Canucks All Access
The Vancouver Canucks were constantly on the ice over the last week playing five games in eight days, combining a California adventure with a short-lived two game home stand ending Wednesday in a win versus the Wild.
The Canucks went 3-1-1 over the stretch, bowing down to the Kings in a humbling loss and splitting a pair of 3-2 games in overtime against the San Jose Sharks.
The Sedin twins have been especially strong over the past several games; last week’s 5-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks was the duo’s most dominating performance against a string of opponents that struggled to understand the clever Swedes.
Around the Rink
Roberto Luongo celebrated his 700th career regular-season game in style with a commanding 3-0 shutout victory over the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday. The shutout was Luongo’s 30th all-time as a Canuck which leads the franchise spotting Kirk Maclean ten clean-sheets.
On a night Luongo easily could have been caught looking ahead to an important matchup versus the Boston Bruins, the starter kept his cool against the mild Minnesota attack.
While Devin Setoguchi was able to test Luongo on a couple of occasions Wednesday night, the Wild can’t compare to the reigning Stanley Cup Champs waiting for the Canucks to arrive on the East coast.
State Of The Canucks January 5th
Saturday’s Stanley Cup Final rematch is the first time the Bruins and Canucks will square off since Game Seven of last year’s playoffs and the animosity is expected to carry over between these two bitter rivals.
Both the Canucks and Bruins are the titans of their respective conferences and could be considered Stanley Cup Final favourites once again.
In the Infirmary
Forward Byron Bitz was waived by the Vancouver Canucks earlier this week in order for him to be sent down to the Chicago Wolves to rehabilitate a nagging hip injury.
The right winger is still recovering from early season surgery that sidelined him for the entire regular season.
Chris Higgins returned with two solid games at home after a wrist infection sidelined the forward for all three of Vancouver’s games on a quick California road trip.
Higgins returned to play alongside Ryan Kesler and Mason Raymond on the Canucks’ second line.
David Booth has missed 14 games with a knee injury and will travel with the Canucks on their upcoming four-game road trip.
While the left winger is still a few days away from any potential return, the scoring depth injected into the lineup is a welcome addition just after midway point of the season.
Canucks in the community
ATTEND A PRIVATE PRACTICE
Want the chance to watch a private practice at Rogers Arena? You and a friend could do just that! Enter now at canucks.com/privatepractice and you could get a behind-the-scenes look at the Canucks practice drills on January 14th as they prepare for the Anaheim Ducks.
Next 5
Remaining Schedule
| Date | vs | Last Meeting |
| 1/7/12 | @BOS | L 0-4 6/15/11 |
| 1/9/12 | @FLA | W 2-1 10/11/10 |
| 1/10/12 | @TB | L 4-5 (OT) 12/11/10 |
| 1/12/12 | @STL | L 2-3 11/4/11 |
| 1/15/12 | ANA | W 5-2 12/29/11 |
About Kevin Vanstone
