SB Nation - Christian Ehrhoff

Canucks Finally Move Into Top 8 In West With 4-1 Victory Over Predators

Sean Zandberg — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 08:40:40 -0000

Oh my. For the first time this season (I believe) we can finally say that the Canucks hold a playoff spot (image on left from Yahoo Sports). It may not last more than 20 hours, as both Detroit and Dallas (who are both 1 point behind Vancouver) play Wednesday night. A win for either team bumps us out again. But hey! Let's enjoy this while it lasts!

What a game. That was a tenacious, aggressive and consistent effort from the Canucks. It was almost predictable, considering how they play against red-hot teams. They killed Nashville's winning streak with style, out-shooting the Preds 36-21, and not being out-shot in any period. Hell, their 2nd period was fantastic, out-shooting Nashville 14-7, killing 2 penalties (and having no powerplays) and out-scoring the pesky Preds 2-0.

The Sedins had only 1 point combined in the previous 2 Canucks games. They combined for 6 points tonight and stole the show.

A few whack stats after the jump:

-Christian Ehrhoff was a -1 with no points and 5 shots.

-The much-scrutinized Kevin Bieksa still played less minutes (18:46), had 1 assist and was an even zero. Somebody mentioned in the game thread that he had not heard much from Bieksa tonight and that was probably a good thing. I guess so.

-Willie Mitchell and Sami Salo each finished a +3 on the night.

-Jason Arnott, Martin Erat and Steve Sullivan were no match for our top line. They each finished -3. Erat had a hat trick to obliterate the Canucks a couple weeks back, but had zero points and 1 shot tonight. It's OK to laugh at that.

-That was one of the best games I've seen Kyle Wellwood play all year. He's gotta shoot once in a while though.

-Dave Scatchard....you are a fail.

-What in the blue hell was up with the green men in the stands? That is some funny stuff right there.

BOXSCORE AND HIGHLIGHTS

NUCKS MISCONDUCT 3 STARS:

1. Henrik Sedin

2. Daniel Sedin

3. Roberto Luongo

Erat fails on the Salo shot that makes it 3-0

~~The Green Man Group.~~ A couple Green Man impersonators. Pretty funny hey Scatchard? Don't think Trotz was laughing though.

Hat tip to Puck Daddy for finding a clip of the green guys harassing Predators in the P-box:

Off the Post - December 7th

Conico do Mayo Miracle — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 18:37:44 -0000

1941 - Never forget. And don't forget what happened on Dec. 8th, 1980, while you're at it.
[NEW UPDATE] - Manny Malhotra will be signing autographs for free at the Sharks Store, Tuesday Dec. 15th, from 4:30 - 6pm. Be sure to slip a few greenbacks in the change jar - homeboy's only pulling in 6 figures.
[UPDATE] - McGinn and Vesce get reassigned... place yer bets on whether or not they'll be back by Wednesday.
TCY examines Patrick Marleau's potential price tag after this season, while Ivano27 investigates what Igor Larionov (and his hottie daughter) has been up to lately.
Devin Setoguchi answers questions from the masses, including the perrenial "Whose kitchen are you raiding this season?"
Dany Heatley, Dan Boyle, and Patrick Marleau (plus a 4th Shark TBD) will be signing autographs for a cool $169 per 2 persons @ Dave & Buster's, on January 31st. Reservations required.
A look at former Sharks defenseman Christian Ehrhoff as an Olympic hopeful.
Is Peter Laviolette the right replacement for John Stevens in Philadelphia?
The city of Edmonton begins preparations for the end of Rexall Place.
Size does matter for Gary Bettman - and he likes 'em small and boisterous.
For those that missed the Habs' 100th anniversary celebration, please consult Habs Eyes on the Prize (recommended).
Die by the Blade believes Andrej Sekera is the Sabres' Dan Boyle.
Signs your teammate is trying to kill you (big chuckle on the first one, huge groan on the last one).
Kris Versteeg gets an eyeful.

