Officially on the road to perdition

Ben Kuzma – The Province | January 31, 2014

TRYING TIMES: With four wins in 15 games, team begins eastern swing dogged by injuries and bad luck

It’s not just another road trip. It’s The Magical Mystery Tour.

As much as the Vancouver Canucks can collectively call their five-game eastern sojourn the

latest opportunity to turn around their woeful game — tankers in English Bay move more

quickly — you can call it something else. How about Survivor? Rebuild versus Reset? Tortured

Torts?

The Canucks get their suspended coach back in the second stop on Monday in Detroit, but no

amount of motivational speeches by John Tortorella can soothe major roster wounds.

The Canucks will be without Kevin Bieksa for the entire trip and Chris Tanev — arguably their

most-consistent blueliner this season — is gone until after the Olympic break with a broken

thumb. Frank Corrado has been recalled from Utica to shore up the battered back end, but that’s

not the only cause for concern.

As expected, versatile forward Mike Santorelli had shoulder surgery Thursday to repair a torn

labrum he suffered Jan. 16 in Phoenix on a hit by Martin Hanzal. Santorelli, 28, will be sidelined

six months, and is also an unrestricted free agent who’s due a significant raise on his

bargainbasement, two-way deal that pays $550,000 US at the NHL level.

Bieksa didn’t practise Thursday and acting head coach Mike Sullivan said the defenceman’s

ailment wasn’t cumulative. He struggled with mobility in the playoffs last spring after playing

through a six-week period with a groin strain and didn’t have an offseason procedure to correct

what appeared to be an abdominal problem. He also blocked a shot Jan. 15 in Anaheim and has

been limping, leading to fears of a fracture.

Add the absence of injured captain Henrik Sedin — who’s expected to join the trip at some point

— and the offensive disappearance of Daniel Sedin, Alex Burrows and Ryan Kesler, and the

fragile Canucks are unravelling like a ball of string. All that bite Tortorella wants has bit them

back. Daniel Sedin looks like a shell of his former self.

“I don’t get frustrated,” said the winger, who hasn’t scored in 14 games and is on pace for 25

goals, his lowest total since 2005-06.

“We’re in the playoffs, but it feels like we’re last in the league.”

Well, they’re eighth in the Western Conference. They’ve won just four of their last 15 games (4-

8-3), have the 22nd-ranked offence and 29thranked power play.

They can’t hold leads. They can’t mount comebacks and are 3-14-1 when trailing after two

periods and have scored the least third-period goals of any NHL team. But they do lead in

leaning heavily on their top forwards — Kesler is tops in average ice time (22:12) and Daniel

Sedin is fourth (21:37) and Henrik Sedin sixth (21:15) — and they lead in days off. And navel-

gazing. And fragility.

The struggling Burrows asked to have his ice time reduced and played 17:23 on Wednesday

against Chicago, down slightly from his average of 18:55.

Maybe it takes Chris Higgins, the poster boy for work ethic, to put all this into some sort of

perspective. Through effort and efficiency, he’s even played on the top line and his 15 goals are

second to Kesler’s 18. He came to the Canucks as a fourth-liner and on a top team he’s probably

on the third line.

Now he’s the glue trying to hold it all together because you could hear a pin drop at practice

Thursday. No emotion. No stick-banging. No chatter.

“It’s kind of like paralysis by analysis with what’s going on, but we feel offence will come from

good defence,” said Higgins. “It’s the dog days of the season and a challenge to stay focused

every day. I’ve been there several times in my career where I’ve gone 10-plus games without

scoring a goal, and it definitely weighs on you mentally. It’s hard to keep saying, but I know how

hard the guys in this room have worked and how much skill they have, and that it’s going to

happen for them.”

If it doesn’t start happening for the Canucks by the March 5 trade deadline, you have to wonder

if they go from standing pat and not giving up a draft pick and a prospect to rent a player to

selling. To get something of significance they’re going to have to give something and although

10 notrade clauses on the current roster limit the options, there may need to be that conversation.

