Blockey Night in Canada!!!

Vamanos Bruins!!!!

2012-01-07T19:06:00.000-08:00

Today we finally got our revenge on Boston. I'm sure many people were apprehensive going into this game but if my Canucks were, they didn't show it. I was glad to see Schneids in net ... they had put BL in net for the Montreal game so it was only fair that Cory play in Boston. He did a great job, too.

Lots of fights, but we expected no less. Cody got a great goal, a beauty of a slapshot that slammed right into the net. BL even caught one, from over on the bench lol

Final score 4-3 ... Vamanos Vamanos!!!

So far, so good

2011-12-28T19:22:00.000-08:00

Our season typically got off to a slow start in October ... I don't think anyone really knows why they suck so much in the first month. It seems to happen every year. BL wasn't doing very well at all so they put Cory in net for a while, he played great! He knows he's still really the "backup" but he's the best, most reliable backup we've had in a very long time. Once they got BL back in net from spending some time on the bench (to be fair, he was hurt for a little while, but even once he was better he stayed on the bench) he played a whole lot better and has been on a hot streak ever since.

Cody has been played like a real NHL player, with confidence and integrity, he's changed a lot from last season to now.

I've been to 4 games so far this year and I have 1 more game to go to ... Jan 31 against the Blackhawks. They're evil but it's sure to be a good game. Superskills are on Jan 22. We got really good seats this year and I'm looking forward to it.

My first game of the 2011-2012 season

2011-09-25T23:12:00.000-07:00

I'm a little late getting started making notes about my Canucks this fall, but there hasn't really been much to say until now. I did go to a practice out at Thunderbird Arena, and there were enough of the regular guys there practicing that I was able to get 11 more signatures on my quilt. This time around I got Cody Hodgson, Chris Tanev, Eddie Lack (stork), Chris Higgins, Dan Hamhuis, Owen Nolan, Andrew Alberts, Jannick Hansen, Marco Sturm, Max LaPierre and Aaron Rome. A very productive day! I also got those guys and a few I already had on my quilt (like the twins, salo, edler...) to sign a tshirt for my nephew for Christmas.

While I was there I wanted a bit of info from the coaches that were down on the team's bench ... I think they were actually equipment managers ... so I went downstairs and into the bench area to ask them a few questions. Later on some teenagers who'd seen me in there, noticed all the Canucks gear I was wearing, plus the Canucks quilt I had with me, and asked me if I know the team's management. I should have said "ya I do, and they want you to go watch from upstairs so you're not in our way". what a bunch of n00bs.

This fall I have finally gotten far enough up the Canucks priority list for season tickets (#606) that I was able to get a 5-pak of game tickets! Tonight we went to the first one, a pre-season game against the sharks.

We got off to a funny start right from the Anthems. While everyone was standing, hats off, singing and looking over to the far end of the arena, for some reason our Stork was the only guy facing the opposite direction the entire time. I don't know if he just didn't realize he had his back to everyone else or if he did it on purpose, but it was kinda funny.

Then later on, Volpatti went to jump over the boards and take off running on the ice ... that didn't go quite as planned when he came out over the boards and landed on his butt. He recovered pretty fast but I bet he got some ribbing about it when he got back in the dressing room later.

Almost our entire team was rookies ... Cody Hodgson played a ton, and he also did pp and pk so it looks like Vinny is really testing him and seeing what he can do. Schroeder also played pretty good. Jensen is turning out to be quite promising too. We have a new song they're playing right after a goal ... I think it's called "The Whip" or something like that. I'll have to see if I can find a version of it to post here. I did get a big bucket of popcorn ... wiped out all the buttery inside so it now sits proudly on my shrine shelves. It has pictures of BL, the twins, and kes on it.

I got a little transistor radio to see if I could listen to the game on the radio while watching it live, so I wouldn't miss out on the commentary I've gotten so used to when watching on tv. I didn't like it at first, the few seconds delay put me off and was confusing, but I did get used to it. I just kept one earbud in so my other ear was free to hear the announcers. It was actually pretty cool once I got the hang of ignoring their belated play-by-play and just listening to the post-whistle info on hits, penalties, etc. I was hoping to get a pair of Canucks earrings that I had seen the last time I was at the team store, but they were out of stock. I'll have to keep an eye out for them and snag them right away next time they have them.

Just a few more exhibition away games and then we're in the first part of the regular season. My next game is on Oct 18 against the NY Rangers. Bring it on!!!

no cup this year

2011-06-16T16:07:00.000-07:00

Well, game 7 of the final series has come and gone and the cup is in Boston. My Canucks did as well as they could, considering all the injuries and the amazing job Tim Thomas did in goal for the Bruins, but it just wasn't enough to bring home the Stanley cup.

I was downtown yesterday afternoon to watch the game in the crowd on the big screens and it was quite scary. Mobs of people pushing and shoving and screaming ... morons climbing trees and awnings ... these people were out of control. By the end of the 2nd period and we were down 2-0 I decided I'd had enough and this was the time to get out before things got too crazy. I'm glad I left when I did, once the game actually ended there were fires and riots and a lot of violence.

I look around and see the beautiful city I live in and yet it's full of such violence and craziness it makes me ashamed. I feel bad for my Canucks having to see how their city reacts when they've given their very best all year long.

WE DID IT!!!

2011-05-25T10:05:00.000-07:00

We did it!! My Canucks beat the Sharks in game 5 and won the Western Conference cup! I'm so proud of them! Here's Henrik accepting the cup, which of course he didn't touch! I knew he wouldn't ... my 'nucks are slightly superstitious, as am I, and for good reason. It works!

Kes got knocked around a tad in this game and seems hurt, not sure yet if it's a groin or what but he came right back and finished the game. He said afterwards that he'd have played on one leg if he had to, nothing was keeping him out. Manny and Ehrhoff were both on the bench to watch the cup presentation and join in the celebrations. Hopefully Ehrhoff will be able to play in the next round, as they say he's "day to day". Samuelsson wasn't there, he had hernia surgery just last week or so, so he's probably not really up and around a lot yet. Neither was Rome, who got slammed pretty hard and I think has a concussion.

