Canucks will be forever haunted if they lose this series to Hawks forever

tiffiant

Canucks will be forever haunted if they lose this series to Hawks


VANCOUVER — It is said that Herb Brooks' final words to his U.S. Olympic hockey team before the players took the ice against Finland in the 1980 gold medal game — having already done the hard part of their Miracle on Ice against the Soviets — were as follows:


"If you lose this game," Brooks said, "you will take it to your [expletive] graves."


Then, as he reached the door, he turned and repeated: "To your [expletive] graves."


One supposes that this isn't exactly the right moment, in the midst of what must be an emotional tornado whirling inside the Vancouver Canucks, to lay something that heavy on them — and besides, it's probably not Alain Vigneault's style to be so negative.


But it's true, nonetheless. If they do, they will.


Lose Game 7, at home, after leading the Chicago Blackhawks three games to none ... ruin a Presidents Trophy season with an ignominious first-round exit ... let the same team own them three playoff seasons in a row ... fumble the ending after wonderful regular seasons by Daniel (and Henrik) Sedin, by Ryan Kesler, by Roberto Luongo ... lose Tuesday at Rogers Arena, and they will live with it until they live no longer.


Somehow, out of all the angst their city is experiencing right now, amid the dread that the Canucks' magical 40th anniversary season could go up in smoke and turn a very good hockey team into the punchline of a cruel joke, Vigneault's team has to find a way to dismiss the dire implications, and remember that the opportunity is still alive.


It's a lot to ask.

tiffiant

That this has been a trying six days for the Canucks goes without saying. Luongo has been yanked two games in a row, and consigned to a seat by the TV in the dressing room in Game 6, until he had to spring into action in the third period in relief of surprise starter Cory Schneider.


The amount of pride that had to be swallowed by all concerned to make the call to start the rookie is impressive. Not only Luongo's pride, but that of Vigneault, who did a total U-turn on his pledge of allegiance to his veteran Vezina candidate, and of GM Mike Gillis, who couldn't have been excited to see Luongo and Keith Ballard — roughly $10 million worth of annual contracts with his autograph on them — written out of the play in Game 6.


But now they all have to have short memories. Kissing and making up with the franchise goalie, or calculating the loss in market value of Ballard now that he's been a $4-million-plus healthy scratch two games in a row, will be the least of their worries if they don't make it past Tuesday. What, for example, do they tell the faithful next year: that they're going to be a better team? Better than 115 points and the Presidents' Trophy?


That's why Tuesday stands as the most important moment in the franchise's life since Game 7 of the ’94 Stanley Cup final. And somehow, they have to convince themselves that it's going to be the most fun, too. Tall order, when they've just played what all seem to agree was their best game of the series — and lost it.


In a perfect world, they went to sleep Monday night dreaming of Games 7, and what they have always meant to the kids inside the lucky few who grew up to be hockey players — and all of us who didn't. By rough count, I've covered 24 of them, and some of the best moments have been the sparkle in the eyes of the combatants the day before, as they battled the nerves and the excitement.

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"I won many Game 7s in the street," Colorado Avalanche coach Bob Hartley said on the eve of the Cup finale in 2001. "I was Ken Dryden, most of the time. I had a mask exactly like him, and when I was a forward, I was scoring goals like Guy Lafleur — inside posts, all the time, coming off the wing. I even remember we had a tape recorder and we had that (Hockey Night in Canada theme) song at the start."


And just like that, in front of the cameras and microphones, he began to sing the opening of the song: "Da-duh-da-duh-da-daaaa!"


And he perfectly captured the feelings of every Canadian writer in the audience, who would dash outdoors between periods in the spring, and play with a friend in the driveway or a school field — he was Bobby Orr shooting, I was Glenn Hall, or I was Phil Esposito and he was Tony — until we heard "Game's back on!"


No one dreams of Game 6, so the Canucks can just get that out of their heads right now. Whatever the Blackhawks did Sunday night is over. This is the one that matters.


Kevin Lowe, now the Edmonton Oilers’ president, played in the two Game 7 Cup finals — for the Rangers against the Canucks in 1994, and for the Oilers in 1987, when Philadelphia nearly came back to beat them.

tiffiant

Edmonton, massive favourites in the series, had Mike Keenan's Flyers down 3-1 coming back home for Game 5, and lost, and lost again in Philly.


Suddenly, even the ridiculously talented Oilers were no sure thing, and a rookie Philly goalie named Ron Hextall was looking like Superman. Any of that sound familiar?


"When we played Philly ... I don't want to use the word ignorant, but we never should have let that go seven games," said Lowe. "And even then, in Game 7 [the Flyers] scored first, and then they got a two-man advantage and I think Brian Propp hit the post, and I was lying on the ice thinking: 'You know, we could lose this.' ”


The thing is, they didn't. The OIlers gathered themselves, finally, and their big guns came through with the goals — Messier, Kurri, Anderson.


It doesn't matter who does it for the Canucks Tuesdasy, but someone has to, and life would be so much less stressful if the leaders led.


"Game 7," Lowe said, "is one continuous overtime, from the moment the game starts."


This isn't a Stanley Cup final, but it had better feel like one to the Canucks, when they lace up the skates, with no intention of it being for the last time.


Chicago Blackhawks Brent Seabrook (R) loses his glove as he collides with Vancouver Canucks Dan Hamhuis during the first period of Game 6 of their NHL Western Conference quarter-final in Chicago April 24, 2011.

Catpiano

Can't blame them la..   with hard working for 82 game ..  PT wor ..  

First time for Canucks, and their best record ever.

For many years, PT rarely win the cup la..

Catpiano

Wow...Canucks has been great tonight! Lulu is as good as he should too!

2X min to go....

sheep

need an insurance goal

sko

So nervous!!! OMGGGGGGGG!

Catpiano

U know what.... Last nite, I dream Canucks won 2-1 ......

sheep

回復 9# Catpiano


    it will be 2-1
but???????????????