A sad day for hockey

Today, the entire Hockey world was stunned by the tragic loss of future-star defenseman Luc Bourdon of the Canucks to a motorcycle accident.

Police reported that Bourdon was killed when he lost control of his motorcycle on a road near his home in Shippagan in northern New Brunswick around 12:30 P.M. He reportedly struck a tractor-trailer and was killed instantly.

The young and talented defenseman was a key factor to Canada's consecutive gold-medal finish at the World Junior Championship. Drafted by the Canucks 10th overall in the 2005 draft, Luc Bourdon showed many signs of potential stardom during his days with Vancouver, and he will be sorely missed by his family, friends, and hockey fans from across the world.

I wish to express my deepest sympathy to the Bourdon family, and hope they can find peace in this situation.

Rest in peace, dear Luc.

Signing out, Saint Pako.

Stanley Cup Finals - Update

Games 2 -0 Detroit Red Wings

Another excellent example of general wisdom prevails. Often do we hear that experience is everything in the playoffs, and it's especially the case in the finals. The Red Wings have been able to kept the Penguins off the score sheet for two straight games, limiting their shots to 19 in game 1 and 22 in game 2. Scores were 4-0 and 3-0 respectively.

As Penguins captain put it so accurate, it is Penguins inability to execute which cause this breakdown in puck-possession and ultimately scoring. The Penguins' offense seems weak and at times lost in their game against the Red Wings' defense. Tight body-check in combination with world-class puck-handling abilities eliminated any chance the Pittsburgh young guns have in any form of come-back. The team looks very different from the one that sweept through their first three rounds of the Eastern Conference. With their confidence slowly leaking away, it will take a lot more than pure skills for the Penguins to bounce back. I guess this is where the experience factor comes in.

Could this be the end of the magnificant run of the Pittsburgh Penguins, or could this just be the background story of a cinderella comeback, we will have to wait and see.


Signing off, Saint Pako of the Hockey Digest.

Stanley Cup Finals - Preview Part 2

Sidney Crosby has often been compared to the Great One or the Magnificant One, and may be too many articles have been written about him, so I won't go further into talking about the all-time youngest captain of the NHL.

Looking at the Penguins steamrolling through the playoffs, sweeping the Senators in 4, knocking off the Rangers in 5, and eliminating state rivals Flyers in 5, one would've never imagined the ups and downs of their season. Plaqued with injuries during the regular season, the Pittsburgh showed all the right signs of overcoming adversity in the path for the ultimate glory this year.

The Penguins lost their captain for over 30 games this year due to a high-ankle injury. Veteren Gary Roberts, goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, Maxime Talbot, Adam Hall and Mark Eaton all suffered prolonger injuries, severely depleting Pittsburgh's line up. Around mid-november, the team were at a 7-10-1 run, with their future looking dark, the rest of the team managed to finish the season winning their first Atlantic Division title in 10 years.

When I see this, it makes me wonder about the excuses the Canucks give themselves for not making the play-off due to injuries. Because we all know that injuries are part of the game, and successful teams find ways to push on without their key players. Young players need to step up during desperate times, and we see this in the case of Evgeni Malkin. Ever since Sidney Crosby went down, Malkin has put the entire team on his shoulder, producing at key moments night-in and night-out, ensuring the Penguins a shot at the playoff. Another un-sung hero who has elevated his game during this season includes back-up goaltender Ty Conklin with his eight-game winning streak while posting the best save percentage just prior to the all-star break. Ryan Malone has another break-out year, and has finally established himself as top power-forward in the league, which eventually was rewarded by being named the team's alternate captain.

Looking at the post-season efforts, it now seems like the Penguins are unstoppable. Easily rolling through all three lines, centered by young stars who each individually can easily be any other teams' first-liner. Key acquisition before the trading deadline in the form of supersniper Marian Hossa provided the final piece of puzzle for the team. Combining the likes of Crosby, Malkin, Hossa, Malone and Staal to provide one of the highest firing-power in recent NHL history, the team also added a lot of depth on the blueline with the addition of Pascal Dupuis and Hal Gill.