They'll have a few days off now while Boston and Tampa Bay sort things out on their end, then we'll know who we play (we may know tonight if Boston wins and closes up that series).

GO CANUCKS GO!!!!!

On to round 3!!!!!!!

2011-05-09T19:53:00.000-07:00

Tonight the Predators bit the dust and the Canucks move on to round 3! Likely we'll be playing San Jose, though they aren't finished their series with the Red Wings yet but it isn't looking good for Detroit so far.

Kesler has been a beast through the whole series! Jim Hughson called it "Kesler night in Canada" and he's not exaggerating, Kes has been a force to be reckoned with every single game.

Looking forward to the next round ... GO CANUCKS GO!!!!!!!

On to Nashville we go ...

2011-04-27T09:47:00.000-07:00

Games 1, 2 and 3 were great, we dominated and won them easily ... then games 4, 5, and 6 we didn't do that so much as they dominated us. But in game 7 we took care of business and won the series against Chicago -- chew on THAT Chelsea Dagger!

Now we're on to the Predators ... let's see what this series will bring!

On to Game TWO!

2011-04-15T14:59:00.000-07:00

Game one of the first series is behind us and we were, of course, victorious against the Blackhawks. Everyone was hassling the team about being afraid of them, how good they were last year, etc ... but they are a totally different team this year. Yes, they do have their main key players like Toews and Kane, and yes, they are very good, but we are not afraid!
I have complete confidence in my Canucks - this is the year for us!!! On to Game two tonight!

It's that time of year again ...

2011-03-22T16:38:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again, almost Playoff time! This year though, my Canucks have been #1 for a long time and are guaranteed their spot in the playoffs. Very exciting!

Unfortunately we have some guys out, as usual ... particularly Manny Malhotra and his eye injury. They say he's out for the rest of the season and post-season. I like him and really hope he'll be back in the fall. Eddie and Kevin are both skating now though and apparently Kevin is going to play tomorrow against Detroit so that's good news. I hope when the time comes to sit out a D-man they keep Tanev in the lineup, he's doing a great job. I'd rather see him play than Rome or Alberts.

Cory is still doing a fantastic job in net, I'm sure BL is relieved to have such a dependable backup. I know we won't be able to keep him as backup forever, but I do like him and hope we can keep him a while anyhow.

WOOOOOOOOOOOOO x 6

2011-01-08T15:32:00.000-08:00

I went to my first NHL game last night, my Canucks vs Edmonton Oilers. I chose that game because I wanted to go to one that we had a better than average chance of winning (who wants their first game to be one where we lose!!). Here's a picture of me sitting in front of the tribute area they have set up for Trevor Linden. For Canucks gear I had on: socks, tank top, tshirt, hoody, jersey, gloves, and hat. One of these days I'll get some earrings and a necklace, then I'll really be set!

We watched the pre-game skate ... our seats were way up in the non-drinking "nosebleeds" towards one corner ... we had a great view of everything. From there my team was attacking towards us two periods so we got to see a lot of great action, particularly considering we got 6 - count 'em SIX - goals. Plus Kesler got 3 of them so people were throwing their hats onto the ice for the hat-trick! Not me, of course, I value my Canucks hat, but it was cool to see. Kes has been playing like wildfire lately. I got popcorn and a drink, which my good and noble monkey (gord) was kind enough to hold for me so I wouldn't be encumbered by them and not able to jump to my feet and scream when we got our many, many goals.

Tonight my guys played in their blue jerseys, but their white ones have my curious. At some point when Bobby Lou made a save he got a black puck smudge on his jersey up around his collarbone area. We've seen him in that jersey a ton of times since then and the smudge is still there! I'm sure if they can't wash it out they could at least give him a new one.

Naslund #19 retirement tribute night

2010-12-12T11:31:00.000-08:00

Last night they retired Markus Naslund's #19 and hoisted it up to the rafters. I particularly liked the video they showed (above) ... a lot of which was before my time as a Canucks fan. I love the goal with Bertuzzi's pass behind his back to Nazzy ... very cool!

I started watching my Canucks in 2005 after the lockout, one of the last years that Naslund was with the team. It's a shame that my guys didn't pull off a win last night for him, though it was close.

Tonight we play the Oilers. I'm excited already about going to watch them play each other on January 7, 2011. It'll be my first live game. I'm already planning what to wear ... got my Canuck socks, pants (jammies), hoody, jersey, gloves, and hat. Not sure if I'll wear my Santa hat or a ball cap, that remains to be seen, but regardless it'll be a fun night for sure!

40 years - this could be the one!

2010-12-04T14:14:00.000-08:00

This year is looking good so far. It didn't start out great, but it rarely does. It always seems to take Luongo a month or so to get in the groove and play the way he should. I mean, for the money they're paying him, he really needs to be spectacular, not just "very good". At least we do have Cory as a backup this year and he's turning out to be a fantastic backup. We have no worries that we'll be sunk on the days that BL needs the night off anymore.

We got some great new guys this year too. Unfortunately some of my favorites are no longer on the team, like Johnson, Wellwood, and Willie, but the new guys are working out well. Ballard and Hamhuis are just what we needed on defense ... both strong, solid players who can hold the line well and contribute in scoring and on the PK. Manny is fantastic at faceoffs, he wins 68% of them and that's a huge thing.

The game against the Flames last week was great, we killed them! But even better than that was the one last night against the Blackhawks. They've seemed to be getting into BL's head for a few years now, it doesn't matter how well he's been playing ... they show up and our game goes into the toilet. But no more! Last night we showed them who's boss and clobbered them! These are the Canucks I love ... the ones who show up for the game ready to score, defend, hit and win!

