Vancouver Canucks at Detroit Red Wings: March 23, 2011. The Live-Blog!

5:35pm:  Pre-Game Skate.  Once again we file the pregame skate early.  We like to write it whille the boys are actually out there pregame skating, but logistics again tonight prevent us from doing so.  Nonetheless, copious research has resulted in the following Items of Interest:

• With a win tonight, the Canucks will equal their team record for Best Record Ever.  It's true.  The Canucks amassed 105 points in 2006-07, the current team record.  The Canucks enter the game tonight with 103 points (Detroit, for the record, have 95 and are second to Vancouver in the Western Conference) and so, if they come out of this one with 2 points, they will be able to call themselves Tied for the Best Vancouver Team Of All Time.
• All-Time started for Vancouver 40 years ago.  The Canucks began play in the National League in the fall of 1970.  Ah, the memories.  I remember some of those guys from so long ago.  Andre Boudrias led Vancouver in scoring with 66 points in that debut season.  Rosaire Paimont led the first Vancouver team with 34 goals.  (The Canucks would later have a Wilf Paimont in their employ who would be involved in one of the most storied hockey fights in Red Wings history--the stick-swinging brawl that left Dennis Polonich next to dead--but he's a totally different guy.)  I remember I liked their goalie's name: Dunc Wilson.  
• Do you know who the Canuck's first coach was?  Read your Media Guides, people.  It was Hal Laycoe. I saw that and it got me thinking, "Hey, wasn't Hal Laycoe the guy who got into that fight with Rocket Richard which led to the "Richard Riot" in Montreal?"  (We include a pronouncer here because we know some of you are young and/or American.  It's "Ree-SHARD and he is to Canada, or at least to Quebec, what Babe Ruth is to the US.)  As for Laycoe, he is indeed the one and the same guy.  It was March, 1955 and Laycoe, a Boston defenseman famous for wearing glasses while he played which we mention just as an aside, got into a fight with Richard.  Stick swinging was involved.  Linesman Cliff Thompson grabbed Richard and Richard reacted by punching him.  The punching of linesmen by players has always been frowned upon in the National League.  So, a couple of days later NHL President Clarence Campbell suspended Richard for the balance of the regular season and for the entire playoffs.  The announcment came down March 17, 1955--St. Patrick's Day--and and wouldn't you know it, Canadiens were home that night to the Red Wings at the Forum.  You know the rest.  Fans began rioting during the first intermission and the Wings--already ahead 4-0--were awarded the game on a forfeit.  Fans set cars and buildings on fire near the Forum and Richard had to go on the radio to appeal for peace.  The Wings beat the Richard-less Canadiens for the Cup the following month--the last Stanley Cup for Detroit until 1997.   
• Finally, Detroit is, if anything, even worse off injury-wise tonight than they were the night before last when they were down to 10 forwards against Pittsburgh.  Pavel Datsyuk (indeterminate, ubiquitous lower-body injury), Johan Franzen (groin) Todd Bertuzzi (stiff back) and Jiri Hudler (we can't remember) are all out.  Additionally, goalie Chris Osgood, who said a couple of days ago he might be ready to return to active duty tonight--he's been out since Jan. 4 after having hernia surgery--instead was today put back on Injured Reserve due to complications from the operation which puts into question whether he'll be ready for playoffs with Wings GM Ken Holland today quoted as saying that Ozzie is "nowhere near ready" to return. 

We'll see you at gametime, everybody.... 


7:45pm  We are underway and it's Detroit 1 (crossbar), Vancouver 0. Jan Mursak, up from Grand Raids due to all of the aforementioned Detroit injuries, walked to the bottom of the left circle and whipped a wrister over the shoulder of Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo and that thing hit the crossbar as clean and as hard as can be.  We've a little over 5 minutes in. 1ST PERIOD: DETROIT 0, VANCOUVER 0.


