...it begins again.
This is the 39th time a Vancouver Canucks team has waited eagerly for the puck to drop on the start of a new NHL season. The season is a long journey. Thirty-eight times that journey has ended without a Stanley Cup championship. Will this year's trip be just the same?
Of course not!
I wouldn't dare to imply that the team will necessarily win the Cup this year. Every year has its ups, downs, twists and turns. However, this season looks markedly different from the last couple of seasons. New personnel, new styles of play, new physiques for some (yes, I'm talking about you, Steve Bernier and Kyle Wellwood).
Where will this team end up come next spring?
Strap yourselves in, it's going to be a fun ride!
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Along Comes Luongo
Remember this song?
I figured since the Canucks face the Chicago Blackhawks in Round 2 of this year's playoffs, it might be fitting to riff on a Chicago song. So, here you have:
Along Comes Luongo
(to the tune of Along Comes a Woman, by Chicago)
My name is Toews and I thought I'd go deep in the playoffs
Deep in the playoffs, with maybe a run to the Cup
Hey Dion, you didn't much matter
And Jarome, you weren't much better
Goin' so smooth, bein' in the playoffs
For the very first time
Then along comes Luongo
There's a change in the way that I'm feeling tonight
Then along comes Luongo
And I'm not feelin' right
My name is Nicky, though some call me "Khabi" or "Bulin"
And "Bulin Wall" is a name that I'm called by my fans
Kiprusoff, he didn't much matter
Didn't care, I played so much better
Stanley Cup, name's already on it
Would this be the next time?
Then along comes Luongo
There's a change in the way that I'm playing tonight
Then along comes Luongo
And I'm not feelin' right
I'm not feelin' right (repeat chorus)
(instrumental break)
Then along comes Luongo
There's a change in the way that we're feeling tonight
Then along comes Luongo
And we're not feelin' right
We're not feelin' right (repeat & fade)
I figured since the Canucks face the Chicago Blackhawks in Round 2 of this year's playoffs, it might be fitting to riff on a Chicago song. So, here you have:
Along Comes Luongo
(to the tune of Along Comes a Woman, by Chicago)
My name is Toews and I thought I'd go deep in the playoffs
Deep in the playoffs, with maybe a run to the Cup
Hey Dion, you didn't much matter
And Jarome, you weren't much better
Goin' so smooth, bein' in the playoffs
For the very first time
Then along comes Luongo
There's a change in the way that I'm feeling tonight
Then along comes Luongo
And I'm not feelin' right
My name is Nicky, though some call me "Khabi" or "Bulin"
And "Bulin Wall" is a name that I'm called by my fans
Kiprusoff, he didn't much matter
Didn't care, I played so much better
Stanley Cup, name's already on it
Would this be the next time?
Then along comes Luongo
There's a change in the way that I'm playing tonight
Then along comes Luongo
And I'm not feelin' right
I'm not feelin' right (repeat chorus)
(instrumental break)
Then along comes Luongo
There's a change in the way that we're feeling tonight
Then along comes Luongo
And we're not feelin' right
We're not feelin' right (repeat & fade)
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Northwest Vertigo '08
Wow, the Canucks have swept their first round series with the St. Louis Blues, and as a result actually get the luxury of a break before Round Two!
Canucks fans don't know what to do with themselves.
This is certainly a different situation than at the end of last year. Remember? The clock was winding down on another season of futility, Trevor Linden's career was drawing to a close, and the Canucks were finding a way to lose game after game as they tumbled out of the playoff picture. Here are some lyrics I wrote towards the end of the season, as the Canucks struggled gamely to make the post-season. Enjoy.
Northwest Vertigo
(to the tune of Vertigo, by U2)
Unos dos tres... catorce
[Spoken vocal over footage of Naslund]
Turn it up loud, Captain!
Games tick down, it's tense
The Northwest is so tight
We need offense
The fans they want some goals
From Dan and Hank and Nazzy and the D must score
To play their roles
Can this team go there?
Hello, hello... (Hola)
I'm at a place called Vertigo (dónde estás?)
An injury will be a big, big blow
Then we'll have to call up
Scott Arniel, Arniel
The sked is filled with games
Where every one's a must
To win or blame
Will crash on Alain V
And heads will roll
They know they've got to win
At least they know
I can’t stand the heat
I’m asking for the cheque
The girl with crimson nails
Has Louie 'round her neck
Swinging to the music Whoooaaa
Swinging to the music Whoooaaa
Whoooaaa
Whoooaaa
Whoooaaa
Hello, hello... (Hola)
I'm at a place called Vertigo (dónde estás?)
I'd love it if they'd go sixteen and oh
Then all of the fans
They would squeal, squeal
[Edge solo + video of the Stanley Cup + great Canucks plays]
All of this... all of this can be yours
All of this... all of this can be yours
All of this... all of this can be yours
Canucks fans don't know what to do with themselves.
