- by Patrick Johnston

How they played

A stunning, last-minute strike from Eric Hassli helped to gloss over what was a mostly dull effort from the Whitecaps in the first leg of the Canadian Championship final.

The ‘Caps started well, but as the first half wore on, Toronto took control of the game. Vancouver’s midfield of Jun Marques Davidson, Matt Watson and John Thorrington struggled to move the ball quickly, and when they did get into the attacking third of the field, they couldn’t find much space.

Etienne Barbara, a Martin Rennie favourite dating back to their time in Carolina, was handed a start as the central forward but he struggled. Camilo was put on the left and got himself into a couple threatening positions early in the game but didn’t do much with his shots.

Toronto scored 20 minutes into the second half as Martin Bonjour was beaten in the air by Ryan Johnson. But, as in other recent games, the introduction of Eric Hassli and Davide Chiumiento caught an opponent off guard. Alain Rochat delivered the long pass to Hassli, who lobbed the ball, lacing it into the top corner of the Toronto net.

Thumbs up

Eric Hassli. It’s hard to argue with finishing power and that’s exactly what the big Frenchman did. He hustled all over the Toronto half and caused problems everywhere he went.

Sebastian Le Toux. He had another fantastic performance, covering defensively numerous times and having several good chances to score. He looks to be getting fitter every match and has been everything the Whitecaps hoped he’d be when he was acquired before the season.

Thumbs down

Matt Watson. We’ve complimented him for his ‘run-everywhere’ attitude before, but there wasn’t enough of it on Wednesday night. A pair of times he found himself in a promising offensive spot and both times he dithered with the ball.

John Thorrington. His passing and dribbling are his best assets but they were rarely seen against Toronto. Probably his worst game for the blue and white.

What’s next

The Whitecaps have a huge game on Saturday against long-time rivals Seattle. Last year’s away game saw Eric Hassli score one of the best goals of the MLS season while the home game was mostly notable for the dominance of the visiting fans. Will the Southsiders, Curva Collective and Rain City Brigade be better prepared this time?

The second leg of the Canadian Championship final goes next Wednesday in Toronto as Martin Rennie’s squad depth is being put to the the test by the schedule. Vancouver will need to score because Toronto currently holds the first tiebreaker — away goals.

Mike Gillis is set to meet with Canucks ownership today, and word is they’ll be discussing the future of head coach Alain Vigneault.

After being somewhat surprised by the Vigneault supporters — Iain MacIntyre, Pass It To Bulis — I have an argument of my own.

Vigneault should be fired.

I say this not because the team needs a fresh voice and coach’s have a short shelf life. Hell, any team with Mike Babcock or Barry Trotz should keep its coach forever.

Vigneault should be let go because his decisions caused a strong team to underperform. It happened this year and it’s happened many times before, and the team could’ve done better with someone else at the helm.

Exhibit A: Mason Raymond started the playoffs on the Canucks’ top line.

As many of you know, I’m no Raymond hater. I’ve preached patience and I enjoyed how Vigneault coddled him through the season with excessive ice time despite a lack of performance. I do believe he can return to form in the future and the press box is no place to add confidence.

But starting him on the team’s number 1 scoring line in the playoffs? We knew Maxim Lapierre had chemistry with Henrik Sedin, yet Raymond, who had underperformed all season long, got the call in games that mattered.

Exhibit B: Once Daniel Sedin was back, Vigneault put David Booth with the Sedins

Perhaps even worse — after watching Booth struggle with them, he stubbornly stuck with the trio. Any one of Chris Higgins, Jannik Hansen or Maxim Lapierre would have made more sense to any sane person.

Two examples? That’s all? No, it’s not. I can go on and on. Think back to the 2010 playoffs when the Canucks were playing the Blackhawks. Willie Mitchell, Alex Edler, and Sami Salo were all injured prior to Game 6, yet Vigneault chose to dress only 6 defensemen, two of them being Salo and Edler. The team struggled with 4 defensemen for most of the game and it was the main reason they lost that night.

