04/23/24
April 25, 2011
Blackhawks Force Game 7 Against Canucks: After falling down 3 games to none, the Chicago Blackhawks have evened their first-round playoff series against the Vancouver Canucks to force a decisive game 7. Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo -- who was benched to start the game -- gave up a rebound goal to Blackhawks rookie Ben Smith in overtime for a 4-3 loss Sunday night.
Oh, and now that Cory Schneider is hurt, they don't stand a chance.
posted by insomnyuk at 10:36 AM on April 25, 2011
Two of the top teams coming into the playoffs can't figure out who their starting goalie is.
Also, I know that Tim Thomas lost his starting job the next season, but has there ever been a Vezina trophy candidate who lost their job before their team was even eliminated?
posted by dfleming at 10:55 AM on April 25, 2011
I was in Vancouver last week and those people were crapping their pants after losing game four. The anxiety level is off the charts. I can only imagine the tightly clenched sphincters of this morning. (Wait - that came out wrong.)
Also off the charts is the seafood, by the way. I had sablefish for the first time. Like buttah, people. Buttah.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 11:00 AM on April 25, 2011
Pants-crapping, clenched sphincters, and buttery fish for the trifecta!
posted by Hugh Janus at 11:16 AM on April 25, 2011
It's a joke that Luongo is a Vezina candidate.
Best goalie in the league? He's not even the best goalie on his team.
The fact he's in the conversation has more to say about how well Kesler and Bieksa have played defensively and hopefully those 2 will get some noise come awards time.
The Sedins are -6 and -7 the last 3 games. Coupled with Luongo's gaa of 6 and Schneider's injury Chicago is well positioned to win game 7.
posted by cixelsyd at 11:32 AM on April 25, 2011
@dflemming - what are you referring to w Tim Thomas?
posted by kokaku at 11:59 AM on April 25, 2011
So does that make Pekka Rinne the Vezina winner by default?
posted by MeatSaber at 12:10 PM on April 25, 2011
On the plus side for Vancouver, I saw their native sons, Three Inches of Blood, opening for Skeletonwitch last week and they were surprisingly good*. The "singer" was an exceptionally nice guy. I sat and talked hockey with him for a little while before their set. He was watching the Vancouver/Chicago game four on his little netbook, but good thing for him, he was on stage for the third period.
* - those of you that are not fans of extreme metal will find them unsurprisingly bad.
posted by NoMich at 12:34 PM on April 25, 2011
Oh, and now that Cory Schneider is hurt, they don't stand a chance.
It was his terrible mistakes that kept the Blackhawks in Game 6.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 12:35 PM on April 25, 2011
what are you referring to w Tim Thomas?
Thomas won the 2009 Vezina trophy, and in 2010 lost his job to Tukka Rask. He then recovered his job and was a Vezina trophy finalist this year.
posted by dfleming at 02:08 PM on April 25, 2011
Someone actually named a band Skeletonwitch?
posted by wfrazerjr at 02:49 PM on April 25, 2011
Thomas won the 2009 Vezina trophy, and in 2010 lost his job to Tukka Rask. He then recovered his job and was a Vezina trophy finalist this year.
The commentators said Thomas had a hip injury last season which is what sidelined him. I don't follow the regular season though, so no idea of that statement's accuracy.
posted by jmd82 at 02:53 PM on April 25, 2011
Someone actually named a band Skeletonwitch?
The greatest thing to come out of Ohio since tires. Or DEVO. Pick one.
posted by NoMich at 04:09 PM on April 25, 2011
I think the Blackhawks are going to pull this off. The Sedins have not been producing, a combined 3 points between them, and Luongo has to be the most overrated goalie in the NHL.
Um, what?
The Sedins have a combined 5 goals and 7 assists during these playoffs.
Coupled with Luongo's gaa of 6
Seriously, where are people getting their stats?
Luongo has a 3.45 GAA these playoffs.
posted by grum@work at 04:17 PM on April 25, 2011
Oh, and now that Cory Schneider is hurt, they don't stand a chance.
It was his terrible mistakes that kept the Blackhawks in Game 6.
ding ding ding!
Those were BRUTAL giveaways by Schnieder. If anything, I would have pulled his ass after the second one, or at least tied a rope between him and the crossbar to make sure he didn't go behind the net ever again.
posted by grum@work at 04:19 PM on April 25, 2011
No, the Sedins have a combined 2 goals and 1 assists these playoffs, at least according to the Versus stat guy last night. Where are you getting your numbers?
posted by insomnyuk at 04:27 PM on April 25, 2011
From nhl.com:
D Sedin 5G 2A 7Pt
H Sedin 0G 5A 5Pt
They are the 2 leading scorers on the Canucks.