Alex Edler has five more years left at a $5-million annual cap hit, which is palatable to some

with the cap ceiling going up and teams still seeing him as a prime defender. But he also has a

no-trade clause. There was considerable buzz at the 2013 draft that the Detroit Red Wings and

Anaheim Ducks were kicking the trade tires hard on Edler — before his NTC kicked in — but

the Canucks reportedly wanted two roster players.

“I think a lot of teams will use the Olympic break as a decision-making process as to whether

they’re going to buy or sell or whatever the situation may be,” said Higgins.

“We haven’t talked about that in the locker-room. We’ve been talking about getting a good start

on this road trip.”

And to do that, it’s going to take more than words which seem to ring more hollow with each

passing day.

“We have to be a resilient group,” said Sullivan. “We understand the circumstance and we have

to make sure it starts with our attitude.”

VOYAGE OF THE DAMNED

Jim Jamieson – The Province | January 31, 2014

The Canucks are dropping like flies — Tanev, Santorelli, Bieksa are the latest to hit the disabled list — ahead of a crucial five-game road trip

It’s a road trip that could well define the season for the Canucks.

Certainly, it will be a relief to get out of town and away from the critical media hordes, but not so

much if the team can’t pull out of its current 4-8-2 skid and put the brakes on a steady descent in

the Western Conference standings. The five-game trip that begins on Friday in Winnipeg and

then meanders through the Eastern time zone takes the Canucks into the NHL Olympic break. It

also goes through daunting rinks in Detroit, Boston, Montreal and Toronto. Lay an egg and it

won’t be pretty starting up again on Feb. 26 with just 22 games remaining and a playoff berth

slipping away.

The hockey gods have also chosen to test the Canucks’ depth. Their blue line is near crippled

with the losses of both Chris Tanev (fractured thumb) and Kevin Bieksa (undisclosed) in the

span of two games. Tanev, who’s been the team’s most dependable defender this season, is out

until after the break, and so is Bieksa, the blue line’s emotional core.

The team called up Frank Corrado from AHL Utica on Thursday, and the 20-year-old rookie will

be in the lineup against the Jets.

There is some good news; injured captain Henrik Sedin, who’s missed the last five games with

an apparent rib injury, will travel with the team and is likely to get back into the lineup at some

point on the trip.

“It’s a huge trip for our team,” said Dale Weise. “You see the wild-card race and it’s extremely

tight right now. We’ve got to find ways to get points and ways to grind it out. We’re short some

bodies, but we’ve got to find a way.” Alex Burrows sees the trip as an opportunity. “We’ve got

to look at it the right way,” said Burrows, who’s still looking for his first goal of the season.

“Obviously, we are facing a lot of adversity. We’re going through a rough stretch, with injuries

and the way we’re playing. But the way you get out of it, you stay positive and have a good

mindset and find the swagger that we used to have. Just go on the road and don’t have to impress

anyone. I’m really confident we’re going to get it done.”

Assistant coach Mike Sullivan was preaching resilience on Thursday following practice.

“We have to be a resilient group,” said Sullivan, who’ll coach his final game as the interim coach

against the Jets, with suspended coach John Tortorella returning on Monday in Detroit.

“We understand the circumstances. We have a good group of guys who care and try and we rely

on each other for the solutions. All we have to do is look at one game — we get the result we

want in Winnipeg and we build from there.

“Resilience and attitude is a big part of success in this league, because inevitably most teams go

through adversity. Our attitude and our resilience are going to be important aspects here during

an important time in the season.”

League needs to crank up marketing machine

to sell out Heritage Classic

Brad Ziemer – The Vancouver Sun | January 31, 2014

It is four down and two to go for the National Hockey League and its outdoor games.

After two sold out shows this week at Yankee Stadium, another last week at Dodger Stadium and

the New Year’s Day game that drew more than 105,000 fans to the University of Michigan

Stadium, the remaining games in Chicago and Vancouver clearly have tough acts to follow.

The March 1 game at Soldier Field in Chicago between the Blackhawks and Pittsburgh Penguins

sold out in less than 24 hours when tickets went on sale in December. As for Vancouver’s

Heritage Classic game between the Canucks and Ottawa Senators at BC Place Stadium on March

2, well, it remains a work in progress.

