• Burrows bulks up to win (Brad Ziemer, Vancouver Sun)
• Best offence isn't a good defence this season (Brad Ziemer, Vancouver Sun)
• Healthy Miller picks up play (Elliott Pap, Vancouver Sun)
• Left-winger Cowan back after hip injury (Elliott Pap, Vancouver Sun)
• Bourdon learns to play simple game (Jim Jamieson, Vancouver Province)
• PK unit gets better of late (Jim Jamieson, Vancouver Province)
• Morrison out to prove critics wrong (Ben Kuzma, Vancouver Province)
• GM Place ice a carnival-like circus of sorts at practice (Ben Kuzma, Vancouver Province)
• As Sedins go, so do Canucks (Jason Botchford, Vancouver Province)
• Canucks finding successful passage through Northwest (Jason Botchford, Vancouver Province)
• Forwards better going backward (Jason Botchford, Vancouver Province)
• Raymond back in the hunt (Ken Wiebe, Winnipeg Sun)

Labels: Avalanche, Bourdon, Burrows, Cowan, game recap, Miller, Morrison, Sedin

Jason Jaffray could handle a contract snafu keeping him from playing for the Vancouver Canucks last season.

He could handle toiling for five years in the minors and he could handle the Kootenay Ice trading him in the midst of their 2002 Memorial Cup run, despite him being team captain at the time.

Jaffray, a winger who is in the midst of finalizing a two-year, two-way deal with the Canucks, has been saddled with much worse than anything hockey can dish out at him.

The Vancouver Canucks have to make their intentions known this week on the potential buyout of disappointing centre Marc Chouinard.

Chouinard, who finished last season in the minors, has a year remaining on his contract at $1.1 million and must clear waivers before the buyout process begins (all figures are in U.S. dollars).

Cowan, meanwhile, will become an unfettered free agent Sunday unless his representative, Rollie Thompson, and Canuck assistant GM Steve Tambellini can wrap up a deal.

"Steve and I had a couple of pretty good talks in Columbus over the weekend," Thompson said Monday. "We're going in the right direction. Both parties would like to make it happen."

Cowan, who was a waiver-wire pickup from the L.A. Kings in late December, earned $532,000 US last season. It's believed he's seeking a two-year deal.

Tambellini, who is handling many of the contract negotiations, also opened discussions with Krajicek's agent, Petr Svoboda, at the draft. Svoboda described the talks as "positive" but declined any specifics on term despite reports of a two-year offer.

"It doesn't really matter as long as Lukas has another good year and plays well," said Svoboda, the former NHL blueliner. "He was happy with his first season in Vancouver, but he knows he could do better. He loves the town, the organization and the players, so that's the key."

"Ryan is really thrilled about about this opportunity with Vancouver and he's looking forward to getting into camp. And, probably more importantly, he's looking forward to getting back from Europe in one piece."

Duberman said Canucks management has made no promises, other than the standard one of providing an opportunity. Vancouver already has three established centres under contract in Henrik Sedin, Brendan Morrison and Ryan Kesler. Shannon, presumably, would have to vie for fourth-line playing time with the likes of Rick Rypien and Alex Burrows.

"I know Ryan is a good enough player to be on their roster, especially with his speed, but nothing has been promised and we know that," continued Duberman.

Labels: Chouinard, Cowan, Jaffray, Krajicek, Shannon

• Duck this, Anaheim. (Iain MacIntyre, Vancouver Sun)
• Burke's bullies fail to intimidate. (Cam Cole, Vancouver Sun)
• Mother of a Duck. (Cam Cole, Vancouver Sun)
• Ducks come up short. (Dan Wood, OC Register)
• Extra effort. (Mark Whicker, OC Register)
• Fresher Canucks see result doubled. (Curtis Zupke, OC Register)
• Ducks alter course on playoff travel. (Dan Wood, OC Register)
• Canucks late-night magic beats Ducks in second overtime. (Eric Stephens, LA Times)
• Canucks defensemen hurting. (Lonnie White and Helene Elliott, LA Times)
• The onus is on the Ducks. (Helene Elliott, LA Times)
• Ducks' Pahlsson well acquainted with Sedin brothers. (Eric Stephens and Helene Elliott, LA Times)
• Squeeze play wins it. (Elliott Teaford, Daily Breeze).

