Official: Vancouver Canucks W00T

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Aquaman

Lifer
Dec 17, 1999
25,054
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Avalanche might help Canucks down stretch

Kevin Woodley
For mytelus.com

VANCOUVER ? Vancouver fans might find this hard to believe, but the Colorado Avalanche, in a fashion similar to broccoli, brussell sprouts and Buckley?s cough syrup, might actually be good for the Canucks in the long run.

Sure, life might taste a little better in the short term without Colorado chasing the Canucks for the Northwest Division title, but the pressure could pay off in the playoffs. Just think of the Avalanche as the dentists of the NHL, a necessary evil you hate to see up close, but one that serves a constant reminder to floss regularly.

?Obviously at this time of year we have to find reasons to play desperate,? Matt Cooke said shortly before the road trip. ?We?re in (the playoffs) but we want to finish first in the division. That?s our goal and that?s where our desperation comes from.?

That desperation, which lacked a little in the early stages of Sunday?s costly 3-1 loss to Anaheim, is exactly what the Canucks will need the rest of the season, especially after Colorado closed within two points with a 3-1 win over San Jose Monday night. The Avalanche also has a game in hand on the Canucks, but they don?t have the tiebreaker, meaning Vancouver can seal the deal with wins in Phoenix Wednesday and against Los Angeles Sunday.

?They didn?t go away and they?re not going to, but we have control of our own destiny and we have to make sure we take care of it,? added Cooke.

The Canucks will get the chance to do exactly that against two teams that have combined for 26 more losses than wins, two teams Vancouver beat by a 10-2 total score in the last five days. But perhaps almost as important as staying ahead of Colorado and avoiding the first round battle with St. Louis that awaits the second place team in the Northwest Division, the Canucks will have a chance to build up a head of steam heading into next week?s playoffs.

They don?t need to look back any further than last post-season, when Vancouver came in hotter than Anna Kournikova in short-shorts and jumped out to a 2-0 lead over a Red Wings team that Florida-vacationed its way down the stretch, to know how important momentum can be in the early stages of the playoffs.

?It?s kind of a different situation this year, we?ve got things solidified as far as being in the playoffs,? said Ed Jovanovski. ?It?s more comfortable this year.?

Jovanovski believes that comfort level will help in the playoffs simply because, unlike last year, the Canucks haven?t had to play every game after Christmas like their lives depended on it. He thinks the lack of that ?final-exam? pressure night in and night out will help the Canucks stay fresh longer in the post-season, but he also admits the pressure of a late chase could go along way towards finding that extra gear before it starts.

?I think having the pressure there in a certain way is kind of good,? Jovanovski said of the hard-charging Avalanche. ?It kind gets us going leading up to the playoffs.?

Now all they have to do is get there as Northwest Division Champions.

King for two weeks

The NHL reign of rookie Jason King ended Tuesday when the Canucks re- assigned the 21-year-old right wing to Manitoba.

In two weeks with the big club, King managed a pair of assists while playing a regular shift in eight games with Daniel and Henrik Sedin. But King had to be considered a surprise starter after defence-first Russian centre Artem Chubarov returned from a prolonged absence Sunday night.

Many expected Chubarov to centre the fourth line, moving Trevor Linden back into King?s spot alongside the Sedin twins and leaving Brandon Reid on an offensively effective line between Cooke and Trevor Letowski. Instead Reid came out and Chubarov took his spot on his old line.

In his first year as a pro, King, who was Vancouver's fifth choice, 212th overall, in the 2001 Entry Draft, also has 17 goals and 19 assists in 64 games with Manitoba.

Cheers,
Aquaman
 

Aquaman

Lifer
Dec 17, 1999
25,054
13
0
Originally posted by: silverpig
Dammit, I can't believe the refereeing in that game. Baumgartner got tackled, someone else got tackled on a bloody breakaway, the quick whistle on Klatt, Klatt getting pitchforked in front of the open net... ARGH!!!

I did stay at the bar for the Canucks/Flames game after too :D

Jeremiah's btw ;)

Still trying for that waitress eh ;) :D

Cheers,
Aquaman
 

Aquaman

Lifer
Dec 17, 1999
25,054
13
0
Canucks try to clinch Northwest

Sports Ticker
4/2/2003

PHOENIX (Ticker) -- The Vancouver Canucks can all but lock up the Northwest Divsion title on Wednesday when they visit the Phoenix Coyotes at America West Arena.

