Canucks best in the NHL
Posted Apr 1, 2011 06:25:55 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – They’re the best in the league, and they have the President’s Trophy to prove it. Heading into the playoffs, the Vancouver Canucks now have more points than any other team in the NHL.
This year, they’ve been so good, some fans actually tell us they’ve missed “the thrill of the chase.” Then there are the buzz-kills who insist on reminding how good we’ve looked at this point before, and others are simply inspired by greatness.
“Canucks will win, 100 per cent,” says one man. “We’re the best in the league right now; we’re on top of everything. We’ve got faceoff wins, we’ve got good hitters… This is the best chance we’ll ever have had in the past 10-20 years, that’s for sure.”
“This team totally deserves it,” says another fan. “It’s a long time coming, and I think this is a team that’s probably going to go all the way.”
Then there are haters. “They’ll be done in four games,” one argues. “People in this town get too excited, you know what I mean?”
Will they win or will they lose? As armchair coaches place just about every bet in the book, most are still waving the flag — just perhaps a little more cautiously. But for now, our team has made Canucks history as the best in the NHL — and that comes with a cash bonus for management and home ice advantage as we warm up for the playoffs.
Stanley Cup on the horizon?
Now that winning the Presidents’ Trophy is out of the way, what’s next? How about a Stanley Cup?
Canucks faithful have been burned before so you can excuse them for being a little gun-shy. But Rick Dhaliwal of News1130 Sports says this year is different.
“You’ve got a Division title, a Conference title, and a Presidents’ Trophy; that’s never, ever happened in 40 years. So, the expectations this year are warranted,” he explains.
“Years before, they’ve had good teams, but not good enough,” Dhaliwal adds. “This year, they’re the very best in the National Hockey League. This is the year you can honestly say you expect them to go all the way.”
The NHL post-season doesn’t start for another ten days, but facing the Chicago Blackhawks is a big possibility.
“This is the year the Canucks know they can beat Chicago in the playoffs,” says Dhaliwal. “I don’t think in the last two years they felt comfortable going in. But this year, not only do they want the Blackhawks, but the fans want the Blackhawks as well.”
