Fort Nucks

Under construction

2011-10-04T13:29:00.000-07:00

My apologies for the lack of Fort Nucks-ness of late, we're currently revamping the blog to make it mind-blowingly better. Your patience is appreciated. Feel free to stare at this picture of Tim Allen until the new blog is up.

Derek

Hockey talk with Courtney

2011-09-14T13:40:00.000-07:00

The pilot episode for any show can go one of two ways: miserably and the show is never heard from again, or brilliantly, as was the case for the show LOST, which had the greatest pilot ever in my opinion.

The premiere episode of Hockey Talk with Courtney took the latter route. The show, in a nutshell, is about educating women on hockey. Now I'm sure there are some angry ladies out there, hardcore hockey lovers, offended by such a premise, but this show isn't gear towards anyone who can name every Canucks player, where they were born and their favourite steak sauce.

In hockey mad Canada I can understand how it would be difficult to admit that you don't know how a hat trick is achieved, where the trapezoid is or why penalty shots are awarded, and that's the beauty of Hockey Talk with Courtney. It's simple, to the point and crazy informative, without talking down to you.

Here's episode one, "Hockey 101", where Courtney and co-host Lane discuss hockey basics and all things Canucks. For more information log-on to Hockey Talk with Courtney or follow @hockeytalkcourt on Twitter.

Spencer's summer

2011-09-09T10:44:00.001-07:00

How I spent my summer vacation, a photo essay by five-year-old Spencer.

May – Hopes & Dreams

Re-enacting plays...

Foreshadowing... (I hoped...)

Customizing a "Canucky Colours" hula hoop

Wearing Raycroft's gear

June - (bitter)Sweet Celebration

My 5th birthday cake- My friends sang “O Canada” instead of “Happy Birthday”, so it would be more like being at a “Real Game”. (We played water hockey in the pool with pool noodles).

July – The Pilgrimage

Parc Bellevue in Pincourt Quebec, Burrows’ hometown.

No caption required...

August- Team Building

Set up an “arena” and assembled my own team (with birthday money)!

Played a pickup game on the streets of Quebec City

And I achieved my summer goal- I qualified for Pond Hockey at the Rec. Center!

It’s going to be a great year... GO CANUCKS GO!

Shrining - Volume 2

2011-09-07T15:10:00.000-07:00

More Canucks fans, more offices, homes and garages, more shrines. Enjoy.

Hello,

This was my playoff display at my desk. As each team got eliminated, their flag was removed. Great fun. - Deb

No email, just a photo from Patrick and a wicked shrine!

It was Barry's birthday, so Barry's friends made sure his office reflected it.

Hi, Derek. Here’s a couple of pictures of my little office space. There’s more here and there where I can find space but this is the main spot. Luv them guys! Here’s to another excellent season – can’t wait! Go ‘Nucks Go! -Diane

We are all Canucks! This picture is of my wife and I and all 4 of our kids, son-in-law and grandkids (this will be our Christmas card this year). I have been a Game Pack Ticket Holder since about 2001 and my son Cam (back row) has been a member of the on-ice crew at home games for the past 1 to 2 season. - Ian

Hope you like!!! -Tina

We do not have an office space shrine of the canucks, but 75% of our 1800 square foot basement is full of canucks memorabilia, Attached is just a portion of what it looks like! We love our Canucks. -Huge Fans, Celinea and Troy

I don't have as much or as impressive as a Nucks collection as these other fans, but I am joined in my Texas Tech dorm by my good friends, Hank, Dank, Kesler, Burrows, and Luongo (see pictures). I bought these Matroska dolls while in St. Petersburg, Russia (really wish I had a pic of me rocking the Blue and Green while I was over there, but sadly I don't). I hope you enjoy these little guys as much as I do! GO CANUCKS GO! -Rob

This is only one picture of my room. 12 Canuck hats, 8 car flags, the Canuck scarf and playoff towel, a Naslund bobble head, Naslund poster, the flying V and old skate logo made of strictly lego, and of coures a Canuck logo painted to my wall. I've been collecting Canuck memorabilia ever since I was little, and I am the ULTIMATE CANUCK FAN! What's missing from this photo is 4 more jersey's including a signed Nazzy, a number of signs that replicate boards around my room. a Canuck hard hat, goal light and a Canuck lamp, too name a few. Thanks! -Myles

Hi Derek, Here are some photos of my office during the playoffs!! -Matt

My one wall directly behind my desk. The retro wall to the left of my desk. Been a fan for 38 yrs...this is also in Calgary so you can only imagine what I go through. -Jason

This is my 2 car garage I turned into a Canuck shrine, I also did my family room, I also have a jeep in Canuck blue , as well as my Mini Van and Motor home done. -Randy

Do you work in a pro-Canucks area? Maybe you live in a Canuckaholic home? Send me your office work space or home pictures and I'll feature the best of the best! - derek.jory@canucks.com

Are you ready?

2011-09-06T09:25:00.000-07:00

Are you ready for some hockey?

Canucks photographer Jeff Vinnick saw this guy on the weekend and the rollerblading fan got us both thinking - is hockey season here?

The real hockey season doesn't start for another 20 days, which is when the exhibition games begin, but many believe that after the September long weekend, hockey is here.

Are you into it yet, or do you still need a few weeks before retreating to your TV three or four times a week to watch the Canucks?

Don't stop believing

2011-08-31T13:44:00.000-07:00

Nothing like hearing about a great young Canucks fan on a slow Wednesday afternoon. Amazing video Mac!

Hey Derek

I wanted to send you a link to a video my 12 year old son created. He has been filming awareness videos this past year and I thought you all would appreciate this. He is trying to help the world one video at a time. You can visit his website www.316mackie.com and see what he is all about and the causes he is trying to help. Here is the link to his video, Vancouver "Dont stop believing."

Thank you

Paul

Shrining - Volume 1

2011-08-31T13:00:00.000-07:00

It turns out Jean's shrine is far from the only one out there.

I've received a gaggle emails from Canucks fans who also salute their team in one form or another at work or at home or both. Here's the best of the best!

During the playoff run every game my friend adam emanuel would add something new every win. This is what it builded up to. - Zalmy

This is my cubicle, there used to be a lot more posters but my cubicle mate moved away to Calgary (who moves to Calgary, we got him a Flames going away cake for laughs) - Phuong

From Don.

My 2011 Playoffs Office Shrine - Romeo

I don't work in a pro-Canucks area. I live in Southern California and work in a police station property/evidence room. As you can guess most of my co-workers are Kings fans (with a few Shark fans thrown in). One detective in particular (a Kings season ticket holder) loves to harass me about the Canucks. So my shrine wasn't very big last season but I'm planning a better one this year. I love the Canucks and can't wait for the season to start! - Cathy

Here are 2 pictures of the Canucks Wall that I have in my office. It’s a collection of banners, towels, posters, and tickets that I have collected since I was 6 years old. Enjoy! - Reuben

A friend of mine is creating an epic mural in my NEW man cave (prelim photos attached). With my first born scheduled to arrive the week the season starts I couldn't be more pumped. My wife and I have 2 female cats and know this baby is a girl... making me the only testosterone creature in the home... and therefore we gave me a floor of my own. -120" projector screen -7.1 surround -Authentic boards, trim, etc. from the same supplier that does Rogers Arena (and the Penguins and several other teams) -A mural of crazy towel waving fans This will be epic. I've included a taste of things to come! - Michael

In reading your recent blog entry and seeing the impressive display of Canucks fandom at Fasken Martineau, I couldn't help but note how, upon first glace, my own workspace seemed to pale in comparison. While mulling over the photos of that workstation, I came to the realization that it was not any degree of flash that made my workspace special (because it certainly does not have that). Rather, it was the thoughtful contributions from various colleagues that contributed to the evolution of my Canucked-up workstation. - Melaina

Do you work in a pro-Canucks area? Have a co-worker who is a huge fan? Send me your office work space pictures and I'll feature the best of the best! - derek.jory@canucks.com

Jean's shrine

2011-08-30T10:31:00.001-07:00

Some people hide their Canucks fandom at work, others let their flag fly high and proud.

