Tampa has Lightning in a bottle

Transcription

1 Tampa has Lightning in a bottle Tony Gallagher The Province January 2, 2014 Young visitors show good combination of speed, shooting prowess, even without Stamkos The Tampa Bay Lightning may not quite be at the level of the Vancouver Canucks yet, but when you have eight rookies and nine players in your lineup 25 years old or younger and Steven Stamkos would have made it 10, you have to be pretty excited. Sometimes young doesn t mean a lot. You can have a lot of young, bad hockey players and we know this from Canuck teams from a good long way back in history. Maybe the Oilers are a glorious example of this reality right now. But this doesn t appear to be the case with the Lightning, a team rarely seen in Vancouver given the only just-remedied quirks of the NHL schedule. They have some speed, some kids who can shoot and Victor Hedman is beginning to look like the player Tampa hoped they had landed when they drafted him No. 2 overall in 09 former Canuck Mattias Ohlund apparently most helpful in his development. It s great, it s one of the reasons I signed here because of (GM Steve) Yzerman s plan of having this, said Tyler Johnson, the young centre who played his junior in Spokane. So far it s been working out very well. It s awesome. The majority of the guys here I ve played with in the minors, so it already feels like we ve been together for a while. We had high expectations of ourselves and I d say things are going very well right now. There s a lot of character on this team. Give them some credit, that s a good, quick team, said Vancouver coach John Tortorella. This team and Colorado are two of the good, young teams we ve faced this year. Contrast that to the home team that is laden with veterans, many of them fading before our eyes when you consider Ryan Kesler s 10 games without a goal and the Sedins deteriorating production levels highlighted by the paralytic power play whereby this team keeps repeating the same unsuccessful approach. They continue to roll Dan Hamhuis out on the point on the first unit, even though his tongue is dragging on the ice by the end of the night because of his monstrous ice-time numbers. He proceeds to combine with the rest to get absolutely nothing accomplished. Whereas once the

2 Vancouver power play generated offence for this team or at least a positive shift in momentum, it now stops momentum cold. The Sedins stand around and try to filter passes through to players who are covered. The plan has one objective, load the cannon of Jason Garrison s shot from the point, but unfortunately teams have uncovered this not so-plot. It s been so bad lately that the Vancouver fan is almost looking forward to the return of the 50-foot Alex Edler drop pass. Vancouver is 24th in the league with the man advantage ahead of just Winnipeg, Carolina, Calgary, Dallas, Buffalo and Florida, all teams with virtually no high-end talent other than Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn with the Stars. And it s not as if this is some sort of sudden drought or dry spell. The power play has been appalling now for well over a full NHL season and management is looking at four more years of this Sedin magic after the $28 million US handed out to each of them earlier this season. Whereas once they were a team that welcomed a special teams game, now it brings them no joy even though they have the best penalty killing group in the league. Five-on-five the Sedins are admittedly hampered by the absence of Alex Burrows and the coaching staff s dogged insistence that Jannik Hansen play with them when each and every night out he demonstrates he is not a first-line winger. But really, since the contract extension, and as much as the twins are justifiably loved as both players and citizens in this community, what s really gone on with those guys offensively? That s a team effort, our worst game of the year, said Tortorella. We deserved to lose. But it s in the trash can already and we have a couple of days to get ready for a pretty stiff test coming up. Limp Vancouver as bad as it gets Jason Botchford The Province January 2, 2014 The good news is it can t really get any worse than this poor effort If it was based solely on their New Year s Day game, the Canucks wouldn t have any players going to the Sochi Olympics. The Sedins didn t do much but watch Jannik Hansen handle pucks like he was using a wooden spoon for a stick. Ryan Kesler, picked by Team USA earlier in the day for its Olympic team, and his linemates were ineffective at their best. At their worst, they made Bobby Ryan playing summer league hockey at a kids camp seem intense.

