“We Are All Canucks”
Bieksa Doing His Best To Prove That Defense Does Win Championships
Starting during the 2008-09 season, the Vancouver Canucks dropped the “We Are All Canucks” campaign on their fans. Over time, the marketing department may have gone in different directions, but at the end of the day, the team still wants us to feel that we are the seventh man on the ice.
Since hitting the ice in 2005, Kevin Bieksa has put in a workman’s effort into becoming one of, if not, the best defenseman in the Canucks lineup.
More often than not, fans will find “Juice” as part of the first pair of defensemen to hit the ice on a nightly basis.
While Bieksa has had a few bad breaks during his career with the Canucks, reaching a career high in games of 81 only once, his ability to give the team a two way presence has helped the Vancouver club join the elite teams in the NHL.
Although recently he may not have found his name in the box scores as often as former teammate Christian Ehrhoff or current blueliners, Alex Edler and Sami Salo, most know that at the end of the night, the seventh year defender has put in a hard night’s work.
On pace to break his own personal scoring high of 43 points (72 games in 2008-09 season), Bieksa, who currently sits at 33 points (59 games), has put in a solid contribution to the team during the month of February, tallying seven points in nine games.
Currently sitting in a scoring funk since the turn of the year, with only one goal since the Canucks New Years Eve tilt against the LA Kings, Bieksa pocketed a pair of goals during the Canucks back to back weekend, including the final Vancouver goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs, extending his undefeated streak against the “Buds”.
Bieksa Under The Spotlight
To top off his weekend as the team hit the road for a six game set, he was credited with the game winning goal in the 5-2 romp over the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday.
After signing a nice new contract before the start of this season, there were some that thought Bieksa was only playing for a big payment last season and would then become a mid level defender once he got the “benjamins”.
After a miserable October and a so-so January, it looks as though Bieksa is back on track as the Canucks head towards another playoff run.
Kevin Bieksa Profile:
Position: Defense
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 198 lbs
Birthdate: June 16, 1981
Birthplace: Grimsby, Ontario, Canada
Draft: 5th round, 151st overall in 2001 by Vancouver
LAST FIVE STAT LINE:
Canucks Record: 4-0-1 Goals: 2, Assists: 1, Points: 3, Plus/Minus +6
About Steve Lee
