I guess maybe Altitude is off the air or something. I get the Sportsnet feed. Oh well. I certainly am not going to complain about hearing the excellent Jim Hughson. John Garrett isn’t bad either. I'm going to try to update this through the night, but won't be checking any comments until after the game.
1st Period
20:00 During the warm-ups, I notice a young kid in goalie gear warming up with the Canucks. Please let that be Luongo's backup, and please let him play tonight!
19:50 Nope. Theodore vs Luongo. No change on the first line – Sakic, Smyth and Svatos. But Finger and Hannan start together. Could that mean Jillson is playing?
19:08 Has to be. Sauer is out with Clark. No way Liles and Cumiskey are going to play together, no matter how much Dario wants it
18:32 Theodore has made two solid saves.
18:06 Hansen from the Canucks bowls over Luongo. Man, WHEN ARE THEY GOING TO START PROTECTING THE GOALIES???
<!--more-->
17:34 Brunette finds himself all alone in front of Luongo, but Luongo stones him. Cumiskey was out there, by the way, so forget like the pevious…well, everything.
17:19 Good news: Hlinka is out there on the 4th line. Scott Parker probably needs a break anyway. Oh, and Finger's back with Liles. Sorry, Dario.
16:02 Wolski just looks so solid behind the net. I'm picturing him 10 years down the road, doing an interview, and crediting former teammate Andrew Brunette as the guy who really showed him how to play behind the net.
11:56 The Avalanche finally clears after what seems like 5 minutes in the Avs' zone by the freaking Sedins.
10:51 Good shift from Cumiskey. A couple good moves in his own zone, and a great head-man pass to Hlinka (who, unfortunately, falls down).
10:07 Finger and Liles were stuck on the ice with the Sedin line. EVERYBODY PANIC.
10:00 Daniel Sedin gets the first penalty of the night. Sedin for holding.
9:43 For the 2nd time this week, a color analyst has pointed out that the Avs really need a good shooter from the point on the PP.
8:12 Cumiskey feeds Arnason with a great pass into the slot.
7:40 Daniel Sedin has a great chance, but misses.
7:02 Hejduk goes off for interference.
4:58 I think the Avs are better on the kill when they use 6 forwards in a rotation instead of 4. The use 6 on this one, and kill it off (although Vancouver had a few solid chances).
3:36 Ian Laperriere passes it to Brunette...who is on his way to the bench. He can't touch it, resulting in a goofy looking turnover.
3:00 Guite has a couple of scoring chances.
2:59 I think "up the boards...but not out" is the Avalanche motto. They just seem to have a thing about clearing the damn puck.
1:31 Sauer trips up Hansen to grab a tripping penalty. Sauer and Quenneville don't like the call.
1:20 The Canucks score...sort of. A bouncing puck ends up on the ice in the crease behind Theodore. Theodore covers it with his glove, just as Henrik Sedin pokes it free and into the net. The refs wave it off, saying the puck was dead. That's a rather generous call for the Avs. What confuses me is that they go upstairs to review it, even though it seems clear that there wasn't really anything to review - either the ref meant to blow the whistle or he didn't. That's the 2nd time I've seen a wasted review in the last week or so.
The period ends with both teams scoreless.
2nd Period
19:21 The Sedin line has had way too much room to maneuver tonight. We need to get that fixed in a hurry.
18:20 Luongo is so desperate for an interference call that he dives to the ice while playing the puck alone beside the net.
17:32 Lappy makes a nice pass to Brunette...while sitting on his ass. I wish I had that job.
16:53 Bruno is playing so hard behind the net that he loses his lid. Excellent shift from the 3rd line.
15:23 Another controversial goal. Henrick Sedin scores. Theodore blocks a shot from in close. The puck goes up in the air, over Theodore, and gets knocked down (and in) by Sedin. It appears to be knocked down with a high stick and goes to review. I love that that in the year 2007, the NHL technology for this consists of a beige 1960's era telephone and a hole in the glass. You'd think they could spring for some wireless headsets? Or even just a comfy chair for the ref while he's talking to Toronto?
After what seems like 30 minutes, it's a goal. I don't think they got that right...but I think the earlier non-goal was a goal, so maybe it's even. Either way, it's 1-0. Just Theo's 2nd 2nd-period goal, I believe.
10:35 Theo makes two big saves on Ritchie
9:02 Kessler skates the full length of the ice before dropping to Isbister in front.
:39 Daniel Sedin goes to the box for hooking. First penalty of the 2nd.
The Canucks were the much better team in the 2nd. The Avs are lucky to be just down by 1. 1-0 Vancouver.
3rd Period
19:01 THIS is the type of goal I thought we'd be seeing boatloads of this year. Liles fires a snapshot at the net, and Ryan Smyth deflects it past Luongo. Avs tie the game to make it 1-1. The spent a minute passing it around without a shot, and then score the first time they put it on net.
18:19 Or maybe it's Liles' goal - he's given credit at the moment.
17:35 Looks like it's off of Mitchell, not Smyth, so definitely Liles' goal.
16:33 Henrik Sedin takes what must be his 90th shot of the night. Great glove save by Theo. I have no complaint about Theo's play tonight - he's kept the Avs in it for sure.
15:51 Kessler skates like he's got a jet pack pushing him or something. He's crazy-fast tonight.
13:25 Hlinka turns 31 tomorrow. Happy Birthday (as if you are reading this)
12:33 Svatos does something I haven't seen him do this year - changing while the other team has the puck inside the offensive zone. Can you just hang out a little longer there, Marek?
11:31 The Avs have had some great shifts. Pressure from the Arnason line and the Sakic line...
7:34 A tipped shot on Theo, but he makes the save.
6:20 Cumiskey goes the full length of the ice, weaving in and out of traffic. He's been shooting, passing and skating tonight; very much the game on offense I think he needs to play to be useful.
3:31 Another sensational save from Theo. This time on Burrows.
3:07 Penalty on the Canucks! Mike Weaver for hooking.
1:00 The PP is over.
0:00 And so is regulation. Tied up 1-1, we're going to OT. 2nd straight OT game for the Avs, 4th overall for the year (they are 3-0). 1st OT of the year for the Canucks.
OT
5:00 Sakic and Smyth to start. Kessler is on the ice - watch out for the speed...
4:20 Kessler breaks in but Finger stands him up with a solid hit.
3:50 Hejduk and Stastny, but they are getting pushed around by the Sedins.
3:41 And that does it. Henrik Sedin banks it in off of Finger.
Vancouver wins 2-1. Avs get a point, though, so it's not all bad news.
Recap should be up tomorrow.