Canucks to play for Cup after 2-OT win...

We were watching this last night, but fell asleep before it ended, unfortunately because it sounds like it was pretty darn exciting.

The Vancouver Canucks used a lucky break to tie the game with :14 seconds left in the game and then won it on Kevin Bieska's rebound shot with just under 10-minutes left in the 2nd overtime period.

The win sent the Canucks to the Stanley Cup Finals for only the 3rd time in their existence.

There were lots of heroes. Roberto Luongo made 54 saves and kept his team close. Forward Ryan Kesler tying the game after getting hurt and skating off the ice midway through the second period. And Bieska, who seemed to always be in the middle of things for Vancouver, found himself at the right place at the right time Tuesday night.

Vancouver will await the winner of the Boston/Tampa Bay series and it now confirms that we'll be getting a cross-continent Stanley Cup Finals series, no matter who else is in it.

Your highlights from NHL.com:

30 Years Later, Another Big Upset On Ice

It wasn't quite 1980 and the whole "Miracle on Ice" thing playing the Soviet Union, but this qualifies in a lot of circles as the third-largest hockey upset in the history of USA Hockey.

The irony of Vancouver Canucks winger Ryan Kesler not withstanding, Ryan Miller stood on his head saving 42 of 45 Canadian shots and Team USA knocks off the hosts 5-3 at "Canada Hockey Place" Sunday night. Normally, the building would have its automotive sponsor during the rest of the time, but it doesn't apply during the five-ringed circus.

Brian Rafalski of the Detroit Red Wings scored twice ((running his streak to four consecutive at the time)), Jamie Langenbrunner screened teammate Martin Brodeur for one, and Chris Drury scored the fifth goal.

"We were a little jumpy with things," Team Canada captain Scott Niedermayer said. "We settled that down, had some dominant stretches, but did everything but score.

"There are things we can do better," Niedermayer said. "Just go out and lay it all on the line."

Team Canada is going to have to do that. They now have to win four games for a gold medal instead of the three the US has to win- the Stars and Stripes earning the day off winning their group.

It comes on the heels of this, from thirty years ago...
Which, obviously, is number one...
((HT: ABC Sports/USOC/IOC/Youtube-al5u4x))


Happy Anniversary, America...

Kesler Calls Ladd "A Coward..."

((HT: Youtube/CanucksHD/TSN))

The Vancouver Canucks Ryan Kesler doesn't think too much of the Chicago Blackhawks Andrew Ladd- so much so that Kesler called Ladd a coward after last night's game between the two teams at GM Place in Vancouver.

Kesler said in a postgame interview that the heat between the two has been there for quite some time, and last night's battle was just a carry-over of that. It was "revenge" for a hit from behind in last season's second-round post-season loss to the Hawks.

"It started last year in the playoffs," Kesler said. "He hit me (and) cross-checked me in the face when I wasn't looking.

"At least he was man enough to hit me when I was looking this time."

And he hit him pretty good, too...

Here's their scrum from last night's game...
Hughson and Simpson have the call...
((HT: CBC/NHL))


The two teams hook up again on March 5th...

Blues and Canucks: The Backes Story

((HT: CBC))

From Mark Spector at Sportsnet:

We now know a little more about the feuding between the St. Louis Blues and the Vancouver Canucks and it has to do with some words exchanged after Game One.

The Canucks Ryan Kesler and Alex Burrows went after the Blues David Backes and his wife, Kelly...


Spector continues:
Backes said he has no past with either of the two, and has no idea how they would even know his wife's name. [It's in the Blues media guide.]

"They just have better researchers than I do," he shrugged. "There was a guy who got suspended for a couple of games [for talking about someone else's significant other], wasn't there?"

"Hey, my wife is a strong woman. She can take it," Backes said. "She's pretty attractive -- I'm pretty proud of what I landed there. I'm over-achieving."

As wrestling announcer Jim Ross is fond of saying: "Business is about to pick up."
And now we know why, especially as the series heads to St. Louis for Game 3.