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ravencallscrowsNote: this was 'officially' due yesterday. It probably lacks the vitriol of some of the series, but i'm still recovering from being bored to tears watching the Wild while being incensed at watching the Canucks play sloppier hockey than i've seen in pick-up games.
Western Canada's hopes to claim Lord Stanley's Cup are officially over. After looking in excellent position to advance to the Western Conference Finals at the completion of the first four games of their series with the Minnesota Wild, the Vancouver Canucks went into a free-fall, and lost the final three games of the series to the upstart Wild.
Minnesota is not an exciting team. They don't generate a lot of scoring changes. The games they win they do by playing a particular system which produces incredibly boring hockey. They do, however, capitalize on mistakes their opposition makes. In the final three games in which the Canucks controlled their own destiny, the Wild capitalized frequently.
In order to win against a disciplined team, discipline is required. That became Vancouver's biggest shortcoming. The Wild are vulnerable when playing from behind- trailing, they simply can't afford to wait for the perfect chance to shoot as they can when ahead. When playing with a lead, though, there are Wild players in the passing lanes and clogging the neutral zone. As important as it is to score the first goal, the Canucks did so rarely. Instead, they seemed to start quickly and play hard for the first period of games five, six, and seven, only to tail off and start taking bad chances. As well as they played during the first four games of the series, they played even more badly in the final three, and now have only themselves to blame for the end to their season.
Western Canada's hopes to claim Lord Stanley's Cup are officially over. After looking in excellent position to advance to the Western Conference Finals at the completion of the first four games of their series with the Minnesota Wild, the Vancouver Canucks went into a free-fall, and lost the final three games of the series to the upstart Wild.
Minnesota is not an exciting team. They don't generate a lot of scoring changes. The games they win they do by playing a particular system which produces incredibly boring hockey. They do, however, capitalize on mistakes their opposition makes. In the final three games in which the Canucks controlled their own destiny, the Wild capitalized frequently.
In order to win against a disciplined team, discipline is required. That became Vancouver's biggest shortcoming. The Wild are vulnerable when playing from behind- trailing, they simply can't afford to wait for the perfect chance to shoot as they can when ahead. When playing with a lead, though, there are Wild players in the passing lanes and clogging the neutral zone. As important as it is to score the first goal, the Canucks did so rarely. Instead, they seemed to start quickly and play hard for the first period of games five, six, and seven, only to tail off and start taking bad chances. As well as they played during the first four games of the series, they played even more badly in the final three, and now have only themselves to blame for the end to their season.