Jean Mai, legal administrative assistant at Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP in Vancouver, belongs with the latter, without a shout of a doubt.

Check out Jean's shrine, it's quite impressive despite not featuring anything from Canucks.com...(tisk, tisk)...

Do you work in a pro-Canucks area? Have a co-worker who is a huge fan? Send me your office work space pictures and I'll feature the best of the best! - derek.jory@canucks.com

Longest Game 4 CF

2011-08-23T14:15:00.000-07:00

1 Game. 10 Days. 40 Women. One Legacy. One Goal.

In an attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the Longest Game of Ice Hockey and raise funds and awareness for Cystic Fibrosis Canada, 40 Vancouver women will drop the puck at 8 a.m. on August 26th at the Canlan Ice Sports Burnaby rinks and play one continuous game for 10 days straight.

The game, which will last more than 243 hours if all goes according to plan, is the brainchild of Vallerie Skelly, who wanted to so something outrageous to honour a friend lost to Cystic Fibrosis.

This is indeed something outrageous as it will see players faceoff around the clock for 10 days with each skater playing shifts of four hours on, four hours off, four hours on, eight hours off, all in the name of taking down current record holder Brent Saik and his team in Sherwood Park, Alberta.

Taking down Cystic Fibrosis (CF) would also be great.

According to the tournament's media kid, Cystic Fibrosis is the most common fatal genetic disease affecting Canadian children and young adults. It is a disease without a cure, one that causes a build-up of thick mucus in the lungs leading to severe respiratory problems and mucus and protein build-up in the digestive tract results in extreme difficult in digesting and absorbing adequate nutrients from food.

The goal of the Longest Game 4 CF is to raise $400,000 for Cystic Fibrosis Canada, the leading funder of Cystic Fibrosis research in Canada. One day they hope CF will stand for Cure Found, but until then, you can help make a difference.

Those with time to volunteer to make this event a success can email volunteer@longestgame4cf.com to register. Click here for more information on the Longest Game 4CF and stay up to date with the latest happenings via @longestgame4cf on Twitter and "Longest Ice Hockey game 4 CF" on Facebook.

Spectators are welcome to stop by any time, day or night, during the 10 day marathon game; entry is by donation.

Best of luck to all those involved!

It’s a wonderful day for an exorcism

2011-08-22T12:51:00.000-07:00

Meet Teo Lin. He's five-years-old, barely spent 2,000 days as a fan of the Vancouver Canucks and yet he has memorized some of the most tense hockey ever.

Since the Canucks edged the Chicago Blackhawks 2-1 in double overtime of Game 7 of the Western Conference Quarter-Final, Teo hasn't watched anything else on TV. No He-man and the Masters of the Universe, Thundercats, Inspector Gadget, Transformers or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (those are still the cool shows, right?) - Teo has replayed that spectacular overtime so many times that he knows the play-by-play by heart. All of it.

See for yourself.

Now I'm not entirely sure what to make of this. Teo is either some kind of wizard, or maybe he has a photographic memory. Kids with spooky talent like this typically end up scaring me in horror movies, but Teo is a Canucks fan, so he definitely has his head on straight.

In conclusion, Teo rules and John Shorthouse better watch his back because there's a tot gunning for his spot!

The man, the myth, the legend

2011-08-17T09:47:00.001-07:00

There is a fan organized memorial scheduled for 2 p.m. outside Rogers Arena today to pay respects to Rick Rypien, but for those of you unable to attend I'd like to dedicate this blog to discussing Rypien, the man, the myth, the legend, who was taken from us far too early.

Do you have a Rypien memory to share? Did you ever meet the bulldog? Do you remember the first time to watched him play? What was it about Rypien that made him such a treat to watch?

Feel free to add your memories below.

Derek

Camel Canuck

2011-08-16T10:53:00.000-07:00

If you've managed to find a Wi-Fi hotspot while lying comatose in the sun on the beach over the last few weeks, you're familiar with the photo gallery we've created and been bulking up everyday with Canucks fans on vacation.

From Italy to Mount Everest to Nova Scotia, Canucks fans are truly everywhere and as of this morning, that now includes the Gobi Desert in Mongolia.

Dear Canucks,

The enclosed photo was taken this July in the Gobi Desert in Mongolia. If you want to use it to indicate that Canucks fever has reached all areas of the globe, please do.

Cheers,

Tom English

What an awesome photo Tom, thanks for sending it in. Fitting you're on a camel in such a beautiful shirt as the word camel comes from the Arabic ǧml meaning "beauty." Thank you Google!

Peachy Penticton

2011-08-12T11:00:00.000-07:00

There are a million and one places you could be from September 11-15, but if you know what's what, you'll be in Penticton, BC.

The 2nd annual Vancouver Canucks Young Stars Tournament will bring some outrageously talented players to Okanagan Valley, and specifically the Peach City, and even more specifically the South Okanagan Events Centre in Penticton, BC.

Single game tickets and day passes go on-sale this Monday (more info here) and trust me, you want to get your hands on some of them.

The list of players slated to participate reads like a whose who of the best young players in the NHL - and there are only five teams in the Young Stars Tournament.

Nicklas Jensen and Jordan Schroeder and Bill Sweatt and Anton Rodin and Yann Sauve and Kevin Connauton and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Anton Lander and Sven Bartschi and Curt Gogol and Ryan Howse and Mark Schiefele and Carl Klingberg and Brodie Reid and...and...and... and I'll be there covering all the action as part of the Canucks.com team, your one stop shop for all things Canucks.

Do yourself a favour and pick up some tickets. You'll buy the whole seat, but you'll only need the edge. (I've always wanted to say that!)

I'm back

2011-08-11T15:09:00.000-07:00

Hello again from Canucks Headquarters, hope the dog days of summer are treating you well. The countdown is well on to the start of the 2011-12 season, so soak in every ray of sunshine you can and enjoy not being on the verge of a heart attack every second night of the week.

Vancouver will be back on the ice before you know it, time really is flying these days, so much so that my summer vacation came and went and I think I enjoyed myself, but it's such a blur of people and awesome that I can't recall too much. What I do remember is that Manitoba was as beautiful as ever and less mosquito infested than ever, and New Orleans is a place like no other and the perfect place to explore.

What about you? You, yes you - how has your summer been? Can you believe there are less than 60 days until we drop the puck again? How have you been passing the Canuck-less days?

Fort Nucks is back in action and will be better than ever from here on out. If you've got something zany, ludicrous or whimsical you want spotlighted, email me at derek.jory@canucks.com and I'll do my best to work it in the mix!

Cheers,

Derek

TTFN - Ta ta for now

2011-07-22T09:00:00.000-07:00

I'll be away for a few weeks so Fort Nucks will be as stale as month old bread before long. That being said, get off your computer and get outside!

