Sports Couple

The Canucks need some changes up front. Nothing drastic, but it was clear watching them struggle for offense for much of this season, and more importantly during the playoffs, that they didn’t have quite the right mix. Changes need to start with the addition of a skilled forward to play with Ryan Kesler and David Booth.

I think there were four problems with the forwards this season. One, the second line was missing a playmaker; two, Kesler clearly struggled with his hip injury for most of the season; three, Manny Malhotra is not the same player he was before the devastating eye injury leaving a hole on the third line; and four, they were missing a sparkplug somewhere in the lineup – a guy like Raffi Torres who gets up and down the ice, bangs, crashes, changes momentum, and scores 15 to 20 (Mason Raymond is not that guy).

I recently broke up with my girlfriend. And we’re not getting back together. It’s not that we don’t love each other, or wouldn’t like to get back together, it’s that there is too much water under the bridge. And Vancouver’s relationship with Roberto Luongo is much the same. There are too many bad memories, too many episodes of booing, too many soft goals and slumps. So many bad times, that they tend to gloss over the good times. Like the 2007 playoffs where Luongo put together, probably the greatest two-series goaltending performance in NHL history, or the run to the finals.

Whitecaps FC went into their match against FC Dallas last Saturday looking to find some offense while rediscovering their early-season defensive form. The Caps’ defense, led by goalkeeper Joe Cannon, started the season with a string of shutouts, but conceded six in the last two games – three against the San Jose Earthquakes in a 3-1 loss, and three more in another 3-1 loss to Sporting Kansas City last Wednesday.

Heading into the match the ‘Caps had only scored five goals and sat in seventh in the Western Conference. The midfield had struggled through large stretches of games to control the ball and provide the necessary service to create scoring chances. 

Another day, another suspension controversy for the NHL. In case you missed it, during the third period of last night’s Nashville, Detroit game, 6’4, 230-pound Nashville defenseman Shea Weber grabbed Detroit forward Henrik Zetterberg’s head and smashed it into the end boards with extreme force.

Weber’s punishment? A $2,500 fine.

Relative to the average North American salary, the cost to Weber was 14 dollars.

If the NHL is actually serious about curbing concussions, why such a minimal response to a vicious play?

How can anyone continue to respect Brendan Shanahan and the NHL Disciplinary Committee after that decision?