Scott Reynolds at Copper & Blue has been producing tweaked Bible verses for game day, and his latest for the Oilers victory over the Stars is a gem.
Speaking of the Stars (whom we play on Friday), Defending Big D examines the current state of the Dallas fanbase.
Buddha at Hockey Wilderness, on "He Who Shall No Longer Be Mentioned" (and no, it's not Gaborik).
With Cam Ward returning, the Canes have a goaltending decision to make.
Behind the Net debunks the argument that goalies need to see action in order to stop shots.
St. Louis Game Time has utterly corrupted Bart Simpson.
Hockey bigamy, as Vince Vaughn (a Blackhawks / J.R. fan) invades the Phoenix locker room.
On the off chance you haven't seen it in detail, Miikka Kiprusoff's save on Scott Nichol is (tragic? heart-breaking? nauseating?) destined for highlight reels for years to come.

Hurricanes 5 Canucks 3: Sloppy Seconds

Sean Zandberg — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 22:04:59 -0000

I said in the game preview: Should be an automatic win, right? Nope. That depends on how lightly the Canucks take these guys. They have to go out there and pretend those guys are wearing Devils jerseys.

Didn't happen.

A so-so first..outshooting the Canes 14-6 but not capitalizing on 2 power play chances, and bagging one past Manny Legace (Jannik Hansen).

An atrocious 2nd period..getting outshot 13-6, coughing the puck up, hanging Andrew Raycroft out to dry (which Alain Vigneault alluded to after the game), and surrendering 3 goals. Yeah, the refs should have blown the play dead on that Mitchell-Raycroft fiasco, but really, the score could have been 6-1 at that point anyways.

The 3rd period was all Canucks,

as they put the heat on Carolina, who have had a terrible time in 3rd periods this year. It almost worked. The Canucks almost erased a 4-1 deficit and pulled within a goal, but Erik Cole, who, thanks to us, has awoken from his slumber and bagged his hat trick goal into the open net to seal it.

Final shots: Canucks 36 Canes 27.

8 points combined for Erik Cole, Eric Staal and Ryan Whitney.

Can you believe that Christian Ehrhoff finished a +3?

I thought Kyle Wellwood looked alright out there today. He was rewarded with over 15:00 of ice time. His line kickstarted the Canucks in the 3rd, and I thought dominated that period.

You almost can't fault Andrew Raycroft on any of those goals. But then...as myself and others have said many times before: he goes down into the butterfly position so quickly all the time. The Canes picked corners on him. Maybe a tremendous save or 2 were in order. I think it's fair to say that. None came.

BOXSCORE (bring barf bag)

HIGHLIGHTS (stab your eyes out first)

My 3 Stars:

1. Erik Cole. (Rise from your grave)

2. Ray Whitney (1 goal and 2 assists)

3. Manny Legace (Yeah, yeah, 3 goals against but I'm going to throw him a bone for giving his team a chance to win it especially in the first)

Vancouver Canucks 2010 Olympic Preview

Yankee Canuck — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:26:58 -0000

Let's flip a coin. [Tenders Lounge]

View full size photo »

We already one great post at Olympic hopefuls for Vancouver but, as you may have seen, the SB Nation Hockey group has been running a series of previews as well, so Sean and I have to run one more least the higher-ups flog us.

We disagree on some of these too but that's the fun part. Here's our take on the Vancouver Canucks who - for the first time ever? - have the easy commute.

Pack Your Bags & Walk To Work

Roberto Luongo

#1 / Goalie / Vancouver Canucks

Height: 6-3

Weight: 205

Born: Apr 04, 1979

	GP	MIN	W	L	T	EGA	GA	GAA	SA	SV	SV%	SO
2009 - Roberto Luongo	20	1124	10	9			48	2.56	531	483	.910	1

Roberto Luongo (Canada) - Let's get the big one out of the way. The meltdown that was the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino left a bad taste in Lui's mouth. Everyone knows he's been eying these winter games in his own city like a fat kid froths at a cake from 100 yards off. Let the haters hate on him, but he's a lock and we all know it. But the starter? Probably not. Brodeur is still the pony to bet on and his November numbers were ridiculous (8-2-1, 1.67 GAA, .939 S%). Expect Luongo to pass Fleury and be Canada's #2 man between the pipes.