The Red Wings' success this years comes from building within, whereas the Penguins success can be attributed to the flawless acquisition via the trade route. And if the Red Wings symbolize home-grown veteren experiences, then the Penguins will symbolize fearless young talent. The average age of the Red Wings is 32.3 versus 27.9 of the Penguins, but if we look at their key players, the difference is more apparent:

Detroit Red Wings - Top line-up average age: 33
Pavel Datsyuk (29)
Henrik Zetterberg (27)
Tomas Holmstrom (35)
Niklas Lidstrom (38)
Brian Rafalski (34)
Chris Osgood (35)

Pittsburgh Penguins - Top line-up average age: 24
Sidney Crosby (20)
Evgeni Malkin (21)
Marian Hossa (29)
Sergei Gonchar (34)
Kris Letang (21)
Marc-Andre Fleury (23)

There is almost 10 years difference between the key line-up in terms of age, and this may become a huge factor once the series goes into 6 and 7 games, especially if these games turn into triple or quadriple over time.

Before making my prediction on the final champion, let's take a look at some stats:

Regular Season Record:
Detroit: 54 wins 115 Points
Pittsburgh:47 wins 102 Points

Playoff Scoring Leaders:
Detroit:
Henrik Zetterberg (11G 10A)
Pavel Datsyuk (9G 10A)
Johan Franzen (12G 3A)
Jiri Hudler (4G 9A)
Niklas Kronwall (0G 12A)

Pittsburgh:
Sidney Crosby (4G 17A)
Marian Hossa (9G 10A)
Evgeni Malkin (9G 10A)
Ryan Malone (6G 9A)
Sergei Gonchar (1G 10A)

Looking at five key areas in their game, I will now compare the two teams in terms of

Offense - Pittsburgh Wins
The Penguins easily win in this category. As I explained above, Crosby and co. has way more natural scoring talent than the Red Wings. One only needs to look at their bang-bang play and you can see their offensive abilities. This of course is not to underestimate the dynamic duo of Datsyuk and Zetterberg, but in terms of the top three lines, Pittsburgh has a sligh edge in terms of talent. Furthermore, the uncertainty in the red-hot Johan Franzen's return to the line-up adds support to my decision.

Defense - Detroit Wins
Unlike offense, defense is all about experience on top of their skills and talents, and Detroit has tons of it on their blueline. With multi-Norris Trophy winner and future hall-of-famer as their captain and anchoring their blue-line, Niklas Lidstrom is unquestionably the best defenseman in the league. Paired with two-time Stanley Cup winner Brian Rafalski, young and talented two-way d-man in Niklas Kornwall and Brad Stuart, I don't think I really need to stress anymore.

Goaltending - Detroit Wins
Goaltending is another aspect of the game where experience means a lot. Although statistically, Fleury is coming off red-hot in the post-season, he didn't have a good start to this season, and has suffered an extended injury, so although his confidence level is sky-high right now, a few wrong bounces here and there may cause mental breakdown for this young inexperience goaltender. On the other hand, Osgood has seen it all, being the starting goaltender for Detroit's Cup in 1998, his experience will be the key factor for the Wings.

Special Teams - Pittsburgh Wins
Pittsburgh ranks second overall in powerplay for this playoff with 24.6% successful rate, while Detroit ranks at fifth with 21%. Both teams have an 87.3% penalty-killing rate. The playing-style of both teams offers talented forwards opportunities in powerplay situations, and I think that Pittsburgh has a better pool of talent in this area.

Mental Factor - Pittsburgh Wins
The last key area I'd like to address is both teams' mental factor, specifically their hunger, their passion and their killer-instinct for cup. No one doubts that all three must be there for any team to be able to get this far, but in tight contest like this one, a minute edge in mindset can be a landslide. I think with Detroit's dominance in the regular seasons for the past decades, and their 3 cups in the last 11 years, they may be just a little bit less hungry. On the other hand, Pittsburgh's last cup was more that 16 years ago, and the franchise has been under so much adversity in the past decade, being nearly relocated to another city due to profit loss. The teams have been down at the bottom looking up for so many years, and with their franchise savior Crosby leading their attack, the team has a strong dominance in the mental factor.