I can continue with more examples, but I don’t think I need to after these. These coaching decisions were pure insanity. No amount of Presidents Trophies make up for them nor can past wins explain them.

In his column, MacIntyre argues that if Vigneault is let go, everyone will know it was the owners’ will. I’m not so sure.

In the team’s year-end press conference, Gillis did defend his head coach, saying,

“This guy’s the winningest coach in this team’s history. We just won two Presidents Trophies, (and) lost in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.”

But what about this:

“I felt this team collectively was better situated than our team last year going into the playoffs.”

There’s the out Gillis planned for himself. The team underperformed. Simple.

Today, the owners will have their say — they may have a strong opinion or they may not. But as Gillis and Vigneault have often discussed starting goaltenders with AV having the final call, at the end of the day, Gillis will call the shots on the coach.

One more thing: many fans of Vigneault trumpet the fact that he uses advanced stats. It’s true he does, but this is something that started when Mike Gillis came on board. Statheads, you can rest assured as long as Gillis is the GM of the Canucks, advanced stats will be used.

- by Patrick Johnston

How they played

After a nervous start and an early Earthquakes goal, the Whitecaps were the more threatening team for most of the match.

The speedy trio of forwards – Camilo, Omar Salgado and Sebastien Le Toux – were constant threats. All three regularly turned around the San Jose defenders, forcing them into chase mode. The late changes — bringing in Eric Hassli and Davide Chiumiento — were also effective, creating more variety in the Whitecaps’ attacks.

Defensively, other than loose marking on the one San Jose goal (by league-leading goal scorer Chris Wondolowski), the Whitecaps were tight at the back end. The few chances the visitors were able to muster were met strongly by Joe Cannon.

Thumbs up

Omar Salgado. The youngster had his third straight start on Saturday and is really starting to impose his strength and quickness on defenders.

Alain Rochat. He made a midweek return against Edmonton, but having him back at left-back was noticeable on Saturday. Not once was he beaten on the outside and his touches on the ball were just what the team needed to mount effective counter-attacks.

Gershon Koffie. His first touch on the ball still needs work, but his work ethic is unparalleled. The man from Ghana was all over the park, winning showdowns for the ball. His goal off a header was fully deserved for how hard he worked on the day. He was also chosen as man of the match, much to the delight of the fans.

Thumbs down

Matt Watson. Watson, like his midfield partner Koffie, is a hustler who gets all over the park. On Saturday, however, it’s hard to say what that energy produced. He was replaced after an hour by John Thorrington, whose passing was a great improvement.

Lee Young-pyo. Another fantastic game from the Korean, except in one crucial instance — he let Wondolowski get free to score San Jose’s goal. We have high expectations for Lee and this is the first time this year he’s not met them.

What’s next

The Whitecaps play the 2nd leg of the Amway Canadian Championship semi-final on Wednesday against FC Edmonton. Vancouver scored a pair of crucial away goals last week and are in the drivers seat. Watch for Martin Rennie to give a large number of reserve players a run.

Following the Canucks’ disappointing first round playoff exit, before Mike Gillis’ year-end press conference, fans and media were not being kind. While Zack Kassian may yet develop down the road, the Cody Hodgson deal had come at the expense of this year’s success.

Gillis had taken the trust he had earned through years of incremental improvements, and cashed in big time.

Then he addressed the media. What resulted was the most memorable press conference Gillis had ever participated in as the Canucks GM. Why? The man who never publicized his dealings with players was surprisingly candid regarding Hodgson.

And as the Canucks controlled Hodgson’s zone starts and upped his trade value “by design,” I’d argue that Gillis opened up on this occasion by design.

“We made a determination that he didn’t want to be here.”