3 Dan Hamhuis had a couple of nice moments, including a hit that dropped Tampa s Richard Panik, leading directly to the Canucks second goal. But he was soft on a couple of Lightning goals and was a statue on Tampa s fourth. By the end, Hamhuis was on the ice for every goal scored in the game. For the Canucks, it was an embarrassingly listless 4-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. They were fed a cupcake, as most Eastern teams qualify, and choked trying to get it down. Daniel Sedin called it the Canucks worst performance of the season. He assessed it correctly, John Tortorella said. Listen, we haven t had many, but you could see right away we were out of sync. I could just feel it. It is, it is our worst game of the year. The Canucks best lines, actually their only ones, were their third and fourth lines. They combined for two Vancouver goals in the second period. On most nights, that d be pretty good for this team. At least, it s about average, considering Vancouver has scored more than two goals just once in seven games. Point is, the team has been offensively challenged for much of the season. But it was the defence that was the real disaster against Tampa, surrendering three goals in a 4:10 span to end the second. And that was with good goaltending. Over 60 minutes it was far from good enough, Daniel Sedin said. We had nothing going for us. There were a lot of odd-man rushes. I can t even count on two hands how many odd man rushes they had. I think it was probably our worst game of the year. It was enough to leave Tortorella burying his head in his hands, heading his weak clearing attempt allowed Tampa to press, and it led to a Nikita Kucherov goal. That was the worst defensive play in a period that featured Kevin Bieksa getting stripped of the puck with one of his pinches in the offensive zone. It can create something if it works, but when it doesn t, Bieksa leaves people screaming what was he thinking? On Wednesday against Tampa, it didn t work. Ondrj Palat turned the puck the other way, setting up Tyler Johnson for the Lightning s second goal. Tortorella makes case for Hamhuis

4 Steve Ewen The Province January 2, 2014 After tough start, Canucks top defenceman has played himself into Olympic consideration He s in top shape. He s cerebral. That gets him out of jams. He s done a terrific job John Tortorella John Tortorella hopes that the improving play of Dan Hamhuis isn t going unnoticed by the folks picking Canada s team for Sochi I don t root for Team Canada in that Olympic stuff, Tortorella, a Boston native, said Wednesday morning, but he should be one of those players. He s played that well. Heading into last night s 4-2 Rogers Arena loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, Hamhuis led the Canucks in ice time at an average of 23 minutes, 50 seconds. He s played 29 minutes or more in four of Vancouver s past six games, including a whopping 32:30 in Monday s tilt against the Philadelphia Flyers. That isn t likely going to change anytime soon. Alex Edler (knee) skated with other injured players before the morning skate. Tortorella will only say that he s day-to-day. Andrew Alberts (concussion), who was Vancouver s extra defenceman, didn t hit the ice with Edler s group. That leaves Frank Corrado and Yannick Weber to round out the defence corps. I feel good and I think Mike Sullivan (who runs the defence for Tortorella) does a good job of recognizing when guys are tired and when you can get double-shifted, Hamhuis said. I think it s easier when you play more minutes. There s always a fine line... playing too much and making mistakes. Canada s Sochi 2014 men s hockey entry will be unveiled Jan. 7. Hamhuis was part of a summer orientation camp, so he s been on their radar for some time. He had trouble to start this season, though, going minus-four after six games. He went into Wednesday s game as a plus-12, tied for the team lead with Mike Santorelli. He also has four goals and 13 points. He gets better as he plays more minutes, Tortorella said of Hamhuis. He s been a huge part to us finding ourselves, where early in the year he really struggled. He s in shape. He s in top shape. He s cerebral. That gets him out of jams. He s done a terrific job. He s really grown.

5 As for the Olympic situation, Hamhuis said: It s certainly in the thoughts. First focus is here... But, yeah, team being announced in a few days, it is hard not to think about. No flash, no defence against better Bolts Brad Ziemer The Vancouver Sun January 2, 2014 Defensive lapses against speedy Lightning lead to back- to- back losses at home for flat Canucks It may yet turn out to be a happy new year for the Vancouver Canucks. It just hasn t started out so well. The Canucks began 2014 with a rather sloppy effort Wednesday that resulted in a 4-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning at Rogers Arena. The Canucks strayed from the solid defensive game that helped them win 10 of 13 games in December. The Lightning play a quick, wide- open style and the Canucks tried to do that, too. It didn t work. The Lightning had considerably more jump and took advantage of Vancouver s lax defensive play. I think probably our worst game of the year, said winger Daniel Sedin. Defensively, the Canucks played like they did early in the season, when they were giving up far too many high- quality scoring chances. We had a lot of odd- man rushes tonight, Daniel said. I can t even count on two hands how many odd- man rushes they had. Against this team, too, they are so quick. We had too many turnovers and it was just sloppy overall. I don t think we worked hard enough, that is the bottom line. That s why maybe it looked like it was a wide- open game. It comes down to us, not getting pucks deep to sustain pressure on their guys. When we got pucks deep we were a step behind all the time. It just wasn t good enough. There was no argument from Vancouver coach John Tortorella, who could see that trouble was brewing early. Tortorella burned his timeout before the game was 10 minutes old to try and light a fire under his lethargic crew. He assessed it correctly, was Tortorella s reaction to Daniel s suggestion that this was Vancouver s worst game of the season. You could see right away that we were just out of sync. I could just feel it. That s a team effort; it is our worst game of the year. We deserved to lose that one and we did. I just think it was a game we looked out of sorts, out of sync. It wasn t just one particular guy, it

