GDT: WCQF Game 7: Vancouver Canucks vs. Chicago Blackhawks - 7:00PM PST - SPAC

[Mr. Canucklehead]

That team was so incredibly good. Too bad the combination of abysmal officiating and being decimated by injuries crippled the team in the Final.

But man, what a team. And in that game, the line of Kesler/Raymond/Burrows was everywhere.

Also feel for Ballard. The few times he got his feet under him in that run (Game 7 vs Chicago, the WCF vs San Jose) he was excellent. Smooth and physical. He would have been so good at that level against Boston, but AV just didn’t trust him and instead immediately benched him for Rome, and then again for Alberts in the SCF.

 

[Canadian Canuck]

It is criminal how that 2009-2012 core didn't come away with at least one cup. Way too unfortunate that the Hawks and Kings rose as well during that era.

2009 is still the year that got away. Sundin was heating up in the 2nd round and the team was scoring. Luongo and the D were shakey though but the team was holding up well until game 4 and then it totally went downhill after that Havlat goal. Kanes 7-5 goal was a thing of beauty but Luongo f***ing sucked in game 5 and 6.

Too bad they didn't hold onto the lead in game 4 of round 2. They would have matched up well against the Red Wings.

2010 was the Hawks year.

2011. Tampa should have won the ECF.

Yeah if Tampa won the ECF, there is no chance we wouldn’t have won. Our team matched up against them too well.

 

[VanJack]

The outcome of the 2011 Stanley Cup playoffs is like a gut-punch, even nine years later. That was the Canucks year.

But as we later learned, they basically ran out of healthy bodies. Hamhuis was knocked out and Kesler was playing with a bad hip, and could barely play at 30 percent. And then they lost another d-man when Aaron Rome was suspended. And other players were struggling with injuries incurred during that long grind.

Looking back on it, if the Canucks had managed to dispatch the Hawks in five games after going up 3-1, the whole playoff result would have changed. Because clearly with all hands on deck, they were better than the Bruins that year.

But just a reminder how tough it is to win a Cup, and how so many things have to go your way for it to happen.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

third period + five mins of OT = 25 minutes of hockey that gave me the closest thing i've ever had to a cardiac event

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

nobody hug

Oreskovich

f that guy

 

[Mr. Canucklehead]

The outcome of the 2011 Stanley Cup playoffs is like a gut-punch, even nine years later. That was the Canucks year.

But as we later learned, they basically ran out of healthy bodies. Hamhuis was knocked out and Kesler was playing with a bad hip, and could barely play at 30 percent. And then they lost another d-man when Aaron Rome was suspended. And other players were struggling with injuries incurred during that long grind.

Looking back on it, if the Canucks had managed to dispatch the Hawks in five games after going up 3-1, the whole playoff result would have changed. Because clearly with all hands on deck, they were better than the Bruins that year.

But just a reminder how tough it is to win a Cup, and how so many things have to go your way for it to happen.

If I’m not mistaken - Ehrhoff played through a shoulder injury, Edler had a sprained / fractured wrist, and Henrik had a significant back injury. Even the guys that were in our lineup were the walking wounded. IIRC, even Chiarelli conceded the Bruins were significantly healthier and that was a big factor in their victory.

 

[David71]

The outcome of the 2011 Stanley Cup playoffs is like a gut-punch, even nine years later. That was the Canucks year.

But as we later learned, they basically ran out of healthy bodies. Hamhuis was knocked out and Kesler was playing with a bad hip, and could barely play at 30 percent. And then they lost another d-man when Aaron Rome was suspended. And other players were struggling with injuries incurred during that long grind.

Looking back on it, if the Canucks had managed to dispatch the Hawks in five games after going up 3-1, the whole playoff result would have changed. Because clearly with all hands on deck, they were better than the Bruins that year.

But just a reminder how tough it is to win a Cup, and how so many things have to go your way for it to happen.

alot of what ifs... being up 3-1 should have been able to knock off the hawks early and have a weeks rest off to heal bumps and bruises. but nope.. it didn't happen win game 7 against the hawks and a few days later go against the preds.

 

[SillyRabbit]

Can you imagine the laughingstock that we would’ve been if we had blown that 3-0 lead as the #1 seed?

And to the Blackhawks no less... we would’ve never been able to live that down.

At least when we lost it was one game away from the Cup, not blowing a 3-0 lead to a team that had been knocking us out of the playoffs every year.

 

[Luck 6]

Such a luxury having two of the best PKers and defensive forwards playing in your top 6 scoring a combined 70 goals. That just opens up so much flexibility with the bottom 6. That’s something that this team sorely misses.

Watching this game kind of shows how far away we are from competing as a top team, but offers some hope as we do really have some real positives too.

Hopefully in the next 5 years we can burn off these junk contracts, rebuild the bottom 6 to be extremely mobile, then revamp the defense.