What is the "Knuckle Sandwich"?

Being from the Eastern time zone, I don't have the luxury of watching the Vancouver Canucks play hockey and leaving enough time to write, brush my teeth, shower, say my prayers, and go to bed. I watch enough of their games in order to fit in everything I need to do before going to sleep. Otherwise, I wake up all grumpy and disorganized spouting all kinds of Canucks conspiracy theories about match fixing games for ratings and shootouts.



The Vancouver Canucks started their 2011 Stanley Cup playoff campaign with a bang defeating the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks 2-0 in the first game of their best-of-seven Western Conference quarterfinal series. The Canucks' Higgins and Hansen scored both goals in the first period, and then relied on their steady backline the rest of the way. When Hawks stars like Toews and Kane put the Vancouver defense under pressure, however, Roberto Luongo stood tall making key saves that kept the Canucks in the saddle for much of the contest. So, the Vancouver Canucks should be on their way with this winning formula, yes? Not so fast, my friends. The Canucks are a great team, but I am little concerned for their championship aspirations.

As good as the Canucks played, from the end of the first period onward, the Blackhawks didn't look like a team sitting eighth in the Western Conference. The Blackhawks looked like a defending Cup champion missing the key pieces that make up the "Knuckle Sandwich": The goal scoring touch, the presence down low in front of the net (Byfuglien), and the awareness not to be caught in odd man rushes, which happened ALL NIGHT LONG. Luongo stood tall like he always does, however coach Joel Quenneville will pick up on any weaknesses he can find, and dissect them with key matchups. Higgins deflected a shot from the point to score the Canucks' first goal, and Hansen's marker came against the run of play minutes later; give credit to them, they scored some sweet goals, but stars such as the Sedins and Kesler must step up their game for the Canucks to prevent another playoff disappointment.

A victory is never a bad start for any team, and I like the Canucks' chances. However, what will they do when they are really tested? The microscope is always on the President's Trophy winning team to do well in the playoffs, and by 'well' I mean 'WIN'. What happens to that team when the breaks are not going their way? If the Blackhawks or any team the Canucks will face in the playoffs make a big push, how will Vancouver respond? That is what separates President's Trophy winning teams from Stanley Cup winning teams: The ability to respond under pressure with character and teamwork. Of course, the Vancouver Canucks have both, but how much remains to be seen. For more on this game, check out ESPN highlights with the colourful Matthew Barnaby ^_^

Keep the dream alive: Canucks versus Canadiens for the Cup

"We're LIVE Blogging now?": Playoff Edition

2011 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs, First Round:

Pittsburgh Penguins vs Tampa Bay Lightning, Game 1:

2-0 in third period, two minutes remaining.

Tampa pulled Roloson

One minute remaining

Penguins about a pull a Houdini

Kunitz (PIT) dumps the puck into a yawning net from center ice

3-0 Penguins

Mario Lemieux is pleased ^_^

Steve Yzerman...not so much -_-

SIREN o_O

Game Over

Something I don't understand, as CBC switches to the Detroit vs Phoenix game also starting tonight: If Detroit is closer to where I live than Pittsburgh, and the Detroit-Phoenix series is more compelling (Phoenix ownership squabble heats up), why am I watching the Penguins whip the Lightning?

I'm more interested in Canucks-Blackhawks III. The Vancouver Canucks are a great team, and only great teams win the President's Trophy (Phil remembers the 2000 St. Louis Blues). Well, most great teams win the regular season championship, and while the knuckle sandwich will not come in the form of the 2000 San Jose Sharks, I still believe it is on the way because the Canucks are yet to be tested this season.

Chicago is the city hosting the defending Cup champions of a year ago. Free agency and salary cap restrictions forced the team to sell off some of the playoff performers such Dustin Byfuglien and Brent Sopel. Captain Jonathan Toews, sniper Patrick Kane, coach Joel Quenneville and the rest of the Blackhawks will have their work cut out for them after just sneaking into the playoffs as the 8th seed in the Western Conference. Will Canucks-Blackhawks III end in tears for Roberto Luongo, or will we have a new Stanley Cup Champion?

NHL Playoffs Top 10

TOP TEN REASONS WHY NOT TO MISS THE NHL PLAYOFFS!

10. None of the teams have cheerleading squads to distract the players.

9. It's funny whenever Stuart Scott of ESPN says the word "hockey".

8. If Canadians were in charge of the NHL playoff format, every team except for the last place team would be in the playoffs.

7. (Someone reading this in Toronto) Playoffs; what's that?

6. Epic Meal Time is going to eat a hockey stick made out of bacon strips, and ground pork.

5. During the CBC Satellite Hotstove, Ron Maclean and his fellow on-air guests to stand up and do the Macarana.

4. Don Cherry is running for Prime Minister!

3. A conservative, liberal, new democrat, and a hockey player enter a bar, and...oh, you heard that one...

2. Bacon strips and Bacon strips and Bacon strips and Bacon strips and Bacon strips...

1. No Maple Leafs in the playoffs to ruin it all!

Three Point Games: The Fix is in

With a seven point lead on my beloved Maple Leafs, the Buffalo Sabres are all but guaranteed a spot in the NHL playoffs as the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. All they need to do is drag tied games past regulation time to guarantee one point towards the NHL standings in their next five games, move past the 90 point threshold, and they are in. According to Twitter, the NHL boasts shootouts are down 22%, but I am willing to bet more and more games are heading to overtime because when in the overtime period teams earn that point is irrelevant. Teams in the playoff picture don't want to lose their spots, so they will play for ties to stay up in the standings.