8:05pm:  Darren Helm just had a shorthanded breakaway and it took a terrific save by Luongo and a late hook by Daniel Sedin to deny him with about five-and-a-half left in the period.  Sedin took the call--it wasn't quite enough of a Hook to merit a penalty shot--and it evened the sides at 4 skaters a side (Detroit's Patrick Eaves was off for Interference at the time).  The Wings, although getting chances, failed to cash in on their first power play chance of the game.  And now, the period ends.  Detroit outshot the Canucks 11-5.  It was a well-played, entertaining period of hockey.  END OF 1ST PERIOD: DETROIT 0, VANCOUVER 0.


8:38pm:  Daniel Sedin scores the games first goal at 6:31.  He was all alone in behind the Detroit net then came off to the side and--in something you don't exactly see every night--he banked a little shot past Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard off the skate of sure-to-be Hall of Fame defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom.  Sedin was all alone behind the net for so long I was sure they'd call it an unassisted goal, but the maximuM, TWO, were handed out, including one to Henrik Sedin.  For Daniel, it is goal #39 this season which ties him with Corey Perry of Anaheim for 2nd in the league.  For those of you scoring at home, Steven Stamkos of Tampa Bay leads the NHL with 43.  12:00 left in the 2nd Period: DETROIT 0, VANCOUVER 1.


8:50pm:  Here's a disturbing statistic.  Vancouver, when scoring first this season, which they have done now 46 times, has lost only twice!  They are 37-2-6 (.889) in 45 games so far this year in which they have opened the scoring.  Detroit meanwhile is a sub-.500 team when allowing the first goal, 15-17-3 (.471).  Jimmy Howard just kept the Wings in this one, making two of the best saves we've seen in this building all year long to deny the Canucks who came in on a 2-on-1.  Under 5 to go in the period now.  2ND Period: DETROIT 0, VANCOUVER 1.


9:05pm:  The Wings will be on the power play for the first 1:05 of the 3rd after the Canucks, which outshot Detroit 20-10 in the period, took a call late in the second.  The Wings are 7-19-3 (.293) when trailing after 2 this season, the Canucks are 33-0-3 (.958) when leading after 40 minutes. AFTER TWO PERIODS: DETROIT 0, VANCOUVER 1.  


9:35pm: Eaves goes for high sticking at 8:47 of the 3rd.  Detroit has had 3 penalties called against them tonight, and 2 have been on Eaves.  And while he's off--:42 seconds after he goes off to be precise--Daniel Sedin scores his second goal of the night and his 40th of the season.  He fired into what amounted to an empty Detroit net from the circle to the left of Howard who had been forced out of position after making two or three fine saves before the puck caromed to Sedin who fired it by.  The Wings are in real trouble now, down 2 and under 10:00 left in the game.  3RD PERIOD: DETROIT 0, VANCOUVER 2.


9:43pm:  Jiri Hudler bangs in a rebound on the power play at 11:38 to put the Wings back in the game.  it's his 9th.  Assists awarded to Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski although it sure looked like Dan Cleary took the shot which created the rebound which Hudler scooped into the net.  7:26 left, now.  3RD PERIOD: DETROIT 1, VANCOUVER 2.


9:58pm:  It's over and the Wings lose 2-1.  I got to pick the 3 Stars tonight and I went with the 2 goalies (Luongo the #2 Star, Howard #3) and Daniel Sedin.  It was not a difficult decision.  The two goalies were great tonight.  Detroit had 40 shots on Luongo and Vancouver 33 on Howard and each made HUGE (ALLCAPS) saves.  Sedin scored both the Canucks' goals and when you do that, you usually get the 1st Star.  Vancouver--as if they hadn't already--has pretty much ended Detroit's chance to catch them for first in the West.  The Canucks are 10 points up on second-place Detroit now, and the Wings are down to 8 games left to play.  The first of those comes up Saturday night when the seldom-seen Toronto Maple Leafs come to town.  We'll talk then...
FINAL SCORE: DETROIT 1, VANCOUVER 2.