The Canucks First Half Review

So I am about to make my triumphant entrance into the world of blogging. If you’re reading this I appreciate you stopping by even though you must have misclicked to get here. Nonetheless I urge you not to click that back button too quickly as I feel I can provide some insightful analysis on the Canucks. For my first article I think it would be fitting to address the play of the Canucks over the first half of the season.

On Sunday night the Canucks fell to the Dallas Stars in a shootout, a theme that has become far to common over the past two seasons. The Canucks missed the playoffs for a variety of reasons last season, but leaving 9 points on the table for shootout losses certainly didn’t help matter (They had a 6-9 record in shootouts in 07-08). This season the results are not any better as the Canucks have won just once in shootouts while leaving 5 extra points to the opponents taking. The one win in the shootout was the marathon win in Anaheim on Halloween that was undoubtedly due to Luongo’s ability to keep the shootout alive for 13 rounds. On Sunday night against Dallas the Canucks did show that they might be coming out of their scoring slump as Kesler and Wellwood both scored. Jason LaBarbera could not close out the win on the two chances that he got, in what was otherwise a spectacular night for him. Mats Sundin in his career has been a good shootout performer should help.

I want to spend the rest of the article here addressing the play of some of the players and whether or not they have met the expectations of that the team and fans put on them this season. We’ll start with the goaltenders and defense tonight and finish up with the forwards in the next article.

The goaltending was supposed to be the strongest position of the Canucks but it has been met with mixed results. Roberto Luongo has been a consistent presence in the crease of every NHL team he has played for and finally suffered the first his first major injury of his career. Prior to his injury on November 22nd, Luongo was looking like the MVP of the league with a 11-5-2 record and a save percentage of .928 to go along with 5 shutouts. Steve Mason of Columbus just matched the five shutouts of Luongo earlier this month. The return of the Canucks Captain would be a big boost to the team as they head into the stretch run.

In relief, Curtis Sanford has been inconsistent. On some night the previously seldom used backup has looked incredible and on others a goalie who would have a difficult time cracking an AHL lineup. Speaking of AHLgoaltenders, Corey Schneider made his NHL debut in Calgary on November 29th and looked spectacular with the exception of one questionable goal that turned out to be the game winner. Bad goals at bad times would seem to plaque Schneider, especially on his December 7th shootout loss in Colorado which ultimately cost the Canucks a point. On the plus side he was great in his first NHL victory, a 2-1 win in Minnesota on December 5th. Jason LaBarbera appears that he is poised to handle the load for the Canucks as they wait for the return of Roberto Luongo. Despite a 1-0-2 record in his first three starts, LaBarbera has shown the skill and size that the Los Angles Kings were so high on a few years ago.

On defense the Canucks have been extremely solid and trustworthy at the top of the depth chart. Willie Mitchell and Kevin Bieksa have been great as the teams shutdown pair and have found a way to chip in on the offense. The over aggressiveness of Bieksa seems to been cured and he has become more patient and picks his spots to be physical much better. Willie Mitchell has been his always reliable self on defense with a plus 7 rating. Although Mitchell’s plus 7 is solid it is not as spectacular as Mattias Ohlund’s plus 13 as the Swede is having one of the better seasons of his career. Mike Gillis will not want to let Ohlund get to free agency this offseason.

Having a poor sophomore season is Alex Edler. The Canucks and their fans expected big things from the 2004 third round draft pick. Edler has been plagued this season by poor passes, untimely giveaways and his uncanny ability to get his shot blocked on the power play. Much of the struggles may have to do with Edler being too fancy with the puck in his own zone. Simplifying his play will be something that Edler will want to consider in the second half of the season. One of the most memorable mistake would be the giveaway to Curtis Glencross in a 4-3 loss on November 27th. To give Edler credit he has tallied 17 points this season, something that will be important for the Canucks as they move forward.

Shane O’Brien who was acquired in a trade for Lukas Krajicek has been a steady physical force on the back end. Despite some early season problems with penalties O’Brien has become a reliable presence on defense and has done a nice job sticking up for him teammates when the situation has required it. Because of his physical style of play and his many fighting majors this season it is not surprising that O’Brien leads the league in penalty minutes with 118. As long as he keep the minor penalties where the opposition ends up on the power play to a minimum, O’Brien should prove to be reliable.

In a very limited part-time role, Rob Davison has provided much of the same intangibles that O’Brien has. Davison’s physical style of play is exactly what Mike Gillis brought him in for. Davison beat up on Luke Schenn in memorable game against the Maple Leafs.. Also in a part time role, Lawrence Nycholat has tried to provide an offensive spark from the backend and has been used to quarterback the second unit of the power play on some nights. Through 12 games he has picked up only one point, but given his small role and little expected of him he has been good enough when needed.

Sami Salo, the final member of the Canucks defense has been slowed down yet again by a variety of injures, most recently broken ribs courtesy of Ethan Moreau. The Fin with the big shot had a slow start to the season but it appeared he was turning his game around just before his injury. Everyone should remember his booming shot on the power play on November 24th to defeat the Red Wings in overtime.

Hopefully you have enjoyed this and I’ll be looking into the forward tomorrow as the Canucks enjoy another off-day before heading to Edmonton on Wednesday for what could potentially be the beginning of the Mats Sundin era in Vancouver