All credit to James Reimer keeping the team in front of him accountable, and keeping the interests of the fans. Until the NHL adopts a three points for a regulation win system, Pro-Line and other betting industries will continue to lose money when gamblers put money towards the tie (Pro-Line declares ties for games ending in regulation with tied scores).

James seems like a nice guy; I hope the goaltending class in the Marlies system keep the Leafs goaltending accountable. A good controversy, such as Roy-Racicot and Vernon-Osgood-Hasek, will keep the focus on good goaltending and good teamplay up front. ^_^

Mad About the Northeast Division

1. In NHL action, the Montreal Canadiens play the Boston Bruins for the first time since Zdeno Chara's controversial bodycheck of Max Pacioretty almost a fortnight ago. I don't expect any retribution on the part of the Habs, but the play did launch a nationwide debate about the state of the glorious game, and equally biased flag waving among high ranking airline executives. Speaking of airlines, check out AIR CANADA for all their post-March Break, spring getaway deals ^_^
2. I'm playing MINECRAFT now, and after watching some James Reimer highlights on the television I may need to build a statue to "Optimus Reim" on an offshore island. He will be standing tall, made of brick, and no rebounds...I mean, on a redoubt.
3. I wonder what the standings would look like if teams received THREE points for a win in regulation time? I will do some research and post the results soon. If anything that would kill the playoff legitimacy of all teams starting with "T" and ending with "oronto Maple Leafs".
4. Ottawa: AH HA HA HA!
5. Goaltender Ryan Miller of the Buffalo Sabres is playing at his usual best; I can't say the same about their new, modernized jersey. I like the classic dudes and the giant shield of the dancing bull over the swords, but why the number on the top of the shirt? I know my age, but you don't see ME with a giant number on my shoulderblade? TWENTYSOMETHING, see? I remember...what?

X-MEN EXIST o_O

Real footage that mutants and/or superheroes from the comic book world exist in our time! By day, they are accountants and professional athletes, but by night they are...professional athletes? Anyway, check out footage of telekinesis endowed, NHL goaltender Jonathan Quick in action for his Los Angeles Kings against the Calgary Flames.

Apparently, embed is down on this computer -_- Click here for the dramatic footage!

All That Remains is Blood and Ice...

If you remember the final scene from the classic silent film starring Rudolph Valentino, Blood and Sand, then you know the fate of the protagonists and antagonists in the story. Ultimately, they are forgotten, a new hero emerges, and the show continues. Two nights ago, in the city of Montreal, one such contest between the hometown protagonists called the Canadiens squared off against their rivals the Bruins, who are antagonists from Boston, Massachusetts. With the score 4-0 heading toward the end of the second period, a loose puck by the boards played a crucial role in the drama called hockey.



The colours, scoreline, fans, coaches, and players are forgotten for an instant. The motionless body of a human being lies flat on his chest, as if the definition of "Pacioretty" is exactly what you see. That is false: He has parents, family, friends, hopes and dreams of one day being a successful hockey player, but he also has a fractured 4th vertebrae, and a sever concussion. For that instant Mr. Pacioretty, a man who most of us might pass on the street without blinking an eye, was all that mattered to everyone who watched him lying on the ice. However, like most moments, it passed and we demanded justice, or at the very least, a penalty.

The focus turned to the garish 6'9" captain of the Bruins Zdeno Chara, who bodied a man half his size into a dangerous partition of the rink. Five minutes would never be enough, and neither would a game misconduct: We wanted justice, retribution, a shove, a fight for a fallen comrade that was one of "us". We wanted to take sides on the issue: Those who claim its legitimacy in keeping with the dangerous and thrilling tradition of the game, and those who claim its intent represents the depraved state of our current society. Does it remind you of anything?



(I do apologize for the state of the previous video. There isn't one clean video of the incident, and the author has a clear agenda I have mixed opinions about.) Almost to the anniversary of this incident no one in authority made a substantial change to the game of hockey to root out this element. After all, it sells tickets, whips beat writers into a frenzy, get fans in their seats, notches hits on YouTube, and keeps franchises afloat. Names such as Todd Bertuzzi, Matt Cooke, and almost every player on the New York Islanders are at the forefront of fans' minds; which unlucky matador will cross paths with these raging bulls? Who will be the next Rudolph Valentino: Marc Savard, Scott Moore, or Max Pacioretty? Who will be the next Eric Lindros?

If the game was less about 'Blood and Ice', what kind of game would we see? If the game was more about Savard, Moore, Pacioretty, and Lindros, would hockey be a different sport altogether?