Vancouver has 103 points, two ahead of the Colorado Avalanche. If the Canucks can get three points from their remaining two games, they will clinch their first division title since winning the Smythe Division in 1993. Vancouver is three points behind Detroit for second in the Western Conference.

The Canucks have won four straight games against the Coyotes and have outscored them 11-3 in three games this season.

Vancouver lost, 3-1, at Anaheim on Sunday but has not lost back-to-back games since March 4 and 6 at Philadelphia and Columbus. Markus Naslund scored his league-leading 47th goal of the season Sunday. Naslund is one goal ahead of linemate Todd Bertuzzi and Colorado's Milan Hedjuk.

Phoenix has lost six straight games, including a 5-4 overtime setback against the Los Angeles Kings on Monday. Mike Johnson scored twice and has a career-high 23 goals. Ladislav Nagy had a pair of assists, giving him 23 points in his last 24 games.

Cheers,
Aquaman
 

Aquaman

Lifer
Dec 17, 1999
25,054
13
0
Nonis among Sharks GM candidates

TSN.ca Staff
4/2/2003

Vancouver Canucks director of hockey operations Dave Nonis is reportedly on the short list for the vacant general manager's position with the San Jose Sharks.

According to the San Jose Mercury News, Nonis is being considered alongwith John Ferguson Jr., Neil Smith and Doug Wilson.

Sharks CEO Greg Jamison would only say that as many as five names are currently on the list. He has already acknowledged that Wilson - the team's director of pro development - is a candidate.

"We have interviews set up and we're going forward to hire a general manager in what I hope is a timely and thorough process," said Jamison, who has pegged May 1 as a rough deadline to have someone in place.

San Jose assistant general manager Wayne Thomas, who has been handling the day-to-day duties since Dean Lombardi was fired last month, is not considered a candidate.

Nonis is in his fifth season with the Canucks, working with general manager Brian Burke. He's been the team's chief contract negotiator in recent years. He also spent four years in the league office as manager of hockey operations.

Ferguson, the son of former NHLer John Ferguson, is the director of hockey operations for the St. Louis Blues. He was promoted to that role in February 2001 after five seasons as the Blues' assistant GM.

Smith has previous experience as the general manager of the New York Rangers, helping build the team which ended the 54 year Stanley Cup drought in 1994. He has been a television analyst for the past few years with both ESPN and the NHL Network as well as serving as a consultant with both Anaheim and Pittsburgh.

Cheers,
Aquaman
 

Aquaman

Lifer
Dec 17, 1999
25,054
13
0
Coyotes rally to tie Canucks

Associated Press
4/2/2003

PHOENIX (AP) - The Vancouver Canucks were within two minutes from all but securing their first division title in a decade Wednesday night. Then, the puck bounced to Teppo Numminen.

Numminen scored with 2:01 remaining as the Phoenix Coyotes rallied from a two-goal deficit in the third period and tied the Canucks 3-3.

``We played well in the second period and played the way we're supposed to play,'' said Markus Naslund, whose league-leading 48th goal at 11:38 of the second period gave Vancouver a 3-1 lead. ``But then we went back to not playing in the third. We just stopped playing.''

Numminen tied the game after he gained control of the puck at the top left side of the crease and slipped a soft wrist shot past Dan Cloutier.

``It's been a tough couple of weeks here,'' Numminen said. ``It's been really a job the last two weeks.

``It hasn't been much fun. So it's nice to see everybody here talking and in a good mood.''

Trevor Linden and Sami Salo also scored for the Canucks, who moved three points ahead of Colorado for the Northwest Division lead.

``We are a pressure team and we have success when we pressure the puck,'' said Vancouver coach Marc Crawford. ``We got away from it for whatever reason in the third period.

``Maybe it was nerves or something like that but we just have to learn from it and move forward.''

The Canucks, 3-0-1 in four games against the Coyotes, are 4-2-1 in their last seven games and raised their franchise-best road record to 23-10-7-1.

``We're pretty disappointed right now, but as of right now we're still the third team in the Western Conference,'' said Brendan Morrison. ``Because of one bad period we're not going to pack in the season.''

Danny Markov scored his first goal since Dec. 11 and Paul Mara had a goal for the Coyotes, who are 0-5-1-1 in their last seven.