To sum up, my prediction is that this will be the series which will only be decided until the very end. On paper, Pittsburgh's young offense against Detroit's experienced defense. On many levels, both teams are equal in their chances, except Pittsburgh might have a better mental edge. So I think:

Pittsburgh in 7 - Double OT game winner by Crosby

Wow! Wouldn't that be something???

That's all from here, I'm Saint Pako from the Hocket Digest.

Stanley Cup Finals - Preview

It's a plot taken directly from a Hollywood movie, a bunch of young-guns, talented and fearless going up against a veteren-filled proven champion team; this is the setting of this year's Stanley Cup Finals.
There's no doubt in my mind that this year's Stanley Cup finals holds the highest promotional value to Professional Ice Hockey in the past decade. It is matchup like this that can attract viewers to watch the most exciting sports on earth. Prior to the lock-out, we hear owners complaining about shrinking markets, dying franchises and lost viewers on cable networks, but after years of adjustments and changes like improved officiating and salary cap, we are here finally, back to the very basics - the entertainment and excitement of the game itself. Without this, there can be no future for this sport that we love so much.

This is probably why I have never been a fan of the boring trapping style of play. The game is about speed and excitement. I still remember the days when I used to watch Pavel Bure flying through the neutral zone stick-handling through all five skaters on the opposing team and then do a double-deak to score on the goalie. Fans used to jump out of their seats and cheer. That's when I fell in love with this sport. But recently I rarely hear young people talk about ice-hockey anymore. It almost seems like every time I bump into someone who enjoys hockey, they are the same age as I am. Those who have the luxury to experience the true exciting hockey games are those who remain loyal to the sport their entire life.

Although I am a Canucks fan, I find myself cheering for the Penguins and the Red Wings throughout their path to the finals this year. I think the reason I love both teams is simply that both teams play to score. Of course, the pens and the wings have excellent blue-liners, and both teams stresses team defense, but their success comes from their offense. Mike Babcock and Michel Therrien both are able to allow their forwards do what they do best, that is to score goals.



I will start by looking at the Detroit Red Wings. The wings are really the model franchise, as a lot of people will agree. In today's Pro-Sport, especially those that have salary cap, it seems inevitable that cup-winning franchise will soon go into re-building phase once they reach the top. It's especially true for the NHL, we see the Islanders, Oilers, Canadiens, Bruins, Penguins, Avalanche, Stars, all must go through a low cycle before they can bounce back to compete again. It makes perfect sense if you think about it,

1. You build a cup-winning franchise
2. You win the cup
3. Maybe you can extend one more year with the current roster
4. Players become too expensive to remain the entire group intact
5. You loose key players and the team becomes less competitive
6. The team starts loosing
7. You drop the remaining star-player, maybe keeping one or two of your franchise players
8. You get a chance at a good drafting position
9. You draft top prospect for a few years while you team become bottom-feeders
10. Prospects mature, and the team becomes contender again

If you look at the Red Wings for the last 10 seasons (not including the lockout in 04-05), they have never had fewer than 43 wins per season, they were conference champions 5 times, won the Stanley Cup 3 times, sweeping the opponents 4 games to 0 in the finals twice (against Flyers in 97, against Capitals in 98). During this span, they have never been lower than 4th place in their conference. Detroit is also the only team with the most players to ever played for one team in their career. How do you build a franchise with such consistency and loyalty?? The answer is that the best team always build from within. Note that most, if not all, of Detroit's most productive players, from the time of Yzerman to Zetterberg are all drafted and developed by their organization. Points producers of their early stanley cup team includes:

Steve Yzerman - Detroit draft 1983 4th Overall
Sergei Federov - Detroit draft 1989 74th Overall
Mathieu Dandenault - Detroit draft 1994 49th Overall
Tomas Holmstrom - Detroit draft 1994 257th Overall
Vyacheslav Kozlov - Detroit draft 1990 45th Overall
Vladimir Konstantinov - Detroit draft 1989 221th Overall
Joey Kocur - Detroit draft 1983 88th Overall
Mike Knuble - Detroit draft 1991 76th Overall
Martin LaPointe - Detroit draft 1991 10th Overall
Nicklas Lidstrom - Detroit draft 1989 53th Overall
Darren McCarty - Detroit draft 1992 46th Overall
Chris Osgood - Detroit draft 1991 54th Overall
Jamie Pushor - Detroit draft 1991 32th Overall