During intermission they showed Bobby Lou reading some poems he supposedly wrote. I don't know if he actually wrote them or not but they were pretty funny. I particularly like the one called "Byfuglien" ... "get your fat ass out of my crease!" LOL

I have complete faith in them that this will be our year ... as my buddy Evan says: Plan the parade!!!!

New season, new boys

2010-08-25T16:00:00.000-07:00

Well, the word is finally in on Willie ... he's headed for L.A. to play with the Kings. I will miss him dearly, he's always been one of my favorites, but I do wish him well. With him gone I expect the talk of trading Kevin will ease up some now, hopefully he'll be staying a while longer anyhow. He's not always overly useful, but I do like him. He usually does a decent job, and if it keeps Alberts off the ice, then yay Kevin!

They say that Sami and Burr are both out until around Christmas at least, it'll be good to have them back in the line-up again.

Got my list ready to get the new boys to sign my quilt, plus I need BL to sign my Team Canada jersey. They've started practicing out at UBC Thunderbird arena this week but so far on the news it looks like there's only a few of them there ... I'll go out next week when more of my boys are in town.

A new name for our playground ...

2010-07-07T10:02:00.000-07:00

The big news lately is that GM Place has a new name ... I guess now they're calling it Rogers Arena or something like that. They were joking at first on the radio something about calling it Chicken & Ribs Place or something stupid like that, I would NOT have been impressed if that had been the case. Rogers Arena is ok though. My Spousal Equivalent actually made a funny today about it .... since it was nicknamed "The Garage" while called GM Place, he said they could call it "The Kiosk" now, since Rogers has so many kiosks all over the malls. Cute!

I have a list ready for September when I go watch my boys practice, so I can get the new ones to sign my quilt. I also need Bobby Lu to sign my Team Canada jersey and maybe a picture of himself that I took last year. Last year at practice I didn't get Ehrhoff or Rome (E wasn't here yet and the reporter-dude had told me not to bother getting Rome, as he wouldn't see the ice), and now I'll have to get Malhotra, Hamuis, Perrault, Ballard, and Tambellini. They say that one of these guys will likely be a moose, but I'm not taking any chances, I'll get them all if they're there.

2 more months, then I can start "stalking" my team!

Out with the old, in with the new ....

2010-07-02T12:52:00.000-07:00

I'm glad my Canucks have finally made some good moves to build a stronger team. I like the looks of all the new guys we got yesterday, hopefully this will give us the nudge we need to bring home Stanley!

I do hate to see some of my old favorites go though ... I do love Woody and RyJo, tho I definitely won't miss Pav. Just waiting now to see if Willie comes back for another year or if he's headed elsewhere or even retiring. We should know soon.

waiting ...

2010-05-13T13:19:00.000-07:00

And now we wait. I'll be very interested to see what the higher-ups have planned for my team, how they plan to improve it to work more efficiently and effectively. Everyone knows we need better defense, and we have a fair number of contracts up this year, so it's just a matter of who they want to keep and who they'd rather replace ... and who we can get to replace them.

We have a few moose guys that are probably just about ready to play with the big boys. I expect Cory will be BL's backup this year, no sense leaving him to stagnate on the moose when he could be getting some real NHL experience. He's an excellent goalie on the moose, just needs the actual experience in the big leagues, so he's the natural next backup choice. Then there's Cody Hodgson, who I have yet to be impressed by. When I was at training camp last fall all I heard from the kids there was Cody this and Cody that. I haven't seen him do anything spectacular yet, I'm still waiting for him to dazzle me with his talent. We'll see, there could be more to him than I give him credit for, I haven't seen him play all that much yet ... plus he's been injured half the time anyhow.

Then there's Schroeder, who we got in the draft last year. I've heard good things about him from the moose this year since he got there, it'll be interesting to see him in action. We also have Shirokov ... not a big guy but a quick one with definite skill. Another one just needing NHL experience I think.

So maybe if we prune off all the dead wood and bring in the new ones, get them working with guys they can learn from and grow in their game, hopefully then we'll be able to fend off teams like the Blackhawks next time they come to town.

The fat lady is singing ...

2010-05-12T09:37:00.000-07:00

Well, like they say, it ain't over til the fat lady sings ...... she's singing loud and clear now. We did GREAT against the hawks in game 5, but couldn't pull it off for game 6.

I was SO proud of Sami for going out there and playing as good as he did after getting hurt on Sunday. Apparently the crowd was chanting "Balls of Steel" when he went out, as a kind of salute. He skated fine, took shots, pushed people around .... not as aggressive as he normally would be but he did the best he could and if you didn't know his normal play it wouldn't have been noticeable.

Woody as usual was awesome. That guy has the moves!! I laugh and grin the whole time I'm watching him play and I'll be VERY disappointed if they don't re-sign him for another season.

Now it's just a matter of healing up our wounds (poor Eddy got hit in the ankle end of the 1st period, he's going for an MRI today, Kes has a bad shoulder, Daniel's leg ..... the list goes on) and working on improving our team for next year. There are a number of contracts up this year, a few of which I don't care if they bring back or not, but there are a few that I definitely want to see return ... like my man Johnson, Woody, Obi, and if he's healthy - Willie.

Time will tell ... I'll be watching and listening for news to come before the draft.

On to Round TWO!

2010-04-30T17:47:00.000-07:00

The first hurdle is over, now we're on to round two. We faced the Blackhawks last year in round two and they got the best of us, but I'm confident that we can overcome that and take them by storm this year. I've heard the Chelsea Dagger song a LOT this past week, both on tv and in the house from those who are trying to intimidate us, but I'm not afraid ... I just say it's a catchy tune and it's fine to hear it now since we won't hear much of it in the week to come.

BRING IT ON!!!

it's playoff time ...

2010-04-20T10:52:00.000-07:00

It's playoff time and the bandwagon jumpers are all over the place. All the people who were so sure the Canucks wouldn't make it to the playoffs are now cheering them on. As usual. Then we have the true believers like myself who knew all along they'd make it at least this far.

