Hockey Night in Nashville - Miracle in Music City
Canucks have Nashville singin' a hurtin' tune & Preds play Whack-a-Goalie
Canucks celebrate the overtime winner - big screen at Boston Pizza in Saanich.
There are a lot of terrible things going on in the world but for Canucks fans three words uttered by coach Rick Tocchet last week shattered our hearts and convinced us that the hockey gods would never forgive us for the two riots: “Week to week.”
If you’re reading this you know Tocchet was talking about superstar/saviour goalie, Thatcher Demko. Demko goes down.
But Canucks lose one, then win one with Casey DeSmith.
Then today DeSmith is out and it is absolutely clear… cursed… doomed… the Preds can start booking flights for round two.
Arturs Silovs starts ‘cause Canucks love us some Latvians. Down 3-1. Can’t score. Can’t even get a shot near the Nashville net. Ugly, tragic, all over but the flight home…
And then… Canucks pull net… and are saved not by a goalie, but by a freaking goal post that stops Colton Sissons from burying the puck in a wide open net, breaks the hearts of Preds fans everywhere and sets up the Canucks on a comeback win for the ages.
Two goals with the net pulled???
Wow. Just wow.
And now… a musical interlude…
Back when Nashville was gifted an NHL franchise in 1997 my comedy partner Kevin Crofton and I wrote a song mocking how the NHL would rather put a team in any US market willing to host one - even if they don’t have an arena (yah, looking and laughing at you formerly Phoenix Coyotes) - than any new Canadian market.
So I should have shared this when NHL Commish Gary (America First) Bettman announced the Coyotes were being relocated to the hockey hot-bed of Utah ‘cause all Quebec City and Hamilton have are arenas and hockey fans…
But after the Canucks Miracle in Music City in game four it seemed like a fine time to share this, Lucille.
And this’d be the song I wrote with my friend Art Norris and recorded/performed with Kevin Crofton (as Local Anxiety) that the Canucks played at home games pretty much every night of the 2011 Stanley Cup run. So if anyone from the Canucks is reading this… you really oughta be playing this along with that U2 tune…
And back to that game… that game… game four. April 28, 2024.
So many thoughts on the game and the series… although most of them are currently JT Miller, JT Miller (and Brock Boeser) on an infinite loop.
Meanwhile…
Three goalies?
Three goalies?
Three freaking goalies???
After winning game 1 Demko goes down. Again.
Then Casey DeSmith is solid for two games, winning game 3 and suddenly… Game 4... Not even up to sitting on the bench to back up.
And now Arturs Silovs?
I’m a bit worried that in a few games we’ll be starting the Zamboni driver…
The 12-Million-Dollar-Man
Elias Pettersson is playing like he wants to be a superstar on the Maple Leafs. Beautiful regular season. NHL All Star. Invisible in the playoffs except for the oopsies…
Petey, please come home. If the big contract is too much pressure I’m sure Alvin would be happy to let you take a pay cut.
On the bright side, Petey only has one less goal than Auston Matthews
Mind you, I only have one less goal than Matthews.
And so do you…
And so do the Leaf goalies…
Yep, Matthews is currently setting the league (or at least the Toronto fan-base) on fire with 1 in 4 games. My friend Ian Ferguson noted that former Leaf Zach Hyman currently has just as many goals as his ex-team.
The other Elias for the win in OT!
EP 40 only seems to be taking the postgame podium to apologize for giveaways and weak defensive coverage. Meanwhile, EL 23 is making it clear why the Canucks traded goal-scoring beauty Andrei Kuzmenko to the Flames.
I love Kuzmenko. His attitude is terrific. He’s big fun to watch. And I think he may score 50 in Calgary next year. But Calgary doesn’t care if he can backcheck and doesn’t need to worry that during tight games it’s hard to guess which team he’s likely to help more.
Long before the trade I couldn’t picture Kuz starting a Canucks playoff game under Tocchet unless every forward on the Abbotsford team (and that Zamboni driver) were too injured to start.
Meanwhile, EL 23 is a faceoff machine and just scored the OT winner.
Connor Hellebuyck wherefore art thou?
With an average of, I dunno, I think it’s something like 12 goals against a game, I’m wondering if a Vezina vote has ever been repealed in the post-season?
“The best goalie in the league” (TM) is looking like, um, that Canucks Zamboni driver currently waiting for his phone call…
Dangle for the wins and especially the losses
In other hockey news - whether you love or hate the Maple Leafs or have ever watched a hockey game- Steve Dangle’s post-game rants are truly hilarious. And I hope he has a really good cardiologist.
From Orca Bay to Orcas Escaping the Bay…
The latest from the Skaana Substack…