Plenty of tickets remain for the game and the NHL will likely now ramp up marketing for the

event, which is clearly proving to be a more difficult sell than the league imagined.

Vancouver- area ticket brokers say the game has been a tough sell. “Every once in a while there

is going to be a dud and this is it,” says Kingsley Bailey, manager of Vancouver Ticket. “I have

more people that want to sell tickets to me than want to buy.”

Bailey thinks the Heritage Classic has a number of factors working against it, including the fact

that it is not an outdoor game in the truest sense. If it happens to rain on game day, it could in

fact be an indoor game with the roof closed at BC Place.

Bailey also says the fact the Canucks and Senators don’t really have any kind of rivalry is

hurting ticket sales.

“This is definitely a dud and I know the NHL is not going to make it look like that,” he said.

“They’ll paper the building.”

The NHL did not make anyone available for an interview Thursday to discuss the Heritage

Classic.

There are six ticket categories for the game, which range from $ 104.20 to $ 324.70, including all

fees. When tickets went on sale in early December, the top and lower price categories sold out

quickly. The top two price categories ( the $ 320.70 and $ 219.70 tickets) and the cheapest ones

($ 104.20) are sold out. But tickets in the remaining three categories ($ 146.20, $ 156.70 and $

188.20) remain.

Mario Livich, the head of ShowTime Tickets, said most of his company’s demand for Heritage

Classic tickets has come from out of town.

“We are seeing demand from people who are coming in from out of town, but in terms of the

local market it’s been pretty slow selling and part of it is due to the prices,” Livich said. “It is not

a cheap ticket by any means.”

StubHub, the online ticket exchange marketplace owned by eBay, had more than 2,000 Heritage

Classic tickets available for sale Thursday on its website.

Capacity for the game at BC Place is about 54,500.

The fact the Canucks are struggling certainly isn’t helping to drive ticket sale to the game.

The NHL had to cut ticket prices to some of its higher- end seats to sell out the game at Dodger

Stadium on Jan. 25. It also announced some big- name entertainment — most notably the rock

group Kiss — to drive ticket sales.

The NHL has yet to announce any of its entertainment plans for the Heritage Classic.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman released the following statement after Wednesday night’s

game at Yankee Stadium between the Rangers and Islanders.

“When you think about the fact that we’ve played three outdoor games in five days to over

150,000 people, then throw in the Winter Classic and another 100,000 people, it’s been an

incredible month of special events ... we play our season a little longer, then it’s a break to go to

the Olympics, and we’ll be back with two more outdoor games — one in Chicago and one in

Vancouver. This is a special season that I think we’ll all remember because it’s been very, very

special.”

It will be up to the Heritage Classic to provide a special ending.

Things go from bad to worse

Iain MacIntyre – The Vancouver Sun | January 31, 2014

Wounded: Bieksa misses trip with foot injury; Santorelli’s season over following shoulder surgery

Cormac McCarthy’s brilliant western novel No Country for Old Men, about an aging sheriff

struggling to understand society’s decaying values and escalating violence, begins with a drug

deal gone bad in the scrubby West Texas desert.

There are a lot of dead desperados, and both the drug money and dope are missing, which will

attract more bad men. As lawmen examine the crime scene, a deputy observes: “It’s a mess, ain’t

it sheriff?”

And the wary sheriff says: “If it ain’t, it’ll do till a mess gets here.”

Thankfully, the only conflict around the Vancouver Canucks is about winning and losing, and

how to do more of the former and who’s responsible for the latter these days.

But as the Canucks hobbled off on to the road Thursday, losers 11 times in 15 games and serious

injuries nearing a critical mass, that old sheriff’s warning seemed appropriate.

Interim head coach Mike Sullivan confirmed that key defenceman Kevin Bieksa would not make

the trip, possibly due to a foot injury, about two hours before the National Hockey League club

announced that second- line forward Mike Santorelli had undergone season- ending shoulder

surgery. The previous day — before the Canucks lost 5- 2 to the Chicago Blackhawks and after

they lost 4- 2 to the Edmonton Oilers — we learned defenceman Chris Tanev has a fractured

thumb and will not play until at least the end of the Olympic break in four weeks. This is a mess

for the Canucks. And if it ain’t, it’ll do until the mess gets here — probably on the difficult, five-

game road trip that starts tonight against the Winnipeg Jets.