Daniel Sedin

#22 / Left Wing / Vancouver Canucks

Height: 6-1

Weight: 185

Born: Sep 26, 1980

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2009 - Daniel Sedin	8	1	6	7	3	4	0	0	1	0	30	3.3

Daniel Sedin (Sweden) - I don't think any other team can offer what Vancouver offers Sweden: an entire scoring line. Daniel had four points in eight games in 2006. And unlike in Vancouver, Daniel won't necessarily have to shoulder the offensive load with guys like Alfredsson, Backstrom, Eriksson, Zetterberg and Holstrom around. And I didn't even have to mention that Forsberg character either.

Henrik Sedin

#33 / Center / Vancouver Canucks

Height: 6-2

Weight: 190

Born: Sep 26, 1980

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2009 - Henrik Sedin	26	14	14	28	5	18	3	1	3	0	57	24.6

Henrik Sedin (Sweden) - Yeah, see above. Same deal with points from 2006. Creepy.

Mikael Samuelsson

#26 / Right Wing / Vancouver Canucks

Height: 6-2

Weight: 213

Born: Dec 23, 1976

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Mikael Samuelsson (Sweden) - What does Sammy offer? Prior Olympic experience? You betcha: in 2006 he added four points in eight games for team Sweden. Stanley Cup experience? Check. Can sort of tell the Sedins apart? The jury's probably out on that one.

Sami Salo

#6 / Defenseman / Vancouver Canucks

Height: 6-3

Weight: 215

Born: Sep 02, 1974

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2009 - Sami Salo	19	0	2	2	3	2	0	0	0	0	30	0.0

Sami Salo (Finland) - Great grandma's fragile chinaset Batman...the last thing poor Sami needs is MORE icetime. Finland's blueline isn't too deep as far as the NHL goes (only Timonen, Pitkanen and Koistinen spring to mind) and they can always elect to raid the European elite leagues or the KHL for replacements (Ossi Vaananen!!!). Salo has played in 10 Olympic games and has scored one goal and added three helpers.

Christian Ehrhoff

#5 / Defenseman / Vancouver Canucks

Height: 6-2

Weight: 205

Born: Jul 06, 1982

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2009 - Christian Ehrhoff	28	6	11	17	9	10	3	0	0	0	59	10.2

Christian Ehrhoff (Germany) - Blastoff is one of the few shining stars for Team Germany. This will actually be his third appearance in international play: he was the second youngest player back in 2002 and had two points in five games back in 2006. He'll join Schuber and Seidenberg on the blueline and get a truck load of work since Germany is, well, awful (they haven't finished higher than sixth in damn near 20 years).

Nearly A Lock

Ryan Kesler

#17 / Center / Vancouver Canucks

Height: 6-2

Weight: 205

Born: Aug 31, 1984

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2009 - Ryan Kesler	28	5	21	26	2	28	2	0	1	0	72	6.9

Ryan Kesler (USA) - Sean disagrees with me and I can certainly see why. However he wasn't a lock when the roster was first looked at this summer. He needed to go into camp, gel with the linemates and prove his worth. He's had a strong season so far and, though guys like Kane and Parise have past him on the scoresheet, Kesler has more points than both Brown and Backes so chances are he'll make it. He better too since he already went ahead and guaranteed a medal.

Work To Do

Pavol Demitra

#38 / Vancouver Canucks

Height: 6-0

Weight: 200

Born: Nov 29, 1974

Pavol Demitra (Slovakia) - I'm sure Demo would like nothing more than to join Hossa, Gaborik and Chara representing Slovakia, but obviously he has to be able to play first. It's probable he could be replaced by someone like Nagy or Satan if he can't make it. And, even then, I'm curious how Vancouver would feel letting him go play for the Olympics when he has yet to skate for the team. Demo clearly has the most work to do of all the current roster players.