See you soonish,

Derek

Shippagan rallying for Bourdon

2011-07-19T15:55:00.000-07:00

Shippagan, New Brunswick needs your help in the name of fallen Vancouver Canucks defenceman Luc Bourdon.

As part of TSN hitting the road during the 2011 Kraft/TSN Celebration Tour to visit 10 Canadian communities in 10 days, 10 communities will also receive a grand prize of $25,000 for a new facility.

Shippagan has proposed building an outdoor rink in memory of Bourdon and Yanick DeGrace, the first player drafted into the NHL out of the town of roughly 3,000 who was also lost in a car accident, in 1991.

Jonathan Gagne, a representative speaking on behalf of the Shippagan bid, said that with the exception of a few pieces of memorabilia, neither Bourdon or DeGrace have been properly remembered. He wants to rectify the situation.

"This rink will provide a place of all kids to skate and play hockey, this most loved of all sports, outdoors," said Gagne. "The rink will serve during the summer for street hockey leagues and tournaments."

Shippagan, entered in the 2011 Kraft/TSN Celebration Tour under Centre Real Cormier, is matched up against the Sackville Curling Club in Sackville, NB, with the winner coming away with funds for their dream facility.

Gagne and Shippagan are asking for your support between July 20th at 9 a.m. PST until July 21st at 8:59:59 a.m. PST, during this time you can vote for Shippagan and help push it over the top.

VOTE HERE - (There is no limit to the number of times you can vote)

MORE INFORMATION ON 2011 KRAFT/TSN CELEBRATION TOUR

Welcome Winnipeg

2011-07-06T10:47:00.000-07:00

The announcement the Jets are returning to Winnipeg after a 15-year hiatus was made while the Canucks were entrenched in the Stanley Cup Final, so it came and went without so much as a peep from me, a proud Manitoban.

It's time we officially welcomed the Jets back to the NHL.

I'll be honest, I never, not in a million years, thought the day would come. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman was the one who took them away back in 1996, moving them to Arizona, and I assumed that Bettman would never see the error of his ways and bring them back. I was, thankfully, wrong on that, Bettman stepped up and did the right thing and hockey is back in the prairies.

Growing up in Manitoba, the Jets were the team. I remember my first game at Winnipeg Arena, my dad and uncle took my brother and I, and as soon as overtime started in the 1-1 game, we both had to pee and we missed Chicago's game-winner while in the washroom.

I cheered for the Jets, but make no mistake about it, I was always a Canucks fan. When Vancouver came to Winnipeg on March 11, 1994, my dad and uncle took my brother and I again and this time we were cutoff from liquids and it was a good thing because Pavel Bure recorded a hat trick in a 8-4 win over the Jets and we saw it all. I still have the game program.

Vancouver and Winnipeg never had much of a rivalry back in the day when it seemed like half the NHL was Canadian teams, hopefully that changes this time around as I imagine the teams and fans will get excited for a good ol' Canadian matchup, especially one with Tanner Glass and Rick Rypien facing their former mates.

If the Jets are new to you, check out this new video from WinnipegJets.com, it's a bit of the history of the team from departing to reemerging stronger than ever.

What's your reaction to the Jets coming back to the NHL? Dream come true or do you loathe them? Any Jets memories dear to you? Do you agree Winnipeg should sign unrestricted free agent and former Jets superstar Teemu Selanne so he can Finnish his career where it started?

Moments of the year

2011-07-01T13:25:00.000-07:00

Despite this past season ending bitterly, it was truly the greatest in franchise history.

In compiling the Top 30 Moments of the Year for three features on Canucks.com, I've relived 25 of the best, but I'm five short and not for a lack of moments. I want to get your input on what made this season special and what moments you will take away from it.

Think outside the box and leave your favourite moment below, if chosen I'll give you credit for it in my features and an imaginary high-five!

Dear Christian Ehrhoff...

2011-07-01T09:05:00.000-07:00

Christian Ehrhoff is officially now a member of the Buffalo Sabres, which saddens a lot of Canucks fans out there.

Bea put her feelings to paper to thank the German blueliner for his two years of service in Vancouver.

Dear Christian Ehrhoff,

You love hockey. I know you do. It’s what you’ve been working towards your whole life - to play hockey for a living. You’ve done it, and you are now opening another chapter in your hockey career.

From that time I saw you in Starbucks last month and said ‘good luck’, to your response which presented a genuine smile with a little ‘thank you’, you always do what’s best for you and others around you.

It definitely hurts to see you go, after all that you’ve done for this Canucks organization, but despite the circumstances - you've done what’s best for you.

You are truly an inspiration to me and many other Canucks fans. You’re living the dream and playing hockey for a living, and I hope one day to see you raise the Stanley Cup no matter the team you represent and play for.

You may not be a Canuck anymore, but you’ll always be one to me.

I’m not going to mope around about this, or breakdown crying. It’s because I know you’ll still be around, playing hockey, taking those slapshots at the point, and racking up points like the Hoffer we all came to know and love. You’ll always be there, and I’ll always remember that.

Lots of love, positivity, and warm wishes to a continuously incredible hockey career you have so far created for yourself.

Bea

Canucks Spirit Day

2011-06-29T09:44:00.001-07:00

The staff at Westridge Elementary in North Burnaby turned the recent riots into a teachable moment for their students. The result was Canucks Spirit Day and the result of that was a memorable video.

Here's the gist of it:

This past week was a difficult one for our community. It was a particularly troubling time for the young people in our communities who were so shocked by the violent images that immediately followed the disappointment of game 7. How were they to make sense of the anger and violence on display? The students at Westridge Elementary School in Burnaby decided to respond with positivity, and organized a Canucks Spirit Day at their school. In addition to dressing in Canuck blue and green, they collaborated with the staff at the school to produce a touching video message to their heroes.

Juiceisms

2011-06-28T12:16:00.000-07:00

I could not be happier that Kevin Bieksa has re-signed with the Vancouver Canucks, not only because having Boom Boom on defence for the next five years is beyond amazing, but because I will get incredible quotes from roughly 700 interviews to come.

Bieksa never has been and never will be shy in front of a tape recorder or camera. He tells is like it is, and in a humorous way that typically doesn't cross any lines. Take his quotes about Chris Tanev's first Stanley Cup Final game, he said the youngster was so cool "he could have played with a cigarette in his mouth."

Juice has had some gems over the years, including one of my personal favourites referring to the different between former Canucks captains Roberto Luongo and Markus Naslund: "Roberto’s a goalie, Markus is a winger.”

The boys at Pass It To Bulis came up with a list of their top-20 Bieksa quotes, but there are many many many many many more out there.

If you've got a favourite, share your favourite below!

Marathon Mason

2011-06-27T09:05:00.000-07:00

Vancouver Canucks forward Mason Raymond acted as the honorary chair for the 13th annual Scotiabank Vancouver Half marathon Sunday.

In all likelihood the record field of 6,200 participants, including those who ran the 5K, thought they were seeing things once they crossed the finish line and Raymond was there, but Canucks photographer Jeff Vinnick snapped the accompanying pictures to prove he wasn't a mirage.

Kenyan Kip Kangogo and Washington State’s Ruth Perkins ran away with the race; Kangogo won his third straight Scotiabank Vancouver Half marathon in a time of 63:22, while Perkins finished at 76:14. Raymond is pictured below with Kelsey Norman of Cochrane, Alberta.