The Canucks appear to be teetering, in danger of collapsing and losing control of a season that

looked pretty good only a month ago.

And barring an intervention from under- fire general manager Mike Gillis or some miracle work

by head coach John Tortorella, who couldn’t have picked a worse time to get himself suspended

for 15 days, it’s difficult to see how things will get better before they get worse for the Canucks.

There is still no glimpse of captain Henrik Sedin, although Sullivan said he expects the Canucks’

best player to join the team on the road at some point.

Officially, Sedin’s absence remains day- to- day two weeks after he was lumbered in the ribs by

Phoenix Coyote Martin Hanzal, who could play McCarthy’s heinous villain, Anton Chigurh,

because Hanzal is also responsible for mangling Santorelli’s shoulder.

Henrik’s brother Daniel is skating like it’s 2001, and seems unable to get near the net with the

puck. And yet the 2011 NHL scoring champion’s 14- game goal- less drought still pales

compared to first- liner Alex Burrows’s unfathomable 23- game scoring famine. Ryan Kesler,

who leads NHL forwards with an average ice time of 22: 12, has one goal in 11 games and three

goals in 23.

Sullivan revealed Thursday that Burrows, a 32- year- old who hasn’t scored since beginning a

four- year, $ 18- million- US contract extension, asked a few days ago for less ice time in the

hope fewer shifts would mean more energy. He logs 18: 51 a game. Danny Sedin is fourth

among NHL forwards at 21: 37, while Henrik is sixth at 21: 15.

The Canucks, and especially their top players, look tired. A troubling theme during the January

crash — 4- 8- 3 since Dec. 29 — has been Vancouver’s glaring inability to muster any surge or

even resilience late in games.

Including a couple of empty- netters, the Canucks have been outscored 12- 1 in the third period

of their last nine games and haven’t outscored an opponent in the final 20 minutes of regulation

time since Santorelli had the winning goal in a 2- 1 win against the St. Louis Blues on Jan. 10.

The Canucks are 29th in the NHL in third- period scoring with 39 goals in 55 games.

Only the Buffalo Sabres are more feeble in the final period.

Vancouver has lost five games this season when they carried a lead into the third period, and five

times they have surrendered tying goals with the opposing goalie on the bench for an extra

attacker.

Since the season began, Tortorella has insisted his top forwards can handle more minutes than

nearly anyone else in the league, despite the Canucks’ West Coast isolation and debilitating

travel. Sullivan has been defending that ideology this week, saying “you guys draw the

assumption” that overuse is why the top Canucks are struggling.

“Since you guys have been on this and asking me these questions, I’ve been kind of exploring

the league myself a little bit,” Sullivan said after Thursday’s practice. “Ryan Kesler plays four

seconds on average more than Sidney Crosby. Is Sidney Crosby, is that a problem for him?

“Marty St. Louis, his average ice time is 21: 46. He plays more minutes than the ( Sedins). Marty

St. Louis is 39 years old. Is the minutes a problem for him?”

But Crosby plays in Pittsburgh, St. Louis in Tampa. Excluding the three Canucks, seven of the

top nine NHL forwards in average ice time play in the Eastern time zone.

“You travel in the east, too,” Sullivan said. “Tampa is not an easy travel schedule; I coached

there. Our best information is our players and we communicate with those guys on a daily basis.”

And that’s how Sullivan knew Burrows wanted to play a little less.

“Listen, as a coaching staff, we’re looking for answers, too,” Sullivan said. “We’re looking for

solutions, too. And we talk about this stuff all the time — not only as a staff, but also with our

players.”

Minor- league prospect Frankie Corrado has been recalled to replace Bieksa.

But the Canucks still have no better alternatives than rookie Kellan Lain and David Booth to fill

in for Hank Sedin and Santorelli.

The Canucks have scored more than two goals only four times in 20 games.

They have two fewer defencemen than they did four days ago, and now their schedule gets

tougher. So does their season.

