Canucks look to complete comeback
Canadian Press
4/22/2003
VANCOUVER (CP) - The euphoria the Vancouver Canucks feel over forcing a Game 7 in their NHL playoff series against the St. Louis Blues is tempered by trepidation.
The Canucks, who trailed 3-1 in the best-of-seven Western Conference quarter-final, have pulled themselves back from the chasm of elimination but their season still teeters on a precipice.
A win in Tuesday's deciding game sends Vancouver into the second playoff round for the first time since 1995. A loss means a long summer of criticism and explanations.
"We know we haven't won anything yet," said gritty forward Trent Klatt, whose face was a roadmap of bruises and scars.
"We won Game 5 when we needed to and we won Game 6 when we needed to. It's not going to make any difference if we don't win Game 7. People aren't really going to care that we won these two games. We know the biggest challenge is yet still ahead and we're going to have to have our best game of the year."
The reservoir of confidence the Blues showed in the first four games of the series has eroded with every loss.
St. Louis has a $60-million US payroll and a history of making it past the second round of the playoffs only once in the last 16 years.
"I don't look at it like, 'Oh my God, it's a Game 7 and it's do or die,'" said Blues goalie Chris Osgood, who lost in Game 7 a year ago with the New York Islanders but has two Stanley Cup rings from his days in Detroit. "I don't look at it as a nerve-wracking experience. I look at it as a big chance to win a big game in a big situation and move on."
Defenceman Chris Pronger, whose ice time has dwindled the last couple of games leading to speculation he isn't 100 per cent healthy, said the Blues can't listen to the whispers of self doubt.
"I don't think we've dug any hole," said Pronger.
"It's just they're a good hockey team and they have a lot of scoring. We didn't expect this to be an easy series."
After being embarrassed 6-0 at home to open the series, and managing just four goals in the next three games, the Canucks have regained some of the offensive muscle that made them the NHL's second-highest scoring team during the regular season.
Markus Naslund, he of the 104 regular-season points, sleepwalked through the first three games of the series while being held to one point. Then he caught fire, with three goals and five points in the last three games.
"We're building," said Naslund, who leads Vancouver with six points.
"We're getting stronger and more confident. It's one game that is going to decide it. The start is going to be crucial."
Meanwhile, the Blues' No. 1 line of Pavol Demitra, Keith Tkachuk and Scott Mellanby has been missing in action. The trio has combined for three goals, two by Demitra, and 11 points through six games. Tkachuk has helped set up several goals with pick plays but hasn't scored since Game 1. Demitra has two goals and six points, and Mellanby has one assist.
Tkachuk is 0-3 in Game 7s in his career with zero points. He has twice been a part of team that took a 3-1 lead and folded.
Playoff scoring leader Doug Weight, 2-0 in Game 7s in his career, has five goals and 12 points all by himself.
"It's a one-game show right now," Blues forward Doug Weight told reporters after practice Monday. "What happened earlier in the series really means nothing right now. It's a one-game winner-takes-all, and the previous six mean absolutely nothing."
Scoring the first goal will be crucial for both teams Tuesday. If the Canucks do get the lead, hanging onto it will be critical. Vancouver has been outscored 10-1 in the third period during the series.
Penalties have also proved costly for both teams. Vancouver scored a pair of second-period goals on the power-play Sunday.
"We've got to stay out of the box and just play better for 60 minutes," said St. Louis forward Doug Weight, who leads all playoff scorers with 12 points.
"We believe we can beat anybody five-on-five, we've just got to do a little more of it. It's a one-game series now and home ice, we feel, doesn't matter."
Vancouver hockey fans have ridden a roller coaster of emotion. Cars cruise around the city with Canuck flags flagging in the breeze. Radio sports phone-in programs blister with callers every night.
Another round of the playoffs would also be a boost to the Canuck balance sheet.
The team, which had 37 regular-season sellouts, was predicting a small profit after budgeting for three home playoffs dates.
Each round of the playoffs generates an estimated $2 million, depending on how many games are played.
The Canucks finished fourth in the Western Conference with a franchise record 104 points, five ahead of fifth-place St. Louis.
Vancouver has a 3-2 record in the five previous Game 7s. The last Game 7 played in Vancouver was 1992 when the Canucks beat the Winnipeg Jets 5-0 to complete a comeback from a 3-1 deficit.
The Blues never have lost a playoff series when they held a 3-1 lead and are 6-7 in previous Game 7s in franchise history. The last time St. Louis played a Game 7 in a late time slot was in Phoenix on May 4, 1999, when they beat the Coyotes 1-0 in overtime.
Cheers,
Aquaman