Forget any mention of the history, Hodgson didn’t want to play in Vancouver – the worst travesty to any Canucks fan. In a flash, Hodgson was painted the villain. The Canucks had no choice but to release the evil one, while the Canucks made sure to maximize his return – Gillis was sure to let everyone know.

With that one brilliant move, the Canucks GM was back in the fans’ good books. And he wasn’t done.

Back to exciting hockey

Gillis had changed the team’s direction midway through the season when he swapped his third line center from the offensively gifted Hodgson to the checker, Samme Pahlsson. He admitted as much on a radio interview at the time.

“Based on our experience last year in the playoffs and the way things were trending this year, we’re going to have to learn to win games 1-0 all the time. There’s not going to be a lot of goal scoring.”

Clearly, it was a miscalculation on his part. And while fans may have swallowed defensive hockey if it meant winning, the results were bleak. So after the season, he backtracked.

“You can’t change midstream. I believe in offence, I always have. I believe that offense is what entertains people, it creates energy. I believe that we have an offensive team.”

And there it was. Hodgson trade explained; defensive hockey banished. All just two days after the season ended.

Fast forward a week later and the repercussions of that press conference are still materializing. Someone from Hodgson’s camp fired back – Gillis must’ve known that was coming. That it was trainer Gary Roberts and not his agent or father was likely a surprise, but it hardly matters. The attention continues to deflect, and that’s all the Canucks could ask.

The press conference was less about explaining why the Canucks underachieved and more about keeping the fans on his side. Just look at the results.

Mike Gillis was on the Team 1040 this morning, responding to the rumours that Luongo has requested a trade.

Asked if Luongo has met with Gillis and agreed to waive his no trade clause, Gillis said:

“We’ve met, but we decided we’re going to take our time and just meet in a few days and talk in a few days on the phone, so I’m not quite sure why something like that would be out there…

“We decided we’d take a couple of days here and take a deep breath, everything’s happened really quickly, collect our thoughts and get together either beginning of next week or talk on the telephone next week and see where he was at.”

Asked if he’s made a decision regarding the goaltending on his team:

“No I haven’t.”

In answer to the question, “Has Luongo requested a trade?” The answer is a little vague. But if Luongo and Gillis have agreed they’ll talk next week about the situation, all this speculation is quite premature.

When I first saw the tweets telling us Roberto Luongo would accept a trade if he was asked to, I thought his words were being overblown like they’ve been so many times before — of course he’s not going to say no if the Canucks don’t want him.

Now that I’ve watched the interview, I’m less sure.

Don’t get me wrong, Luongo said everything right. He talked about being a team player and doing what’s best for the organization. But there was a moment where he hesitated, and it spoke loudly.

Farhan Lalji asked if going forward he’d be happy splitting time or not being the clear number one with Cory Schneider around. Instead of a positive, “Yeah sure,” or, “I have no problem with the current situation,” Luongo gave this vague, guarded answer.

“Uh, you know what? I think it’s going to be what’s best for the team. Whatever scenario that is, I’m OK with it. Whether that involves me being here or not is OK.”

Asked if he’d be OK with being traded if it was best for the team, Luongo said:

“I’ve always been about the team first and obviously they’ve got a guy here that’s going to be a superstar in the league for the next 10, 12, 15 years so I’m OK with that as well. I loved being here the last 6 years. I think my career has really taken off… If I’m here in the future that’s great, if I’m not, that’s good also.”

Really, he almost agreed that trading him and keeping Schneider looks like it makes the most sense.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying Luongo wants out of Vancouver or he’s requesting a trade. However, he is clearly not happy sharing the net. Which makes sense, considering he could be a starter in 20 other NHL markets.

If you’d rather draw your own conclusions from the interview, you can watch it below. The part where he hesitates before giving the answer is at the 40 second mark.

Back then, Dave Nonis was in charge. He and Alain Vigneault shared defensive-minded philosophies. The team played tight-checking, gritty games. Luongo was not only the backbone, but the team’s only chance. As he played, so played the team.