Alexander Edler

#23 / Defenseman / Vancouver Canucks

Height: 6-3

Weight: 220

Born: Apr 21, 1986

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2009 - Alexander Edler	28	3	19	22	2	12	1	0	0	0	51	5.9

Alexander Edler (Sweden) - Edler's slow start coupled with a deep Swedish blueline (Lidstrom, Ericsson, Ohlund, Kronwall and maybe Hedman) probably nixes him from consideration.

Game 25 Preview: New Jersey Devils vs. Vancouver Canucks - 12/2/2009

John Fischer — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 05:00:16 -0000

by Bill Kostroun - AP

New Jersey Devils' Patrik Elias and Brian Rolston had huge afternoons against the Islanders on Saturday, racking up 4 points each. What will they do tonight against the Canucks? (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

View full size photo »

The Time: 7 PM EST

The Broadcasting Info: MSG+ for the TV; 660 AM WFAN for the radio

The Matchup: The New Jersey Devils (17-6-1) vs. the Vancouver Canucks (14-12-0)

The Last Devils Game: Think of a snowball at the top of the mountain. Think of something - say a Richard Park slapshot - causing said snowball to start rolling. Think of the New York Islanders being in the way of that snowball. The Devils grew to dominate the game and blow out the Islanders 6-1 at the Rock, the biggest win of the season so far and their third straight win.

The Last Canucks Game: The Vancouver Canucks drew the league leaders, the San Jose Sharks, on the second half of a back-to-back set. It didn't end well. The Canucks kept it close until Manny Malhotra broke the deadlock late in the third period; and so the Canucks went onto lost 4-2. Sean Zanberg of Nucks Misconduct recapped the game, describing it as a "snoozfest" and the GM Place crowd as "lifeless."

The Goal: Discipline. Vancouver is a team that will make anyone pay for taking dumb calls. Sure, they didn't show that off against the San Jose Sharks. But they have the third best power play success rate at 24.3%, just behind Anaheim (24.5%) and Columbus (24.8%). While the Devils are disciplined in terms of penalties (9.6 PIM/G is third best in the league), I'm also referring to being disciplined on defense. The Canucks in general are a high scoring team, averaging 3 goals a game - the ninth highest average in the league. While Devils fans can be confident in new U.S. citizen Martin Brodeur between the pipes, leaving him out to dry or having him bombarded with high quality shots could lead to disaster against Vancouver.

For a Vancouver perspective on tonight's game, Nucks Misconduct is a good place to check on. Read on for my thoughts on tonight's game.

The big story in the run up to tonight's game is that New Jersey Devils are getting healthier. Rob Niedermayer, Jay Pandolfo, and Johnny Oduya all returned to practice earlier in the week. Per Tom Gulitti's reports, Oduya returned to practice on Tuesday whereas Niedermayer and Pandolfo came back on Monday. While a return to games hasn't been set in stone outside of Oduya not playing, Jacques Lemaire hopes to have Niedermayer back in the lineup for tonight's game against Vancouver. Actually, Gulitti reported that Lemaire thinks both Niedermayer and Pandolfo could be ready for Vancouver, but both players' comments suggest otherwise.

Of course, it's not all good news. No, apparently, Jamie Langenbrunner "tweaked" something and didn't practice on Tuesday. According to Gulitti, it's apparently something with his back - something that has long been suspected as a back injury. Now, he's presumably played with that nagging issue so far and he's done pretty well regardless.

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2009 - Jamie Langenbrunner	24	5	17	22	8	6	1	1	1	0	68	7.4

It's not clear whether that will mean he can't play against the Canucks. After all, Langenbrunner had this to say to Gulitti:

"I’ll see how I feel when I wake up in the morning," he said. "I didn’t think it was going to be an issue today, so. I would assume that I’ll be bettter tomorrow., I worked with [team massage therapist] Tommy [Plasko] today and I feel better.

...

"I practiced yesterday and felt fine and felt fine all days yesterday," he said. "I woke up this morning and I didn’t feel so good and I wasn’t able to loosen up like I wanted to."