Jets have fans on Canucks

Iain MacIntyre – The Vancouver Sun | January 31, 2014

Hometown products, Moose alumni glad to see franchise thrive

Winnipeg not only launched Jannik Hansen’s professional hockey career, it launched his family.

The Vancouver Canuck winger met his wife, Karen, while playing for the minor- league

Manitoba Moose and the couple introduced their twin babies, Lucas and Daniel, to Winnipeg last

summer.

The Hansens have a home there, although it will be a road game tonight for the Canucks when

they play their first National Hockey League game in Winnipeg since Feb. 21, 1996.

“We would sell out the lower bowl, but it was a really rowdy crowd that would get right into the

game,” Hansen said Thursday when asked about playing for the Moose for two seasons, starting

in 2006. “It’s a great place and a great city for hockey. It seems to be the loudest building in the

league and fans get into it. We’re definitely looking forward to it.”

It’s a homecoming also for Canuck winger Dale Weise, but a bittersweet one. The Winnipeg

native, who cheered for the Jets until they moved to Phoenix and became the Coyotes when he

was seven years old, expects interim head coach Mike Sullivan to scratch him from the lineup.

Canuck skills coach Glenn Carnegie and trainer Pat O’Neill are also from Winnipeg, and winger

Alex Burrows played for the Moose in 200405. Another Moose alumnus, Canuck defenceman

Kevin Bieksa, is injured and will miss his team’s first visit to Winnipeg since the NHL returned

in 2011.

“I’ve been looking forward ever since the Jets came back to go there and play,” Burrows said.

“They’ve got unbelievable fans. That organization was great for me.

“I remember people were doubting if there was enough corporate money or a big enough rink.

But I always knew the fans would be passionate about the game and passionate about their team.

They’re proud people there in Manitoba. They missed their team and their happy to have it

back.”

The new Jets, purchased by former Moose owner Mark Chipman and moved to Manitoba from

Atlanta, play in the NHL’s smallest building — the 15,000- seat MTS Centre. But there hasn’t

been an unsold ticket since the Jets returned and team has proved a financial success.

“The team means so much to that city,” Weise said. “When the NHL came back, I was so

excited. I was in the New York Rangers’ system, but I was so excited to potentially get a chance

to play there one day.”

It doesn’t look like it will be tonight.

Out of favour with Sullivan, Weise said he didn’t expect to be in the lineup after playing only 3:

40 in the Canucks’ 5- 2 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday. Sullivan refused

Thursday to confirm that Weise would be scratched.

“At least I can stop the ticket parade and save a little money, but it hurts,” Weise said. “The first

game I ever went to was Winnipeg- Vancouver, and I remember watching Pavel Bure. He was

just flying around. It was awesome; I thought he was just the greatest thing. Even as a young kid,

I could tell it was a big hit to our town when the Jets left.”

Asked what’s the best thing about his town, Weise said: “I think a lot of people right now would

say the Winnipeg Jets are the best thing about Winnipeg. People judge cities on their nightlife

and activities and entertainment and there’s not a lot of that. But it’s a passionate city — a lot of

down- toearth, blue- collar people. The city’s just crazy about the team. Everyone is a hockey

fan.”

Time for Canucks to make hard decisions

Rnady Sportak, QMI Agency – Slam! Sports | January 30, 2014, 7:23pm

CALGARY - The Edmonton Oilers should be coming out of their rebuild any time now. We

think.

At least they should.

The Calgary Flames are in the early portion of their rebuild, with the final portion of the

teardown coming soon and hoping the next couple of drafts will begin a surge upward.

As for the Vancouver Canucks … they had best be making some difficult decisions really, really

soon.

Otherwise, the Canucks will soon be on the exact same track as their Western Canada brethren.

It wasn’t long ago the Canucks were a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. They were one game

away from winning the Stanley Cup title in 2011.

Since then, though, they’ve gone the exact same route as the Flames.

The Canucks had a very good ’11-12 regular season only to be punted out of the playoff

tournament in the first round by the Los Angeles Kings.

They had another strong ’12-13 season, but were dusted in four games by the San Jose Sharks,

the first team knocked out.