What about this year's Campbell Bowl winner line-up:

Justin Abdelkader - Detroit draft 2005 42th Overall
Pavel Datsyuk - Detroit draft 1998 171th Overall
Dallas Drake - Detroit draft 1989 116th Overall
Cory Emmerton - Detroit draft 2006 41th Overall
Valtteri Filppula - Detroit draft 2002 85th Overall
Johan Franzen - Detroit draft 2004 97th Overall
Darren Helm - Detroit draft 2005 132th Overall
Tomas Holmstrom - Detroit draft 1994 257th Overall
Jiri Hudler - Detroit draft 2002 58th Overall
Darren McCarty - Detroit draft 1992 46th Overall
Henrik Zetterberg - Detroit draft 1999 210th Overall
Jonathan Ericsson - Detroit draft 2002 291th Overall
Jakub Kindl - Detroit draft 2005 19th Overall
Niklas Kronwall - Detroit draft 2000 29th Overall
Nicklas Lidstrom - Detroit draft 1989 53th Overall
Derek Meech - Detroit draft 2002 229th Overall
Kyle Quincey - Detroit draft 2003 132th Overall
Jimmy Howard - Detroit draft 2003 64th Overall
Chris Osgood - Detroit draft 1991 54th Overall

On the teams of both era, there are more than half of the roster composed of Detroit's own draft picks, while most of their star players are taken late in drafts. With the exception of Steve Yzerman, most of their franchise faces are low picks, Federov (74), Lidstrom (53), Datsyuk (171), Zetterberg (210), Osgood (54), Holmstrom (257), Franzen (97), Kronwall (29). This stat, some may interpret as a failure to use their top picks on drafting star players. But due to Detroit continual success in the recent decades, they are always late in terms of draft position. Yet they are still able to find the diamond in the rough in examples of Datsyuk and Zetterberg, year after year. Of course, aside from their scouting, their player development program plays the main role in this area of success.
To round out our look at Detroit, I think that in recent decades, rarely do we see a championship team composed of so many self-draft players, could this be related to the success of Detroit in the regular season as well as play-offs during this time? With a team so experienced (7 players returning from the 2002 cup-winning team) and so balanced in every aspect, having scoring leaders in the dynamic duo, future hall-of-famer Lidstrom on the blue-line with Rafalsky and Kronwall, powerful secondary scoring in Franzen, and cup-winning goaltender in Osgood, I would think that most can agree that the Red Wings have a slight upper-hand over the Penguins, at least on paper.
I will continue with a look at the Pittsburgh Penguins tomorrow.

Signing out, this is Saint Pako of the Hockey Digest.

Canucks fire Assistant Coaches

Confirmed by TSN on their website, the Canucks have just fired assistant coaches Barry Smith and Mike Kelly. http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=238464&lid=headline&lpos=secStory_nhl

It has long been rumoured that coach changes are imminent ever since the replacement of GM Dave Nonis by Mike Gillis. General expectation was a complete change to the coaching line-up, but on Wednesday afternoon, it was Alain Vigneualt who delievered the news of firing two assistant coaches to the media.

Hard to imagine Vigneualt, the Jack Adams Award winner as top head-coach of the NHL for the 06-07 season, specifically for his efforts in bringing the Canucks to a club-record-breaking 49 wins per season, worrying about his job so soon. Vigneualt, a veteran coach who work as assistant coach for the Ottawa Senators in 92-93, spent four seasons with the Montreal Canadiens from 97-01 as their head-coach, during which he was first nominated for the Jack Adams Award in 2000.

Known for his defense-first playing style, which critics claim to be a "boring trapping" system, Vigneault was successful in making the Canucks a strong cup-contender in his first season with Vancouver. The Canucks won the Northwest division title, but was regretfully outsed in the second round to the eventual Stanley Cup Champions Anaheim Ducks. Fans were disappointed, but few pointed their fingers at the Jack Adams Award winner for his defensive style of play.