I think Chere summed it all best in his headline: Niedermayer and Pandolfo are probable, Langenbrunner is questionable, and Oduya is out. With respect to the roster size, the Devils can activate one of Niedermayer and Pandolfo without making any moves. Should Langenbrunner just get scratched and the Devils want both Pandolfo and Niedermayer active, someone has to go to Lowell. Most likely Vladimir Zharkov to start, as he can go freely between New Jersey and Lowell without waivers. So keep an eye on Chere and Gulitti during the day. If the Devils make a roster move, you can bet on both Niedermayer and Pandolfo returning.

As far as my guess for the lineup, I'm going to assume that those moves do happen and that Langenbrunner is good to go. I really hope he is, the Devils really can't afford more injuries to their top 6 forwards.

Zach Parise - Travis Zajac - Niclas Bergfors
Brian Rolston - Patrik Elias - Jamie Langenbrunner
Jay Pandolfo - Rob Niedermayer - Dean McAmmond
Andrew Peters - Rod Pelley - Matt Halischuk

Andy Greene - Bryce Salvador
Colin White - Mike Mottau
Mark Fraser - Matthew Corrente

Martin Brodeur
Yann Danis

If only Niedermayer is activated, expect Dean McAmmond to slide to that left wing position and either Zharkov, Ilkka Pikkarainen, or Eckford would be scratched. Likewise, if Pandolfo is only activated, McAmmond would likely center that third line and play with Halischuk on his right wing. Should Langenbrunner not play, I'd guess Zharkov would be back in the lineup in some way. Of course, these are all guesses and I will most likely be wrong in some way.

Either way, it'll be up to the top two forward lines to crack a pretty good Vancouver defense (28.7 shots against per game average, 11th in the league) and Roberto Luongo, the other high-profile goaltending candidate for Team Canada.

	GP	MIN	W	L	GA	GAA	SA	SV	SV%	SO
2009 - Roberto Luongo	20	1124	10	9	48	2.56	531	483	.910	1

OK, they aren't great numbers, but he's very talented all the same. When he's on, he's frightfully Brodeurian in how difficult he is to beat. Sure, Brodeur and Lemaire says this game

Moreover, the Canucks don't have a big pairing to lead their defense. Kevin Bieksa (22:10), Willie Mitchell (22:04), Christian Ehrhoff (21:44), and Alexander Edler (21:31) have very similar time on ice averages, which suggests to me that Alain Vigenault doesn't like to have one pairing or one line carry a heavy workload. Looking at Behind the Net's even strength numbers notes that Willie Mitchell, far and away, faces the highest quality of competition. So I assume he's the "#1" on the blueline. That said, none of these four really stick out in shots against/60 differential when they are on and off the ice. The biggest positive is Edler with 1.1 less shots per 60. But all of Vancouver's defensemen have a shots against/60 of 27 or less when they are on the ice, which speaks to an overall good effort by the blueline.

Either way, the Devils forwards probably won't have a weak defensive pairing they can pounce on unless one of those four defensemen is having a bad night. On the flipside, Vancouver may need those four defensemen to have equally good nights due to the Devils' top 6. I think it's fair to say that Zach Parise and Travis Zajac will be big players on offense for the Devils, but I would pay additional attention to how Patrik Elias and Brian Rolston play tonight. Both enjoyed 4 point games against the Islanders and showed some real good chemistry between each other. If they can showcase some of that again, it won't be just useful (if not important) for tonight's game but further evidence that it wasn't some flash-in-the-pan, everything-just-clicked moment. Hopefully, they'll get some points and command attention.

With respect to offense, as mentioned prior to the jump, the Canucks power play is something I think the Devils should avoid as much as possible. Tempting the third best power play in the league is never a smart idea. Leading the forwards for Vancouver is Henrik Sedin and his 14 goals and 14 assists; with playmaking Ryan Kesler following close behind in points with 5 goals and 19 assists. The production, like New Jersey, is shared throughout much of the rest of the line up - namely by Mikael Samuelsson, Mason Raymond, and Alexandre Burrows. Actually, Vancouver's defensemen show up high on the scoring list as well: Ehrhoff has 17 points (tied with Raymond for fourth most on the team), Edler has 16 (tied with Burrows for sixth most on the team), and Bieksa has 11 points. So the attack seemingly can start at the point, or at least the defensemen usually has a hand in Vancouver's offensive successes.

