Canucks & Beyond
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April 13, 2009: Canucks Heading Into Playoffs with Confidence
by Alanah McGinley on 01/28/09 at 01:13 PM ET
Comments (9)
Vancouver, April 13, 2009 -- The Vancouver Canucks surprised many last week, returning to the playoffs after a one year absence, landing in sixth spot, the result of a series of big wins in the final weeks of the season.
“We knew we were in a position to decide our own fate,” said coach Alain Vigneault. “It was a matter of staying focused and getting some big performances from unexpected sources.”
The Canucks certainly got that. After the blockbuster acquisition of Mats Sundin last December, many expected the multi-millionaire late addition to single-handedly be the catalyst that would boost this team to the next level, but instead the Canucks went into a January nosedive that few expected them to pull out of.
“I’m shocked they were able to manage it,” said Scott Burnside in his report filed on the ESPN website over the weekend. “My feeling in January was that they had no chance whatsoever to make the playoffs.”
When contacted by this reporter and asked to reflect on his increasingly negative predictions through February and early March, Burnside was unapologetic.
“I dare you to find anyone in this business who predicted Darcy fu#&ing Hordichuk was going to lead that team into the playoffs.”
Burnside might have a point.
After a fitful career as a scrapper, the affable Hordichuk has long been considered a role player there to motivate the team by fisticuffs and hard hits. It is for this reason that his accomplishments in the last four weeks—14 goals and 17 assists—have been no less than spellbinding.
“He’s been awesome,” says Mike Brown.
Brown, another unexpected surprise late in the season, has frequently been featured on Hordichuk’s right wing, picking up an impressive number of points himself during the drive for the playoffs. Along with Sundin in center position, the three have made for the most electrifying line in the NHL since mid-March.
“Hordy always said he had an eye for the net, but no one believed him,” says Sundin. “If it wasn’t for the Big Guy taking a chance on him, we’d never have known what he was capable of.”
The “Big Guy”, as the team now affectionately refers to Vigneault, might indeed be considered prescient for his decision to bookend Sundin with Brown and Hordichuk after the All Star break.
While many questioned the move (one popular local radio host abruptly asking listeners on March 11th if maybe Vigneault was “out of his f#$king head") Vigneault himself says he had no doubts.
“You people have criticized me for mixing up lines here and there since I came to Vancouver, but I’m the coach. It was my call and I think I’ve finally been proven correct.”
General manager Mike Gillis echoes Vigneault’s confidence. “I knew Viggy was the man for the job when I saw his willingness to do anything, no matter how unorthodox the hockey media and Canucks’ fans thought it might be, in order to shake this team up.
“That’s why I publicly stated his job was safe after the All Star break. Viggy deserved to know we were confident in his decisions, no matter how stupid they might seem on the surface.”
With the playoffs looming ahead next week, it seems unlikely anyone will be advocating that Vigneault change his winning top line featuring Hordichuk, Sundin and Brown. But how does the team feel it matches up with the Detroit Red Wings going into the first round?
“We have confidence in ourselves, from the bottom of our roster all the way to the top,” says assistant captain Willie Mitchell. “We all thought the Big Guy was on the career skids till he pulled us out of the fire. Clearly, keeping Vigneault was the right move because no one else would ever have tried this insanely brilliant lineup shuffle.
“We know it won’t be an easy ride through to the Finals, but we’ve got a confident group here.
“After all, we’ve got Darcy Hordichuk. The hottest player in the league.”
-- Report filed by Alanah McGinley, April 13, 2009, with apologies for all the times she said Vigneault’s ass should have been canned.
Filed in: dumb stuff, vancouver canucks | Canucks and Beyond | Permalink
Tags: alain+vigneault, darcy+hordichuk, mike+brown, mike+gillis, parody, playoffs, willie+mitchell,
Comments
If the Canucks finish 6th and would play Detroit, that would mean that Detroit fell to 3rd in the Conference. IMPOSSIBLE!!! 
Your story is flawed! haha
An enjoyable read. Thanks.
I’m confident in this team. We’re gonna be alright.
Posted by Zandberg from Smithers, BC on 01/28/09 at 02:02 PM ET
Silly Alanah, you know (if Vigneault stays until April) that Sundin will be playing between Pierre-Cedric Labrie and Michel Ouellet. For about thirty seconds anyway, long enough for him to figure out how to get Lawrence Nycholat to play left wing.
(puke)
Posted by Yankee Canuck on 01/28/09 at 02:05 PM ET
Alan -- That video’s an old favorite of mine. Thanks for the reminder link!
Zandberg -- I came close to having the Canucks finish in 5th just so I could drop the Wings to 4th (the Blackhawks winning the division the final week of the season.) But really, that idea is fun enough that it deserves it’s own futuristic story.
Yankee Canuck -- Ha! Hordy/Brown/Sundin was the dumbest combination I could think of, but you’ve clearly outdone me with your suggestion. (God, I hope we’re not giving AV any crazier ideas than he already has...)
Posted by Alanah McGinley from British Columbia on 01/28/09 at 02:13 PM ET
HAHAHA! I think I had a nightmare with that line in it once.
Posted by Alix from Saskatoon on 01/28/09 at 02:53 PM ET
I have resisted on calling for A.V’s head, but it’s time.
Posted by laker from kamloops on 01/29/09 at 02:03 AM ET
The power of positive thinking - now put to the ultimate test.
Hilarious! (And unfortunately for so many reporters, much better written than the schmucks who get paid to string words together into coherent sentences. No wonder their jobs are in trouble.)
Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 01/29/09 at 08:57 AM ET
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About Canucks & Beyond
Alanah McGinley has been blogging hockey since 2003, sharing opinions, rants and not-so-deep thoughts with anyone who will listen. In addition to writing Canucks & Beyond and helping manage Kukla’s Korner, Alanah is one of the founders and co-hosts of The Crazy Canucks Podcast, as featured at Canucks.com.
She has contributed pieces to FoxSports.com and the New York Times Slapshot blog, as well as other stray destinations in cyberspace.
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Alanah’s Twitter: Not really hockey-ish. [LINK]
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Alternate content: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1-YoaQu-3g
Posted by Alan from Atlanta on 01/28/09 at 01:35 PM ET