This is certainly a different situation than at the end of last year. Remember? The clock was winding down on another season of futility, Trevor Linden's career was drawing to a close, and the Canucks were finding a way to lose game after game as they tumbled out of the playoff picture. Here are some lyrics I wrote towards the end of the season, as the Canucks struggled gamely to make the post-season. Enjoy.
Northwest Vertigo
(to the tune of Vertigo, by U2)
Unos dos tres... catorce
[Spoken vocal over footage of Naslund]
Turn it up loud, Captain!
Games tick down, it's tense
The Northwest is so tight
We need offense
The fans they want some goals
From Dan and Hank and Nazzy and the D must score
To play their roles
Can this team go there?
Hello, hello... (Hola)
I'm at a place called Vertigo (dónde estás?)
An injury will be a big, big blow
Then we'll have to call up
Scott Arniel, Arniel
The sked is filled with games
Where every one's a must
To win or blame
Will crash on Alain V
And heads will roll
They know they've got to win
At least they know
I can’t stand the heat
I’m asking for the cheque
The girl with crimson nails
Has Louie 'round her neck
Swinging to the music Whoooaaa
Swinging to the music Whoooaaa
Whoooaaa
Whoooaaa
Whoooaaa
Hello, hello... (Hola)
I'm at a place called Vertigo (dónde estás?)
I'd love it if they'd go sixteen and oh
Then all of the fans
They would squeal, squeal
[Edge solo + video of the Stanley Cup + great Canucks plays]
All of this... all of this can be yours
All of this... all of this can be yours
All of this... all of this can be yours
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Overture, Curtain, Lights!
It's been a long time since my last entry, but...
It's the playoffs, baby!
There's a cliché often used in hockey circles, that the regular season is just prologue, and that the playoffs are the "real" season. I don't think that's necessarily so, but there's no disagreeing with the fact that the playoffs are a whole different animal from the regular season. Eighty-two games played, just to get to the point of starting with a clean sheet again.
The Canucks had a great ending to their season, going on a tremendous run through February and March, culminating in their edging out the Calgary Flames for first place in the Northwest Division and home ice advantage for at least the first round. The St. Louis Blues, their first round opponents, played an awesome last few weeks too, so this series will be a challenge.
There's all sorts of great storylines to follow -- Roberto Luongo's quest for playoff success, what could be Mats Sundin's last crack at the Cup, Alex Burrows' dedication of the season to the late Luc Bourdon... it'll definitely make for great drama.
Yes, even an old fan can get excited! I am!
Go Canucks Go!
Oh, what heights we'll hit! On with the show, this is it!
It's the playoffs, baby!
There's a cliché often used in hockey circles, that the regular season is just prologue, and that the playoffs are the "real" season. I don't think that's necessarily so, but there's no disagreeing with the fact that the playoffs are a whole different animal from the regular season. Eighty-two games played, just to get to the point of starting with a clean sheet again.
The Canucks had a great ending to their season, going on a tremendous run through February and March, culminating in their edging out the Calgary Flames for first place in the Northwest Division and home ice advantage for at least the first round. The St. Louis Blues, their first round opponents, played an awesome last few weeks too, so this series will be a challenge.
There's all sorts of great storylines to follow -- Roberto Luongo's quest for playoff success, what could be Mats Sundin's last crack at the Cup, Alex Burrows' dedication of the season to the late Luc Bourdon... it'll definitely make for great drama.
Yes, even an old fan can get excited! I am!
Go Canucks Go!
Oh, what heights we'll hit! On with the show, this is it!
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Batteries -- finally!
Remember all those toy commercials on TV when you were a kid? I don't exactly, but what I remember they all seemed to have in common was a hyper announcer at the end talking about how all those cool toys were actually sold separately, and that the batteries weren't included.
Where was the fun in that?! If I was gonna own something to play with, I wanted all the pieces, and I definitely wanted the batteries.
It's like that toy car set I had -- Hot Wheels "Sizzlers", oh yeah. They were like regular Hot Wheels, except they had a little socket on the side that allowed you to plug in a wire (that looked like a gas hose) from a large power supply (that looked like a gas pump). You pressed the top of the "pump" for a while, and the little car charged up... you'd then put it on the Hot Wheels track and it'd race around by itself for a while until the juice ran out.
The only problem was that once the batteries in the "Juice Machine" died, the cars didn't run anymore. The cars didn't even roll like regular Hot Wheels, since they had these little motors in them. And the thing took like 6 D cells to work, so you can imagine how often my Dad wanted to replenish the batteries!