But coming into his second year this season, with expectations sky-high, the Canucks, plaqued with injuries throughout their line-up, failed to make the playoff again(twice in three years). Most were expecting Vigneault to follow Nonis' footsteps out of Vancouver for good.

However, analysts suggest wednesday's action by the Canucks' management a clear sign of support for Vigneualt to remain as the head coach for at least the coming season. Since it doesn't make sense to just announce firing of the assistant coaches, if management doesn't intend to keep the head-coach. Why fire the coaches separately? Not to mention the announcement was made by the head-coach himself. So all signs do point to Vigneualt to spend his remaining year of his contract with the Canucks, although he will surely be on a tight leash.

With Vigneualt staying put, does this mean the end of the Markus Naslund era for the Canucks? Or does the firing of two assistant coaches who were responsible for the forward lines indicate a change of playing style to follow?

Signing out, this is

Saint Pako of the Hockey Digest.

Marian Gaborik a Canuck??

The latest rumors coming our of Minnesota and Vancouver is that Marian Gaborik might soon be the property of the Canucks. Although this is just plain rumors posted by forums of both teams. There may be more truth to this than one would suspect.

Gaborik has another year on his contract with the Wild, but he has expressed his discomfort with the defensive playing style of the team, which affected his stats throughout his career. Despite making the playoff this year, the Wild ended their season with a quick exit. Fans of Minnesota have been placing blames on the lack of consistency with their star player. The management of the Wild knows very well of Gaborik's wishes, and if they fail to act quickly in trading him, they may lose him to free agency come the end of next season.

On the other hand, the Canucks are facing similar circumstances with their captain Markus Naslund expressing his concerns with Alain Vigneault's defensive style. As Naslund has hinted that if Vigneault is to return with his old style of play, he will not likely sign back with the Canucks.

With a new GM now implaced, Mike Gillis openly expressed his wish to have exciting hockey back in Vancity, so even if Vigneault is to remain as head coach for next year, the style of play is likely to change. The official rumor now is as following:

To Vancouver:

Marian Gaborik

To Minnesota:

Ryan Kesler
Cory Schneider
10th Overall Pick in 2008

Some suggests that Minnesota wins this trade, in Kesler they get a young 20+ goal scorer who plays a solid shut-down role with huge potential, a solid goaltender prospect - probably the best you can find right now, and a 10th overall pick in this year's epic draft. This may be true if Vancouver is unable to re-sign Gaborik to a long term deal. To do so, Vancouver must paint a pretty picture for the years to come, in terms of style of play, support team and commitment to cup contention.

However, should the Canucks be able to keep Gaborik's interests, this will be a solid deal for Vancouver as well, as they have never had a natural goal-scoring right-wing such as Gaborik ever since Pavel Bure. By trading Gaborik here, and the current rumors of Pavol Demitra visiting Vancouver, chances of signing back free agents such as Naslund and Morrison would be much higher. The roster sure looks pretty good with the Sedins, Naslund, Morrison, Gaborik, Demitra, Ohlund, Mitchel, Edler, Salo and star netminder Luongo.

With all the changes going on in Vancouver right now, one thing they have plenty of is salary cap.

Let's wait and see if there's any truth to this rumor.

I'm Saint Pako from the Hockey Digest.

Fabian Brunnstrom

FABULOUS OR NOT??















Depending on who you talk to.

I've decided to write something about the "most sought-after non-NHL player of the world" - Fabian Brunnstrom. I remember the last time a player was called this, his name was Evgeni Malkin. But what about this time? Is Brunnstrom the next Malkin??

Brunnstrom has been arguably to most talked-about player with the least known information of. Type his name in youtube, and you can only find the same blurry video of his goal against Luleå in the Swedish Elite League. Little is known of his true abilities, and very few has seen him play. He hasn't won any significant awards in his career, nor has he represented his country in the national level. In fact, he was rejected by the Swedish National Team playing for the World Championship in Halifax and Quebec City. Swedish National Team GM Mats Naslund reportedly said "...he had a great start to the season and until Christmas he was playing like a national team player...But since Christmas he has not progressed good enough for us.” Naslund continued by saying he's seen him play a lot, and don't understand what the hype is all about, and that "...he has a little more to prove."