Vancouver 2010-11 Playoff Player Stats
Martin St Louis & Corey Perry share the league lead with 8 points each.
NHL Playoff Points Leaders
posted by tommybiden at 04:40 PM on April 25, 2011
grum, I think they're referencing the numbers over the 3 losses. The Sedin twins are a combined 2G/1A over those games, and Luongo has given up 11 goals in 98:12...or 6.72 GAA...
posted by MeatSaber at 04:43 PM on April 25, 2011
Luongo has a 3.45 GAA these playoffs
for the series, yes ... but you missed : the last 3 games
He also has a sparkling 79% save average over that period. Yikes.
posted by cixelsyd at 04:57 PM on April 25, 2011
I don't follow the regular season though, so no idea of that statement's accuracy.
He may have been hurt (although not bad enough to go on the IR list), but the fact of the matter is Rask outplayed him last year, and given their respective ages, it was pretty easy to hand the job to him. That said, his comeback was amazing this year, and his numbers last year eventually weren't that bad and had the Bruins not had a stud, young backup, he'd have not lost his job.
posted by dfleming at 08:06 PM on April 25, 2011
Oh yeah, as a lifelong Canucks fan, this is painful. Coach V got badly outcoached in games 4 and 5 - he insisted on not matching lines essentially turning game 5 into a Hawks home game, and as a result of that and a lot of penalties the twins have only been playing like 15 minutes a game which is ridiculous. In game 6 he smartened up and shortened the bench more and basically outcoached Coach Q. They had some new tip-in plays to enter the zone and the forecheck was much more energetic. Putting Samuelsson with the Twins was also a good move, as was bringing back the under-rated Oreskovich
Canucks could have won 5-1 but Crawford played very well and Schneider had a couple of boneheaded plays (as well as almost an assist on the Bieksa goal, so it cut both ways).
Speaking of Bieksa, the hit on him by Bickell was a carbon copy of Torres on Seabrook, down to the half-pirouette face plant on the ice - and of course nothing from the Hawks about that!
Incidentally the rumor in Vancouver is that the team had the flu bad - Samuelsson missed game 3 because of it and it seems possible the whole team got a whiff of it shortly thereafter.
posted by rumple at 10:24 PM on April 25, 2011
Speaking of Bieksa, the hit on him by Bickell was a carbon copy of Torres on Seabrook
Yeah, but Bieksa was playing the puck and Seabrook wasn't. Torres got a penalty for interference, which was the right call.
posted by willthrill72 at 12:16 AM on April 26, 2011
Well, they were both head shots with a defenceman looking the other way (foolishly). The puck is in Seabrook's feet when he gets hit and he has his head turned precisely because he is trying to get his stick on the puck. Anyway the point is not that they were penalties or not, but that Quenneville's reaction was one of bloody murder about it being a head shot, not whether it was 2 minutes or not 2 minutes. Turns out that only applies to Blackhawks getting hit.
Also, Bickell leaves his feet while Torres glided into Seabrook.
posted by rumple at 12:56 AM on April 26, 2011
Also, Bickell leaves his feet while Torres glided into Seabrook.
Well, you have your reality and then there is what really happened.
posted by willthrill72 at 01:35 AM on April 26, 2011
I just wish these slackers would get their series over with already. I can hear bones creaking in the Red Wings locker room from here...
posted by MeatSaber at 01:45 AM on April 26, 2011
I can hear bones creaking in the Red Wings locker room
Is Chelios back?
posted by tahoemoj at 10:42 AM on April 26, 2011
Pens managers to let the Lightning back in it to.
Man I love game 7's
Man I hate game 7's
posted by Debo270 at 12:02 PM on April 26, 2011
Is Chelios back?
Yes, apparently the creaking bones I heard were from him standing up from his desk...
Man I love game 7's
Man I hate game 7's
I love game 7's, when my team's not involved. I'll definitely be rooting for Stevie Y's boys tonight, though...
posted by MeatSaber at 12:21 PM on April 26, 2011
I don't follow the regular season though, so no idea of that statement's accuracy.
He may have been hurt (although not bad enough to go on the IR list), but the fact of the matter is Rask outplayed him last year,
Thomas had a hip injury last year that restricted his lateral motion. His style is such that he depends on quick movements from side-to-side in order to cover the net. He tried to play through the injury, but was not effective. He had surgery to correct the problem in the off-season, and it appears to have worked. Tuukka Rask is a very good young goaltender, and on many teams would be the number 1. With Thomas being hurt, Rask was an easy choice last season. Thomas's play this season has been nothing short of excellent, while Rask has had some games in which he struggled.
posted by Howard_T at 04:22 PM on April 26, 2011
I think the Blackhawks are going to pull this off. The Sedins have not been producing, a combined 3 points between them, and Luongo has to be the most overrated goalie in the NHL.