The half marathon began at UBC's Thunderbird Arena and headed onto Marine Drive, down the shores of the Burrard Inlet to the finish line in Stanley Park on the lawn of the Stanley Park Fish House.

When all was said and done, Raymond announced the Scotiabank Group Charity Challenge raised more than $600,000 for over 40 local charities. He then signed autographs for adoring fans to end another massively successful Scotiabank Vancouver Half marathon.

Dear Canucks...

2011-06-21T13:48:00.001-07:00

The Grade 2 and 3 classes at Seaview Community Elementary School in Port Moody, BC, spent last Thursday thinking of the Vancouver Canucks.

This Monday a large envelope arrived at Rogers Arena filled with 14 uplifting letters that are guaranteed to melt your heart, even if you're not a melty-heart kind of person. Five messages in particular caught my attention, they are from Liza, Anna, Lukas, Carter and Hannah and they are below.

Thanks to all the students for taking the time to brighten everyone's day.

Emotional outlet

2011-06-20T09:22:00.000-07:00

Hi Derek!

My name is Cybil and I wanted to pass on this letter I wrote to the team after game 7. I actually went home that day and watched all the post-game interviews, hoping I would cry my eyes out one last time, then move on and look forward to next season. But I should have known better, I'm not a crier, so I wrote this letter as my emotional outlet.

I don't know if it's possible, but I'm hoping you can share this with the rest of the team, because I really want them to know that the true fans are never going to give up on them.

It's a bit long... but that's what happens when you stay up till 3 am because you won't let yourself sleep until you finish writing!

I am a Vancouver Canucks fan. I will always be a Vancouver Canucks fan.

Our 2010-2011 season was something I will never forget. Each and every player on our team had an amazing season individually, but together, we were the #1 team in the NHL regular season.

We went into the playoffs against a familiar enemy, but we slayed the dragon and got our #3venge.

Round 2 was one of the best. We had the privilege to play such a classy organization with such respectful fans. Thank you, Nashville.

The San Jose Sharks in round 3 were so fun. Both teams played fantastic hockey, so thank you, SJ, for a great series.

I've never felt so close to a team than I did with the Canucks this season, and I'd like to thank them for being my motivation for the past 10 months.

Kevin Bieksa, for teaching me to stand up for the ones I love. For showing me you can be told you don't belong here, only to come back and have the best season of your career.

Mason Raymond, for showing me a team always sticks together. That an injury will not keep you away from what you deserve and what you believe.

Jannik Hansen, for being the underdog. For doing everything right, stepping up when we needed you most, and for showing me true sportsmanship.

Dan Hamhuis, for being such a warrior. Bouncing back after every concussion, fighting harder every time. For being such an inspirational human being, on and off the ice.

Keith Ballard, for being one of the most positive people I've ever seen. For accepting his role on the team with such maturity, and thrilling the city with each beautifully delivered hip-check.

Mikael Samuelsson, for always speaking your mind. For always being honest and telling it like is because you know we deserve the truth.

Alex Burrows, for teaching me to never give up. For always chasing your dreams, because one day it'll lead you to scoring the most important goal of your life, and for never leaving a friend behind.

Cory Schneider, for being the best backup we could ever ask for. For having one of the most stellar rookie seasons the league has ever seen.

Manny Malhotra, for demonstrating true dedication. For fighting a terrible injury to come back to do what you love, and for being one of the bravest we've ever seen.

Jeff Tambellini, for being our hometown hero. For doing whatever you could to be a part of this team, for playing with so much enthusiasm, and for never losing hope in our city.

Sami Salo, for every ounce of pain you've had to endure. For coming back each time and playing better than we could have imagined.

Alex Edler, for doing all the right things, quietly. For silently executing your role in this team with such modesty and simplicity.

Andrew Alberts, for being there when we needed you most. For all the great things you've done under the little spotlight you had.

Tanner Glass, for being our Scrabble king. For always standing up for our team and fighting the bears in our closets.

Chris Tanev, for being a magnificent surprise. For coming up and being so cool, calm, and collected, and for being so humble about all of it.

Christian Ehrhoff, for being our secret weapon. For being such an incredible defence man and an amazing goal scorer in one.

Aaron Rome, for being the bigger man. For showing us that in hockey, one's health should always come first, and for reaching out to someone who needed it.

Maxim Lapierre, for being our little troll. For being more entertaining than David Letterman, and for telling our opponents everything we wish we could tell them ourselves.

Chris Higgins, for taking on a bigger role on this team than most of us expected. For coming in late, but showing us you can play some damn great hockey.

Ryan Kesler, for being so inspiring. For showing such leadership, determination, and purpose. For never taking no for an answer, and for teaching me to never hide behind excuses.

Daniel Sedin, for repeatedly putting the game on your stick. For refusing to hide in the shadow of your brother, for playing with such integrity, and for having such an astounding and entertaining season.

Henrik Sedin, for being my inspiration. For accepting the responsibility of this team, for always brushing aside the glory you deserve, and for taking the blame you should not have had to.

Roberto Luongo, for being Roberto Luongo. For constantly leaving the haters speechless, and for having the best season imaginable. For all the hate you've faced, only to turn it around and lead us to the biggest stage in hockey.

Cody Hodgson, Victor Oreskovich, Lee Sweatt, and every single player who suited up in a Canucks jersey this season. If you played 1 game or if you played 20, we are grateful for everything you did for us.

Alain Vigneault, Mike Gillis, Rick Bowness, Newell Brown, and all who are involved in the Canucks Organization. Thank you for making this season so exceptional.

Derek Jory and Jeff Vinnick, for taking us along with you on your journey around the league. For showing us Kes and Juice's matching Superman shirts, Salo's wide assortment of hats, and what the guys do to kill time on the road. For making us feel like a part of the team.

And The Stanchion, for making me scream louder than I ever have before.

We may not have ended up with the Stanley Cup, but we have absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. With so many of our players competing injured, we should have nothing but pride for our boys who took it to Game 7.

You aren't simply put in the Stanley Cup Finals—you train your whole life for it, you refuse to be second best, and most of all, you never lose faith in your team.

Cheers, boys, to an unforgettable season.

Thank You

2011-06-17T13:45:00.000-07:00

I'm one of the fortunate few people who gets the opportunity to connect with you, the passionate Canucks fans from far and wide, so on a personal level I'd like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your support this season.

It's been a privilege getting to know you through Fort Nucks, @CanucksGame and Canucks.com; I hope we've helped enrich your experience of being a Canucks fan.

Without you, none of this matters.

Have a great summer!

Derek Jory

Olympic support

2011-06-15T13:20:00.000-07:00

Got this letter from Tara Taylor, who placed fourth at the Olympic trials in the 4 x 100 metre freestyle for the Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games. She knows a thing or two about winning and wanted to pass on some well wishes to the Canucks.

Dear Vancouver Canucks

I don’t need you to be Canada’s team. We had the Canadian Olympic Hockey Teams for that. I’d rather you were BC’s Team, Vancouver’s Pride, and ultimately, my team. I hope you ignore the naysayers, the biased reporters attempting to catch you in a moment blaming another player for what is, at its most basic level, a team sport. The whole is something beyond the sum of the parts. It is a living-breathing organism, which cannot function if there is dissension within. And it is this dissension I feel the pessimists, narrow-minded, and deleterious attempt to throw your way the minute something goes “wrong”. What does not appear to be understood is the nature of competition requires a give and take. There is a balance, a dance within the both pre-competition ritual and the actual event. And both teams, every competitor worth his/ her salt comprehends it on some level. I don’t come from a sport where we compete as a team all at once. Every event is individual; every race is you vs. the clock, every win/ loss comes from within. Except that for every win we gather points for our team. Therefore the success of the team comes from the strength of its individuals and never can one person be blamed for the loss of the team.

