Don't get me wrong, Cory Schneider has been really, really good this season. Still, when I heard he'd be starting last night against the hot-on-our-heels Avs, I was a little unsure of our chances. His performance against the Avs, however, showed me that my concerns were completely off base, as our continually impressive backup shut Colorado down in a huge 3-1 win. The final score doesn't really do the Canucks justice, as they simply owned the Avalanche in this big division battle, and solidified their case as the best squad in the division, and maybe even the conference.
It was a game where the Canucks forced Peter Budaj to make a ton of amazing saves. Lucky for us, he was less able to accomplish that feat when the 'Nucks had the man advantage. The Vannies also made all their magic happen within the first 4 minutes, or so, of each period's start. It was impressive stuff. Just over 3 minutes into the game, with Quincey is the sin bin for interference, Ryan Kesler got us started. Two Avs defenders tried to stand Alex Edler up at the blue line, only to have Edler send a perfect pass to an unmarked Ryan Kesler streaking into the offensive zone. Kes blasted a quick shot from the top of the cirlce that beat Budaj glove side.
The Canucks second period goal, which came 3:33 into the middle frame, was a little more creative. With Stastny in the box for hooking, the Canucks had their power play set up. Christian Ehrhoff blasted a slap shot that went wide and off the rear boards to Henrik Sedin. Standing right along the goal line, with no shooting angle to speak of, H-Bomb bounced the puck off of Budaj's back and into the net. It may have been a circus trick luck shot, but it certainly was awesome.
With 4:03 gone in the third, it was time for Raffi "The Greatest Acquisition Ever" Torres to get his name on the score sheet. With Shattenkirk in the box for delay of game, Aaron Rome took a long blue line slapper, and Torres was able to perfectly redirect the pass into the net, capping a night of pure domination.
The whole while, Cory Schneider was in between the pipes making save after save for the Canucks. He may not have been as under pressure as Budaj, but he definitely had to turn away his fair share of impressive chances. Sadly, his shutout big against the NHL's top scoring team ended with about 3 minutes to go. However, his 33 stops were more than impressive enough for a backup goalie in as big a game as November can give us.
The official top three stars were Ryan Kesler (1 goal), Henrik Sedin (1 goal), and Daniel Sedin (2 assists). Now, I usually don't do this, but I was so blown away by a certain player not getting honored, that I had to. The LSF "Top Star Who Didn't Score A Point" from last night has to be Cory Schneider. I try to never pick a goalie for this award, but how could I not when the guy stops 33/34 against the high scoring Avs, and he gets overlooked by the "real" media? Great game, kid.
The win was the Vannie's fifth in a row, raising the record to a very impressive 7-3-2. In the division, the Orca are now 3 points clear of the Avs, 4 up on Minnie and Calgary, and 8 up on last place Edmonton. Overall in the West, our BC Boys are tied for second place with the Blues, with both trailing NHL leading Willie Mitchell and the Kings by 2 points. The fourth ranked Blue Jackets are also tied points-wise with the Blues and Canucks. When are the Blues going to fade? Finally, and maybe most importantly, the LSF standings are as follows:
1. Tommy's Canucks: 16 points
2. Jon's Hawks: 15 points
3. Andrew's Leafs: 12 points
4. Brandon's Sabres: 8 points
Two questions: What happened to the Leafs? And, more interesting to me is, how are the Sabres this bad so far? Back to the Canucks, after last night we now have a goal differential of +6, as we're 11th in goals scored and 7th in goals against. Our SRS is now a ninth ranked +0.41 above league avergae, but our strength of schedule is still subpar and ranked 22nd in the league (rated at -0.10). Believe it or not, our power play has now jumped to 11% above the league average (now at nearly 29%), and our penalty kill is also going well at +4% on the league average.
Speaking of being above average, I'd like to keep the spotlight on backup goalie Cory Schneider as the post winds down. When you watch him, you clearly feel like he could be a starter for a handfull of other teams right now. So I was wondering, is he the best backup goalie around? Just for brevity's sake, we'll look at the backup goalies for the top 3 teams in the West and the East to compare.
Jonathan Bernier (Kings): 3 games played, 1-2-0 record, .910 SV%, and a 2.68 GAA.
Ty Conklin (Blues): 1 game played, 0-0-1 record, .920 SV%, and a 1.85 GAA.
Cory Schneider (Canucks): 4 games played, 3-0-0 record, .969 SV%, and a 0.90 GAA.
Brian Boucher (Flyers): 4 games played, 1-2-1 record, .898 SV%, and a 2.26 GAA.
Semyon Varlamov (Caps): 2 games played, 0-1-0 record, .896 SV%, and a 2.91 GAA.
Alex Auld (Habs): 1 game played, 1-0-0 record, .968 SV%, and a 1.00 GAA.
Nice to see our old buddy Alex Auld in the mix, but this list of names and stats shows me something pretty clearly. Not only does Schneider play more often than other backup goalies for these top of the table teams, but he also performs at a much higher level. The only guy on this list who has matched Cory's four games played, Brian Boucher, has far worse numbers. And, the only guy on this list who has numbers anywhere near Cory's, Alex Auld, has only played in 1 game. I guess that's enough proof for me. Hands down, Cory Schneider is the best backup goalie in the league. And don't bring me that Budaj garbage, just watch the highlights from last night.
After an off day today, the Canucks get little road trip reprieve on Saturday as they return to the Roger to face the always-solid Detroit Red Wings (7-2-1). Led by Datsyuk and Lidstrom, the Wings make up one part of an insane division where the first and worst are only separated by 3 points right now. The good news for us? Our game is the second game in two nights for Detroit, as they play the Oilers in Alberta this evening. Sure, they'll roll over the Oilers like it ain't no thing, but hopefully Edmonton can at least tire them out a little.
Sit back and relax tonight boys, for tomorrow brings difficulties.
-- Sent from my Palm Prē
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