Who helped Van City roll?
It was a Northwest Division flashback weekend for the Vancouver Canucks.
And like they’ve been doing forever, they beat up on both Alberta teams in a bounce back weekend after a season opening loss to the Sharks.
The Canucks 6-2 win against Edmonton on Saturday was 60 minutes of dominance and after two horrible periods, Vancouver decided to show up in the third to dispose of the Flames on Sunday.
There was a lot of good that came from the two wins but let’s be honest – those are games the Canucks are supposed to win.
Still, there were a few shining stars over the weekend and here are my champs in the pair of wins for the Canucks.
John Tortorella
Torts picked up his first win as Canucks head coach, told the media he doesn’t give a shit what CBC has to say and seemed mostly calm on the bench – pretty good weekend.
But it wasn’t just his demeanor that gets him on this list.
I loved the way the Canucks kept their foot on the throat of the Oilers on Saturday.
Under Alain Vigneault, far too often the team would sit on leads and play conservatively – that wasn’t the case against the Oilers and I give Torts credit for giving his players the green light even when they have the lead.
Another thing I loved was his splitting up the Sedins against Calgary on Sunday. Vancouver had just fallen behind 3-1 in the third period and they needed some kind of spark to wake them up.
Northwest Division flashback weekend for the Vancouver Canucks
Daniel and Henrik helped set up the next two goals with new line mates and I think it re-invigorated the whole team.
Overall a great weekend for the new bench boss.
Mike Santorelli
He was clutch against the Flames with a pair of goals and he seems like he’s having a ton of fun out there. I liked Santorelli’s preseason and he’s fit in really well as a complimentary player so far on this team.
He’s got speed, a decent offensive touch and has been one of the best Canucks on the draw so far this season. He also probably caught Tortorella’s attention with a couple blocked shots and I like the fact that he’s not afraid to shoot the puck.
Good stuff from the hometown boy so far.
Jason Garrison
Loved that long distance shorthanded goal against the Oilers and I love the number of shots that Garrison is putting on net. He had seven over the two games and the more the Canucks use that cannon, the better.
He blocked four shots over the two games and he just seems much more comfortable out there than last season.
Ryan Stanton
He’s done everything the Canucks have asked of him and was rock solid against Calgary and Edmonton. Stanton blocked three shots in each game and he’s a presence out there physically.
He’s filling his role as a sixth defenseman for the Canucks perfectly and has fit in well on a blue line that looked like it might be lacking a little depth. He’s also only managed to find himself in the penalty box once, which is an accomplishment in itself.
The busy October continues for the Canucks with games on Tuesday (vs. New Jersey), Thursday (vs. San Jose) and Saturday (vs. Montreal).
In order the games will appear on TSN, Sportsnet and CBC. Hang on tight as there are still 12 more games this month alone.
And I’d say the Torts temper-o-meter has dropped to a very manageable 2.5 out of 10.
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