It is this concept of solidarity I find lost on many media personnel and fickle fans. Always looking for a single reason as to why there was a loss or why someone didn’t score. The negativity surrounding Luongo is particularly astonishing. Rarely a mention when he does something wonderful. It brings to mind the disdainful remarks of the 2000 Olympics where Curtis Myden won bronze in the 400m Individual Medley and reporters raged on him for only getting third. It is more of an achievement than many people make in a lifetime. Just as playing in the Stanley cup finals is an achievement. You’ve sweat, bled, and muscled your way through an entire season and then some. You’ve risen to the challenges set before you. Set yourselves up through hard work and perseverance. All it takes is one moment. “Years of dedication, Moments of glory.” This is the credo behind it all.

Thus: I love the class with which you take the media mongering. How, for the most part you don’t get sucked into Boston’s bull-chicanery and, if they stick their fingers in your face, bite away. Because at the end of the day it doesn’t matter what the media says, or what the fans spout, or even what is written here. What matters are the drives, determination, and dreams you demand from one another. Those on the outside judging don’t understand. It’s always easier with your face plastered against the glass looking on, than within that single crystal clear moment of committing to motion. So make your last game a passionate obsession. Play from that spot within, creating the solidarity and trust in each other and your abilities. Deliver to yourselves first and foremost, the love of the game and the love of your team. All I expect is that you have fun and give your best. And while you are at it, make the Bruins bleed Vancouver Blue and Green.

Tara Taylor
2000 Canadian Olympian

Fan roundup - Volume 9

2011-06-15T08:50:00.001-07:00

All hands on deck

Here we go Canucks, all for one and one for all. #bringithome

Magic hockey tape

This letter arrive at Rogers Arena this morning, accompanied by a roll of hockey tape. Read the letter and you'll understand why...

Brothers in arms

Will, Nick and Dylan, three junior Canucks fans, showing some support from the beach.

Nathan shows some love

He isn't quite old enough to understand the magnitude of what's going on, but he's pumping his fist anyways!

Moose

Hi Derek,

I'm not sure if this is the forum, but friends have been asking me to send these photos to "the Canucks" since the start of the playoffs... boy that seems like a while ago doesn't it? :) There's nothing like wearing a jersey in June with shorts and flip flops. Anyway, here they are.

Please do with them as you see fit. They are photos of our cat, "Moose" (in part named after the Manitoba Moose). And yes my husband is right, this truly makes me the crazy cat lady. She's got a Canucks pendant on her collar, has her very own Canucks towel cape (for game days of course) and she's recently chosen to sleep/hang out on our puck head. My father has had seasons tickets since 1970 (with a short year off in the late 90's) and so the organization has 'somewhat' infiltrated our lives since I can remember.

Take care and GO CANUCKS GO!!!!

Jess Gilmore

X-factor

2011-06-14T17:43:00.001-07:00

Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final will play out Wednesday night at Rogers Arena between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins.

There are two possible outcomes: the first has the Canucks winning their first ever Stanley Cup, the second, well, actually there is only one possible outcome to discuss - and yes, I just knocked on wood.

What I want to know is, what will be the x-factor during Game 7? What will put Vancouver over the top or give Boston an advantage?

Also, where will you be watching and can you possibly describe how you feel right now...?

Fan roundup - Volume 8

2011-06-12T07:27:00.001-07:00

Stanley Cup Final update

Go Canucks Go

Hello!

Several students at Nimbus School of Recording Arts has made a new theme song for the Canucks, in hopes that it will bring encouragement to the boys on the team!

RUIN THE BRUINS!
GO CANUCKS GO!
WE LOVE YOU, CANUCKS!

Love,
Shon

A fixer-upper

We farm in southern Alberta and have this 1980 ford half ton that we painted up.

Harold

An inspirational message

Old Spice support

2011-06-10T11:41:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if it's Isaiah Mustafa, my favourite NFL practice squad wide receiver ever, or the Old Spice Guy, but one of them loves the Vancouver Canucks.

The Man Your Man Could Smell Like cheering for the Canucks is the sign we've been waiting for.

Trust me.

The mystery Canuck...REVEALED!

2011-06-09T15:18:00.000-07:00

A lot of you think you know who the mystery Canucks player is - 206 of you to be exact.

In yesterday's post I asked you to submit your guess for a chance to win some NHL Playoff swag.

Nearly 40 per cent of you got it right (81 of 206 to my count) by guessing...

SAMI SALO!

Congrats to Chloe Ezra, who guessed Salo and is our randomly drawn winner!

The mystery Canuck

2011-06-08T09:29:00.000-07:00

If you checked out Tuesday's Behind the Lens gallery, you know we challenged you to Name. That. Canuck. If you missed it, the photo is below.

Who is that?

Submit your guess below, pick the right Canucks player and you'll be randomly entered to win some NHL Playoff swag. Be sure to leave your email address so I can get in touch with you!

Best of luck and no, it's not Alex Burrows - or is it?

History roars to the rafters

2011-06-07T08:11:00.000-07:00

Hi Derek,

I'm writing you because I've noticed my footage of the WCF winning goal from Section 417 was turned into a commercial, which I think is absolutely awesome!

I'm a lifelong fan, originally from Victoria. I remember watching the '94 run as a kid on TV but to now be volunteering with 50/50 I count myself as "living the dream," especially so in another cup run year.

I was recording every offensive foray by Vancouver in OT and 2OT in hopes that I might be able to catch the goal. Credit also goes to my girlfriend Amanda for snapping pictures while I was wasting my camera on filming.

I feel that the video I produced proves once again that there really isn't a poor sight line anywhere in Rogers Arena. In fact, having seen Canucks hockey from almost every angle in the building (with my 50/50 selling) I actually prefer the higher angles because you never miss anything.

Finally I would make an appeal to all Canuck fans to really enjoy every moment of the Stanley Cup Final because this is a very rare opportunity, and by all accounts this could be the year.

I would also make a second appeal that fans keep their cameras rolling. As much as I enjoy trying to catch magical moments I find it even more fascinating to see other people's footage of big moments.

Will Gall-Tallboy

Fan roundup - Volume 7

2011-06-07T07:45:00.000-07:00

Canucks at Stonehenge

Canucks fever is fierce even across the pond. The four of us (in UK 198, from l-r: Todd Cousins, Chris Fischer, Maxime Heppell and Trevor Wales) all work for the London 2012 Olympic Organizing Committee, but our ties to Vancouver remain strong. Similar to our passion for the Vancouver Winter Games (we all worked at VANOC as well), we’re all huge Canucks supporters and have been staying up through the night, often til the sun comes up, watching Canucks games and cheering on the boys in blue and green. Many of us went on Saturday to the Sports Cafe, an all-night sports bar near Piccadilly Circus, to watch Game 2 and Burrows huge OT goal. The place went wild.

A recent road trip brought us to Stonehenge and its mystical, mythical history. Couldn’t think of a better place to show our support. I went to Game 3 of the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals when I was all of 8 years old, and despite the fact we lost 7-3 (and Bure was tossed in the first half of the first period for spearing a guy!), it’s still one of my favourite—and certainly longest lasting—sport memories. Would love to be back there now to replicate some of the magic we saw in February 2010.