Can you believe Edler!? Holy camoley, he's been playing well. I swear our first game against the Kings was his best game EVER! He was a lean mean hitting machine and did a great job of it. I'd love to see him play like that all the time. He has the skill, has the size, just plays so demurely half the time. Go Eddie!!!

I don't know what happened last night though, the guys were doing well at the start, then they all lost their steam and fizzled out. I wasn't surprised when they pulled BL, and Raycroft did a good job when he got in there but we still lost. Hopefully we'll do better the next game. I know they can, it's just a matter of keeping them OUT of the sin-bin and take less penalties, do more hitting and be more agressive. They have it, they just don't always use it.

Go Canucks!!!

Congratulations Henrik!

2010-04-13T18:05:00.000-07:00

I was on pins and needles on Sunday waiting to see if Ovechkin would get enough points to beat Henrik in the points race ... looks like poor Ovi choked!

People around here are SO pessimistic. "Realistically pessimistic" they call it, I say they're just not true fans. Nobody ever believes anything good will ever happen around here. Look at the Olympics. Sure, we had barely enough snow on the mountains for some events, but they did go through successfully and all the Canadian gold medals speak for themselves!

And now we have Henrik as the new scoring champion ... the first of many good things to come!

The end (of the regular season) is near!!!

2010-04-09T11:08:00.000-07:00

Well, here we are .... one more game and the regular season is done, and as I predicted (and won myself $10 for doing so) my Canucks have earned themselves a spot in the playoffs! So far it looks like they could end up playing Detroit, but we won't know for sure for a few days yet so no use in worrying about that quite yet. We've beat them before though, so I'm not too concerned. I have faith in my boys!

Sami Salo took the night off last night against the sharks, a wise decision on Vinny's part if you ask me. Sami is so easily wounded, it's best not to risk it on a game that doesn't even matter at this point. Obi was back from his time-out but he got hurt last night, as did Rome ... our defense isn't looking too healthy these days. It's too bad Willie's still out, I was really hoping he'd have been back by now, as I'm sure was everyone else. My man Johnson is out for another few weeks too, but I figure he'll be back before we're done. I'm planning on my boys to make it to the end, so he has plenty of time to heal and get back into the game. Ehrhoff should be back soon too ... I'm really glad of that, he's by far one of the best acquisitions we made this year.

I'm sad to see another season come to an end ... I'll be anxiously waiting for it to start again in the fall.

Nifty new thing from Amazon

2010-03-24T23:40:00.000-07:00

Amazon has this nifty new thing out to put related ads on my site. I've tried google adsense before, which got me nowhere ... as soon as I started really using it they canceled my account for no reason. Gotta say I was not impressed.

But this new thing from Amazon Associates is really neat. They supply ads for my page that best suit the things I talk about, so the more I talk about hockey or the Canucks they'll post ads for related things, like books, clothing, dvds and such. Very handy indeed, then I don't have to go through the hassle of looking them up myself ... amazon will do it for me.

Also, if I want to include a link like the ones above for "hockey" and "Canucks", you can just hover your mouse over the link and it gives a little preview window before you actually click it. I like that!

Thanks dudes!

And the sharks go down!

2010-03-18T22:35:00.000-07:00

I've been taunted for the past few weeks about our upcoming games against the sharks, and though I wouldn't admit it out loud I was maybe just a tad concerned. We do seem to have a bit of trouble beating them unless all their best players are sick and/or wounded.

But tonight I am vindicated! My Canucks are ON FIRE! All those healthy sharks and we took them down! I was especially pleased when my man Johnson got his first goal in ever-so-long ... a real nice one too. Kes puts everything he's got into every game he plays, I'm always impressed with him and how hard he works. After being pulled a few times recently it makes one wonder what's going on with Bobby Lou but tonight he was ON and played a fantastic game.

Bye bye sharkies, 3-2!!!
LOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

Canucks for kids night

2010-03-14T21:43:00.000-07:00

Great game tonight, we clobbered Calgary 3-1! Plus it's the Canucks for Kids telethon night and so far they're doing great with donations, over $800,000, though I'm sure it's never enough. I've been to Canuck Place a few times to take quilts over for the kids, plus having spent a lot of time at the IWK children's hospital in Halifax, NS I know the kids need all the help they can get.

When I was at the superskills competition this year they showed this video they made for the telethon. I particularly like the part with Johnson and Sami, but the whole thing is excellent. They're a great bunch of guys!

We ARE the Comeback Kids!

2010-03-10T12:49:00.000-08:00

Seems this year is the year of the Comeback Canucks ... kinda nerve wracking at times but if that's the way they're going to win, then hey - whatever works!
Last night even BL had to admit he sucked in the first period. I wonder lately if there's something wrong with his glove or his hand ... he's letting a lot of rebounds get away and doesn't seem to be catching so many, like his hand is sore or his glove is new and stiff or something. One of the first period goals the Av's got on him was a 5-hole ... I don't know if BL was hanging his head in embarrassment or looking down like "how'd that get thru?"

I was so excited when I heard at the beginning of the season that we'd gotten Samuelsson and I stand by that especially now, he's great! He goes to the net and he SHOOTS. Too often we see them pass and pass ... kinda hard to score if you don't shoot. First career hatrick last night, good job!

Mason, Mason, Mason ... he started out the year sucking, as usual; zooming for the net without passing at all, then heading straight for the corner. Then later in the fall he started passing and being more of a team player and heading for the net and shooting and he was scoring. Now for some reason he's back to his old methods and he's sucking again. Then last night he passed straight to the Av's guy who immediately scored. I don't blame Vinny for benching him and then demoting him to 4th line. I think he'll be back on his regular line tonight, or 3rd at the least until he gets back to playing better.

Last away game for this long road trip tonight, against Phoenix. I figure Raycroft will be in net. I have a meeting to go to so I'll miss the game I'm counting on being texted during my meeting to keep me updated on the score .... hint, hint.

