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eregyrn...at least, not for the half of the protagonists that you care about.
It is with a heavy, heavy heart (and equally heavy eyelids) that I must report that, although it went down to the very wire, last night the Canucks lost the quarter-finals in the playoffs to the Calgary Flames.
After the hectic ups and Stygian troughs of downs that the team went through in the last month of the season, they really managed to put together an extraordinary comeback to win their Division. They started off the playoffs well, too, against Calgary -- a scrappy, determined team that was itself outperforming expectations, and had managed to fight their way into seventh place in the Conference for their first shot in the playoffs in 10 years. Although Vancouver was heavily favored (by, it seemed, just about everyone except wary Vancouver fans), the Flames weren't going down without a fight.
Things took a turn for the sucky for the Canucks when their starting goaltender went down badly in game 3. Nobody's fault, except perhaps the guys who do the ice conditioning at Calgary's Saddledome, but Cloutier's leg got turned under his body awkwardly at one point (and he still managed to get back in his net and make two more saves, even though he couldn't stand on that leg). Originally it looked like a deeply screwed-up knee; it was later announced as a sprained ankle. No matter, Cloutier was out for the series, and possibly the entire playoffs. His #1 backup was, to be fair, a guy who'd had playoff success in the past (with the Penguins, of all teams), but although he came in and played out the remainder of that first game well, Hedberg dropped the next one pretty badly (I think that was the 4-0 loss), and clearly the coach lost confidence in him, because from then on out, the Canucks were playing with their THIRD-string goalie, Alex Auld.
All due respect to Auld -- with a few exceptions, he played amazingly well for a guy who had never played in the pressure-cooker of the NHL playoffs before. Including the unbelievably nail-biting sixth game -- in Calgary, with the Flames leading the series 3-2. The Flames could have won it then. Vancouver went up on them 4-0 in the 2nd...and then pissed away their lead and allowed the Flames to TIE it, for gods sake. The two teams had to go into TRIPLE OVERTIME (42 extra minutes of hockey, on top of the 60 they'd just played) before the punchy Flames made the first mistake and Vancouver put together a good rush and scored. Jubilation. A forced Game 7, back in Vancouver.
Sadly, if you have been following the team, you would know that Vancouver generally doesn't play as well at home as on the road. No, nobody understands why, it's just a fact.
Last night was do-or-die for both teams. Appropriately, the action see-sawed back and forth. Calgary went up by one, then Vancouver came back. No sooner was everyone breathing a sigh of relief, than the Canucks took a penalty, and Calgary scored. Then, with less than 2 minutes to go in the game, Calgary took a penalty, putting the desperate Canucks on the powerplay. With their goalie pulled for the extra attacker, the Canucks then took a penalty with 20 seconds to go. Calgary's captain (the estimable Jarome Iginla, their highest scorer) then missed the empty Canucks' net by *INCHES*. And the Canucks' captain, Naslund, swept down the length of the ice, battled the puck off the boards to the front of the net, and his linemate Matt Cooke batted it in for the tying goal with 5.7 seconds left on the clock.
After a story like that, you'd think the only dramatic outcome would have to be a triumphant Canucks victory, in front of their standing, screaming home crowd. But -- oh god -- no. They started OT with their player still in the penalty box for another 1:33. And the Flames managed to score at 1:25.
I've been saying all along that watching sports, for me, is all about the stories that give it depth. Once you learn the stories, that's why you care, even if you may also enjoy the game for other reasons.
