad first periods. The Canucks have failed to score the first goal in every game of the road trip except against Ottawa, where they still weren't particularly good. This game was no different, as they were outshot 11-6 in the 1st period and found themselves down 2-0 early in the 2nd period. It's unhealthy for both me (as it does my heart no good to get that stressed out), and the Canucks, as it causes a lot more wear and tear to keep trying to come from behind game after game.

• Another continuation on a theme: bad turnovers in the defensive zone as, once again, the Canucks had a lot of trouble escaping their own zone.

• This may seem obvious, but it's probably a bad idea to give Sidney Crosby a breakaway. Just sayin'. Kevin Bieksa will likely get blamed for not keeping the puck in as the Canucks' first powerplay was ending, springing Crosby for the Penguin's first goal, but I'd rather ask why Mikael Samuelsson thought it was a good idea to throw the puck back to the point on the wrong side of Bieksa's body for him to play it. To be fair to Samuelsson, every single other Canucks defenseman shoots left-handed. Still, you have to be aware when it is a bad idea to throw a hard pass to the point on the powerplay. One of those times is when Sidney Crosby is coming out of the penalty box. Another is when the point man is Byron Ritchie.

• Speaking of Kevin Bieksa, the post-game show on the Team 1040 claimed that he was the best defenseman for the Canucks tonight. I'm inclined to agree. He KO'd Craig Adams with a sharp right to the jaw early in the first period, reminding everyone that he is scary in a fight. He played a solid defensive game and led all defensemen with 8 attempted shots, 3 of them on net. Then, with the net empty at the end of the game, he made a stellar diving play to stop a breakaway. Dan Hamhuis and Alex Edler also had decent games and Keith Ballard managed to be the only defenseman to finish the game as a plus player. Heck, even Alberts made the most of his minutes, finishing the game with 6 hits. Hit of the game, however, was definitely Keith Ballard's open-ice hipcheck on Evgeni Malkin. Absolutely beautiful.

• You might have surmised from the fact I mentioned five defensemen as playing decently, that one defenseman did not. Christian Ehrhoff had an awful game. The Penguins' third goal was especially egregious, as Ehrhoff attempted to catch the puck in his hand and drop it down to his stick; instead, he dropped it directly between his own skates. It doesn't matter if you shoot left-handed or right-handed, that's not where you want the puck.

• The Canucks will get slammed for a listless powerplay, as they went 0-for-5, but both units actually looked reasonable and were able to create a number of scoring chances, which they just weren't able to turn into shots on goal. It was odd. Unfortunately, one of those missed scoring chances cost the Canucks a shorthanded goal.

• The Canucks' only goal of the game, as seen above, came on a fantastic play by Alex Burrows, as he took two Penguins players out of the play on the rush with an incredible display of patience before feeding it out to Daniel Sedin out in the slot. Frustratingly, Daniel chose not to shoot it, instead trying to feed it to Henrik, who was covered by the only other Penguins' player in the zone. His choice not to shoot robbed Burrows of a well-deserved assist. If it wasn't for a fortunate bounce and a heads-up push pass from Henrik to Dan "Hammy" Hamhuis, then the Canucks would have been shutout tonight. Just look at this picture:

• Imagine you're Daniel Sedin. You are 4th in NHL goalscoring and you have an obscene 22.2% shooting percentage. You have the puck all alone in the slot without a defender anywhere near you. Now imagine you pass up that shooting opportunity to pass it to someone who is covered by Kris Letang, who leads the Penguins in +/- and is their best defenseman. Now imagine kicking yourself. Yes, it worked out for the best, but it is killing me to see the Sedins passing up prime scoring chances for worse scoring chances. Even a pass to Dan Hamhuis would have been a better option. Last season, the Sedins frequently passed up a possible scoring chance because they wanted to create a better one. This season, it seems that they're passing up great scoring chances for mediocre scoring chances. It's bugging me.

• AV switched up the lines a bit in the second period, moving Samuelsson up with the Sedins and Burrows down with Kesler and Raymond. That second line looked good, creating a lot of chances with strong skating and a hard forecheck. We'll see if AV goes with the same lines again on Saturday.

• There was some crazy shot-blocking in this game. In the second period, the Penguins could have had a fourth goal when Luongo tripped behind the net, but Dan Hamhuis sprawled out to block the shot. The entire team seemed to get into the act with the net empty and only a few seconds left, preventing Sidney Crosby from padding his goal total. It was rather meaningless, but it was still nice to see that commitment from the team.