Almost time to come back home

2010-03-09T15:54:00.000-08:00

Just 2 more games and my boys will be back home in GM Place ... I guess they've been working on changing it back to its normal self from being Canada Hockey Place for the Olympics.

The road trip hasn't been too bad, tho we had a bad game the other night against the Blackhawks. The only good part of that game was that I got to hear their Chelsea Dagger goal song, which is pretty cool. Woody's been doing a bit more lately, getting some goals and assists ... I love that guy!

Looks like only one of the remaining games is PPV, I'm very glad for that. I don't think we should have to pay to watch our local hockey team play on tv. Most of them are on SportsNet Pacific, which is also good because those are my favorite announcers. I call them "John Squared with a side of Murph". Always fun to listen to them!

Trades

2010-03-03T12:04:00.000-08:00

hmmmm .... doesn't look like we did very much. Got rid of Mathieu Schneider and picked up a couple of guys I've never heard of .... from what I've seen they look like Moose types but I could be wrong. I was really hoping they'd do something substantial, but I guess I'll have to trust that they know what they're doing and leave it at that.

Tonight is in Detroit. I do like the Red Wings, particularly when they sing their song and yell out "south detroit" ... the whole octopus thing is pretty cool too. I expect Luongo will be in net this time, hopefully the rest of the guys won't be all tired out from last night.

now I see that we also got Andrew Alberts from Carolina .... don't think I know him at all. He's a defense tho, so I guess we'll see. Was just reading his stats on the Carolina site .... 6'5" ... he's a big sucker!

First game back - Victory!

2010-03-03T09:22:00.000-08:00

Very pleased of my boys in their game last night. Raycroft gave me a bit of a scary moment there when it looked like he was going to do a Kipper ... he had the puck and came WAY out of his net, like almost to the blue line with a Blue Jacket right on his tail, and released the puck out there for play. Luckily for him, it worked and we ended up winning 4-3 in overtime. Woody made a great goal, popped it right up there - top shelf - I love that guy!

Trade deadline is today ... so far they haven't done anything but we'll see. I figure if they make any moves it'll be to get a new good defense, but as we all know they don't often ask me for advise. But that is the general murmur going around lately with Kevin and Willie both out for so long and it getting so close to the end of the season.

It would be AWESOME if we could get Scott Niedermayer, but that's doubtful. Still, it could happen .... we'll see.

Things are settling down, back to the regular season

2010-03-01T14:36:00.001-08:00

I totally LOVED the closing ceremonies for the Olympics last night. First I watched it on CTV, from start to finish, then at 8pm watched it on NBC, the American version. They focus on different things on there so you get another perspective. Interestingly enough, and apparently to the outrage of some Americans, NBC cut out the entire last part of the program where all the Canadian musical artists got to give a concert. It was AWESOME, we have so much great talent here to share with the world.

I really wasn't impressed at all with the opening ceremonies, they focused too much on the First Nations in my opinion. No offense to them, they deserve their due, but I just had so many people sending me comments and questions that they had no idea that they comprised such a huge part of Canadian population and culture, and they just don't. We're so much more than that and I think that was shown very well in the closing ceremonies. I loved the spoof they did at the beginning where they finally got the other thingie to come up out of the floor and Catriona Le May Doan finally got to do her part in lighting it ... that was cute. Then all the stuff later with Captain Kirk, Michael J Fox, the singing and giant mooses and beavers and mounties ... SO COOL! Now THAT's Canadian!!

Vancouver so often is criticized for falling short and cheaping out on things, and I have to admit that since I've been living here I've seen that up front and personal for sure. But I do have to say that they did an excellent job of handling the Olympics on the whole, despite the glitches and minor problems here and there, they kept those stupid protesters from making a total pest of themselves and overall I think it went very well. Good job VANOC!

Wish I'd thought to pick up a pair of those red mittens a few weeks ago when I saw heaps and piles of them in the stores ... it didn't really occur to me at the time. I'm hoping they'll get enough demand for them that they'll put out some more for a limited time, they'd be foolish to pass up on the opportunity to make some more money in the wake of this huge event.

So now that my boys and girls have won their gold medals in hockey (loved the gold maple leaf on the Canadian flag, ladies!) it's time to get back to the regular season. Tomorrow my Canucks play Columbus. I heard they've been practicing out at Burnaby 8 rinks during the Olympics so I sure hope they're ready. Apparently Willie isn't over his concussion yet ... I really hope he'll be back to play before the season's out. I've heard that Kevin is skating again, though not feeling 100% but doing better, so that's good news. They've called Baumgartner back up from the Moose to fill the empty hole in defense.

Anyhow, good luck tomorrow guys - I'll be wearing my Canucks gear here at home watching the game and cheering you on!

He shoots, he scores - we did it!!!

2010-02-28T15:26:00.000-08:00

What a game! Just when I was thinking (and actually saying at that very moment) that Sidney Crosby hadn't done anything useful the entire week, he gets our golden goal .... great job Sid!
I was sitting on the edge of my seat for most of the game, particularly the end of the 3rd and throughout overtime ... what an exciting game it was!

I'm SO glad we won and proved to the world yet again that Hockey is our game!

I've always been proud of being Canadian, I can't imagine ever being anything else. Even if I were to move to another country I could never change my citizenship. I love everything about this country.

I would never proclaim something so foolish that we, as Canadians, are perfect, nor is our country or anything about it, but it's perfect for me. I get teary-eyed every time I hear our National Anthem.

GO CANADA!!!

Hockey prayer for gold

2010-02-27T16:07:00.001-08:00

I just saw the coolest prayer on facebook:

Bros and sis please bow your heads and join me prayer.Our Father,who art in Canada Hockey place, hockey be thy name. Thy will be done, GOLD to be won on ICE as well as for us in the stands. Give us this day our hockey sticks, and forgive us our penalties, as we forgive those who cross check against us. Lead. us not into elimination but deliver us to victory, in the name of the FANS, CANADA, and the HOLY GAME. AMEN!

one more to GO-LD!!!