To be fair, Calgary was putting together their own great storyline all throughout this series -- one, obviously, at odds with the one that the Canucks wished to fulfill. Calgary hadn't been in a playoffs series since 1994 -- when, coincidentally, they were eliminated by the Canucks (on Vancouver's way to their last appearence in the Stanley Cup finals). The Flames hadn't *won* any playoffs series since 1989 (when, again, if I'm not mistaken, they beat the Canucks in the first round). Calgary had a somewhat uneven season this year, so their getting into the playoffs at all took a great deal of effort, for which they are to be commended. They don't play boring hockey -- they're not one of those teams (like, sadly, the Wild; or last year's Cup champions, the New Jersey Devils -- who have already been eliminated this year, too) who have decided to ride a smothering defensive style to success. I respect Calgary, I respect most of their guys, especially their captain. I respect what they did to get into the playoffs, and what they did to win. This series was, at all times, great to watch -- dramatic, exciting, balanced.
If the Canucks had to lose (and I still wish they hadn't, of course), I feel a tiny bit consoled that their loss allows Calgary to advance. It's not one of those cases where not only do you want your team to win, but you desperately wish the other team to lose. All I can say now is, if Calgary had to oust the Canucks, then let them make it count. I hope they ride this wave of success for a long way. That would make me feel better.
But meanwhile, my guys are out. I'm not the kind of fan who can get angry at a team that has disappointed its fans (and in Vancouver, the Canucks lately are regarded similarly to the way Boston regards the Red Sox -- a very good team who will achieve just so much success, and then fail in the clutch). I'm too busy feeling badly *for* them. I spent almost 80 games getting to know these guys -- their stories and their personalities. The camera panned down the bench right after the final goal last night, and those poor men just looked stunned. For a fan, it's a feeling of terrible finality -- how much worse must it be for the players (who had expectations of themselves, and who knew exactly how high their fans' expectations of them were)? No more second chances, until next year (if there *is* a Next Year, next year -- what with a possible work-stoppage looming.)
I've remarked to people throughout the year that this has been like watching an 82-episode dramatic series, for which it is absolutely impossible to obtain any spoilers for how it will all come out. Now it feels as if the show has been cancelled, abrubtly, without a satisfying resolution -- not even on a cliffhanger.
Am very, very sad. And now, the Bruins are out of it, too. I'll still keep an eye on the playoffs, and of course watch the finals, but.... Bummer.
It is with a heavy, heavy heart (and equally heavy eyelids) that I must report that, although it went down to the very wire, last night the Canucks lost the quarter-finals in the playoffs to the Calgary Flames.
After the hectic ups and Stygian troughs of downs that the team went through in the last month of the season, they really managed to put together an extraordinary comeback to win their Division. They started off the playoffs well, too, against Calgary -- a scrappy, determined team that was itself outperforming expectations, and had managed to fight their way into seventh place in the Conference for their first shot in the playoffs in 10 years. Although Vancouver was heavily favored (by, it seemed, just about everyone except wary Vancouver fans), the Flames weren't going down without a fight.
Things took a turn for the sucky for the Canucks when their starting goaltender went down badly in game 3. Nobody's fault, except perhaps the guys who do the ice conditioning at Calgary's Saddledome, but Cloutier's leg got turned under his body awkwardly at one point (and he still managed to get back in his net and make two more saves, even though he couldn't stand on that leg). Originally it looked like a deeply screwed-up knee; it was later announced as a sprained ankle. No matter, Cloutier was out for the series, and possibly the entire playoffs. His #1 backup was, to be fair, a guy who'd had playoff success in the past (with the Penguins, of all teams), but although he came in and played out the remainder of that first game well, Hedberg dropped the next one pretty badly (I think that was the 4-0 loss), and clearly the coach lost confidence in him, because from then on out, the Canucks were playing with their THIRD-string goalie, Alex Auld.
All due respect to Auld -- with a few exceptions, he played amazingly well for a guy who had never played in the pressure-cooker of the NHL playoffs before. Including the unbelievably nail-biting sixth game -- in Calgary, with the Flames leading the series 3-2. The Flames could have won it then. Vancouver went up on them 4-0 in the 2nd...and then pissed away their lead and allowed the Flames to TIE it, for gods sake. The two teams had to go into TRIPLE OVERTIME (42 extra minutes of hockey, on top of the 60 they'd just played) before the punchy Flames made the first mistake and Vancouver put together a good rush and scored. Jubilation. A forced Game 7, back in Vancouver.