WE ARE ALL CANUCKS (Even in England.)

Trevor Wales

LuLuLove

@lululemon: Showing our @VanCanucks support the best way we know how! #gameday #bringithome

Ocean Grove orcas

At Ocean Grove Elementary school in Campbell River, BC, they are known as the Ocean Grove Orcas, just like their favourite NHL team that sports the Orca too. So in honor of Game 3 and Fin's recent 10th birthday, we asked the students to wear Canucks gear or Canuck colours. Our little school of just under 200 showed that they are a Canuck Nation too. All of the students were not even born in 1994, when the Canucks went to the Cup Final the last time, so they are living through this excitement for the first time and this is what they are living for.

Go Canucks Go!

Church of Canucks

A sign from Afghanistan

Hello, I am deployed in Afghanistan right now and I am Canadian. I am a fan of the Vancouver Canucks and I would like to send you a photo that was taken here in Afghanistan the other day.

GO CANUCKS!

Cindy Hallowes
HR Assistant, OEF-A

Fan roundup - Volume 6

2011-06-05T16:03:00.001-07:00

The V

Hi Derek,

Back in May we were out at sea doing a naval exercise with the USN and enjoying Canucks vs Sharks on the satellite TV during down time. Reception was intermittent and in one game we lost feed for the last 1 and a half minutes of the 3rd period with Vancouver up a goal. It was with great relief when the screen came back up and we saw the team swarming Lou. All was good in the world.

On the last night of the exercise I thought that it was time we let the Canucks know we had their backs. I ran the idea of a "V" formation photo of the ship's company on the flight deck past my XO and he ran it by the CO who thought it was a great idea (our CO keeps a signed Luongo home jersey hanging in his cabin at sea and is a BIG fan). This is the first time this ship has formed the "V" formation and it was our pleasure to have done it in honour of our beloved Canucks. Maybe the next time we can have "the Cup" sitting in the middle of that yellow dot on our deck beside my XO and CO. By the way, the "vintage" jerseys they are wearing actually berlong to our ship's hockey team, the HMCS VANCOUVER Canucks (who have played many international games).

That photo was taken May 13th in Esquimalt Harbour by Ordinary Seaman Nicholas Jordan, who took it while standing on top of our hangar. The photo is deceiving in size as there are 160 sailors in that photo. We normally sail with a crew of 220 so that is a significant amount of our crew in that shot. HMCS VANCOUVER is but one of 12 frigates in our Navy but we know she is the best. We are currently the Navy's highest readiness ship which means if the government needs to deploy a Navy ship that ship will be us (stay tuned).

Back in mid-Oct we pulled into San Diego while on our way home from a 3 month Anti-Drug operation along the Central American coast (Mexico, Guatemala, Ecuador). We were in consort with another two Canadian ships and one keen Canucks fan arranged buses to travel to Anaheim to catch a Nucks vs Ducks game. Ducks won that one but so did our crew.

A friend of mine arranged Visitor Passes for me and so my CO, XO, Coxswain and I got to meet the Sedin's and Lou and get some pics taken.We got a signed poster from Lou which we had framed and mounted. We have other Canucks memorabilia located throughout our ship. We have a Trevor Linden signed jersey as well as 2 others signed by the team in shadow boxes. Recently we placed a large Canucks "C" decal (Haida whale one) on our helicopter hangar door. It is cool because we had it made in combat grey and black. We also intend to name our hangar "Rogers Arena" in the near future.

Cheers,

Gus
Logistics Dept Chief
HMCS VANCOUVER

GGGGGOOOOOAAAAALLLLL!!!!!

Hello Mr Editor, my name is Ajit and I've been a Canucks fan since I was a kid. My wife Aman and I just had a baby boy Ardaas March 10 and as expected he spends most his day eating sleeping and pooping and once in a blue moon you'll catch him doing something funny or cute. I just thought I would share a picture with you that we find priceless... My wife took it when he 7 weeks old, I call it our GGGGGOOOOOAAAAALLLLL!!!!! picture, hope you enjoy it as much as we do, thanks.

-Fan 4 Life, Ajit.

Support from Afghanistan

Hello, this is CPL Horzelenberg from 1PPCLI infantry. This photo was taken on my tour on task force 3-09, we did seven months in the front lines of Kandahar, Afghanistan, thought maybe you guys would like to see us supporting you guys overseas even when we couldn't watch the games.

Left to right: Pte Lambert Tiger Williams CPL Horzelenberg CPL Conner

Mika's little Canucks

What's cuter than kids supporting the Canucks? A collage of kids supporting the Canucks!

For more on Mika's photography, check out this feature from Canucks.com.

The story of a lifelong Canucks fan

When I was 11 years old I watched my idol Trevor Linden take my team on the emotional roller coaster of the 94 playoffs. I remember everything. Every call. Every goal. Every emotion. I remember the way you could walk down the street and get a high five from someone you didn’t know just because you were wearing a jersey. I remember sitting with my Mom, Dad and brother in our living room, watching Pavel Bure blow by the Calgary defense and score the goal that I would later emulate on the driveway of our townhouse with a worn down hockey stick and a tennis ball. I remember the call.

“ This is the greatest moment in Vancouver Canucks History”

17 years. 17 years since Pavel scored that goal. 17 years since Kirk Mclean made “the save.”17 years since Greg Adams scored the OT goal to propel us into the Stanley cup final. 17 years since the jubilation of game 6, and 17 years since the dejected emotional pain of game 7. We were so close.

The pain of coming that close and not winning stays with you. For 17 years.

Last night Kevin Bieksa scored a goal that set off a trifecta of emotions. The first was the shock of seeing a game winning goal in double overtime, in a western conference final. The second was complete joy and excitement. We did it!! We are going to the Stanley cup final! High fives all around people yelling so loud that it hurts, explosions of confetti, and 18 thousand fans screaming in the harmonic unison of an orchestra, “WE WANT THE CUP.”

And finally the realization that we did it. And I was there to see it. To experience it.

Years from now people will tell many stories of the Stanley cup run of 2011. They will talk about Alex Burrows game 7 winner against Chicago. They will talk about the hilarity of the green men. They will talk about Ryan Kesler carrying the team on his back right through to the conference final. They will talk about the Sedins utter dominance against the sharks. They will talk of Bobby Lu’s 54 save performance in game 5. They will talk about Kesler scoring the tying goal with 13 seconds left to send the Canucks to overtime. And of course they will talk about the bounce off the glass that ended up on the stick of boom boom Bieksa.

Years from now I will be telling my son that the year he was born, I bought a Canucks playoff ticket for three times face value and didn’t even think twice about it. I will tell him about the thousands of fans who gathered outside the rink hours before game time to celebrate their team and all its accomplishments. I will tell him about “towel power.” I will tell him about the shinny games outside the arena and that no matter how old you get you are never too old for a game of street hockey.

I will tell him about the atmosphere inside the arena when they brought out the western conference championship trophy, and I will tell him that I was in attendance to watch the single greatest team in the history of the Vancouver Canucks win passage to the Stanley cup finals.

If any Vancouver Canuck reads this somewhere please do me a favor. Go out there next week and win that cup. Win it for every member of the 82 and 94 teams that came within inches and went home empty handed. Win it for Luc Bourdon. Win it for every single fan that has ever bought a ticket, a jersey, a car flag and for every fan that has stood on the corner of the road with a flag in hand just to hear the honking cars go by.

