An Easter hockey game is a great way to get out of spending quality time with aged relatives.

Unfortunately watching the Canucks lose against the Chicago Blackhawks in overtime last Sunday was so painful, I would have almost rather been listening to my Grandfather yell around a mouthful of yams about how to field dress a grouse.

 
Don’t get me wrong, it was an incredible relief to see the Canucks actually show up and play some hockey for a change.  Vancouver out hit Chicago 37-33, as well as drawing first blood by scoring a goal two minutes into the first period.

But unfortunately, this is the NHL playoffs, not a volunteer position at an elementary school track meet.  Not only is open alcohol acceptable at GM Place (instead of having to be smuggled into the schoolyard in an A&W cup just to you get through the day) but it calls for more than just participating to win the Stanley Cup. 

Game 6 wasn’t a blowout loss by any stretch, but the fact remains that Vancouver still lost.  Despite the impressively tight defense in the third period and the courageous shots on net, many fans are dreading that the Canucks are playing true to their traditional play-off-throwing ways.  It could be the case, but all we can do is watch, have hope, and cover our cars in oversized novelty Orca whales.

 
Interestingly enough, statements from the Vancouver locker room after the loss were optimistic.  The Canucks seemed enthused with how they played as a team, particularly in the third period, and they stressed the importance of a good attitude. 

While a positive outlook can do wonders, scoring more goals than the other guys may just take precedent.  Lu may have a bit of a bad rap as a whiner, and people will tell you he goes down quicker than a male flight attendant at Celebrities on Mojito Monday, but at least he knows the value of winning at all costs.

Not to be a pessimist, but the Hawks are a mean bunch of hard-skating, Porterhouse-eating Chicago boys, and an optimistic attitude will only take you so far.  It is the Canucks’ resolute ability to maintain such a zen perspective that makes me suspect they have either been incorporating too much Yoga into their training, or… that they were able to read something within the cohesiveness of their play during that last period that was undetectable from the stands.

Hopefully the latter, because the thought of another shutout loss is about as depressing getting blackout drunk and hiding your own Easter Eggs.