(Now, lest you think my Dad was some meanie who wouldn't let his little nipper have any fun, I would remind you that:
1. I did get the batteries in the first place. Yay, Dad!
2. I wouldn't be happy buying bulk packs of D cells for my kids' toys either!)
So, does "Batteries not Included" remind you at all of Mats Sundin's delay in playing for the Canucks?
Sundin is like the toy that you really, really wanted for Christmas. All the fan and media noise about whether he was coming to Vancouver, and the answering equivocation from Sundin himself, was like all those times as a kid when you'd ask your parents, "Can I have (toy of the month)?" and they'd only reply, "We'll see." Argh, the uncertainty!
When Mats announced his signing with the Canucks, though, that was opening your present on Christmas Day and seeing you'd gotten exactly what you'd been bugging Mom and Dad for, for weeks and weeks. The shiny new toy! Yes!
The delay since the signing, though, has been like what followed after reading "6 D cell batteries required" on the toy box. Six D cell batteries? Who has that many of them just lying around the house? "Sorry, son, we don't have that many batteries." The wait would then follow where daily you'd take the toy out of the box, look at it, maybe read the instructions (again), and wonder if today would be the day when Dad would be carrying three twin packs of D cells with him when he got home. Waiting for the Canucks and Sundin these last few weeks has been like having the toy but not being able to play with it.
However: tomorrow night, hopefully, is the night when Dad brings home the batteries and we finally get to see what the toy can really do.
Which toy will Mats be most like? The toy that worked great and was so fun for two days, and then broke, never to work again? Will it be the toy that looked so cool in the ads, but just like those comic book "Sea Monkeys", in real life didn't bear any resemblance to the pictures? Maybe the X-ray glasses, that didn't really work, but just messed up your eyes?
Or maybe, just maybe, Mats Sundin will be like the toy that you remember from your childhood, the one that seems only to get shinier, faster, bigger, cooler and more exciting every time you remember it and with every year that passes by. You know, the one that included the realistic Stanley Cup trophy in the box.
Only one way to tell.
Time to put in the batteries.
Where was the fun in that?! If I was gonna own something to play with, I wanted all the pieces, and I definitely wanted the batteries.
It's like that toy car set I had -- Hot Wheels "Sizzlers", oh yeah. They were like regular Hot Wheels, except they had a little socket on the side that allowed you to plug in a wire (that looked like a gas hose) from a large power supply (that looked like a gas pump). You pressed the top of the "pump" for a while, and the little car charged up... you'd then put it on the Hot Wheels track and it'd race around by itself for a while until the juice ran out.
The only problem was that once the batteries in the "Juice Machine" died, the cars didn't run anymore. The cars didn't even roll like regular Hot Wheels, since they had these little motors in them. And the thing took like 6 D cells to work, so you can imagine how often my Dad wanted to replenish the batteries!
(Now, lest you think my Dad was some meanie who wouldn't let his little nipper have any fun, I would remind you that:
1. I did get the batteries in the first place. Yay, Dad!
2. I wouldn't be happy buying bulk packs of D cells for my kids' toys either!)
So, does "Batteries not Included" remind you at all of Mats Sundin's delay in playing for the Canucks?
Sundin is like the toy that you really, really wanted for Christmas. All the fan and media noise about whether he was coming to Vancouver, and the answering equivocation from Sundin himself, was like all those times as a kid when you'd ask your parents, "Can I have (toy of the month)?" and they'd only reply, "We'll see." Argh, the uncertainty!
When Mats announced his signing with the Canucks, though, that was opening your present on Christmas Day and seeing you'd gotten exactly what you'd been bugging Mom and Dad for, for weeks and weeks. The shiny new toy! Yes!
The delay since the signing, though, has been like what followed after reading "6 D cell batteries required" on the toy box. Six D cell batteries? Who has that many of them just lying around the house? "Sorry, son, we don't have that many batteries." The wait would then follow where daily you'd take the toy out of the box, look at it, maybe read the instructions (again), and wonder if today would be the day when Dad would be carrying three twin packs of D cells with him when he got home. Waiting for the Canucks and Sundin these last few weeks has been like having the toy but not being able to play with it.
However: tomorrow night, hopefully, is the night when Dad brings home the batteries and we finally get to see what the toy can really do.
Which toy will Mats be most like? The toy that worked great and was so fun for two days, and then broke, never to work again? Will it be the toy that looked so cool in the ads, but just like those comic book "Sea Monkeys", in real life didn't bear any resemblance to the pictures? Maybe the X-ray glasses, that didn't really work, but just messed up your eyes?
Or maybe, just maybe, Mats Sundin will be like the toy that you remember from your childhood, the one that seems only to get shinier, faster, bigger, cooler and more exciting every time you remember it and with every year that passes by. You know, the one that included the realistic Stanley Cup trophy in the box.
Only one way to tell.
Time to put in the batteries.
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