Sadly, if you have been following the team, you would know that Vancouver generally doesn't play as well at home as on the road. No, nobody understands why, it's just a fact.
Last night was do-or-die for both teams. Appropriately, the action see-sawed back and forth. Calgary went up by one, then Vancouver came back. No sooner was everyone breathing a sigh of relief, than the Canucks took a penalty, and Calgary scored. Then, with less than 2 minutes to go in the game, Calgary took a penalty, putting the desperate Canucks on the powerplay. With their goalie pulled for the extra attacker, the Canucks then took a penalty with 20 seconds to go. Calgary's captain (the estimable Jarome Iginla, their highest scorer) then missed the empty Canucks' net by *INCHES*. And the Canucks' captain, Naslund, swept down the length of the ice, battled the puck off the boards to the front of the net, and his linemate Matt Cooke batted it in for the tying goal with 5.7 seconds left on the clock.
After a story like that, you'd think the only dramatic outcome would have to be a triumphant Canucks victory, in front of their standing, screaming home crowd. But -- oh god -- no. They started OT with their player still in the penalty box for another 1:33. And the Flames managed to score at 1:25.
I've been saying all along that watching sports, for me, is all about the stories that give it depth. Once you learn the stories, that's why you care, even if you may also enjoy the game for other reasons.
To be fair, Calgary was putting together their own great storyline all throughout this series -- one, obviously, at odds with the one that the Canucks wished to fulfill. Calgary hadn't been in a playoffs series since 1994 -- when, coincidentally, they were eliminated by the Canucks (on Vancouver's way to their last appearence in the Stanley Cup finals). The Flames hadn't *won* any playoffs series since 1989 (when, again, if I'm not mistaken, they beat the Canucks in the first round). Calgary had a somewhat uneven season this year, so their getting into the playoffs at all took a great deal of effort, for which they are to be commended. They don't play boring hockey -- they're not one of those teams (like, sadly, the Wild; or last year's Cup champions, the New Jersey Devils -- who have already been eliminated this year, too) who have decided to ride a smothering defensive style to success. I respect Calgary, I respect most of their guys, especially their captain. I respect what they did to get into the playoffs, and what they did to win. This series was, at all times, great to watch -- dramatic, exciting, balanced.
If the Canucks had to lose (and I still wish they hadn't, of course), I feel a tiny bit consoled that their loss allows Calgary to advance. It's not one of those cases where not only do you want your team to win, but you desperately wish the other team to lose. All I can say now is, if Calgary had to oust the Canucks, then let them make it count. I hope they ride this wave of success for a long way. That would make me feel better.
But meanwhile, my guys are out. I'm not the kind of fan who can get angry at a team that has disappointed its fans (and in Vancouver, the Canucks lately are regarded similarly to the way Boston regards the Red Sox -- a very good team who will achieve just so much success, and then fail in the clutch). I'm too busy feeling badly *for* them. I spent almost 80 games getting to know these guys -- their stories and their personalities. The camera panned down the bench right after the final goal last night, and those poor men just looked stunned. For a fan, it's a feeling of terrible finality -- how much worse must it be for the players (who had expectations of themselves, and who knew exactly how high their fans' expectations of them were)? No more second chances, until next year (if there *is* a Next Year, next year -- what with a possible work-stoppage looming.)
I've remarked to people throughout the year that this has been like watching an 82-episode dramatic series, for which it is absolutely impossible to obtain any spoilers for how it will all come out. Now it feels as if the show has been cancelled, abrubtly, without a satisfying resolution -- not even on a cliffhanger.
Am very, very sad. And now, the Bruins are out of it, too. I'll still keep an eye on the playoffs, and of course watch the finals, but.... Bummer.
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Date: 2004-04-20 07:52 am (UTC)