Essentially, on paper, this is a pretty solid Vancouver team in my view. I'm not sure why they are 14-12-0 and stuck behind a 5 teams in the Western Conference (Prior to Tuesday's games, 5th place LA: 32 points. 10th place Columbus: 30 points). Perhaps they aren't very good on the road? A road record of 4-8-0, 29 road goals scored against 40 road goals given up indicates that, yes, they aren't good on the road. What does that mean for tonight? Who knows.

All of this speaks back to Devils needing to show discipline on the ice. They can't just float through tonight's game and hope Vancouver will do the same. They can't take stupid calls or make dumb errors and hope Vancouver won't take advantage. Ideally, the Devils would perform as well as they did on Saturday against the Islanders. I don't think the Devils will explode for 6 goals or dominate in possession by the the third period the way they did. I don't think Vancouver will break down like that, especially after keeping their last game close until the end, despite not looking so good overall. They'll at least want to give a better effort after that game. Maintaining a solid defensive game in their own end while striking ahead and staying out of the box will take discipline. I think if the Devils do that, then they got a good chance on stretching their winning streak to 4 games.

Steve will have the GameThread up later today. Check out Nucks Misconduct to learn more about tonight's opponent. Please feel free to share your thoughts on today's game, today's latest news relevant to tonight's game, and discuss the opposition in the comments. Go Devils!

The NHL's top defensive defencemen

James Mirtle — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 02:56:24 -0000

More photos » by Chris Carlson - AP

Browse more photos »

As with the top defensive forwards list, this is the same Rod Langway Award business I've been putting out for a couple years now. It ranks players defensively based on (a) quality of competition at even strength, (b) goals against per minute played at even strength and (c) goals against per minute played on the penalty kill.

Players also have to have played at least 15 games and fill a significant role on their team's shorthanded unit. Credit, as always, to Behind The Net for the data.

Here are the top 25 a little past the quarter-way mark:

	NAME	TEAM	GP	QCMP	EVGA/60	SHGA/60
1	CHRIS PRONGER	PHI	24	0.12	1.38	4.41
2	DUNCAN KEITH	CHI	25	0.14	1.59	4.12
3	JAY BOUWMEESTER	CGY	26	0.08	1.39	4.51
4	ROMAN POLAK	STL	24	0.12	1.71	5.06
5	PAVEL KUBINA	ATL	23	0.06	1.71	3.38
6	MIKE MOTTAU	N.J	23	0.09	1.69	5.00
7	COLIN WHITE	N.J	24	0.11	2.06	4.63
8	JEFF SCHULTZ	WSH	20	0.09	1.38	6.08
9	NICK LIDSTROM	DET	26	0.08	2.15	3.83
10	MIKE WEAVER	STL	23	0.03	1.12	4.38
11	BRENT SEABROOK	CHI	23	0.17	1.50	6.84
12	M-E VLASIC	S.J	28	0.13	2.51	3.01
13	ROB BLAKE	S.J	17	0.18	2.58	3.85
14	ED JOVANOVSKI	PHX	18	0.08	2.35	1.24
15	MILAN JURCINA	WSH	20	0.16	2.26	5.60
16	NIKLAS HJALMARSSON	CHI	25	0.04	1.56	5.02
17	ANDY SUTTON	NYI	26	0.08	1.60	6.26
18	ZBYNEK MICHALEK	PHX	17	0.07	1.92	5.53
19	ZDENO CHARA	BOS	26	0.23	2.65	4.97
20	RADEK MARTINEK	NYI	16	0.10	1.81	6.47
21	DARRYL SYDOR	STL	18	0.05	1.19	6.75
22	CHRISTIAN EHRHOFF	VAN	26	-0.06	1.31	3.52
23	GREG ZANON	MIN	24	0.06	1.81	6.31
24	JOSH GORGES	MTL	26	-0.05	1.39	3.91
25	WILLIE MITCHELL	VAN	26	0.15	1.85	7.85

Pronger, Keith, Bouwmeester — sure, those are all names synonymous with tough defence. But how about Mike Weaver? Or Pavel Kubina?