2010-02-27T10:11:00.000-08:00

I was really hoping Finland would beat the U.S.A., since we'd played U.S.A. already and that didn't turn out so well, though we didn't have BL in net at the time. But after that first goal the U.S. got on Kipper ... where he came way out of his net and passed the puck straight to the Fins and they scored ... I had a bad feeling from then on. It was all downhill from there. They really should have pulled Kipper after the first 3 goals, and I was very surprised to see that he actually pulled himself rather than the coach doing it.

Regardless, onward to Canada vs Slovakia. I was a bit surprised that they didn't come out pounding like they did with Russia, I figured since it worked so well then that they'd do it again, but I guess not. (I really wish I had the coach's cell number so I could text him during the game and share my thoughts with him, like that's gonna happen). Regardless, they did manage to get up 3-0, though Slovakia never should have gotten those 2 goals later on ... we ended up scrambling for the win by the end of the game. At least we did get the win, only one more game to go for GOLD.

The girls, by the way, did a GREAT job all the way, I'm so proud of them for winning gold for us!

Normally I'm mostly just familiar with my Canucks, so it's been a good experience to watch all these Canadian NHL players playing together and getting to know them all as a team. I don't know what Crosby's been doing, not much that I've seen ... I haven't been a huge fan of his from the start, he has skill but he seems like a big crybaby sometimes. And I haven't seen a whole lot of that skill demonstrated this week. Maybe tomorrow will be his day. Iggy, of course, I already knew well, as we play the Flames quite a lot ... he's good, I've always liked him. It's good to have a Blackhawk forward around like Toews, they're young, aggressive, and charge the net ... not so much fun when they're against you but handy to have on your side. I also like Staal, Heatley, and Getzlaf ... didn't know them very much but I really like how they play.

The coach did a good job putting the scary Sharks together, which makes sense since they're used to playing together already. If Getzlaf had ended up not playing and they'd put in Carter, they would have had the chance to put him with Richards, then we'd have had 2 other familiar team-mates playing together (for all you Flyers fans, even the ones whose wives won't let you watch the games or read Blockey - you know who you are). But Getzlaf is working out great regardless. BL is doing us proud in net, he should have been there all along and we wouldn't have had to play those extra games ... but that's behind us now and it's time to move onward to the end.
I'll have my jersey on to cheer my boys tomorrow, can't wait!!

Canada kills Russia

2010-02-25T15:41:00.000-08:00

Man oh man, that game last night was AWESOME!! I was jumping right up from my seat at some of those goals, they were playing so well ... it looks like our Canadian boys have found their groove and they are really working it.

BL played great, as usual ... he looked so much more comfortable in the net than Marty did the other night. Nothing against Marty, he is usually an awesome goalie in his own right, but this is Luongo's town and he does belong in the net for sure. He sure proved it last night.

Something that struck me near the end though .... we were 4 on 4 in the last period, someone took a shot and made a move for BL and all of a sudden all 4 of our guys were standing as a barricade in front of him. Why don't my Canucks do that? He's our best player, he deserves to be protected just like that every game.

Hopefully they'll play just as well for tomorrow's game against Slovakia, then on to the gold.
GO CANADA!!!

Oh noooooo

2010-02-22T14:30:00.000-08:00

Well, we did ok against the Swiss ... though we did need a shoot-out to beat them. Then came the Americans. Holy crap .... Marty should have been pulled after the first period, definitely by mid-second. I'm really hoping they put BL in net for the Germany game, but they don't often ask me for my opinion. Big mistake on their part, if you ask me.

Then once we get past Germany we have to play the scary Russians and Ovechkin ... I love watching Vech play, he's SO much fun, but I don't look forward to playing a whole team of him and his buddies. I can just imagine the reaction downtown if we don't get past that game .... it won't be a pretty sight, for sure.

GO CANADA !!!! And good grief, put Luongo in the net!!

Olympic Hockey - so far, so good - GO CANADA!

2010-02-17T12:24:00.001-08:00

I'm so proud of BL for getting his first Olympic shut-out last night -- great job! Overall it was a great game, the guys did an excellent job at keeping the Norwegians from scoring and once they got into their scoring groove they really kicked Olympic butt!

This is the Olympic Jersey I got for Christmas ... I'll get BL to sign it this fall.

Next game, tomorrow night against Switzerland - GO CANADA!

Getting to the Boss Men

2010-02-15T14:47:00.000-08:00

In my earlier post about getting the guys to sign the quilt, I forgot to mention my adventures in getting the bigwigs, ie Alain Vigneault and Mike Gillis, to sign it. They don't normally go to the pre-season practices, so my chances of getting them at the same time as the players were virtually nil. Then came time for training camp. I went to Thunderbird Arena early and got a good seat, had my coffee and my quilt ready, just sat there and waited patiently as the place filled up. And fill up it did, there was standing room only so it's a good thing I went early.

I was only half watching the guys on the ice ... the majority of the talk around me was about Cody Hodgson, who has yet to impress me, but I was looking for bigger fish. Finally, there was a group of people behind me, a couple of men with their kids, talking in French. I don't speak it very well, but I do understand most of what's said, particularly when I hear them talking about something that interests me. I heard them mention that Vigneault was there, sitting directly across from us by himself, white shirt and blue jacket. I looked across and there he was, chewing gum as usual. Then they said that Gillis was standing a few rows up behind Vinny, talking to some people ... lo and behold there he was too.

So I picked up my stuff and over I went, all the way around the arena through the big crowd of people until I got to the section where Vinny was sitting. He had a whole seating area to himself, but it wasn't roped off or anything so I walked right over to him. As I got closer and he realised I was headed for him he was watching me come, so I said "hi there!". He nodded and said "hi", so I asked "mind if I bother you for a sec?" and he said he didn't mind a bit. Showed him the quilt, told him I'd gotten the guys to all sign it and asked if he would and he agreed to right away. Then I asked if Gillis was busy or if he thought it would be ok to get him to too and he said go ahead and ask. I think Gillis was talking to the Aquilini's but I just went up behind him, tapped him on the shoulder and told him about the quilt, asked him to sign and he did. He even smiled at me ..... Mike Gillis smiled. Very nice guys, both of them.

