Vancouver Canucks-Los Angeles Kings Quarterfinal Series Review -NHL Playoffs Special
Vancouver Canucks disappointed not only their own fans but the whole Canadian fan base as they were the only strong team from the North going into the 2012 National Hockey League (NHL) Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Fans were able to get over the fact Vancouver practically gave up Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals against Boston Bruins, but after one of the biggest riots in Canadian history of course, but this time as Canucks were eliminated right in the opening round,
they want change.
Canucks will definitely have a busy offseason as they are rumoured to be making some major changes around the team and one of the most recent reports to have surfaced is that veteran goalie, Roberto Luongo, will be traded soon.
Luongo choked a number of times during the last playoffs and even more this time around as he gave up the first two games at home, forcing the Vancouver management to pull him out of the series for good.
Cory Schneider came in as his replacement and winning his second game but only to be eliminated in Game 5 by Los Angeles Kings in a disappointing quarterfinal series.
"We had expectations and hopes to go far in this playoff," Schneider said. "It seems like around the league, parity is running wild. Look at Pittsburgh, ourselves, Detroit, San Jose. New York's facing elimination, Boston held it off today. We can't take
anything for granted. Anyone is capable of winning in this league."
"To be honest, it doesn't matter if you lose the seventh game of the finals or you lose in five in the first round, it's devastating," Daniel Sedin said. "We have the mindset to win every year. When you end up on the losing side it's tough."
Los Angeles on the other hand played spectacularly well as they had a solid goalie, Jonathan Quick, in net and showing patience at every shot instead of panicking like the Vancouver club.
A number of new additions over the 2011 offseason like Mike Richards and Jeff Carter later on in the season, boosted the Kings to new levels.
Here is how the games played out:
Game 1
Kings came out and dominated right from the start as Los Angeles won 4-2 over Vancouver. After staying tied for the first two periods, Dustin Penner and Dustin Brown scored two straight to rally towards victory and taking a lead in the series.
Game 2
Vancouver did not improve at all as they lost yet again, 4-2, in the same manner as Los Angeles rallied in round-three to take a dominating 4-1 lead with less than six minutes remaining in regulation wile Samuel Pahlsson added the last for Vancouver at 16:22.
Game 3
The series was now in Los Angeles and it was widely expected that Vancouver would defy all odds and make a comeback but Jonathan Quick showed what he was made of by blocking all 41 shots on net for a 1-0 shutout.
Game 4
Vancouver was on the brink of being eliminated but showed signs of making a historic comeback as Schneider was fixated for winning, making 43 saves, while Canucks scored three goals straight in the last 40 minutes of game play.
Game 5
Los Angeles Kings returned to their winning ways as Brad Richardson and Jarret Stoll took over the second and third period respectively, eliminating Vancouver Canucks in five games, 2-1 in overtime.
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