It's early, but all of these players are playing significant defensive roles on their teams. Some benefit from having a great goaltender behind them, but there are a lot of blueliners here from weak teams, too.

Someone like Weaver, who has a really low profile, is considered by his coach a pretty big part of shutting down top opposition:

"I'd say Weaver is one of our best puck-movers," Murray said. "He's not a finisher, but in terms of moving the puck out of our zone and putting it in the hands of our forwards, he's pretty good. He's not a guy that contributes on the offensive side. But what is an amazing stat, he's plus-5. And for quite a while there, he and Roman (Polak) were playing the top line on every team. He's a plus-5."

Those are the sorts of guys I'm trying to highlight here, and for the most part, I think this works — even if there are some surprises. The real test is which guys can maintain play like this all season.

How Will the Olympics Affect the Canucks?

nucksandpucks — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 16:55:13 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

Soon to be enemies...

Browse more photos »

It's less than three months until the 2010 Olympics kickoff, and speculation is rampant about the makeup of the Canadian and other national teams. It appears that a number of Canucks will skate on "home" ice in February, as a few players are likely to make their respective national teams. After the jump I give a rundown of what Canucks we can expect to see skating on GM Place ice during the Olympics, and raise some questions about the impact this might have on the latter part of the season.

Canada

Locks: Roberto Luongo

Other possibilities: none (sorry Kyle Wellwood)

United States

Locks: Ryan Kesler

Other possibilities: Mathieu Schneider (a dark horse, but maybe a PP specialist)

Sweden

Locks: Daniel Sedin, Henrik Sedin, Alexander Edler

Other possibilities: Mikael Samuelsson

Russia

Locks: none

Other possibilities: Sergei Shirokov? Okay, maybe not.

Finland

Locks: none

Other possibilities: Sami Salo (If he's healthy he should be on the team)

Germany

Locks: Christian Ehrhoff

Other possibilities: none

Slovakia

Locks: none

Other possibilities: Pavol Demitra (if he's healthy); Mario Bliznak (I don't know what Slovakia's depth is like, but hopefully they don't need to dip too far into the AHL ranks to ice a team)

If Only They'd Qualified

Locks: Michael Grabner (Austria); Jannik Hansen (Denmark)

So the Canucks could have up to 10 regulars playing in the Olympics. While it will be awesome to see our boys putting it on the line for their country, how will the team fare coming out of the Olympic break? The Sedins, Kesler and Luongo will all potentially be fatigued. Who will step up for Vancouver? We'll need Raycroft to shoulder a bigger burden, which he has demonstrated the ability to do. Secondary scorers like Alex Burrows, Mason Raymond, Kevin Bieksa and Steve Bernier will need to step up. Wellwood will have spent two weeks laying by the pool, so he should be good to... oh, wait, never mind.

It will be an interesting time for the Canucks, as it will for other teams with significant international contingents. Throw in Canucks' epic pre- and post-Olympic road trip, which will rival the journeys of Odysseus, and the new year looks like a giant wildcard for Vancouver. How do you think the Canucks will respond? Will the Olympics help us? Hurt us? Make no difference? Hopefully one of our boys can pull the rare Olympic Gold and Stanley Cup feat in 2010. I'm looking at you, Luongo.

