Would the Vancouver Canucks move on to the Stanley Cup Finals 17 years to the day after the last time they did it? Or would San Jose keep their series alive on the battered shoulders of their Captain and bring it back home?
The Night that Was:
With a trip to their third-ever Stanley Cup Finals on the line, the Vancouver Canucks came out with one goal in mind last night, and that was to close off their series with the San Jose Sharks at home. A win would mean no return trip to the Shark Tank would be necessary. Things started out well for the Canucks too, as despite getting outshot 15-6 in the first period, Roberto Luongo stood on his head and Alex Burrows put Vancouver up 1-0 off of a great setup from the Sedins. That lead would last until mid-way through the second when Patrick Marleau would tip home a Dan Boyle point shot on the power play to tie the game. Things would take an ugly turn just seconds into the third period, when an airborn pass from Kent Huskins found Joe Pavelski, who stepped around a Vancouver defender and chipped it past a diving Luongo to Devin Setoguchi, who tapped his seventh into an empty net. That 2-1 lead seemed to suit the Sharks just fine as they protected it until the final seconds, when a widely questioned icing call brought a faceoff to the Sharks’ end. The Canucks turned up the pressure off the draw and Ryan Kesler tipped a seemingly harmless shot from Henrik Sedin along the boards home to send it to OT.
The first overtime would solve nothing this game, other than helping both teams to game-highs in shots (16 for San Jose and 9 for Vancouver) in a single period. As things transitioned into a second OT, Chris Higgins got a huge opportunity on a breakaway, but Antti Niemi continued to stand tall for the Sharks, making one of his 31 saves on the evening. The last one of those 34 shots to beat him though, he wouldn’t even see. That’s because as Alexander Edler tried to dump the puck in deep on San Jose, it took a funny hop of a stanchion and rolled to Kevin Bieksa who knuckle-pucked home the game-winner. That goals is quite possibly the weirdest you will ever see. Playoffs or otherwise. Despite being outshot 56-34 in the game, the Canucks now find themselves awaiting an opponent in the Stanley Cup finals, somewhere they haven’t been since 1994. And if you’re wondering, Henrik Sedin didn’t lay a finger on the Clarence Campbell Bowl, much to the delight of Canucks fans.
The Injury Bug:
-Aaron Rome and Christian Ehrhoff both sat out last night’s game for Vancouver. Ryan Kesler left part-way through the game with an apparent groin injury, but obviously returned to action to score the tying goal.
-Despite a separated shoulder, Joe Thornton stuck to his word and played in Game Five, and was actually one of San Jose’s best forwards. His efforts will probably be forgotten, but Thornton dominated the first period offensively, and ended up leading the Sharks with seven shots on goal while going 10/18 on faceoffs.
-Sean Bergenheim is doubtful for tonight’s Game Six in Tampa Bay. He skated off during Game Five with an unknown injury.
-Johnny Boychuk is listed as probable for Game Six of the Eastern Conference Finals. He was hit from behind by Steve Downie in Game Five and left the game.
What’s on Tonight?
Boston tries to punch their long-awaited ticket to the Stanley Cup finals with a win on the road against Tampa Bay, while the Lightning try to force Game Seven. Things get underway at 8:00pm Eastern tonight.
News and Rumours Around the League:
-After the Mike Smith experiment failed to yield a win, Dwayne Roloson will be back between the pipes for Tampa tonight and looking for a win.
-The legendary Stan Mikita was diagnosed with oral cancer yesterday. Mikita’s prognosis is excellent and it’s expected he’ll begin treatments soon.
-Liam Reddox has signed on for a season in the Swedish Elite League with the Vaxjo Lakers after a year split between the AHL and NHL. Reddox had 10 points in 44 NHL games in 2010/11.
Your Top Playoff Performer of the Night:
The Canucks got two-point nights out of Burrows, Edler and Henrik Sedin, but the biggest performance of all came between the pipes. Roberto Luongo made 54 saves en-route to his first Stanley Cup Finals appearance, and saved his best playoff performance for when his team needed it the most.
You can follow Bryan on Twitter at BryanThiel_88.