• Solid work on faceoffs continues to be a theme, as the top-three centers were all at 60% or above. Malhotra was 7-for-8 in the defensive zone, which ended up not mattering too much as all three Penguins goals came more-or-less off the rush.

• Finally, the ice quality needs to be talked about. The puck was bouncing like crazy and there seemed to be little piles of snow everywhere. Apparently BizNasty2Point0 gets more ice time than the operations crew at the Consol Energy Center. It's not an excuse for the Canucks losing, as both teams needed to deal with it, but it is an excuse for this being such a sloppy un-entertaining game. A game between the Penguins and Canucks should be a lot more exciting than this one.

Yeah, not a great game. But I was actually encouraged by the performance of the Canucks defensemen, save Ehrhoff. They clearly had some trouble with the ice surface and there were a few too many turnovers in the defensive zone in the first period, but they seemed to play better overall than on the rest of the road trip. Ballard certainly had a decent return to the lineup and clearly made the argument that Rome should stay in the press-box for a few games. In addition to being a plus player and upending Malkin, he was entrusted with ice-time on a key powerplay and penalty kill in the third period. Hopefully that increased trust from AV will translate into results.

I'm Loving the New Goalie Coach

Before the acquisition of the new goaltending coach, there were many nights where Luongo was clearly not standing on his head. This incriminating photo is just one of many taken where if you look closely, you can see Luongo standing upright. Is that the team on his back? No, it isn't.

I've got to hand it to Mike Gillis. He knew just what to do here. Tonight, Luongo looked just like his former immortal self. Had I forgotten he could play like this? Maybe a little.

Tonight's game reminded me so much of 2006-07, right down to the 2-1 shootout loss. Luongo was amazing, traffic buzzing all around him and the puck somehow staying out. At one point in the first period I'm pretty sure he teleported. Fair play to Mike Gillis, acquiring the one guy who could really light a fire under Luongo:

Keith Ballard.

Keith Ballard is the premier defenseman/goaltending coach in the league today. After he was traded to Florida during the 2008 offseason, he motivated Thomas Vokoun to step it up. The Florida goaltender's save percentage jumped from an already impressive .919 to a crazy-good .926, followed up by another .925 season.

How did he do it? Two things. First of all, Keith Ballard leads by example, playing hard every night and showing he's willing to sacrifice his body to play. But if that subtle message isn't enough, Ballard is willing to show goaltenders his displeasure if they slip up. In the oft-played clip of Ballard "accidentally" hitting Vokoun with the stick, what people often fail to notice is that Vokoun screwed up. After making the initial save, Vokoun seemingly lost interest in the puck, leaving it beside him and staring off in the distance before Kovalchuk jammed the puck home. Vokoun lost focus, drifting off into fantasy land, and Ballard decided it took the hard, uncompromising reality of his hockey stick to remind his goaltender to get it together.

Ballard did the same thing tonight. After all the amazing saves Luongo made tonight, it's almost hard to remember that he started the period out a little flat. He looked slow on a shot or two, and then Jack Johnson hit the post. Luck was keeping the puck out of that net, not Luongo. Still, the score was 0-0. Last season, we would wait for a soft goal before we lost patience with Luongo.

Not Keith Ballard. He sent a strong message right away, crashing Luongo's crease and knocking the goal off its moorings. "Accidents happen," Ballard was saying. "You better be sharper out there."

Luongo responded with an amazing night. If the Canucks could have generated some more offense early, rather than one too many penalties, Bobby Lu could have posted his first shutout of the season, but as it stands, he still stood tall. Most games, if you only score one goal you don't expect to win. This time, we almost did. And who do we have to thank?

Keith Ballard. Thanks for keeping our goalie on his toes.

I Watched This Game: Canucks at Sharks, September 29, 2010

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

I'm not sure why, but I honestly thought last night's game was going to be closer. Before puck drop, Skeeter told me it was going to be like the Edmonton game. I goaded him into a prediction of an identical 8-2 score. Then I laughed to myself, and told him it was going to be low-scoring, tight-checking. Indeed, the Canucks were going to lose, but not by the laughable margin he thought they might. 8-2, I said? Come on, Skeeter! I hypothesize that you are a fool, and tonight's score will likely support this, I said. Unfortunately, exactly halfway into the game, it was 4-1. After that, I was much less sure of myself.