Off the Post - November 22

Conico do Mayo Miracle — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 10:00:11 -0000

[UPDATE] - The NHL suspends Danny Briere for 2 games for his hit on Scott Hannan... is it just me, or has he been a little violent lately?
[UPDATE, thanks to Section223] - Don't expect Torrey Mitchell tomorrow... and Dan Boyle is questionable.
[UPDATE, thanks to Tarlinian, Pizzle and Section223] - Torrey Mitchell is back from Worcester, though he might not be in Wednesday.
[UPDATE, thanks to idunno723] - Benn Ferriero, Ryan Vesce, and Logan Couture are headed back to Worcester.
[UPDATE, thanks to Nael M.] - The Sharks might be in Europe next season... dammit.
Wooooo! We're #1!
This day in history...
- November 22, 1963 - does it need an introduction?
- November 22, 1999 - Wayne Gretzky is inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
- November 22, 2008 - the Sharks had 35 points... in just 21 games.
The Sharks Store is holding a Black Friday sale on November 27 - up to 33% off on jerseys.
Broad Street Hockey's recap of a decisive Sharks victory.
How are our former Sharks doing? Five players of note.
- #1 = A look at former Shark defenseman Matt Carle's success with Philadelphia.
- #2 = Christian Ehrhoff is doing pretty well for himself up in Vancouver.
- #3 and 4 = Milan Michalek scored his 100th career goal, while teammate Jonathan Cheechoo notched another goal for a season total of... two.
- #5 = Steve Bernier has three goals in his last two games (both against Colorado).
How awesome is this photo? Thanks to the Sharks Foundation and the Reading Is Cool program.

Three Sharks are in the top 7 for the early Art Ross race, while Dany Heatley in particular leads the pack in the Rocket Richard run-off (granted, A.O. is injured) and in PP goals, and is tied for first in game-winning goals.
Two Sharks fun facts = Heatley finds the back of the net one out of four times he shoots, and Derek Joslin, believe it or not, actually leads the league in something.
Ross McKeon's power rankings return.
Mirtle calculates the number of NHL man-games lost to injury, and San Jose comes in at 13th.
Fear the Fin - ranked 17th among hockey blogs.
Dallas Stars winger James Neal gets suspended for 2 games after hitting Derek Dorsett from behind. Dorsett's collapse is chilling to watch.
Jeremy Roenick shoots the shit, including referencing the Neal hit.
The NHL eyes a second team in the Greater Toronto Area.
The national teams pining for Olympic gold.
Steven Stamkos provides a goal for the ages, against the Anaheim Ducks... a shame it wasn't televised in Tampa. (Note - Stamkos also has points in all but 4 games this season)
Road trip photos, if you're interested.
Pickles' first fight.... ever.

"Errorhoff" No More

Sean Zandberg — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 23:40:33 -0000

Ehrhoff-mania is running wild in Vancouver and for Canucks fans all over the globe. He's been training, saying his prayers and eating his vitamins. And what'cha gonna do opposing teams? What'cha gonna when the magic hands of Christian destroy you, brothers?

Missy mentioned in the comments section of the post below that we need to dub Christian with a new nickname. Affectionately dubbed "Errorhoff" by Sharks fans in the past, we just aren't seeing many errors from our +/- leader (no one's even close to his +11) and highest scoring defenceman.

So, let's put this baby to bed, so to speak. Thanks to Yoata for getting this ball rolling in the Game Thread last night.

Poll

What should Christian Ehrhoff's new nickname be?

Bobbyhoff

12 votes

Orrhoff

69 votes

Blastoff (or Blasthoff)

108 votes

Scorehoff

17 votes

Hasselhoff

50 votes

Other (provide in comments section)

13 votes

269 votes | Poll has closed

Canucks Lines For Sunday VS Blackhawks

Sean Zandberg — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:08:42 -0000

Jason Botchford has tweeted that lines will look like this:

Sedin-Sedin-Burrows

Raymond-Kesler-Samuelsson

Hansen-Wellwood-Bernier

Glass-Johnson-Rypien

Matt Pettinger has cleared waivers today, and could be assigned to the Manitoba Moose. The Moose beat the Hamilton Bulldogs 5-3 last night. Mike Keane scored twice and Sergei Shirokov had a goal and an assist. They have now won 3 straight.

As for the Canucks game last night.... well I'm still pretty damned happy about it. That was a gutsy win. The Canucks hardly showed any rust out of the gate. The team could have cashed it in after 2 weak calls and 2 powerplay goals against in the first period, but they didn't.

Blastoff. Welcome to the Vancouver spotlight, Christian Ehrhoff, you shitkicker you!