Around The NHL: Stanley Cup Finals Game 5 Thoughts

Friday night, The Vancouver Canucks defeated the Boston Bruins in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals by a score of 1-0. Vancouver takes a 3-2 lead in the series, needing just one win to become Stanley Cup Champions with Game 6 coming Monday night in Boston. Roberto Luongo made 31 saves to record the shutout, and Max Lapierre scored his second goal of the playoffs to give the Canucks the lead (and win). 

You can find the Game 5 recap on TSN here:

Getty Images

CH: This was a fantastic game from start to finish. Lots of mini-storylines in this game with the constant momentum switches. The Canucks broke through on a quirky goal, with Lapierre shooting from almost directly to the side of the net and Tim Thomas out of position. The puck went off Thomas and into the net to give the Canucks the lead. That said, Thomas was absolutely brilliant again tonight. He kept the Bruins in the game with some incredible saves, but it just wasn't enough as Roberto Luongo was outstanding as well. The Canucks played great team defense tonight, but when that wasn't there Luongo was there to back them up. A far cry from Games 3 and 4, and an ovation well deserved from the Vancouver crowd.

AT: I couldn't even tell if it was a real setup or just a missed shot, but knowing Bieksa it was a great way to set Lapierre up for the goal. Great way to beat the seemingly impenetrable Thomas.  You have to hand it to Lou. He deserved some (very well deserved) criticism after games 3 and 4 and he comes back home and throws up a shutout. The goalies have made this series as exciting as it is.

The one disappointing thing from this game was the constant flopping by guys like Alex Burrows and Max Lapierre. There is no doubt this series has been intense, and that's an understatement. Vancouver had 33 hits in the first 35 minutes of the game. Still, after every whistle if someone even breathed on Burrows he flopped down like a dying fish. It's unacceptable. The worst part is that on plays like the Milan Lucic slewfoot, Burrows didn't have to embellish it at all. It was a clear penalty, but he hurt himself and his team. The irony of it all was watching Chris Higgins falling on a legitimate tripping penalty, and then getting reprimanded on his bench for diving. That's the reputation the Canucks have set for themselves.

AT: They really need to leave stuff like that to soccer. This is the Stanley Cup finals.. play like it is.

Getty Images

Previewing Game 6 would really just state the obvious. It will be a complete battle out there. I do have to say though, I'd like to see the Cup awarded at home for the first time since 2007. So I'll be rooting for Vancouver in a seventh game, but there's no question Game 6 will be a great one no matter the outcome.

Later today we'll have our next draft prospect preview up.

Around The NHL: SC Finals Game 3 Thoughts

The Boston Bruins defeated the Vancouver Canucks by a score of 8-1 tonight. The Bruins cut the Canucks' series lead in half, as Vancouver leads 2-1 going into Game 4 Wednesday night in Boston. 

AP

CH: I needed to get my thoughts together before I wrote this post because there were so many storylines to this game. Let's start with the Aaron Rome hit on Nathan Horton. What an absolute disgrace that was. I was completely speechless when I saw the hit. It was unnecessary, reckless, harmful, and with a total lack of respect for the opponent. Rome, in my opinion, should be suspended for 5 games. He should not have the privilege of potentially raising the Stanley Cup with his teammates on the ice. Mike Murphy will certainly have his hands full with this one.

Moving onto the Recchi and Lucic taunts: I have to admit I laughed, but realistically there is no place for that within the context of the game. You can't say that you're over the biting incident and then go and mock the Canucks about it. This should have been dead and buried after the NHL opted not to suspend Alex Burrows. It needs to be completely dead now.

As far as the play on the ice, it was a complete domination. I felt the Canucks had a chance to steal the game after the Bruins did not score on their major powerplay, but that never happened. Boston just took it to Vancouver, even though the Canucks did have 40+ shots. Roberto Luongo should have been pulled after the fifth goal, but Alain Vigneault gave Luongo the option to stay in. That's a point where the coach  needs to take control and pull the goalie for the sake of his confidence. However, on the flip side, Tim Thomas was outstanding tonight.

AP

Without saying much else other than the fact Boston put up an 8-spot in the Stanley Cup Finals, it's time to look ahead to Game 4. Vancouver has a ton to prove here. Roberto Luongo has a ton to prove here. However, this is not a terribly pivotal game. Vancouver has the chance to take a commanding series lead, but they will still hold home ice advantage regardless. I believe the Canucks will recover nicely and win Game 4, but no matter what this series has taken on a whole new landscape after Game 3.

AT: Man, what I would've done to be a fly on the wall in the Bruins locker room after the first period. I can only imagine what Julien said to this team. Obviously, it created a whole new perspective for the players and he encouraged them to play their hearts out the entire game and take it to them until the final buzzer. As the final score shows, they certainly did.

The taunts need to end. Okay, it's the Stanley Cup finals, but I fear it's going to turn into something a lot worse if the NHL doesn't put an end to it. As for the hit, absolutely disgusting. There was no chance for Horton to react to that. A shoulder to the head is never, ever acceptable.