6 was the whole team. It s in the trash can already. We have a couple of days to regroup and get ready for a pretty stiff test coming up here. Nikita Kucherov scored the winner on a Tampa Bay power play with three seconds left in the second period. That late goal just kind of sums up the night, said winger Zac Dalpe, who scored his first goal as a Canuck. We were fighting it. Some nights you fight the puck, it bounces early and you kind of get worn down. It was a weird game. I thought all day we had emotion and then we came out and a couple of bad plays maybe got us a little bit frustrated. Centre Alex Killorn iced things at 7: 28 of the third period when he tipped a Victor Hedman point shot past Vancouver goalie Eddie Lack. The Canucks have now lost two in a row at home and wasted a chance to climb over the Los Angeles Kings in the Western Conference standings. Vancouver remains sixth in the West with a record of It was very disappointing, said Canuck captain Henrik Sedin. Execution was off and when that happens it looks like you are not working hard enough. But I think we just made too many mistakes. We had to work way too hard. You have to keep it simple and that is when good things happen. We turned over way too many pucks tonight. The Canucks also had trouble handling Tampa Bay s speed. Their record says it all, Daniel said. It s a quick team; that s what stood out to me. They re very quick on pucks and if you re not ready, they re going to get a lot of 3- on- 2s and 2- on- 1s and that s what happened tonight. After a scoreless first period, the goals came in bunches in the second. Centre Brad Richardson opened scoring at the 11: 25 mark, beating Tampa goalie Ben Bishop high short side from the left circle. But the Lightning scored two goals 20 seconds apart to grab the lead. Valtteri Filppula beat Lack short side with a wrist shot at 15: 27. Tyler Johnson quickly followed as he finished off a 2- on- 1 rush with Ondrej Palat. But the Canucks answered with a fourth- line goal just 14 seconds later to briefly tie the game when Dalpe converted a pass from Dale Weise at 16: 01. I think it was just a good forecheck, a typical fourth- line goal, Dalpe said.

7 The Lightning regained the lead with three seconds left in the third as they scored on the power play. With Yannick Weber off for hooking, Kucherov put a shot over sprawled Vancouver defenceman Dan Hamhuis and beat Lack high to the short side. Earlier Wednesday, Vancouver centre Ryan Kesler was officially named to the U. S. Olympic team. Obviously I am excited and honoured and it is going to be a special experience for me, Kesler said after the game. I am looking forward to it. Kesler, like many of his teammates, did not have a great game Wednesday. He was on the ice for all four Tampa goals and did not have a shot on goal. Odd couple finds Lightning in a bottle Ian Macintyre The Vancouver Sun January 2, 2014 Flashy Tampa turnaround: A law guy from Prince George and a Canuck discard have helped their team rebound from laughing stock to one on the brink of greatness With a law degree in his pocket and hockey in his heart, Jon Cooper decided in his 30s that he wanted to coach professionally. Naturally, he started in Texarkana on the east Texas border. By that age, Rick Bowness had finished an eight- year journeyman career as a player and was getting his first stint as a head coach in the National Hockey League. Texarkana is one of the few places Bowness hasn t been in his 38- year pro career. Until Bowness joined Cooper s coaching staff with the Tampa Bay Lightning in June, the closest their career paths came to intersecting was in British Columbia, where Cooper is from and Bowness coached the last seven years as Alain Vigneault s top assistant on the Vancouver Canucks. It s a totally different path, Bowness said Wednesday of the route and he and Cooper took to Tampa. When I went to Toronto to interview with him, I had to Google Jon. Seriously, I knew nothing about him. So at the interview, he s interviewing me, but I was sort of interviewing him as well. Let me see, you gave up a law practice and went to Texarkana, Texas to coach junior hockey? And then you ve done all this? OK, I like that. The common bond we have is passion for the game. Bowness, 58, and Cooper, 46, may seem an odd couple except for their obvious amiability but they have helped the Lightning rebound from two disappointing seasons under former head coach Guy Boucher. Despite a handful of injuries, including a broken leg suffered Nov. 11 by superstar Steve Stamkos, the Lightning were and tied for third in the Eastern Conference before facing the Canucks on Wednesday night.