``It's difficult when you're out of it to get juiced to play,'' said Phoenix goaltender Brian Boucher, who made 37 saves. ``But you've got to play. We wanted to play the role of the spoiler and I think we did a good job of it.''

Mara pulled Phoenix within 3-2 with 11:28 to go when he one-timed a rebound off the left post into the low slot past Cloutier.

Naslund's goal, Vancouver's third straight after trailing 1-0 early, came seconds after the Coyotes had killed a two-minute, two-man advantage.

Jan Hrdina, playing his second game for Phoenix, fired wide on a short-handed breakaway. The puck bounced to Todd Bertuzzi, who skated the length of the ice as the dual penalties expired and fed a cross-ice pass to Naslund for the goal.

Naslund leads the NHL with 104 points, while Bertuzzi's 51st assist raised his points total to 97, fourth-best in the league.

Markov gave Phoenix a 1-0 lead at 10:45 of the first, bouncing a hard, knuckling shot from the right point off the crossbar.

Linden tied the game 15 minutes into the period when he beat Boucher from the right faceoff circle for his 19th goal.

Salo fired a sharp wrist shot from the right faceoff circle over Boucher's right shoulder at 3:51 of the second to put the Canucks ahead 2-1.

Notes: The tie was the 200th in Coyotes history. ... Bertuzzi fired wide right on a breakaway with 50 seconds remaining in overtime to preserve the tie. ... The Canucks outscored the Coyotes 14-6 in the teams' four meetings. ... Naslund tied Pavel Bure for fourth place on the Canucks' career scoring list with 478 points. Linden, second with 644, moved within 29 points of Vancouver career leader Stan Smyl. ... Phoenix's early lead was their first in the four games against Vancouver. ... Hrdina, who had two assists in his Coyotes debut Monday, assisted on Mara's goal.

Cheers,
Aquaman
 

Aquaman

Lifer
Dec 17, 1999
25,054
13
0
Lucky for us that LA beat Colorado so we only have to at least tie LA for use to win the Divisional Title. For Colorado to win it they have to win the last 2 games and have the Canucks lose it's last game.

Go Canucks Go !!! :D :D :D

I know we can do it :D

Cheers,
Aquaman
 

Aquaman

Lifer
Dec 17, 1999
25,054
13
0
Canucks send Reid to Manitoba

The Canadian Press
4/3/2003

VANCOUVER (CP) - The Vancouver Canucks assigned rookie centre Brandon Reid to Manitoba of the American Hockey League on Thursday.

Reid had two goals and three assists in seven games with the Canucks since making his NHL debut in early March. He was sent down after his first game, but recalled again in mid-March.

Reid, Vancouver's fifth choice and 208th overall in the 2000 entry draft, led Manitoba in scoring with 18 goals and 34 assists when he was called up.



To bad.......... I like the energy the guy brings to the game :(



Cheers,
Aquaman
 

silverpig

Lifer
Jul 29, 2001
27,703
11
81
Yeah, too bad about Reid. Oh well. I was at the pub for that game too.

Any idea when Ohlund will be back?
 

Aquaman

Lifer
Dec 17, 1999
25,054
13
0
Originally posted by: silverpig
Yeah, too bad about Reid. Oh well. I was at the pub for that game too.

Any idea when Ohlund will be back?

I think he may play sunday. From past injuries he will not have to ease his way in he maybe playing his normal 25 minute games right away :D

Cheers,
Aquaman
 

Aquaman

Lifer
Dec 17, 1999
25,054
13
0
Originally posted by: Aquaman
Originally posted by: silverpig
Yeah, too bad about Reid. Oh well. I was at the pub for that game too.

Any idea when Ohlund will be back?

I think he may play sunday. From past injuries he will not have to ease his way in he maybe playing his normal 25 minute games right away :D

Cheers,
Aquaman

Looks like Game 1 of the first round is the target :D

Cheers,
Aquaman
 

Aquaman

Lifer
Dec 17, 1999
25,054
13
0
Dang ........ 10 seconds left and the Ducks could have done us a favour :(

Also the dang Hejduk got 2 goals to take the lead to 49 :( and Peter Foresburg got a point to close the gap to 1 point :(

Cheers,
Aquaman
 

Mucman

Diamond Member
Oct 10, 1999
7,246
1
0
Originally posted by: FrustratedUser
How could this thread survive this long?

It's better than spamming the forums for every Vancouver Canucks related event :)
 
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