• Alanah from Canucks and Beyond recaps the game.
• So does Hanna from Canucks Fangirl and zanstorm from Waiting for Stanley.
• Mike the Yankee Canuck liveblogged the game and called the Cowan game-winner.
• James Mirtle called Cowan's goal a weird one. (We're just used to seeing those sorts of goals happen now.)
• For the SoCal view, check Earl Sleek from Battle of California, Finny from Girl with a Puck, and Anaheim Duck Fan.

1. Roberto Luongo (VAN): 43 saves including a lot of huge ones on the Ducks powerplay.
2. Jean-Sebastian Giguere (ANA): 47 saves for the home team.
3. Lukas Krajicek (VAN): Stepped up his game and was great in 32:07 minutes of ice-time.

• Scoresheet
• Stat Sheet
• Shift Chart

Labels: Cowan, Ducks, game recap

In an attempt to fix his power play -- which is currently so impotent it needs Viagra more than a good set-up man -- Alain Vigneault has turned to Jeff Cowan.

Why not? In the last two weeks, Cowan has fixed the team's second line, fixed its toughness issue and, above all, fixed sagging brassiere sales in the Lower Mainland. All things considered, resuscitating the Canucks' comatose power play should be a piece of cake for Cowan.

"He's on a roll," head coach Alain Vigneault said with a shrug. "As a coach, you have to play the guys who are on a roll."

"For some reason, Pyatt's game has slipped and not just in his execution but in his physical implications, whereas Jeff's game has picked up," said Vigneault.

"Our power play right now is not performing and we're going to try Jeff there. He's been our hottest player and Pyatt has not played to his potential.

"Cowan and Pyatt on the power play pretty much have the same role in screening the goaltender and tipping pucks."

Translation: As much as Cowan has been justly rewarded for going boldly to the net and collecting eight points in his last seven games, Vigneault is sending Pyatt a message to be more of a presence. Big bodies who play big are a postseason bonus, especially on the power play. And Pyatt does have nine power-play goals.

• Louie is looking forward to his first NHL playoff action. So are we. - Jason Botchford (Vancouver Province)
• Bryan and Nazzy ain't the same as Bert and Nazzy, but AV says it's getting there. - Brad Ziemer (Vancouver Sun)
• The gushing over Gaborik continues. - Grant Kerr (Globe and Mail)

Labels: Blues, Cowan, game day preview, Pyatt

• Daniel Sedin, 30-goal scorer. It has a nice ring to it. - Jason Botchford (Vancouver Province)
• Lee Goren down in the farm just hit the 20-goal plateau himself - Ken Wiebe (Winnipeg Sun)
• Everyone in Vancouver is still talking about Jeff Cowan. - Gordon McIntyre (Vancouver Province), Elliott Pap (Vancouver Sun), Grant Kerr (Globe and Mail)

Labels: Cowan, Coyotes, game day preview, Sedin

Labels: Cowan, video clip

It wasn't exactly a night off for Roberto Luongo but it came close.

So often this season, Luongo has carried the Canucks and the hopes of their fans on his formidable shoulders.

Turnabout is fair play.

The Canucks D-men shut down Tampa Bay's top line like a high school kegger after the cops arrive. It helped Luongo to his 38th win of the season, tying Kirk McLean's mark set in 1991-92.

In the rest of the world, lightning never strikes twice. In Vancouver, it never strikes once, except when it hits five times in three games for Jeff Cowan.

The Tampa Bay Lightning, who entered the National Hockey League in 1992, remained 0-for-ever in Vancouver as the Canucks got a pair of goals from their grinder-turned-sniper Tuesday and beat the 2004 Stanley Cup champions 5-1.

As the saying goes, the Canucks left it all on the ice. And after Cowan's second goal capped a rollicking third period, so did one female fan. At least we assume it was a she who tossed a bra on to the ice, creating a standoff between Canuck defenceman Willie Mitchell, who speared the unmentionable with his stick, and referee Dave Jackson, who was hesitant to transfer it to the penalty box.

Three games ago, Cowan may as well have been John Doe. Now, he's Tom Jones.

• More postgame thoughts from the Vancouver press. - Ben Kuzma (Vancouver Province), Grant Kerr (Globe and Mail)
• Now from the Tampa Bay side. - Damian Cristodero (St. Petersburg Times), Erik Erlendson (Tampa Tribune)
• Heading towards the playoffs, the 'Nucks are clicking on all cylinders. - Ed Willes (Vancouver Province)
• It's been well-documented. Louie is glad to be heading to the playoffs. - Erik Erlendson (Tampa Tribune)
• Some roster notes on Rory, Kes and Dany. - Elliott Pap (Vancouver Sun)

• The Yankee Canuck is the latest to praise Jeff Cowan.
• Ditto Jes Golbez.
• Waiting For Stanley is all for more bra-throwing on the ice.
• Isabella from stick in rink was at the game and gives her minute-by-minute account.
• Canucks Fangirl and The Chief Canuck also throw in their two cents.