8 It was Bowness s first game back in Vancouver since he was fired with Vigneault and assistant Newell Brown last spring, and Cooper s first game in his home province as a coach. At any level. Cooper was born and raised in Prince George, played for the Notre Dame Hounds in Wilcox, Sask., then attended Hofstra University in New York on a lacrosse scholarship. Cooper played only one season of college hockey before going to law school in Michigan. He worked as a defence attorney before trading one bench for another and submitting to the siren call of hockey. He landed his first real coaching job in 2003 with the Texarkana Bandits of the junior North American Hockey League. I ll tell you right now, the NHL, I never thought this was the path I was going to take, Cooper said after the Lightning s morning skate at Rogers Arena. I enjoyed law. It was a great life experience for me. I was actually going to get into the agent business; that s really where I was going. But hockey was just ingrained. ( I m from) Prince George. Fortunately, I went one day down the fork in the road and it just came back with me. I just felt I was young enough I could do this full time and see where it was going to take me. And, lo and behold, it has taken me to Rogers Arena. Cooper joked that he asked Canuck general manager Mike Gillis for a share of gate receipts Wednesday due to all the friends and family members the Tampa coach had coming to the game. But Cooper owed Gillis, too. He said had Gillis not fired Bowness when he did on May 22, he and general manager Steve Yzerman were ready to hire someone else. After a decade of winning in the NAHL, United States Hockey League and AHL, Cooper was promoted from the Lightning s minor- league team in Syracuse to replace Boucher last March 25. Yzerman liked Cooper, but believed an NHL rookie coach needed an experienced assistant. Their search was nearing conclusion when Bowness suddenly became available. My phone just started ringing: That s the guy you gotta go interview, Cooper said. One day later, Yzerman called Gillis and was given permission to approach Bowness. He called me and said: This is Steve Yzerman of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Bowness laughed Wednesday. Like he needed to introduce himself. But that s the kind of guy Stevie is.

9 One of the appeals of coming to Tampa was to work with Jon. It s more me sitting back and watching how he does things and adjusting to him. He s the head coach and he s the perfect coach for this team. I m just here to support him any way I can. As he did in Vancouver, Bowness works primarily with the defence. But he is also Cooper s consigliere, a resource for the head coach on everything NHL from travel to player rest to practice times. Rick Bowness has been a wealth of information for me, Cooper said. I don t really consider myself a rookie coach. But I m a rookie to the NHL and this is a league that I needed some guidance. He s just been phenomenal. Bowness raves about the Lightning organization, from owner Jeff Vinik and Yzerman on down. He said he sees similarities between the Lightning roster, which has eight rookies, and the Canucks when Vigneault and Bowness arrived in The torch was being passed ( from older players) to guys like Daniel and Henrik ( Sedin) and Kevin Bieksa, Bowness said. And we worked with that group and got them to the point where we took a run at the Stanley Cup. That s where we are in Tampa. We ve got a lot of good young players. Give them a few more years, we re going to be a real solid hockey club. As excited as he is about his new team, Bowness can t forget his last one. For seven years, we were committed to Vancouver, he said. You put yur whole life into it. To say, OK, I m fired, then walk away I m not built like that. I just can t flip a switch. Today, when I came in, I saw Kevin with his son, Cole. I remember when Cole was born. Those memories and attachments, you just can t walk away from. Torts has more appreciation for clown now that he s coaching him Elliott Pap The Vancouver Sun January 2, 2014 Roberto Luongo is nearing a return to the Vancouver Canucks lineup and could be ready for the team s weekend doubleheader in Southern California.

