Yeah, I am more than a little choked at that hockey game yesterday. And not just for the obvious reasons. I don't blame Luongo for that loss, he was hung out to dry his entire time on the ice. And even though they played so bloody poorly, I don't blame the defense. Except Aaron Rome. You may be excused to Victoria. Yes I don't want him sent to the Moose. I want him sent to the Salmon Kings so that I may yell at him in person. More after the break...
The Canucks end the first portion of the road trip at 4 and 4. Not the worst possible news, but if there is a silver lining it's that they won't be carrying any negative momentum (does that even make sense?) on the rest of the trip. But the Olympic break couldn't have come at a better time. With the Sedins struggling, Luongo hot and cold and Pavol Demitra not up to speed yet, the Olympics should provide these guys with an opportunity to fine tune their games for the stretch drive. Ryan Kesler has been playing well as of late, and that is a tad worrisome heading into that showdown against the US.
Not that anyone else needed convincing, but Derek Boogaard cemented his reputation as one the league's biggest douchebags yesterday. 3 uncalled dirty hits, 2 elbows and a pussy cheap shot from behind on Ryan Kesler that should be looked at by the league. Amazing that a guy his size has to play like such a pathetic piece of crap. Good on Hordi feeding him some yesterday. And in honor of his douchebaggery, here's one of Boogaard's finest moments:
Congrats on that 208 game without a goal streak. It speaks volumes about your skills as a hockey player that in 208 games you haven't even been able to have one bounce in off your fat ass. Loser.
Lots of gum-flapping from pundits about Canada's 18-0 opener over Slovakia, but as Canucks Hockey Blog's Richard Loat pointed out, the Slovaks qualified for the Olympics by defeating Bulgaria 82-0. 82. The thing that seems to be lost on people is that the women's game is still relatively in its infancy as far as development. It harkens back to the earlier Olympics when the Canadians destroyed everyone and the Soviets hadn't even learned how to play the game. Once they figured it out, then they dominated... for decades. It will change in Women's hockey from a two team competition to a legitimate battle amongst many countries. They just need time.
An incredible day for Canada yesterday, with Alexandre Bilodeau making history. It was a stunning run, and really seems to have electrified the nation, and it's Olympians (save for the men's downhill team atm, who are struggling on the hill). Getting that gold early into the games will certainly take pressure off the athletes, though most of it was coming from the media anyways.
Christina Groves was solid in picking up a bronze at the Richmond Oval yesterday, the first of what will likely be many medals from both the long track speedskaters. The Canadian women take on the Swiss later today, make sure and swing by the Open Thread for all your Olympic goodness.