This article was published more than 10 years ago. Some information may no longer be current. Charles Krupa. They may, or may not, have been "Canada's team," but three games into the Stanley Cup final, the Vancouver Canucks have become the most hated team in the NHL.
The odd part is that Vancouver's two best players - the Sedin twins - are the most mild mannered, polite gentlemen you'd ever want to meet, but the rest of the roster is pushing their pleasant personalities to the background. From Alex Burrows's bite to Aaron Rome's hit, the Canucks have won few fans outside of British Columbia with their comportment on hockey's biggest stage. It began in the first round when Raffi Torres obliterated Chicago's Brent Seabrook, a hit that fired up the Blackhawks, and continued through to Monday's loss to the Boston Bruins in Game 3 of the Cup final.
You can bet that there were many hockey fans who felt the butt-kicking was just deserts, especially after Rome sent Bruins forward Nathan Horton to the hospital with a "severe concussion," according to the Bruins. What is Brandon Sutter for? Should Jake Virtanen really be playing that high in the lineup? All makes sense when you understand the plan of general manager Jim Benning: to one day be approximately the 12th-best team in the NHL.
I recognize this is just another Torontonian failing to give the Canucks the respect they deserve, but to get real for a second here: Vancouver actually should be as good as their fans believe they are by now. They hit a grand slam on the toughest part of the rebuild. Plenty of teams go decades longing for a core like that. And what have they done with it?
Vancouver was bottom ten in CF and xG last year. Yes, they got to the second round, which the Leafs could never, ever do, I hear you. Jim Benning won the hockey lottery—not first overall, which as any Vancouver fan would tell you, they were better off not getting in , but in the confluence of a few spectacular draft hits.
And Benning appears to be taking his lottery winnings and putting them into penny stocks. We might be witnessing one of the greatest wastes of talent in recent memory. Do you trust him to get this team over the hump? Cookie banner We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. If Pavel Bure could have mustered more magic Trevor Linden scored both goals for Vancouver in game 7 , or Kirk McLean 32 saves on 35 shots could have erased that four minute stretch in the first, the Canucks would be Cup champions and the Rangers would be 80 years between Cup wins right now.
The Canucks were a straight-up powerhouse led by Daniel and Henrik Sedin , Roberto Luongo in net, and an array of depth led by Ryan Kesler up front and a deep defense. Their success in the regular season carried on with a thrilling seven-game exorcism win over their playoff nemesis Blackhawks in the first round before dispatching the Predators and then Sharks in a relatively unassuming run to the Cup final after their matchup with Chicago.
Vancouver started fast with two wins at home to start the final but looked ugly in Boston, losing games 3 and 4 by a combined 11 goals but somehow removed with a shutout win back at home in game 5 and looked poised with two chances to end their Cup drought. They lost both game 6 and 7, getting out scored in the process —including a listless loss in game 7 at home.
Alright so maybe the fans had a right to lose their damn minds after watching that game now that I think about it. Patrick arrived sooner, but has been slowed big-time by injuries —including missing the entire season due to migraines— while Pettersson has been wildly productive as the do-it-all dynamic playmaker for the Canucks.
Upon further review it survived because of some strong logo creep from their parent company —then Orca Bay.
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