10 The 34- year- old netminder suffered a groin strain Dec. 22 against the Winnipeg Jets and pulled himself from the game at the 16: 30 mark of the first period. Luongo has missed three games since then, including the New Year s Night match against the Tampa Bay Lightning. It was an Evander Kane shot down the wing that originally got me a little bit, Luongo explained when queried on what caused the injury. I tried to stay in the game for a few more minutes but I kept feeling it during the play. I felt it again on another shot so, before it got any worse, I just decided to get off there. I knew it wasn t anything too serious, given the fact I could still move around and skate off on my own. Luongo had an on- ice session Wednesday morning with goalie coach Rollie Melanson and then stayed out for the full team skate. He was happy with his progress. I ve been skating now for a few days with Rollie but this was my first team practice and I m feeling good, he said. Everything is progressing really well right now. We ll see what happens over the next few days. Asked about the weekend, when the Canucks meet the L. A. Kings and Anaheim Ducks backto- back, Luongo replied: Like I said, I felt really good out there today. I don t want to set a date. It was a good practice today and I think Friday is going to be an important day with the full team practice and all that stuff. We ll take it from there. TOM THUMB- ED: When Canuck coach John Tortorella was behind the New York Rangers bench, he coached against Tom Sestito, then a member of the Philadelphia Flyers. Torts was not impressed. As I told Tommy, when I saw him playing in Philly, he was playing like a clown, Tortorella said at his Wednesday morning press session. I thought he was an absolute idiot on the ice. He was accomplishing nothing. When I came here, I was concerned about what I had. But I ve watched him grow as far as a teammate and how he steps in when he needs to step in. He understands the game within the game. He has assumed a role on our team this is very important and has certainly changed my outlook as far as what type of player he is. Sestito allowed himself a chuckle when informed of Tortorella s clown comment. It s an opposing coach and I m sure a lot of other coaches are saying the same thing right now, Sestito said. I don t take any offence to it. Maybe he just didn t like how I was playing against his Rangers. I think I had three fights in one game there so that might have something to do with it. According to hockeyfights. com, Sestito dropped the mitts with three different Rangers Brandon Dubinsky, Stu Bickel and Brandon Prust on Feb. 5, 2012.

11 SAMI SIDELINED: Former Canuck and current Tampa Bay defenceman Sami Salo was eagerly awaiting the Lightning s visit to Rogers Arena but, typically, he was injured ( upper body) and missed the game. Oh, for sure, it s disappointing, said the Finn, now 39. It was one of those games marked on the calendar. I have a lot of good memories. Vancouver is a special place and obviously I wanted to play. Being in the city for 10 years, you obviously make a lot of friends and have a lot of good memories. It s like coming home. During his time as a Canuck, Salo helped the team win six division titles and two Presidents Trophies, and reach the Stanley Cup Final in He never once played a full season, though, due to an endless string of injuries. He said he has been pleasantly surprised by hockey interest in Tampa, long considered a nontraditional market despite a Cup victory in 2004 under John Tortorella. It s a bigger hockey city than people think and I was really surprised how many people like watching hockey instead of American football or baseball, he noted. So it was a real eyeopener. Wednesday s game was just the sixth missed by Salo this season. He has one goal and six assists in 34 appearances. QUOTABLE: He is a great model for players who have been told no. He was told so many things, that he couldn t play in the league. He and Henrik Lundqvist are probably two of the fiercest competitors I ve ever coached. He is the real stuff as far as what s inside of him. It s a great thing to look at as far as the size of a player. John Tortorella on 5- foot- 8 Tampa Bay captain Martin St. Louis. Luongo s imminent return to Canucks indicates he will be ready for Sochi Monte Stewart The Globe and Mail January 1, 2014, 9:28PM Goaltender Roberto Luongo expects to return to the Vancouver Canucks lineup soon and should be back in game shape in time for the 2014 Winter Olympics. Luongo took part in his first workout with the team Wednesday since suffering a lower-body injury Dec. 22 against Winnipeg. This is my first team practice, so I m feeling good, said Luongo after a morning skate in advance of Vancouver s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Everything s progressing really well right now.

12 Luongo indicated the problem is not overly serious, but was still not healthy enough to play against Tampa Bay. Eddie Lack drew his third straight start, and fourth appearance since Luongo got hurt, while minor-league call-up Joacim Eriksson was given the backup assignment. Speaking to reporters for the first time since he was sidelined, Luongo revealed how he got hurt, but would not disclose the extent of the injury, other than to say it was a lower-body problem. It was an Evander Kane shot down the wing that originally got me a little bit, said Luongo. I tried to stay in the game a few more minutes and then kept feeling it during the play and felt it again on another shot. Luongo left the game late in the first period during a TV timeout after consulting with trainer Mike Burnstein. After one of the TV timeouts, I made him aware there was a bit of an issue there, so he knew something was going on, said Luongo. Sometimes those things subside, and sometimes they (don t). So I tried to keep playing until the next TV timeout pretty much and I went to the bench again and spoke to Bernie. Luongo indicated he could return to Vancouver s lineup in the next few days. He added Friday s full practice with the team, as opposed to the light morning skate, will be important in determining his status. The prognosis indicates that he will be ready to play for Canada s Olympic team at Sochi in February. Meanwhile, Canucks coach John Tortorella said defenceman Dan Hamhuis should be selected to play for Canada in Sochi. Hamhuis, who attended Canada s summer orientation camp, has been one of Vancouver s best defenders this season. He logged 32:30 of ice time, while recording two assists, in a loss to Philadelphia on Monday. (Playing in the Olympics) would be an awesome opportunity, said Hamhuis, a 31-year-old, Smithers, B.C., native. I ve had the opportunity (to play for Canada), I think, seven times now. It never gets old. So I d love for an opportunity to do it at the Olympic level. Hamhuis has represented Canada in the junior and senior world championships, but a longed-for chance to play in the Olympics has eluded him. It s always a great experience playing for Hockey Canada, and to do it at an Olympic level would just be that much better, he said. To play with and against the best players in the world is every kid s dream, and something I was hoping to do in 2010, but missed my opportunity. The team was very successful, and I would love to be a part of it this year. Note: Tortorella said Luongo and injured defencemen Alex Edler (undisclosed) and Andrew Alberts (upper-body), and winger Alex Burrows (jaw) are listed as day to day.