Somehow five years later, the team is in the same spot.

Exciting hockey was fun

The 2-year break was nice — a return to the thrilling, up-tempo hockey Canucks fans experienced in the early 2000s. When Mike Gillis arrived in Vancouver, this is how he believed he would win games: with speed and skill, and lots of it.

He believed it so strongly that he even convinced Vigneault to adopt his style of play.

For three years, if Vancouver’s goaltending ever faltered, the team would score its way out of trouble. They could do it on demand. It was as simple as saying #WinDaTurd.

In Gillis’ first 3 years with Vigneault, the Canucks went to the Conference semi-finals twice and then to within one game of winning the Stanley Cup. Course, if you listened to sports radio this year, you’d know exactly what they needed to do to take the final step.

“The Canucks need to get bigger and stronger if they’re going to beat the Bruins.”

“We need more fighters on our team! Marchand was using Danny’s head as a punching bag.”

Luckily, Gillis wasn’t reactive. He realized almost every member of the team’s core was either out due to injury or playing through immense pain during that series. Heck, in a rematch of the Cup Finals on January 7, a healthy Canucks team emerged with a 4-3 victory.

“At some point, if you keep knocking on the door, you’re going to break through, you’re going to face a different set of circumstances, and that’s what I’m going to do.”

He this after the Canucks lost Game 7 to the Bruins. He had a plan and he was going to stick to it.

But for some reason, he didn’t. On February 27, 2012, this year’s trade deadline, he made a couple of moves that showed his plan had fundamentally changed.

The moment it shifted

Cody Hodgson, the rookie who had beaten the Bruins with his offensive performance in the January rematch, was out. Samuel Pahlsson, one of the best defensive centers in the league, was in.

After months of watching Vigneault not rewarding Hodgson for playing well — he often saw his minutes cut in third periods and never got a decent look at playing wing on the second line — the offensively-gifted player was gone.

It was as if AV had taken control of the general manager’s duties and made the trades himself. You have to think that after 3 years of not winning, the coach finally convinced Gillis to try it his way — the old way.

And so we watched Vancouver in the 2012 playoffs look like they did in 2007. Again, the goaltender was keeping the Canucks in games. Again, they couldn’t buy a goal no matter how hard they tried. Again, they lost.

And now we watch. If Vigneault is told to leave, we’ll know it was true. The Coach and GM had different ideas. And the GM should have stuck with his plan.

How they played

With the frustrating midweek loss to league-leading Kansas City fresh in their minds, the Whitecaps mixed up the lineup. Coach Martin Rennie started young striker Omar Salgado, benched Eric Hassli and made tactical changes to his midfield.

Camilo’s first half goal was a thing of beauty. He picked up the ball at the top right of the area and dribbled around 3 defenders, found space and lashed a powerful shot to the far left corner of the net.

The little Brazilian was partnered up front by Salgado and Sebastien Le Toux, giving the Whitecaps had their quickest attacking trio so far this season.

The midfield changes included the return of Matt Watson. Watson hustled all over the park and was excellent supporting the attacks by the forwards. Jun Marques Davidson also came back into the starting lineup. His willingness to hang back allowed Lee Young-Pyo to make many aggressive attacking runs down the right flank.

Watson was partnered in front of Davidson by Gershon Koffie. Koffie made it difficult for Dallas to move the ball through the middle.

The backline was the same as ever. Lee was a threat on attack and was never beaten defensively. Martin Bonjour, matched up against Dallas forward Blas Perez, was a rock, keeping everything around him in check.

Eric Hassli came on for Camilo with about 10 minutes to play and caused a lot of problems for the Dallas backline. He never really looked close to scoring, but he definitely kept the defenders on their toes. Atiba Harris also got a run, taking Salgado off. He worked hard, but he’s still looking to find his fitness after nearly a year off from injury.

