Canucks aim to conquer in 2007 playoffs

Originally published in Eishockey News in 2007

By Lucas Aykroyd

Before Christmas, the idea that the Vancouver Canucks could not only make the playoffs but even contend for the Stanley Cup was about as likely as Donald Trump becoming a Communist. But since Christmas, the team has been almost as difficult to defeat as the old Red Army team under Viktor Tikhonov. It’s been like a surprise present for Vancouver fans, whose expectations had dropped in late 2006.

The key to the team’s success has been in goal. Roberto Luongo has emerged as Vancouver’s answer to Vladislav Tretiak, enjoying the finest regular season of his hockey career with more than 40 wins. Like New Jersey’s Martin Brodeur, Luongo has a legitimate shot at both the Hart and Vezina Trophies.

But the tall Montreal-born netminder has insisted all along that he doesn’t care about his personal statistics. Only getting into the post-season matters to him this year after missing the playoffs in his first six NHL seasons with the New York Islanders and Florida Panthers. When the Canucks clinched a Western Conference berth in the last week of March, he couldn’t have been more pleased, even when you consider he’s won two IIHF World Championships and the 2004 World Cup.

“At last we know we’re going to the playoffs,” said Luongo. “We’re also trying to finish first in our division, and our focus has changed to that right now.”

Vancouver recorded its best March record in franchise history while vying with Minnesota for top spot in the Northwest Division, so the trend is in the right direction. Other recent milestones included head coach Alain Vigneault’s eclipsing Pat Quinn’s mark of 46 wins in one season and Henrik Sedin’s passing Andre Boudrias for the most assists in one season (62 in 1974-75). Could Henrik’s new record stand for 30-plus years like his predecessor’s?

“I doubt it,” said Henrik. “It’s a long time, and it’s a lot of assists, but there are guys in the league who have gotten more than that. It’s nice, and I think it’ll be even more special later on, after the season, when I look back and think about it. But right now, we’re looking forward to the playoffs.”

Besides the torrid pace that Henrik and his brother Daniel have established as the club’s leading scorers, the team has benefited from surprising offensive contributions from forwards like Taylor Pyatt, who scored 20 goals for the first time in his NHL career, and Jeff Cowan, whose two-goal performance versus Tampa on March 5 inspired an enthusiastic female fan at GM Place to toss her bra on the ice and earned this tough guy the nickname of “Cowan the Bra-barian.”

But while Luongo will remain the key in the weeks ahead, two other factors will have a huge impact on how far the team goes in its first playoff run since 2003-04.

First, can Vancouver ice a healthy Top Four group of defensemen in Mattias Ohlund, Willie Mitchell, Sami Salo, and Kevin Bieksa? The veterans have all battled groin injuries recently. Bieksa has overachieved marvelously, providing almost everything Ed Jovanovski offered both offensively and defensively, and at a fraction of the cost. These physical, skillful defenders have helped Vancouver post the league’s best penalty-killing record (around 88 percent).

Second, can Markus Naslund regain a semblance of his old scoring touch? After five consecutive years of 30 goals or more, the 33-year-old Swedish captain is unlikely to hit that milestone again in 2007. Although the former All-Star winger would undoubtedly like to emulate Detroit’s Steve Yzerman, who began winning Stanley Cups at the same time as his offensive numbers declined and defensive prowess increased, Naslund must provide a secondary scoring threat in the playoffs to take some pressure off the Sedins.

“This group has good leadership and good presence,” said Vigneault. “When we’ve had bumps in the road, we’ve always responded positively.”

Vancouver fans hope that positive spirit will enable this year’s Canucks to outdo the flashier version of the team from earlier in this decade, and result in the franchise’s first run to the Stanley Cup finals since 1994.