Unfortunately, last night's incarnation of the Canucks were in about the same headspace. It was a crummy, disjointed effort from a bunch of guys who, I would have assumed, were going to bring a lot more considering the stakes. I know it's just the fourth-line, but I feel like nobody's' really stepped up and claimed a spot. The next game needs to be a tune-up for the regular season, and a lot of these guys let their last shot at a roster spot slip away by sucking an orange peel last night. Here are some things:

• I know Raffi Torres scored both Canuck goals last night, but Jeff Tambellini might have been the best forward. He and Jannik Hansen simply seemed to have more skill than everyone else (probably because they do). The problem is that both Hansen and Tamby have similar skill sets and would likely be used as in a sort of sliding capacity as the third forward with AV's duos. You've got to think Hansen's got an edge because of familiarity, but I feel like Tamby's been the better forward these past few games. And if they both make it, what does that do for Brendan Morrison?
• I want Morrison on this team, but I wonder that has more to do with my concern he won't have a job. If he signed with another team, I'd be ecstatic, not upset. Ask yourself if you want him on the team because he's a good fit or because you like him.
• Last game, Skeeter suggested The Rog Mahal as a possible nickname for this place after Shorty called it the Rog. I think he's on to something with "Rog" puns, but I've got a few more. How about, the Jolly Rog? Rog al Ghul? Rog-stafarianism? The GaRog? That one would be an easy transition for fans. Rog Hashanah? Nah, too sacrilegious. I feel like these are getting worse, and they were terrible to begin with.
  
• Shane O'Brien had a weird game tonight. I hesitate to say it was bad, because I love Shane O'Brien, but it wasn't always good. His odd attempt to cover a loose puck in the first was hilarious as he laid down with his head nestled into Lack's torso. He looked like a piglet after its breakfast. Even he knew it was ridiculous. That huge smile of his was priceless. And later, during attempt to bring the puck across the blue line, he had a Lack-ian brain cramp and forgot what the lines were for. He crossed the line, then stopped and brought the puck across. After the whistle, he wore an "Oh-no-I-think-I-just-cut-myself" sort of cringe.
  
• As a scientist of sorts, I can pinpoint the precise moment Darcy Hordichuk got waived. It was just over five minutes into the first when he took a hooking penalty in the offensive zone.
• Guillaume Desbiens and Mike Moore had a spirited scrap in the first period. The announcer commented that they know each other pretty well from their time in the AHL. Well, they'll have plenty of time to see where that relationship is going this season, in the AHL.
• Is it safe to say James Duthie didn't read the Team 1040 handbook of dos and donts for interviewing Mike Gillis? He lost MG's respect early on when he asked, effectively, if any trades were brewin'. After that, it was all condescending lip curls and pat answers for Gillis. Tip for Duthie and all others who might interview a Canucks GM: if you want him to love you, start by ripping Dave Pratt, lob a few softballs, then tell him the mind room was a great idea.
• Skeeter pointed out that this is the first year we've heard anything about the 50-contract limit, and now we hear something nearly every day. Odd how that happens.
  
• Cody Hodgson needed to play like a superstar in the making last night in order to be here for the season opener, and instead he played like a guy who has plenty of skill, but needs to get back to game speed in the AHL. That's fine. There are so many examples of current superstars needing some seasoning I feel like I shouldn't even have to make the argument. Go elsewhere for that.
  
• The Canucks' penalty-killing was atrocious last night, which might be the only cause for concern. All of these guys are bottom six guys. That's going to be their job come mid-October. They need to be good at it.
• I'm a lot more enamoured with Lee Sweatt than Skeeter is, but I thought he was okay last night. He won't be making the team (he was in the lineup for this shellacking and the 8-2 debacle, so he's done), but he's going to push for a spot next year. Both Sweatts are, and that's awesome.
• Dan Hamhuis made one small mistake, by overcommitting himself on the beautiful Dany Heatley goal. Other than that, he continues to seem downright holy.
• Keith Ballard had good and bad moments, as usual. His footspeed is starting to look better, though. On a sidenote: Skeeter's been tagging posts that mention him as "Hips." Is this his attempt at a brand new nickname? If so, I'm on board. I love nicknames that are just body parts. Ryan "Balls" Johnson. Sami "Ball" Salo. I hereby declare Keith Ballard "Hips".
• "Hips" had good and bad moments, as usual.
• Skeeter and I made notes and there was more to say, but I forgot my notebook at home and now I'm at work. Sorry, Skeeter. Anything you want to add?
  