But most of all win it so when my son is born I will have a bedtime story to tell him.

-TJ Chase

Headed to Boston

2011-06-05T13:52:00.000-07:00

Hey Derek,

Hope all is well. I've been a long time reader of your blog and figured you're probably the best person to ask about this. I've been a die hard Canucks fan for years now and am heading down to game 3 from Ottawa. Unfortunately, I am heading down alone as none of my friends could justify paying for a ticket - but that was an obvious decision for me. Given that I'm going down alone, I was wondering if you know of where all the Canucks fans will be congregating - I'd love to share this experience with some common fans.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Thank you so much,

Zach

So, what say you Canucks fans either in Boston or heading there for Games 3 or 4, where is Canucks Headquarters?

Post your ideas below and we'll see if we can organize everyone for a blue and green celebration!

Fan roundup - Volume 5

2011-06-03T14:09:00.001-07:00

Canucks art

Derek Toye creates art the way I wish I could. Here's another few pieces for the Cup Final.

Love from Ashley

There are a lot of Canucks fans all over the world, but few are as pretty as Ashley, a young fan from Victoria, BC. She lives with Down Syndrome and is also deaf and blind, but she's as die-hard a supporter as you'll find. Here she is with her mom Claire.

The Bet

The Bet, which you can read about here if you missed it, now has a logo. I can't wait to see the tattoo photos later, it's going to be some beautiful Canucks ink!

I bet that took a lawn time

Our girl Patti, friend of the blog, is always on the lookout for wacky Canuckness and she couldn't help but send in what was on the front page of the Vernon Morning Star today.

That's Alistair and Sharon Bain proudly displaying the Canucks logo in the lawn of their Armstrong home. Simply marvelous!

More Canucks in the Philippines

Hello there, I just to share some pictures of my kids watching the Stanley Cup finals game 1 live, from the comforts of our treehouse built free hanging w/o posts on a mango tree here in the beautiful island of Cebu in the Philippines.
We just want the world to know that there are also hockey (Canucks ) fans here in the Philippines! Go Canucks Go! Dan

Fan roundup - Volume 4

2011-06-02T14:00:00.000-07:00

Canucks take over Campbell River

Dear Canucks, What a ride! Canucks fans abound at Southgate Middle School in Campbell River on Vancouver Island. Specifically, though, students in the school’s SDC Program have created Canuck Alley or Canuckville in their wing at the school. The students, with the guidance of the school’s number one Canuck fan, Mrs. Barb Donahue, have painted the logos of all the teams in this year’s Stanley Cup Playoff – complete with life size paintings of The Green Men! On game day, during the lunch break, Mrs. Donahue arranges to have the Canuck song of the day to be played over the school’s public address system and, as often, our media teacher Mr. Rob Hatfield plays one of the many entertaining videos that have been created over the playoff run.

While the energy has been high on game days throughout the playoffs, with students wearing their team jerseys, t-shirts, hats, hoodies, foam fingers, and tattoos – the energy was never higher than yesterday for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final. The anticipation and energy in the air at Southgate Middle School was electric and I can guarantee that as the games progress, the energy and enthusiasm will grow and Canuck Alley will be the most colourful place in Campbell River! For this we live for …. Go Canucks Go!

Skittles

I don't know what the back story is here, but I guarantee it's awesome and probably includes some jugs of booze marked XXX. To a select group of Canucks fans, and likely more after this post, Raffi Torres, the hero of Game 1, is lovingly called Skittles.

As you can see from Tyler Woodburn's picture, Torres makes a good Skittles.

The last supper?

The big bad Bruins

According to artist Matthew Bleasdale, the Bruins aren't as big or as bad as they think. Here are a few of his photos, which make great avatars, for the Stanley Cup Final.

Street wash

Someone in Vancouver has been colouring in the Canucks street wash art on the sidewalks and I love it. Is it you? No? Then why do you have chalk on your fingers...?

Next question...

2011-06-01T15:00:00.000-07:00

Fan roundup - Volume 3

2011-06-01T07:47:00.000-07:00

Hot wheels

Canucks photographer Jeff Vinnick spotted this wicked ride cruising past Rogers Arena Tuesday!

Love from Afghanistan

Dear Vancouver Canucks Organization, Management Staff, Coaches, and Players,

A group of us Canadian Forces personnel and crazy die-hard fans wanted to get together and show our support in your quest for the cup! We would like to congratulate you on a very successful regular season and wish you continued success in the Stanley Cup Finals. Your team has developed over the years into one of the league’s top contenders which is something that you should be very proud of.

We wish you the best of luck in the Stanley Cup Finals - from all of us here in Afghanistan.

GO Canucks GO

Steve Wist
Petty Officer 1st Class
Canadian Navy
Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan
Hometown: Victoria, BC

Canucks wedding

A Canucks themed wedding with a Stanley Cup cake, Canucks ice sculpture and towel waving for our reception entrance - what more could you ask for?

DY-NA-MITE

Mrs. Hiebert and Mrs. Ulvild's kindergarten classes at Prince Charles Elementary School in Abbotsford, BC, think the Vancouver Canucks are dynamite. Don't believe me, see for yourself...

Taking one for the team

My husband and I are rabid Canuck fans and have been so for many years. We wear the twins’ jerseys, myself Daniel and my husband Henrik. We noticed something different this year as we watched every single game of the regular season in how they were playing, and as the year rolled on we were starting to believe that this just might be the year.

As the playoffs ensued we got more and more excited. In game 3 of the series against the Sharks when the 3rd Canuck goal was scored I jumped out of my seat to do the “Crazy Canuck Dance” I do after every goal, and unfortunately I came down right on the split level step down in our living room only to break my foot. My husband ran to the fridge and like a good trainer he iced my foot immediately so we could return to the game without missing any of the action.

I am ok now but have slowed down a bit as I have a beautiful cast on my broken foot. On the day of the final against the Sharks I came home with a large Canuck Flag for my husband to put up on the house and a package of Canuck stickers for my cast.

Just wanted to let you know there are some “die hard” Canuck fans that are enjoying the ride to the Cup, taking our injuries in stride – just like the team.

Murray and Denise Corey

Put another Bruin on the barbie

Love from Canucks fans in Melbourne, Australia!

Shots, shots, shots

2011-06-01T07:30:00.000-07:00

World, meet Pouya. He's better known as CanucksHD, as in your one-stop-shop for all Canucks videos on YouTube.

Pouya has created what most of us at Canucks Headquarters are calling "one helluva video;" it's one of, if not thee, fan video of the 2011 Playoffs.

Avatars

2011-06-01T07:15:00.000-07:00

Timing is everything and Geoff Heith's timing is bang on.

I received an email from Canucks fan Kushani yesterday wondering if I could put the call out for avatars for the Stanley Cup Final. Kushani is still rocking the San Jose Sharks as sushi as a Facebook picture and that's just unacceptable with Bruins being the new enemy.

A quick search of the world wide web and I found this beauty of an avatar Geoff Heith created using the official Stanley Cup Final hashtag of the Vancouver Canucks: #bringithome.

Geoff is a swell guy so "feel free to use the picture as your Twitter, Facebook profile, share it, use it...love it!"

This is bound to be one of many avatars created for the Cup Final, if you've got one of your own, post a link to it below and I'll start posting them on the blog.

It's bear season, happy hunting!