13 Lightning defeat Canucks for second franchise win in Vancouver Monte Stewart The Globe and Mail January 2, 2014 Vancouver Canucks John Tortorella did not waste much time analyzing his club s effort Wednesday night. It was our worst game of the year, said Tortorella after the Canucks dropped a 4-2 decision to the Tampa Bay Lightning. We deserved to lose that one. We did. Valtteri Filppula scored a goal and added an assist as the Lightning, whose franchise is 21 years old, posted only its second all-time win in Vancouver. Tampa Bay made history of another sort by posting a fourth straight road win for the first time since Jan. 8 to Feb. 7, I just think it was a game that we were out of sorts, out of sync, and it wasn t just one particular guy, said Tortorella. It was the whole team. Tyler Johnson, Nikita Kucherov and Alex Killorn also scored for Tampa Bay. Brad Richardson and Zac Dalpe replied for the Canucks ( ), who suffered their second consecutive loss. After a scoreless first period, the Lightning overcame a 1-0 deficit to clinch the win in the closing seconds of the second period following a flurry of goals. We played a solid road game, said Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper. We fell behind, got the lead and found a way to hold onto it, and it s what you have to do if you want any chance to make the playoffs: Find ways to win on the road and hold leads. Vancouver players, known for stressing the positives at the worst of times, echoed their coach s sentiments. Daniel Sedin also called the effort Vancouver s worst of the year. Today was too sloppy, he said. I don t think we worked hard enough, to be honest with you. Last game (a shootout loss to Philadelphia) was really different. They should have been up way more than they were after two periods, added Henrik Sedin. We were fortunate to only be down one going into the third, and it was far from good enough. We have to be sharper. It was turnover after turnover, and that can t happen. Kucherov s riser, which went in off the skates of Hamhuis as he slid in an attempt to block the shot with only 2.6 seconds left in the second period gave the Lightning a 3-2 lead and proved to be the winner. Tortorella said the goal had a crippling effect on the Canucks.

14 I just think we need to get out of that second period 2-2, he said. Richardson opened the scoring at 11:25 as he raced in alone and beat Bishop with a quick shot after Vancouver defenceman Dan Hamhuis forced a turnover in the neutral zone with a hip check on Richard Panik. But the tight game quickly broke open as the clubs produced three goals in only 34 seconds. Filppula and Johnson scored 20 seconds apart to give Tampa Bay a 2-1 lead. But the Canucks countered only 14 seconds later as Dalpe banged in a goalmouth pass from Dale Weise. There was a big play coming back and tying it at 2-2, said Tortorella. But, obviously, we didn t seize that and gain the momentum. We lost it at the end of the period. Tampa Bay goaltender Ben Bishop made 28 saves for his 21st win of the season as the Lightning outshot the hosts Vancouver s Eddie Lack recorded 29 saves. Although the Bolts have been good on the road lately, they entered the game with two straight home losses, to Montreal and the New York Rangers. Suffice to say they succeeded in making amends. It s a tough building to play in against a really good team, said Bishop, who excelled after being bypassed for the U.S. Olympic team earlier in the day. We knew we could play better, those two games after Christmas. We didn t play our best, so we wanted to come out here and play better. The Canucks missed a chance to climb over Los Angeles into fifth place in the tight Western Conference. The hosts were playing their third game in four nights. But Tortorella refused to use the busy schedule as an excuse, saying his club usually prides itself on a heavy workload. I m not going to go through all of (Vancouver s problems in the game), because there s too much to go through, he said. It s in the garbage and we re gonna start over. Notes: Tampa Bay winger Ryan Malone returned after missing 16 games with a fractured ankle. a Vancouver centre Ryan Kesler was named earlier Wednesday to the U.S. Olympic team. He played for the American squad that won a silver medal in a Lightning centre Steven Stamkos skated Wednesday morning and said he hopes to recover from the broken leg he suffered in November in time to play for Canada at next month s Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. a The Lightning played in Vancouver for the first time since Dec. 11, a Former Canucks defenceman Sami Salo, who sat out his third straight game with an upper-body injury, drew a loud cheer from the crowd when he was shown on the scoreboard screen while sitting in the press box. He made his first visit with the Lightning since signing with Tampa Bay in the summer of a Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo took part in his first workout with the