Why yes, Harrison, I do have things I want to add:

• Harrison and I pinpointed 4 times that Guillaume Desbiens was cut from the Canucks of our hearts. Fortunately, he will only need to be cut once for real. Still, he performed better than I expected and he made a decent argument for being a call-up if someone on the 4th line goes down with an injury. He hits and can fight in a pinch and isn't as useless as Hordichuk at the other elements of the game, but guys like Glass and Oreskovich are more likely to start the season as 4th-line wingers.
• Eddie Lack was reasonable, given the lack of support in front of him, but his biggest deficiency appears to be his lateral movement. He had trouble moving across his crease quickly to react to the passing of the San Jose powerplay. His save percentage was .890 at even strength and .600 on the penalty kill. I like Lack a lot, but he will definitely need some time in the AHL to adapt to the North American game and get a larger number of starts after being a perennial backup throughout his career.
• I hate that the referees don't get to use their discretion on delay of game penalties. Both Torres and Ehrhoff took them after batting pucks out of mid-air in the defensive zone and seeing them flutter over the glass. That's not a penalty, that's bad luck.
• I have some thoughts on the role of fighting and enforcers in the NHL (look for a post tomorrow), but both Harrison and I were thoroughly annoyed when the refs jumped in between Ehrhoff and Pavelski after both had dropped the gloves. There was a legitimate fight brewing for legitimate reasons (Pavelski had just hit Ehrhoff from behind) and it was broken up for no reason other than that they are not "designated fighters." To quote the Arrogant Worms, "Please Mr. Linesman, let the players fight."
• Also annoying, the fact that Ehrhoff got an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for dropping his gloves. Are you kidding? Not only had both players dropped their gloves, making it ludicrous that one would get a penalty and not the other, but how is it unsportsmanlike to drop the gloves in preparation for a fight? Back in March of 2009, the NHL took action to eliminate "staged fights," but fighting after a cheap shot or illegal hit was considered to be okay. So why did the linesmen step in between Ehrhoff and Pavelski to prevent them from fighting and why did only Ehrhoff get a penalty for dropping the gloves?

I Watched This Game: Canucks vs Sharks, September 28, 2010

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

Know what I like to see? Antti Niemi losing. I also like to see a near-regular season lineup for the Canucks look so poised and ready for action. It was a solid performance all-around, but all eyes were on the fringe players, the ones doing their best to make the team. Players like Cody Hodgson, Jeff Tambellini, Tanner Glass, and Alexandre Bolduc. Here's what we saw tonight:

• Shorty attempted to nickname Rogers Arena "The Rog" before the game. I'm not sold. Perhaps "The Rog Mahal"?
• Teams should use duos or trios more often for the national anthem. Harmonies help fill out the sound and can cover up the occasional flat note.
• Cory Schneider answered all the questions that were raised after getting shellacked for 8 goals against Edmonton. It's amazing what he can do when he's not facing poorly defended 2-on-1s every single shift. John Garrett, who made his return to the broadcasting booth after Burrows was sent to the minors, pointed out that he has a reputation for bouncing back from weak performances; I don't know about that, but I'm sure he appreciated having an NHL-level defence in front of him. He made most of his saves simply by being sound positionally and controlling rebounds, though he moved well when necessary, especially on the penalty kill.
• Cody Hodgson started off well enough and didn't look out of place with Kesler and Raymond, but he was also nothing special. He managed to draw an early penalty and made a couple decent plays defensively, but he got demoted in the third period to the fourth line, while Torres skated on the second. He'll likely get one more chance with two pre-season games left, but it looks like he'll be starting off the season with the Moose, which is probably better for him. It's tough to lose an entire year of development.
• Jeff Tambellini, on the other hand, really improved his stock, scoring the Canucks third goal with a beautiful snap shot over Niemi's glove. It's his go-to shootout move and he showed that it works just as well on a 2-on-1. Also note, Jannik Hansen freeing up the puck for Tambellini with some strong work on the boards. The guy's got speed to burn and looked good enough on the fourth line that he got bumped up to the third line in the final period. He skated hard on the forecheck and definitely made a good argument for his versatility.
• While Tambellini showed off his great shot, Glass showed why he should never be on the third line, not by missing an open net, but by completely missing the puck with an open net. On the other hand, he did blow up Joe Pavelski with a big open-ice hit and stood up to Douglas Murray with a smile on his face afterwards, so he's plenty suited to the fourth line. Only the fourth line.
• Bolduc? He was merely okay. Nothing particularly stood out from him, which likely means he's Manitoba Moose-bound.
• That's that for the bubble players. The rest of the team was largely fantastic.
• I'm loving the look of the powerplay under new assistant coach Newell Brown. Every player on the ice is in motion, causing plenty of confusion to the penalty killers and opening up numerous shooting lanes. I have the feeling the Sedins will thrive under this system. It only led to one goal, a classic example of wizardous sedinerie, but it seemed to constantly bamboozle the Sharks' penalty killers and the second-unit looked just as good.
• Bieksa had a strong game skating with Dan Hamhuis. The two seem well-suited together, especially on the penalty kill, though it could just be that Hamhuis is so damn good that it doesn't matter who he's paired with. He could be paired with Taylor Ellington and I'd be praising Ellington for having a great game. Actually, that's extremely unlikely. Never mind. In any case, Bieksa hit hard, created offense, and limited his mistakes. That's all I ask of him.
• Mason Raymond's goal, in the video at the top of this post, is all sorts of beautiful, roofing a backhand while making Dan Boyle look extremely silly. Lovely. It was a great shift for the entire line, including some nice work from Bieksa.
• Jannik Hansen has solidified his spot on the third line, in my mind. He was great with Manny Malhotra on the penalty kill, forechecked effectively, and drew an interference call in the third period just by skating hard and keeping his feet moving.
• I'm still not seeing enough from Raffi Torres. He threw a few hits and managed an effective cycle with Kesler and Raymond in the third period, but he was mostly invisible and seemed to stay on the perimeter. He was the only minus player for the Canucks in this game. One of the main criticisms he has faced throughout his career is inconsistency, so I'm hopeful he'll be better in the regular season. Quite frankly, as a third-line winger, he just needs to be competent most nights and chip in some scoring when possible. But if he's asked to fill in on the top-six with Burrows out, he'll need to be better.
• How nice was it to see a hipcheck from Ballard? So nice. He absolutely obliterated Wallin against the boards. Speaking of hitting, it was good to see Edler continuing his physical play from last year's playoffs. He had a nice solid hit on Setoguchi in the first period and wasn't afraid to engage physically in his own end. I'm thinking this could be a big season from the blond wonder.

