Get Back

The Hurricanes will play the Vancouver Canucks tonight in a late game for us, starting at 10PM eastern. The boys have lost two games in a row now, the first two games of this arduous road trip. Somehow, they need to get back to what they were doing on the last homestand. They need to get back to having fun! That might be difficult because they look tired out on the ice, and well they should be. Tonight will be the third game in four nights after traveling thousands of miles. Don't get me wrong, I'd trade places with any of them in a heart beat, but the schedule has been grueling mentally as well as physically.

The Canucks are having their own problems. They lost their last game 4-0 to the Oilers and have only earned 27 points in 28 games played. Old nemesis Roberto Luongo has a record of 13-12-1 with a respectable GAA of 2.42 and save percentage of .911, so he hasn't been the problem. The Canucks have been goal challenged, so this game should be a low scoring affair. While the Canes have scored 94 goals so far this year, the Nucks have scored a paltry 59 and have the lowest goals scored average in the league. The Sedin Sisters lead the team in scoring with a combined 45 points and Markus Nasland is next in line with 19.

It is still doubtful that Rod Brind'Amour will play tonight and Cory Stillman is even more doubtful. Both are gametime decisions, so we can still hope for the best I guess. I know it's been frustrating as a fan to watch the inconsistencies of the team this year, but things aren't too bad overall. We are not at the top, but we aren't at the bottom either. The Canes are capable of beating anyone on any given night and can be an exciting team to watch. In my opinion, they are having a tough time matching the intensity of their opponents night after night, and that's probably going to be a concern all year. We had some inconsistencies last year as well, and so do all teams. Look at the Thrashers and Sabres last night, both losing convincingly and looking horrible doing it. Hopefully we can get on a roll and win some games consecutively that are coming up. Don't lose heart Caniacs, we have a long way to go! Go Canes!

The Beatles