15 team, during its morning skate, since he was injured Dec. 22 against Winnipeg. Luongo revealed he suffered a lower-body injury on a shot by Evander Kane and hopes to return to the lineup in the next few days.... The Canucks have re-assigned centre Jeremy Welsh to Utica of the AHL. Ryan Kesler never got USA Hockey's text about the national team Kami Mattioli Sporting News January 1, 2014, 5:46pm When USA Hockey sent out notifications about the Olympic hockey team rosters, Canucks center Ryan Kesler never got his but someone else did. TSN's Gord Miller has the rather hilarious backstory. Gord Miller Before announcing the roster for the Olympic Team, USA Hockey sent text messages to players in the mix saying they would be contacted... 2:29 PM - 1 Jan 2014 Gord Miller Ryan Kesler had changed his #. The guy who has it now said "I'm a 67 year old Canadian in Vancouver, I'd be happy to play for you." 2:31 PM - 1 Jan 2014 Gord Miller And he added: "I think Canada would be even happier if I played for you." The USA Hockey guys had a good laugh. 2:31 PM - 1 Jan 2014

16 Tortorella rips Canucks after loss to Lightning Canadian Press Sportsnet January 2, 2014 VANCOUVER Vancouver Canucks John Tortorella did not waste much time analyzing his club s effort Wednesday night. "It was our worst game of the year," said Tortorella after the Canucks dropped a 4-2 decision to the Tampa Bay Lightning. "We deserved to lose that one. We did." Valtteri Filppula scored a goal and added an assist as the Lightning, whose franchise is 21 years old, posted only its second all-time win in Vancouver. Tampa Bay made history of another sort by posting a fourth straight road win for the first time since Jan. 8 to Feb. 7, "I just think it was a game that we were out of sorts, out of sync, and it wasn t just one particular guy," said Tortorella. "It was the whole team." Tyler Johnson, Nikita Kucherov and Alex Killorn also scored for Tampa Bay. Brad Richardson and Zac Dalpe replied for the Canucks ( ), who suffered their second consecutive loss. After a scoreless first period, the Lightning overcame a 1-0 deficit to clinch the win in the closing seconds of the second period following a flurry of goals. "We played a solid road game," said Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper. "We fell behind, got the lead and found a way to hold onto it, and it s what you have to do if you want any chance to make the playoffs: Find ways to win on the road and hold leads." Vancouver players, known for stressing the positives at the worst of times, echoed their coach s sentiments. Daniel Sedin also called the effort Vancouver s worst of the year. "Today was too sloppy," he said. "I don t think we worked hard enough, to be honest with you. Last game (a shootout loss to Philadelphia) was really different." "They should have been up way more than they were after two periods," added Henrik Sedin. "We were fortunate to only be down one going into the third, and it was far from good enough. "We have to be sharper. It was turnover after turnover, and that can t happen." Kucherov s riser, which went in off the skates of Hamhuis as he slid in an attempt to block the shot with only 2.6 seconds left in the second period gave the Lightning a 3-2 lead and proved to be the winner. Tortorella said the goal had a crippling effect on the Canucks.

