Just Wait Until Next Year

I had a brainstorm the other day about selling t-shirts with the Canucks' logo and the phrase 'Just wait until next year' underneath it. I think I could make a fortune. I've been saying 'Just wait until next year' every Spring since I was old enough to talk. In fact those may have been my very first words. Either that or 'That Mike Bossy is a Motherfucker!' Can't really remember. Another season has come and gone for my beloved Vancouver Canucks. While this one was less painful and much less exhausting, it would be fair to call it a bigger disappointment. Last season died by the hands of the Boston Bruins and I really felt like this season did too. Not only were Kesler (still not really 100% and probably never will be), Edler (one broken finger from the Stanley Cup Final still hasn't healed)and Raymond (broken back from an arguably dirty hit by Boychuk, I only say 'arguably' because I'm trying really hard to sound objective, that has definitely hindered his play) not themselves, but also that big game in Boston during the regular season seemed to suck the life out of us. Sure we won the game and proved that we could score on the power play, but we never really seemed to regroup. I don't know if there is a stat for winning ugly games, but if there is I think we may have broken the record. Something seemed wrong about the way they played most of the season and I just thought that it was me waiting impatiently for the playoffs. While that was part of it, there was clearly more to it than that. I think it's important to give credit where credit is due. The LA Kings played a great series. They stuck to their game plan 100%. They have a great goalie and great defense and the Canucks didn't seem to have the skill level to really test Jonathan Quick for the first 3 games. A big part of that was not having Daniel Sedin. You could say that a contending team should be able to overcome the loss of one player, but really it's almost like losing 2 players. And their top 2 players at that. Henrik is not the same without Daniel. The NHL is really hard to figure out sometimes (okay, most of the time). Duncan Keith received a 5 game suspension (in the regular season) for his brutal intent-to-injure elbow to the head of last years Art Ross Trophy winner while Raffi Torres receives a 25 game suspension in the playoffs for his charge on Marian Hossa. I personally didn't think the Torres hit was late, but he did leave his feet and deserved a charging penalty in my opinion. Not only was the Duncan Keith hit late, Daniel never ever had the puck. The only way to really get the players' attention is, if it is determined to be an intent to injure, to suspend the guilty player at least until the injured player comes back, if not longer. If a player who is about to elbow a guy in the head knows that if he does some serious damage, he could be out for half a season or maybe even a full season, then he probably brings that elbow back down and tries for a clean hit. Obviously if Duncan Keith had missed the first 3 games of the playoffs that wouldn't have had any effect on the Canucks-LA series, but if this rule had been in place, the incident likely never would've happened, in my opinion. One big positive was the play of Cory Schneider. Even though he was only able to win 1 of the 3 games he played, he showed that he could handle the pressure and only lost because his team just couldn't score goals. It should be pointed out that Luongo also played well in his 2 games. It's sad that he always gets the blame. How many goals did the Canucks score in game 7 against Boston? That's right. Zero. There is a reason why this city is a goalie graveyard. I just hope that Schneider isn't next. Just remember that no goalie is perfect. Schneider will let in some crappy goals now and then. (Most often there will be a couple bonehead plays from his teammates before those goals but nobody seems to notice those). It's important to not crucify him for it. Luongo is an elite goalie and has given us 6 stellar years. He's unquestionably the best goalie the Canucks have ever had and I really hope that he goes to an Eastern team because if he doesn't, he could really come back and bite us in the ass. I have never been a fan of Alain Vigneault. When Mike Gillis became the new GM I expected him to make a change and I wanted Joel Quenneville. Too bad it didn't happen. There's no denying that Vigneault knows how to win in the regular season, but the Playoffs are an entirely different animal. It's almost like comparing a Lamb to a Tiger, or a Bunny Rabbit to a Cobra, or a, well, you get the point. I think AV has been out-coached in the playoffs more often than not. In game 1 against LA his team was so badly prepared that it was embarrassing. The Kings looked like the Oilers of the '80's and the Canucks looked like the Canucks of the '70's. AV has been here for 6 years. That's a very long time for a coach. Players get sick of hearing the same bullshit. It's time for a new voice and a new philosophy. Gillis wants the team to be attacking but AV is a defensive coach. It just doesn't make sense. I was convinced that a change would be made but now I am hearing otherwise. I know that a coach can't put the skates on and score goals; it's up to the players. A coaching change will not solve all of our problems, but it would at least get us heading in the right direction. It's unfortunate that most of the offensive-minded teams have lost in the first round. Is anybody interested in watching the LA Kings play against St Louis, other than their fans? I'm certainly not. It's hard to believe that Vancouver, Detroit, San Jose, Chicago, Pittsburgh and the Bruins all lost in the first round. I only hope that the GM's in the league don't decide to make their teams more defensive minded. We should all be cheering for the Flyers to win the Cup because at least they play an exciting, offensive style. Without good goaltending however, I don't see them winning it all. And now my long off-season begins. I can't really complain too much. Instead of sitting in front of my tv, holding my breath and drinking God knows what just because I think it may bring good luck, I will be spending more time on the golf course, the tennis court and the beach. I've put away my Canucks towel and brought out my lime green G-string. And maybe that's a good thing. No, you're right. It's not. But just wait until next year.