Players of his calibre on paper comes in dozens even in the Swedish Elite League, yet, he's been the talk for the past few months in forums and newsites across the world. He's been wooed by more than 20 NHL teams in the past few months, including the likes of Detroit, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver and Dallas. He's been called the next Daniel Alfredsson, mainly due to him being overlooked in last year's draft.

But let's take a look at his stats:

9 goals and 28 assists in 54 games in the Swedish Elite League.

Hardly a potential superstar worth fighting over by 20 GMs in the NHL. Of course you can't really judge a player simply by their stats so early in their career, I mean Daniel Alfredsson had 7 goals and 11 assists in 22 goals prior to coming to the NHL. Henrik Zetterberg has 10 goals 22 assists in 48 games in the Swedisn Elite League. On the other hand, everyone knows that Alexandre Daigle had 45 goals 92 assists in 53 games in the QMJHL, and look how he turned out!!

But it is rather strange when we consider the amount of hype he's been getting lately. Is he really that good?? Apparently he isn't too sure about that himself, as in one the earliest interview he has with TSN at a playoff game, he himself questioned whether he is ready for the NHL. He told reporters that "he isn't Sidney Crosby", no kidding. Can this hype be purely the results of marketing efforts by his agent J.P. Barry?

Up until the firing of Canucks' GM Dave Nonis, numerous reports indicated that Brunnstrom are 99% close to signing with Vancouver. But right after Nonis' departure, Brunnstrom's camp immediately replies that they will most likely pull out from the deal. Initially, they suggested that the main reasons for Brunnstrom signing in Vancouver were (1) the chance to play with fellow countrymen Sedin brothers, (2) less jam-packed forward line-up which means he gets more ice-time and (3) his confidence with Nonis. Considering 2 of the 3 reasons he believed to be crucial remains the same, why the sudden change of heart for young Brunnstrom?

Some suggests that Nonis was offering Brunnstrom a guarantee to play with the Sedins, and his position in the big club for the entire year. This may be partly true, because GM of teams which were rejected by Brunnstrom reveals that Brunnstrom wishes to remain in the NHL for the entire year, unconditionally. Since Nonis was gone, it was suggested that the Canucks management quickly remove the offer, due to their questioning of his abilities. It's very understandable that a player wishes to spend as much time possible in the big league, but to go to the extent in this re-assurance does show a lack of confidence on his part.

Yet, other suggests that Brunnstrom wished to pull away from the deal anyways, they just needed a good reason for doing so. Brunnstrom's value was gradually increasing since the media took over, and reports of him signing with the Canucks prompted other GM to place offers for the Swedes' services. Camp Brunnstrom wanted to test the market for a bit longer, but they made committments with the Canucks, so the firing of Nonis was the best excuse for backing off the deal.

I personally believe that it's a combination of the two above reasons which led to Brunnstrom walking away from Canucks' offer. This also explains why the Aquilini's (Owners of Canucks), proceeded with firing Dave Nonis on the eve of signing Brunnstrom. First, they were never really convinced of Brunnstrom's abilities, and Nonis' offer may have further provoked the owners into the firing him from the GM position. Secondly, they were close to bringing in Mike Gillis to replace Dave Nonis, for various reasons which I will not go into details here. Knowing that Brunnstrom is re-considering his allegiance to the Canucks, they strike the first move, and remove themselves from the bidding.

Despite what the reasons were for not being able to sign Brunnstrom, the Canucks would have been a good fit for him, with the Sedins always looking for a talented winger, and a rather weak forward line-up. It wouldn't have been too difficult for Brunnstrom to crack the line-up if he is what his agent suggests to be. In any case, Brunnstrom is now the property of the Dallas Stars, but many, including this blogger, remains skeptical of his skills, as he now has an even harder challenge ahead of him, with all the expectations which came with the hype.



Signing out, this is Saint Pako from the Hockey Digest.

Relook at Canucks' 07-08 Season

Okay, to start off, I didn't have to luxury to watch all of the games as I spent a lot of my time away from Vancouver, but I tried to watch every game as best as I could through web-streaming.


The Canucks had a disappointing season this year, missing the playoff for the second time in three seasons, and the disappointment was shown by the firing of GM Dave Nonis.