This picture here is of Vinny at an open practice at GM Place ... looks like he's looking right at me lol

The NHL Quilt

2010-02-14T13:20:00.001-08:00

I decided this year to make a quilt incorporating all of the NHL teams' logos in it for my boyfriend for Christmas. He loved what I did with the Canucks logos and had been hinting that a quilt with the entire league on it would be cool, so I started thinking about it last spring.
I used the same method as with the Canucks logos, printed off each one on an 8 x 10" page, then drafted up a pattern from that. It took a while to make, very tiny and tedious work in many instances, but I got it done.
I arranged them in order that they joined the league, with the original 6 at the top, all way down to the final ones at the bottom. with the NHL logo as the background. It was kinda neat how it worked out that the Canucks ended up right smack dab in the middle ... hehehe
I quilted around all the parts of each logo to make them stand out, then I put orca shapes randomly in the background. The whole thing is about 50 x 56" and hangs on the wall in the office.

2009 - 2010 practices - more signatures on the quilt!

2010-02-14T12:55:00.000-08:00

This season they started practicing in the new Thunderbird Arena out at UBC. I went to my first practice there on September 1. Not all of the guys were there so I didn't really have much hope of getting signatures of the ones I needed, but I did get some good pictures. Got one of me with Ryan Johnson, Kevin Bieksa, and Willie Mitchell ... 3 of my favorite guys.

I got some good pictures of BL practicing too, here's an "action shot" of him having a refreshing beverage lol

This one below looks like he's saying "Aw Scrappy, aren't you done yet?!"
I felt kinda bad as he was getting off the ice ... Bobby Lou is such a great guy and always ready to sign things for his fans but I already had him so I just said hi as he walked past me to the dressing room lol

On Sept 10 I went back out for more signatures, I had heard that more of the team was in town since it was getting closer to training camp. By this point it was like I was collecting hockey cards, going through my list of "got it, got it, need it, need it ..."

At first just Pavel and Luongo were practicing so I took a few pictures of them while I waited for the rest to show up.

After about an hour the rest of the team started to trickle out. I was chatting with one of the security guards and asked him if it would be ok if I went over to catch them as they came out of the dressing room, or should I sit in the seats and wait til they came off from practice ... there was a table set up over by the hall to the dressing room and he said it would be fine if I went over there so I could spread my quilt out and get them to sign as they came out. Yahooey, thank-you mr security guard! This was perfect ... I spread out the quilt with the lower half showing, later flipped it to the upper half, so I could get the signatures evenly distributed. Kinda challenging when the guys come out in herds and I'm not sure what the new guys look like, but I managed to get quite a few of them. Had a guy who works at Thunderbird Sports Centre standing there chatting with me and he was quite helpful.

It was kind of funny, because there I was with my quilt laid out on the table, a security guard standing there with me chatting, I had on a Canucks hoody and cap ... as I needed someone to sign I'd wave them over when they came out of the dressing room and they'd oblige right away. I think poor Cory Schneider thought he HAD to do it, or that he was supposed to ... I saw him coming and said "hey Cory, could you come here a sec please?" and he came right over, asked him to sign the quilt and he was like "oh, ya .. sure!" (poor guy already had his gloves on, had to take them off to do it lol) and then off he went to the ice.

Later on while the guys were on the ice, I still had a few left to get and wasn't sure if they were there or not. I saw some of the TV reporters coming in and setting up over by the dressing room exit where I'd been before with my table, so at Gord's advice I went over to see them. I knew I recognized one of them, but didn't know his name so I just went over and said "hey reporter dude ... can you help me figure something out" and he very kindly looked thru my list of got-em/need-em's and told me who was who out there and who hadn't shown up today. Very nice of him, thank-you mr reporter dude.

Later on when the practice was finishing up and the guys were leaving the ice a few at a time, some students were sitting near me to get signatures on their stuff too. I only had a few left to get so I was just waiting for my guys to be ready to leave. These kids had quite the nerve ... as players were signing their stuff they were asking for their sticks ... as if they'd give away a perfectly good stick. I think not! I was still not sure about one player that I needed, and had seen a number on a helmet that I suspected was him, so I called over one of the Canucks trainers who was waiting for them to get off the ice and asked him. He confirmed that the player in question was indeed Brad Lukowich. Almost immediately after that Brad skated over with a broken stick and traded it for a good one and the trainer asked if I'd like to have the broken stick. Yessir indeed I would, thank-you mr trainer dude! So then when Brad was finished and came by to sign my quilt, I also got him to sign his stick, which now sits on my fireplace mantle.

Scrappy had a very good day, a very good day indeed!

All I have left to get are Yannick Hansen and Christian Ehrhoff ... I'll have to get them this fall when the next season is getting ready to start. Until then, the quilt is hanging on my living-room wall.

Getting it signed ...

2010-02-14T12:24:00.000-08:00

I decided almost as soon as I'd made the quilt that I wanted to get the team to sign it. I knew you could send in a puck, picture, hat, small stuff like that with a SASE to a particular player and they would sign and return it to you, but that wouldn't work for the entire team, I'd spend a fortune in postage alone. I had heard that they often had open practices at Burnaby 8 rinks (this was in the fall of 2008) in the pre-season so we went out to watch, took along my quilt on the off chance that I could catch some players after the practice was over. It turned out that I wasn't the only one with this plan, there were a few other people hovering around the parking area outside afterward with pictures, jerseys, etc. Not a huge crowd, thankfully, only about a dozen at the most.