Canucks’ Santorelli likely done for season

Canadian Press – Sportsnet | January 30, 2014, 7:13pm

VANCOUVER — The struggling Vancouver Canucks can’t seem to catch a break on the injury

front.

The team announced Thursday that centre Mike Santorelli has undergone surgery to repair a torn

labrum and will be out five to six months, effectively ending his season.

The news came after assistant coach Mike Sullivan told reporters defenceman Kevin Bieksa

won’t accompany the Canucks on their five-game road trip that leads into the Olympic break.

"It’s more than (a maintenance day)," said Sullivan of Bieksa’s absence from practice. "He is not

going to join us on the trip.

"We don’t know the details of it yet. When we get more information we’ll update you."

On top of that, fellow defenceman Christopher Tanev is out with what’s believed to be a broken

hand. Captain Henrik Sedin has missed the last five games with an upper-body injury, although

Sullivan expects him back soon.

"He’s still day-to-day, but I believe he will join us on this trip and we are hopeful that we’ll get

him at some point here," said Sullivan.

It all adds up to a very busy sick bay for a team that has just four wins in its last 15 games (4-8-

3), including just two victories in regulation.

The loss of Santorelli hurts up front as the Canucks have been held to two goals or less in nine of

their last 10 games.

The 28-year-old, who was injured Jan. 16, had 10 goals and 18 assists in 49 games this season. A

native of nearby Burnaby, B.C., Santorelli impressed head coach John Tortorella in training

camp and became one his most trusted players the first half of the season.

"After consultation with our team physicians, we determined Mike would require a procedure on

his shoulder," Canucks general manager Mike Gillis said in statement. "The surgery was

successful and we expect a full recovery."

Santorelli — who can become an unrestricted free agent in July — had been a journeyman in the

league until appearing to find a home with the Canucks. He was put on waivers by the Florida

Panthers last season and picked up by the Winnipeg Jets before signing with Vancouver.

The loss of Bieksa, who has four goals and 15 assists in 55 games this season, is also a

significant blow. To take the 32-year-old’s place on the blue-line, the Canucks recalled

defenceman Frank Corrado of the American Hockey League’s Utica Comets. The 20-year-old

played six games for Vancouver earlier this season but has yet to register a point.

Meanwhile, Tortorella still has one game to go in his six-game suspension for trying to get into

the Calgary Flames’ locker-room after that infamous first-period line brawl Jan. 18.

The fiery head coach, who had been on his best behaviour since coming to Vancouver prior to

that incident, will sit out Friday game’s against the Winnipeg Jets before returning Monday

against the Detroit Red Wings.

What he will find is a team with a 27-19-9 record that’s in a dogfight for one of the two Western

Conference wild-card spots, a position the Canucks aren’t accustomed to after winning division

titles five of the last six years.

"We have to be a resilient group. We understand the circumstance, everybody’s looking for the

result," said Sullivan. "Resilience and attitude is a big part of having success in this league,

because inevitably, most teams go through adversity where they lose a few games or things don’t

go their way, they hit the injury bug, whatever it may be — sometimes it’s all of the above."

Canucks must start getting worse with a

purpose

Mark Spector – Sportsnet | January 30, 2014, 10:07am

VANCOUVER — It wasn’t our intention to arrive for a few days in Canucks land and end our

stay with a treatise on the perilous future of the team. But how could you not?

Spend a few days in Vancouver, and that’s all hockey fans (and my media friends) are talking

about. It’s not, "What will the Canucks do this year?" in Vancouver anymore. It is, "How can we

avoid turning into Calgary or Edmonton?"

It’s not that the Canucks’ current level of play is that low. This is still very likely a playoff team,

though one on a pretty tough skid these days. But we’ve watched this movie unfold in Calgary,

where they went to the Cup in ’04, then chased the dream for a while until they ran out of assets.

And in Edmonton, where they had their Cup appearance in ’06, and it all went south from there.

Vancouver is a better team, yes. But they have a similar gap in drafting success to the Alberta

teams — the prerequisite to a rebuild — and frankly, have scant better chance of winning a

playoff round with this lineup, as it currently sits.