Thumbs up

Two thumbs up:

1. The Whitecaps’ patience and diligence on the attack. They moved the ball around well and created a number of excellent opportunities. Camilo should have bagged a second goal midway through the second half, but he shot it right at the keeper.

2. Joe Cannon. He made several challenging saves and did a tidy job co-ordinating the defenders in front of him.

Thumbs down

Jordan Harvey. He tries hard, but he’s just not Alain Rochat. Harvey doesn’t deliver much on the attack, but thankfully he doesn’t often get beaten defensively. He’s very good at staying with his man, but he needs to be able to contribute more. Rochat’s much better at that.

What’s next

Saturday April 28 at Columbus.

The Crew have won only two games this season and sit third from the bottom in the Eastern Conference. Like the Whitecaps, they are struggling to find their rhythm on attack and have just 6 goals on the season (the same as the ‘Caps).

They say good things come to those who wait, and boy did we wait.

We waited through 3 entire games, and in Game 4, we waited some more. It wasn’t until 4 minutes into the 2nd period when Vancouver scored a power-play goal that the real Canucks finally made an appearance.

How did that happen? You’ll find out in our 3 quick notes.

1. Mason Raymond is a hero

Am I serious? Yes. After the game, Daniel Sedin’s comments (from Canucks.com):

“Once they scored we kind of realized we gotta go here and we took over the game.

Who was fully and completely responsible for that L.A. Kings’ goal? That’s right: Mason Raymond. He gave the puck to Anze Kopitar, and then waived helplessly as Kopitar scored on the ensuing 2-on-1. Really, Raymond was responsible for helping the Canucks take over the game.

And there you go. Mason Raymond’s playoff potential has been discovered.

2. Edler’s back!

After Alex Edler’s 2nd period goal, I tweeted:

Good that Edler got that too. He needs the shot of confidence.

Later in the period, he took a roughing penalty for punishing Justin Williams when he got close to Cory Schneider. As penalties go, it was a good one to take because it sent a message to stay away from the Canucks’ crease.

As for Edler, it showed that he was finally waking up and playing the physical game the Canucks need from him.

3. What does a reverse sweep look like?

After much research on the subject, I’ve finally found a video showing what a reverse sweep looks like. I hope Canucks players will see this and learn the proper technique.

It’s a big decision. Maybe more for the future of the Canucks than for Wednesday night.

Who gives the team a better chance to win? I think we can safely say they’ll both be excellent. Roberto Luongo and Cory Schneider are two of the best goaltenders in the NHL, and we’ve seen each respond to pressure over and over again.

But if we’re considering the future, Luongo has to play. Here’s why.

This upcoming summer, Mike Gillis will have a big decision to make with Cory Schneider becoming a restricted free agent. Will he go with Luongo or Schneider as his starting goalie in the future years?

Most Schneider supporters say the team should start him again. It would probably make Luongo question his status on the team and encourage him to ask for a trade (he has a no-trade clause, so any trade has to have his consent).

The problem with this is it takes the decision out of Gillis’ hands.

If the the Canucks start Luongo, however, they’ll still go into the summer with both options. Come decision time, Gillis will have the option of asking Luongo to waive his no-trade clause, or he could simply trade the rights to Cory Schneider.

If you’re thinking it matters what result the team accomplishes either way, it doesn’t.

If Schneider wins, he keeps starting until the team wins the series or they get knocked out. If he loses, it’s over, and Luongo wonders why he wasn’t given the start in the team’s biggest game of the season.

If Luongo wins, he keeps starting until the team wins the series or they get knocked out. If he loses, status quo was not affected. 1A got the start, 1B did not.

One last argument in favour of Luongo: if this is his last year as a Canuck, shouldn’t he at least get the chance to deliver? Let him have a say in his own fate. Let him go out with a bang or with a whimper.

It’s only fair.

–with files from Glen Schwarzfeld