Wednesday, February 25, 2004

Sedin shoots, he scores, he scores, he scores, he scores

Last night was a banner night for Daniel Sedin as the Vancouver Canuck scored all four goals for the Nucks as they beat up on the Detroit Red Wings 4-2 at GM Place. It was like a coming out party for the Swede as the Vancouver fan base finally got to see a flash of what they have been promised for a number of years now. It seemed like Daniel could do no wrong, every puck seemed to find a piece of the net, he found himself in perfect position time and time again. Paired up with brother Henrik and Todd Bertuzzi, Daniel showed much confidence on the ice last night, Bertuzzi's influence giving the twins more ice to work with and it's been a successful combination while Marcus Naslund has been out. The third goal in the third period did the most damage, as it took the gas out of a never say die Red Wing team, a team which lost all star defenceman Chris Chelios to injury. Sedins' fourth was into an empty net in the waning moments of the game. Sending the GM place crowd to it's feet with enthusiasm.

The two Sedin's have been at the top of the performer's list on the Canucks the last six weeks or so, picking up their game quite a bit and beginning to silence the critics who had grown tired of waiting for them to come around. The increased confidence has paid off for both the twins and the Canucks, as it gives the team a solid second line threat now, one which other teams have to make allowances for during line match ups. Their sudden burst of scoring, will give Marc Crawford some food for thought when Naslund returns possibly as early as this Saturday. Does he move Bertuzzi back onto the line with Naslund or keep him on the Sedin unit. Most likely the big line will be re-united, but expect Bertuzzi to get some double shifts with the Sedin's from time to time down the stretch, his presence seems to make them a better threat on the ice as well. Look for Brian Burke to try and scratch up someone of similar caliber as Bertuzzi to work with the Sedins by the trading deadline.

The win for the Canucks was a big one for many reasons. It was in front of a home crowd that had been showing signs of bandwagon hopping, destination off, after some setbacks earlier this month. The out hit the Wings and gave notice that they're on their way back to battling for first over all and they picked up some points on Colorado, who lost to Calgary last night. The win last night took some of the bile out of the after game phone callers who have lately been berating the Canucks on the open line shows after poor performances.

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