1. Daniel Sedin (VAN): Scored his 30th goal of the season.
2. Jeff Cowan (VAN): Two more goals and a long standing ovation from the crowd.
3. Kevin Bieksa (VAN): Led all Canucks in ice-time and scored the game-winning goal.

• Scoresheet
• Stat Sheet
• Shift Chart

Labels: Cowan, game recap, Lightning, Luongo, Sedin

Not only did the fourth-line grinder take his game to another level Thursday in a 4-3 win over Phoenix -- a shorthanded breakaway goal, a fight, drawing a key penalty and being named the first star -- Cowan replaced Trevor Linden on a line with Brendan Morrison and Matt Cooke in the final period. It wasn't a brief promotion.

Citing a stretch of improved play, Vigneault had Cowan back with Morrison and Cooke on Sunday for a first-place showdown with the Minnesota Wild at GM Place. Cowan responded with two deflected goals in a 4-3 shootout victory as the Canucks kept their hold on the Northwest Division lead.

But these Canucks are as much a cult as a team, achieving far more this season than most people expected while working with less talent. And profoundly better goaltending.

Get your head around it: these Canucks are the old Wild. Sure, they're far more entertaining -- Lemaire's combover would have stood on end had his players employed the Canucks' "four-man press" or his defenceman joined the rush as readily as Vancouver's -- but the Canucks' strengths, besides goalie Roberto Luongo, are the principles instilled by coach Alain Vigneault regarding work, discipline, merit and accountability. In Burke-speak, the Canucks are a cult.

• The local media is gushing all over Jeff Cowan, the team's newest goalscorer. - Gordon McIntyre (Vancouver Province), Brad Ziemer (Vancouver Sun)
• The Canucks apparently aren't getting a lot of respect around the league. That's a good thing. - Ed Willes (Vancouver Province)
• Postgame from the Minnesota side of things. - John Shipley (Pioneer Press)

• Count Waiting For Stanley in the Jeff Cowan fan club.
• Canucks Fangirl is still in a state of disbelief about the win.
• Same as Wild Puck Banter.
• Puck Wild has another recap from a Wild fan's perspective.

1. Jeff Cowan (VAN): Two more goals for the 'Nucks tough guy.
2. Pavol Demitra (MIN): Two assists and five shots for Jes Golbez's favorite player.
3. Willie Mitchell (VAN): Solid work by the 'Nucks defenseman. Added a couple of assists to boot.

• Scoresheet
• Stat Sheet
• Shift Chart

Next Game

Tuesday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

______________
Comments/Questions: Feel free to post in the comments section or email me at gocanucksgo10 (at) hotmail (dot) com.

Technorati Tags: NHL, hockey, Vancouver, Canucks, Minnesota+Wild

Labels: Cowan, game recap, Wild

• Last night's game won't win many artistic points. - Ben Kuzma (Vancouver Province), Tony Gallagher (Vancouver Province)
• After seven games in seven cities, the Canucks are home for a short while. - Iain MacIntyre (Vancouver Sun)
• Jeremy Roenick sat out this game and watched this game from the press box. Or The Keg. Somewhere. - Elliott Pap (Vancouver Sun)
• The Canucks are looking to sign Moose sniper Jason Jaffray to an NHL contract. - Ben Kuzma (Vancouver Province)
• Not exactly Canucks-related, but here's another Ryan Smyth piece. - Ed Willes (Vancouver Province)

About the game around the blogosphere

• The Chief Canuck has the good, the bad and the Bulis.
• Waiting For Stanley is erecting a statue in Jeff Cowan's honor. Okay, okay, he just changed his banner but you get the idea.
• Canucks Fangirl shares her recap of the game.

My 3 Stars of the Game

1. Daniel Sedin (VAN): Two more goals give him 29 for the season.
2. Shane Doan (DAL): Most dangerous Coyotes forward.
3. Jeff Cowan (VAN): Best game as a Canuck.

Official Statistics

• Scoresheet
• Stat Sheet
• Shift Chart

Labels: Cowan, Coyotes, game recap