There are two escape routes from the arena ... one in the back where the caged in parking area is, and one off to the side towards the public parking. I stood near the back exit, with an eye on the other door just in case. Lucky thing I did because Sami Salo came out the side door. I rushed over and asked him to sign my quilt, he did and was very nice about it. Back to the rear exit to watch for the others. Unfortunately, before I could get back to the side exit in time again Mattias Ohlund escaped to his car ... missed him.
This was the year we acquired Ryan Johnson, Jon Davison, Kyle Wellwood, and Steve Bernier ... none of which I recognized by sight yet. I saw a herd of players come out the back door and went over to them, asked if they were Canucks and they said they were. I told them that I didn't know their names without their numbers on their shirts (joked that they should have to wear their numbers on their clothes all the time) so they graciously told me their names as they each signed. Very nice guys.
In all that pre-season I went to the rink 3 times, and over that time I got signatures from Ohlund (finally on the 3rd day, I was ready for him out that side door), Darcy Hordichuk, Matt Pettinger, Pavel Demitra, Michael Grabner, Mike Brown, Kevin Bieksa, Ryan Kesler, Alexandre Burrows, Alexander Edler, Jeff Cowan, Taylor Pyatt, Willie Mitchell, Daniel and Henrik Sedin, Curtis Sanford, Jason Krog, and Roberto Luongo.

It was kinda funny when I got a few of them. I had gotten Daniel one day but didn't see Henrik at the practice, so I asked him where Henrik was. He told me Henrik would be there the next day, which he was. Henrik came out a little earlier than the rest of the team though, went straight to his truck and seemed to be in a hurry. A whole crowd of people were trying to get his attention, but I stood kind of in front of him to one side of his truck as he drove out .... I held up one finger as if to say "just one minute please?" and he waved me over and signed only my quilt, told the others to go away. Very nice of him indeed.

Then my last day stalking the boys, we hadn't seen Bobby Lou yet but one guy came outside and told us that BL was in there practicing with just his own coach, not the others. So we waited. BL came out after a while and of course was immediately mobbed by the people waiting for him (again, not a huge crowd). This one guy had a ton of pictures for him to sign in a big brown envelope, and it appeared that BL knew who this guy was because while he was signing my quilt and pink Canucks cap he was telling this other guy "I know who you are, I've seen you before and I'm not signing that stuff".

Overall, every one of my boys was so very polite and nice, Kevin even asked what it was he was signing and commented that he liked it. I got most of the team in those 3 days, but still had a few left to get ... they'd have to wait though as the season was starting and they weren't having any more practices out there for a while.

The quilt - We Are All Canucks

2010-02-13T13:32:00.001-08:00

In the fall of 2007 I started making plans for a Canucks quilt. I'm a professional quilter and knew it would be tricky but I was definitely up for the challenge.

I wanted to incorporate their logos in the quilt, so my first step was to email the franchise and ask for permission to use them. I assured them that the quilt was for my own use, in my own home, and that it would not be for sale so they agreed that it would be no problem. Then the work began.

First I printed off color images of each logo, from the rink, the flying V, skate, and the first orca. They're all the same size, about 8 x 10". The center current logo is quite a bit bigger. The logos are each made entirely by hand, appliqued and embroidered in detail ... some of them (like the skate) have some really tiny pieces! I made the background out of all different types of white fabric in 3" squares, to look like ice. then there's the skinny blue border and wider green border like on the jerseys. The "We Are All Canucks" is in a nifty blue and green swirly pattern. I quilted around every logo and around all the details to make them stand out, then a diagonal grid pattern in the background with an orca shape placed randomly in the quilting. If you look closely at the enlargement of the picture you should be able to see them.

I finished making it in March of 2008 .... what to do with it now .....

MY team

2010-02-13T13:21:00.000-08:00

As I grew up I had various boyfriends that would watch hockey, so I'd watch with them. It was always fun and interesting, better than a lot of crap that was on tv most of the time. One guy in particular liked, and does to this day, the Philadelphia Flyers so I've seen a LOT of them playing. Eventually I got married, and the idiot I was stuck with at that time hated any kind of sports except Nascar (yes I know, it's not a real sport ... tell that to him) so I didn't have any chances to watch hockey for a long time unless we happened to be at someone's house and they had it on.

Then in 2004 I made some big life changes and moved to Vancouver. It was late spring when I got here, so I missed hockey season that year and then there was the lockout in the fall, but I could see evidence of a great hockey town all around me. Canucks t-shirts and hats on people all over the place wherever I went, GM Place in all its glory with Canucks banners around it every time I walked to the library or Chinatown.

Winter of 2005 was my first full Canucks hockey season and I was hooked from the start. I quickly got to know my team and all the players, their numbers and information about each one. I couldn't get enough of it! Bert and Nazzy were a dynamic duo then, Cookie was fun to watch (tho I later learned what kind of player he really is), the Sedins were coming into their own. So exciting!

I was really disappointed to see the season end and a whole summer before the next one would start. Thus began my love of hockey and my Vancouver Canucks.

My history with hockey

2010-02-13T13:11:00.000-08:00

The first memory I have of anything hockey related at all is when I was very young living in Ontario. By young I mean like 3 years old. No, I didn't play hockey when I was 3 years old ... I've never actually played hockey at all besides floor hockey in the cafe-gym-atorium at school.

Like 99% of little kids, I never wanted to go to bed, particularly when I could hear my parents watching tv in the livingroom. Nevermind that I had no idea what was on and it likely wasn't anything I'd actually want to watch anyhow, the fact remained that I didn't want to go to bed. So I'd talk to my little sister, keeping her awake, or look at my books, play, talk or sing to myself, resulting in me being taken from my bed and made to stand in the corner until I was tired enough to go to sleep.

On my many, many, many visits to the corner it seemed to me that Dad was always watching hockey on tv. Of course that's impossible, but that's how it seemed at the time. I had the "Hockey Night in Canada" theme song playing behind me as I stood there, listening to them play as my Dad watched and cheered for his favorite team.

To this day, whenever I hear the "Hockey Night in Canada" song I feel this compelling urge to go stand in the corner.