But in all fairness to the team, the Canucks were plagued with injuries the entire seasons, and a full dressing of all regular defensemen were quite rare. Brendan Morrison's wrist surgery around December side-lined him most of the season, while also ending his Iron-man streak at 542 consecutive games. However the injuries to the team did give chances for young prospect to try-out at the NHL level.


As a result, young 22 years-old defensman Alexander Edler's rookie season turned out to be an excellent one. Edler was in fact invited to the YoungStar game during the All-Star weekend, which he was also named to the NHL All-Rookie Team. He finished his year playing the most games played of all Canucks defenseman at 75 games, loggoing a bit over 1600 minutes played. Earning 20 pts in his rookie season, with the highest plus-minus rating of 18, before finishing the year at plus-6, Edler became a regular on the PP unit, with four of his goals scored with the man advantage.


Another young prospect who took the advantage of this year's injuries was 22 yr-old speedy-forward Mason Raymond. Raymond, a 2nd-round, 51st overall pick of the 2005 draft, played 49 games this year for the Canucks, getting 9 goals and 12 assists. In the absence of Morrison, the Canucks was in desperate need of scoring, and young Raymond was able to partly fulfill that role with his quick speed and soft hands. It seems very likely that Raymond, along with Edler has graduated to the NHL level, and should've earned a roster spot for the next season.


Having said that, Edler and Raymond's performance seems like the only silver-lining one can pick out during this season, as there were a lot of expectation for the Canucks, especially after last year's division-title club-record breaking season. Heading into the Christmas break this year, the Canucks were seven games over .500 at 44 pts, tied for first in the NW division. The second half of the season sees the Canucks struggling with offense but playoff-hopes still seems very likely. As the trading deadline approaches, the Canucks were in need of signing a big-name forward to help turn their season around. As it was later revealed, Nonis was solely focused in chasing Tampay Bay MVP forward Brad Richards, so focused that the Canucks were left with no other options once Richards signed with the Dallas Stars.


We were left with an insignificant trade of the two Matts, Matt Cooke to Washington for Matt Pettinger. Hardly an improvement to our scoring need at all. Many people put their blame of the subsequent break-down of the Canucks to the lacking of action before the trading deadline. A sense of hopelessness, as some suggested, creeped into the locker room, and slowly ate up any confidence players have of winning the cup. This lack of confidence resulted with an even worse fate, the Canucks not even making the playoff. Just before the final eight games, the Canucks, although struggling, are still 3 points away from the highly competitive NW division title. But with just one win in the final eight, including a crucial loss to the non-cup-contending Oilers in their second last game at home, eliminated any last chance of a come back.


Personally, I think it's often too easy to give out excuses for a team's failure due to injuries, or lack of actions from a GM. But if we look closley at the players, we quickly find out that the Canucks were out of the playoff due to the quality of the players they have. The Sedins were used in the Canucks' line-up as first-liners this season, sometimes with Naslund on their wing as well. But when the team needs their contribution the most, especially during the last-stretch, our star players weren't stars at all. The Canucks ended their season ranking 7th best overall in terms of Goals Against Average, with most of the top 10 teams in this category playoff contenders (except Vancouver and Columbus). However, the Canucks ranked 23rd (8th worst) in terms of Goals For. Of course this stats doesn't show the complete picture, but it does offer some clue to the failure of the team.

I believe that Nonis was supposed to be fired in Feburary as opposed to April. He losts his job after the trading deadline, when he mis-calculated on the chances of landing Richards, and also his lack of a contingency plan to get another goal-scoring forward. Is it fair to blame Nonis was everything that went wrong with the Canucks? Of course it's not. But it is rather obvious what the Canucks immediate need was, I mean people have been yelling "find a winger for the Sedins" for years now, and yet we enter our post-season not a step closer to our goal.

Next off, with Mike Gillis on board now, where do we go from here? Will Alain Vigneault remain the head coach? Will Markus Naslund and Brendan Morrison re-signs with the team? Which Unrestricted Free Agent will we bring in for next year? Answers to these questions are no doubt in the minds of a lot of people right now, but I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Signing off, Saint Pako of the Hockey Digest.