17 "I just think we need to get out of that second period 2-2," he said. Richardson opened the scoring at 11:25 as he raced in alone and beat Bishop with a quick shot after Vancouver defenceman Dan Hamhuis forced a turnover in the neutral zone with a hip check on Richard Panik. But the tight game quickly broke open as the clubs produced three goals in only 34 seconds. Filppula and Johnson scored 20 seconds apart to give Tampa Bay a 2-1 lead. But the Canucks countered only 14 seconds later as Dalpe banged in a goalmouth pass from Dale Weise. "There was a big play coming back and tying it at 2-2," said Tortorella. "But, obviously, we didn t seize that and gain the momentum. We lost it at the end of the period." Tampa Bay goaltender Ben Bishop made 28 saves for his 21st win of the season as the Lightning outshot the hosts Vancouver s Eddie Lack recorded 29 saves. Although the Bolts have been good on the road lately, they entered the game with two straight home losses, to Montreal and the New York Rangers. Suffice to say they succeeded in making amends. "It s a tough building to play in against a really good team," said Bishop, who excelled after being bypassed for the U.S. Olympic team earlier in the day. "We knew we could play better, those two games after Christmas. We didn t play our best, so we wanted to come out here and play better." The Canucks missed a chance to climb over Los Angeles into fifth place in the tight Western Conference. The hosts were playing their third game in four nights. But Tortorella refused to use the busy schedule as an excuse, saying his club usually prides itself on a heavy workload. "I m not going to go through all of (Vancouver s problems in the game), because there s too much to go through," he said. "It s in the garbage and we re gonna start over." Notes: Tampa Bay winger Ryan Malone returned after missing 16 games with a fractured ankle. a Vancouver centre Ryan Kesler was named earlier Wednesday to the U.S. Olympic team. He played for the American squad that won a silver medal in a Lightning centre Steven Stamkos skated Wednesday morning and said he hopes to recover from the broken leg he suffered in November in time to play for Canada at next month s Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. a The Lightning played in Vancouver for the first time since Dec. 11, a Former Canucks defenceman Sami Salo, who sat out his third straight game with an upper-body injury, drew a loud cheer from the crowd when he was shown on the scoreboard screen while sitting in the press box. He made his first visit with the Lightning since signing with Tampa Bay in the summer of a Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo took part in his first workout with the

18 team, during its morning skate, since he was injured Dec. 22 against Winnipeg. Luongo revealed he suffered a lower-body injury on a shot by Evander Kane and hopes to return to the lineup in the next few days. The Canucks have re-assigned centre Jeremy Welsh to Utica of the AHL. Luongo to return soon, be ready for Sochi Canadian Press Sportsnet January 1, 2014, 4:16pm VANCOUVER Goaltender Roberto Luongo expects to return to the Vancouver Canucks lineup soon and should be back in game shape in time for the 2014 Winter Olympics. Luongo took part in his first workout with the team Wednesday since suffering a "lower-body" injury Dec. 22 against Winnipeg. "This is my first team practice, so I m feeling good," said Luongo after a morning skate in advance of Vancouver s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. "Everything s progressing really well right now." Luongo indicated the problem is not overly serious, but was still not healthy enough to play against Tampa Bay. Eddie Lack drew his third straight start, and fourth appearance since Luongo got hurt, while minor-league call-up Joacim Eriksson was given the backup assignment. Speaking to reporters for the first time since he was sidelined, Luongo revealed how he got hurt, but would not disclose the extent of the injury, other than to say it was a lower-body problem. "It was an Evander Kane shot down the wing that originally got me a little bit," said Luongo. "I tried to stay in the game a few more minutes and then kept feeling it during the play and felt it again on another shot." Luongo left the game late in the first period during a TV timeout after consulting with trainer Mike Burnstein. "After one of the TV timeouts, I made him aware there was a bit of an issue there, so he knew something was going on," said Luongo. "Sometimes those things subside, and sometimes they (don t). So I tried to keep playing until the next TV timeout pretty much and I went to the bench again and spoke to Bernie." Luongo indicated he could return to Vancouver s lineup in the next few days. He added Friday s full practice with the team, as opposed to the light morning skate, will be important in determining his status. The prognosis indicates that he will be ready to play for Canada s Olympic team at Sochi in February.

19 Meanwhile, Canucks coach John Tortorella said defenceman Dan Hamhuis should be selected to play for Canada in Sochi. Hamhuis, who attended Canada s summer orientation camp, has been one of Vancouver s best defenders this season. He logged 32:30 of ice time, while recording two assists, in a loss to Philadelphia on Monday. "(Playing in the Olympics) would be an awesome opportunity," said Hamhuis, a 31-year-old, Smithers, B.C., native. "I ve had the opportunity (to play for Canada), I think, seven times now. It never gets old. So I d love for an opportunity to do it at the Olympic level." Hamhuis has represented Canada in the junior and senior world championships, but a longed-for chance to play in the Olympics has eluded him. "It s always a great experience playing for Hockey Canada, and to do it at an Olympic level would just be that much better," he said. "To play with and against the best players in the world is every kid s dream, and something I was hoping to do in 2010, but missed my opportunity. The team was very successful, and I would love to be a part of it this year." Note: Tortorella said Luongo and injured defencemen Alex Edler (undisclosed) and Andrew Alberts (upper-body), and winger Alex Burrows (jaw) are listed as day to day.