It's Not an Excuse, It's a Reason

Who would guess a guy who hits like this would get a hip injury?

One of the biggest disappointments of the preseason has been the play of Keith Ballard. Back in June, Mike Gillis made arguably the biggest splash of the entry draft by trading the Canucks' first round pick, along with Steve Bernier and Michael Grabner, for the hard-hitting Florida defenceman and Victor Oreskovich. Because Ballard has played his entire career in small-market cities, most of the Canucks fanbase was unfamiliar with him except from a pair of hilarious youtube videos that showed him to be a goaltender's worst nightmare and one video slightly less hilarious but more full of glorious hipchecks. Harrison admitted his own confusion and NucksMisconduct had to ask, "Just what the hell is a Keith Ballard?" in their own review of the trade.

So, for many Canucks fans, this preseason has been the first real opportunity to see who Keith Ballard is and how he plays. Canucks fans wanted to see how "their" 4.2 million dollars was being spent and the results have not been encouraging: Ballard's defensive zone coverage has been a mess and he's a -4 in the two preseason games he's played. He hasn't just been bad, he's been noticeably bad in both games. But, as Iain Macintyre pointed out this morning, it's not necessarily his fault.

It turns out, and this is the first I have heard of it, Keith Ballard had a hip surgery back in May that kept him on crutches for two months. Apparently, he "had a stress fracture repaired in his hip socket and a cyst removed from the area" that delayed his summer training. He played through the injury all of last season, enhancing his reputation as a durable player with another full 82-game season. The report back in May was that the surgery was minor and that he would be 100% by training camp. Health-wise, this appears to be the case as Ballard claims that the hip is not the issue and that he's just taking a while getting back up to game-speed. Still, it's hard to believe that missing two months of training in the summer would not be a contributing factor to his slow start.

My soccer coaches always used to say, "Don't make excuses for a poor performance." And Ballard isn't making excuses, admitting that he's "just not quite there yet." But it is a reason why his play has not been up to par. Quite frankly, it's not surprising that Ballard would have a stress fracture on his hip given the number of hipchecks he deals out on a seemingly daily basis. I'm hoping that he gets back up to speed by the start of the season and I'm doing my best to avoid judging a player after two entirely meaningless games. But it's difficult to avoid when Ballard has spent his career in Arizona and Florida, far away from Vancouver eyes. Ballard's game depends on good reads and great timing, as a proper hipcheck is nearly impossible without perfect timing.

Fortunately, the Canucks defense is deep enough to start the season that Ballard won't have to play on the top-pairing as he did on Sunday. And he should never, ever be paired with Kevin Bieksa again. Ever. Bieksa and Ballard were on the ice for both of Edmonton's powerplay goals and were spectacularly ineffective together. That was a comedy of errors that should never be repeated.