It’s amazing, isn’t it? It seems like five minutes ago we were asking the rhetorical question of

Vancouver: "Is their window to compete for a Stanley Cup closing?"

Well, we barely got out the word "Cup," and slam! Between the California teams, the declining

Sedins, and a roster that looked defeated on Wednesday night against Chicago, that window is

shut tighter than Ben Scrivens’ five-hole right now.

Say what you want about Canucks fans, they are not a naïve lot. They see the ol’ Rebuild

Railway coming down the track. And judging by the Canucks’ body language after coughing up

a 2-0 lead to the Chicago Blackhawks, so too do the Vancouver players.

You can say that this is still the best of Canada’s seven National Hockey League teams — at this

moment. But it won’t be for long if general manager Mike Gillis stands pat with this roster.

Suddenly it’s obvious what needs to be done here: find a way to move some of these veteran

assets, despite the fact almost every pertinent veteran here has some form of no-trade clause.

Calgary sat on Miikka Kiprusoff and Jarome Iginla too long, never won anything, and didn’t get

enough back for the assets. So the Flames had to start from scratch.

Gillis has way more assets — defencemen like Kevin Bieksa, Alex Edler, Jason Garrison and

Dan Hamhuis; forwards like Ryan Kesler, Alex Burrows, Chris Higgins; Roberto Luongo — but

he’s hamstrung himself by giving them all no-trades. And suddenly, those clauses aren’t the

worst thing about a few of these deals.

Alex Edler is in his second year of decline, but received a six-year, $30 million deal this past

summer anyhow. Daniel Sedin has become a 20-goal man where once he was good for 35. He

and Henrik were given four-year extensions at $7 million per, while San Jose GM Doug Wilson

got Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau for less money and less term.

David Booth has been a disastrous acquisition. Garrison has been better, but not by a whole lot.

Keith Ballard, Derek Roy… the pro scouting needs some serious work here.

But perhaps the real tell starts with this little nugget, from an old friend who lives here now, and

owns a piece of a pair of seats. "You can’t re-sell tickets anymore," he says.

Open a newspaper on the day the Chicago Blackhawks come to town, and the headlines aren’t

talking about what not long ago was the Western Conference’s premier rivalry.

Vancouver Province: "Is Daniel Sedin done as an elite offensive player in the NHL?"

Vancouver Sun: "Canucks’ Alex Burrows has excuses, won’t use them, as goal famine reaches

22 games."

Vancouver Province: "Blackhawks have established a dynasty; For Vancouver, mere memories

remain."

The facts are grim and under the John Tortorella regime, these stats are perhaps even more

disturbing: Kesler leads all NHL forwards in ice time, averaging 22:15 prior to the Blackhawks

visit. Daniel ranks fourth (21:38) and Henrik sixth (21:15). In the 2011 season that ended with a

Stanley Cup berth, Kesler averaged 20:29 in ice time, Henrik played 19:15 and Daniel 18:33.

So under new head coach John Tortorella, the ageing Sedins are playing more and producing

less. The Sedins are also playing tougher minutes, with more defensive zone starts and penalty-

kill time. Kesler has had multiple surgeries. The Sedins appear to no longer be able to carry the

team. And Bo Horvat is 19 years old.

At Rogers Arena Wednesday, in what was once the Western Conference’s premier rivalry, a late-

arriving crowd was emptying out of the building with five minutes to play in a 4-2 game. There

was little juice to this one, if any.

This team needs to get worse with a purpose, make the process fast and begin getting better

again. Staying the same simply isn’t an option.

Canucks lose Santorelli for season, Bieksa out

indefinitely

Ben Valentine – Sporting News | January 31, 2014

Things keep getting worse for the Vancouver Canucks.

The team lost its second straight Wednesday night, are now 4-6-0 in their last ten, and are

without their head coach John Tortorella due to suspension. Henrik Sedin remains out with a rib

injury, alongside and Chris Tanev, who may be out until after Olympic break with a broken

thumb.

Now staring down a five-game road trip to close out their schedule before the break, the Canucks

got more bad news on the injury front Thursday.

The blue line took another hit as Kevin Bieksa will not travel with the team for at least the start

of the road trip. The injury is undisclosed, but Bieksa has been dealing with foot injuries this

season. He is out indefinitely. Even worse, forward Mike Santorelli has undergone shoulder

surgery and is done for the rest of the year.

Santorelli had been a nice find. A guy who scored 20 goals in 2010-11 for Florida and just 11 in

the three years following, the 28 year old had picked up 10 scores and assisted on 18 more in 49

games this season. He suffered the shoulder injury against the Coyotes on January 16 and had

not played since.

Is Santorelli a guy whose individual loss will break a team’s season? Of course not. Neither is

Bieksa’s or Tanev’s.

But all of them together, combined Sedin’s absence and Tortorella’s suspension to boot? That’s a

tough mountain to overcome. For a team struggling before these problems began to pile up, that

Olympic break has to look very appealing. In theory, all of their missing pieces, sans Santorelli,

will be back in action when the Canucks return to the ice on February 26.

The Canucks just have to hope their season doesn’t go up in smoke before then.

Canucks lose centre Mike Santorelli to shoulder surgery

Joshua Clipperton – The Globe and Mail | January 31, 2014

The struggling Vancouver Canucks can’t seem to catch a break on the injury front.

The team announced Thursday centre Mike Santorelli has undergone surgery to repair a torn

labrum in his shoulder. He’s expected to be out the next five-to-six months.

“After consultation with our team physicians, we determined that Mike would require a

procedure on his shoulder,” said President and General Manager, Mike. Gillis in a statement

released by the team. “The surgery was successful and we expect a full recovery.”

The news came after assistant coach Mike Sullivan told reporters defenceman Kevin Bieksa

won’t accompany the Canucks on their five-game road trip that leads into the Olympic break.

“It’s more than (a maintenance day),” said Sullivan of Bieksa’s absence from practice. “He is not

going to join us on the trip.

“We don’t know the details of it yet. When we get more information we’ll update you.”

On top of that, fellow defenceman Christopher Tanev is out with what’s believed to be a broken

hand. Captain Henrik Sedin has missed the last five games with an upper-body injury, although

Sullivan expects him back soon.

“He’s still day-to-day, but I believe he will join us on this trip and we are hopeful that we’ll get

him at some point here,” said Sullivan.

It all adds up to a very busy sick bay for a team that has just four wins in its last 15 games (4-8-

3), including just two victories in regulation.

The loss of Santorelli hurts up front as the Canucks have been held to two goals or less in nine of

their last 10 games.

The 28-year-old, who was injured Jan. 16, had 10 goals and 18 assists in 49 games this season. A

native of nearby Burnaby, B.C., Santorelli impressed head coach John Tortorella in training

camp and became one his most trusted players the first half of the season.

Santorelli — who can become an unrestricted free agent in July — had been a journeyman in the

league until appearing to find a home with the Canucks. He was put on waivers by the Florida

Panthers last season and picked up by the Winnipeg Jets before signing with Vancouver.

The loss of Bieksa, who has four goals and 15 assists in 55 games this season, is also a

significant blow. To take the 32-year-old’s place on the blue-line, the Canucks recalled

defenceman Frank Corrado of the American Hockey League’s Utica Comets. The 20-year-old

played six games for Vancouver earlier this season but has yet to register a point.

Meanwhile, Tortorella still has one game to go in his six-game suspension for trying to get into

the Calgary Flames’ locker-room after that infamous first-period line brawl Jan. 18.

The fiery head coach, who had been on his best behaviour since coming to Vancouver prior to

that incident, will sit out Friday game’s against the Winnipeg Jets before returning Monday

against the Detroit Red Wings.

What he will find is a team with a 27-19-9 record that’s in a dogfight for one of the two Western

Conference wild-card spots, a position the Canucks aren’t accustomed to after winning division

titles five of the last six years.

“We have to be a resilient group. We understand the circumstance, everybody’s looking for the

result,” said Sullivan. “Resilience and attitude is a big part of having success in this league,

because inevitably, most teams go through adversity where they lose a few games or things don’t

go their way, they hit the injury bug, whatever it may be — sometimes it’s all of the above.”