Nashish's avatar

SneakyGreeky's avatar

Grrambo's avatar

Andy Everson's avatar
(more here)

Rob's avatar

Bob's avatar

Nick's avatar

Kathy's avatar

Real or fake?

2011-05-31T08:45:00.000-07:00

If you had a tough time figuring out if it was the real Michael Jackson dropping the puck at a Canucks game - good luck with this!

I received an email a few days ago from a fan wondering if the photo below is in fact the greatest Canucks ride in the history of vehicles, or if it's the greatest photoshopped Canucks ride in the history of photoshopped vehicles.

Judge for yourself.

I went digging and found out the following:

-The truck is modeled after Japanese "Dekotora" semi trucks, which are heavily decorated vehicles used for advertisements and promotion.

-This one-of-a-kind truck contains over 10,000 LED and halogen bulbs, tons of pounds of modified chromed steel and carries a price tag of $200,000.

-The lights in the middle around the windshield are sound activated, displaying a visual EQ that responds to the sound of the horn or the sounds of a crowd cheering.

-The tubes at the top with the Canucks logos attached are laser tubes that project a laser light show through the vented grill. There is also a Plexiglas retro Canucks lamp at the front that creates some 'ground effects' by projecting the logo on the street.

-All this and did you notice the coolest hood ornament of all-time, Lord Stanley's Cup?

What a ride. Now is it real, or fake?

Fan roundup - Volume 2

2011-05-31T08:30:00.000-07:00

Pasta la vista Bruins

Andrea Kelly took the photo and Lisa-Marie sent it in, but I'm not sure who ate the pasta. Either way, awesome!

Canucks in Guatemala

Dear Canucks,

Thought you might enjoy this. Our company does service work in Guatemala, and this year we brought street hockey to the rural village where we help. The Canadian holding the jersey is one of your season ticket holders. It was a blast.

Cheers,
Dave

Here Sharky!

Not sure if this email got stuck in the spam filter or what, but here's some artwork from Natalie.

Wee Canucks

With concerts taking over Rogers Arena a few times during Vancouver's run to the Stanley Cup Final, the Canucks have been relocated to UBC for practice.

Two weeks ago there were some special fans in attendance, children from the Berwick Child Development Centre, an integrated program for children 3-to-5-years-old operated by Developmental Disabilities Association.

Apparently the kids, who made the flags themselves, are still chanting Go Canucks Go!

WWE Canucks

A series of photos have surfaced from a recent WWE wrestling event in which Canucks fans showed their pride with a couple of signs. One has the Canucks logo on it, the other, my personal favourite, just says BALLARD. So simple, yet it says so much.

Canucks art

Marilyn S. Mylrea from the Marilyn S. Mylrea Art Gallery on Granville Street has recently done some Canucks oil paintings of Alex Burrows and Roberto Luongo.

Click here to find out more about Marilyn's paintings, or visit her studio on Granville.

Fan roundup - Volume 1

2011-05-30T09:20:00.000-07:00

As the Canucks support rolls in, so too do the emails. Here's a taste of what hit my inbox over the weekend...

Love from Germany

Dear Derek,

My friends and I have been studying in Central Europe (in Berlin, Germany; Krakow, Poland; and Vienna, Austria) for the last three weeks, but that hasn't stopped us from waking up at 2 and 3 in the morning to watch the Canucks play, and make their way into the Stanley Cup Final! So, we thought we would show our Canucks pride and take a picture in front of Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany.

Cheers,
Tracy Thomas

It WAS a beautiful day

As you can see, Canucks fan Mark was supporting his team all the way from Winnipeg, Manitoba, during the U2 concert Sunday night. All was going according to plan, until, out of nowhere, it became Sunday, Bloody Sunday and Mark ran into a Bruins fan.

Mmm...cake...

Angela Price from North Vancouver baked this cake to take to the office, problem is we don't work at the same office. I don't actually know if I could eat this immaculate display of everything right about baking, it looks simply too good to be true. I mean rink boards with actual sponsor logos? Unreal. A round of applause for Angela.

Canucks in Nigeria

Go Canucks Go was heard in Ghana on Friday and over the weekend, the chant spread to Nigeria.

Surrey native Monty Raisinghani, a UBC engineering graduate, volunteers at the Light of Hope orphanage where he's spreading his love of the Canucks.

The youth orphans are going to be mentored by local BC youth with @elitevan Elite4Africa in the days to follow.

A Mark-ed man

Mark Recchi was just minding his business, raising money for the RIH Foundation, when BAM, he was hit with a massive wardrobe update, which, in all likelihood, increased support for his cause.

Canucks in the Philippines

2011-05-28T09:59:00.000-07:00

Fans are showing their support for the Canucks the world over right now, as you can see from this photo.

These are friends of friends of a Canucks employee, possibly on their way to watch Vancouver play in the Stanley Cup Final in the Philippines. I'm not sure what the mileage is like on their vehicle, but hopefully they get to a TV for Game 1 vs. Boston!

Vancouver Pizza

2011-05-27T21:53:00.000-07:00

Well that didn't take long.

The Boston Bruins have been Eastern Conference Champions on a collision course with the Vancouver Canucks for less than two hours and already Boston Pizza has switched over to Vancouver pizza.

Log on to BostonPizza.com to order up some re-named goodness.

Oh and for the record, Jim Treliving from Dragons' Den, owner of Boston Pizza, is a Canucks fan.

Crusin' Canucks

2011-05-27T15:45:00.000-07:00

The Vancouver Canucks have done anything but cruise to the Stanley Cup Final, but those cruising to Alaska recently followed the latest leg of their journey.

On board a Disney Wonder cruise ship that set sail for Alaska from Vancouver on May 17 were 2,400 passengers, half of which were Canadian, the majority of which were Canucks fans.

Disney does a lot of things right and they hit the nail on the head by showing Game 2 of the Western Conference Final on a massive outdoor TV (above). It was a tad chilly on the deck, but there were 20 true Canucks fans with blankets, beers and high hopes for the team cheering them on.

Veronica Freeman was aboard to witness the Canucks win and the support they got on the high seas.

“About half the passengers were Canadians, and on game days Canucks jerseys were proudly worn - on the ship, in ports, and everyone was chanting GO CANUCKS GO,” said Freeman (pictured below).

Game 3 was unfortunately not televised with the ship unable to pick up the satellite feed, so iPhones and Blackberries were used to get scores. Fans then helped each other out by relaying details around the boat.

Game 4 began before the ship docked in port in Ketchikan, Alaska, and apparently Canucks fans had had enough with their phones and it was time to find a TV on board airing the game, which was broadcast throughout the US on NBC.

“We all looked like desperate lost sheep looking for home,” joked Freeman.

The ship eventually picked up the satellite feed and Canucks fans were put at ease by three 5-on-3 power play goals that helped Vancouver take a 3-1 series lead.

Even at sea, there’s no mickey mousing around for Canucks fans during the playoffs.

Grad gesture

2011-05-27T09:54:00.000-07:00

Meet Joey Baran.

This past Tuesday Joey graduated from Clayton Heights Secondary School in Surrey, British Columbia, and, as you can see, he decided to show the Canucks some love during grad commencements.

Joey, we thank you for the unparalleled support, wish you the best of luck in the future and have our fingers crossed that you never lose your enthusiasm for the Canucks.

Big thanks to Thomas Gahan for sending us the photo!

Old man Bieksa

2011-05-26T16:28:00.000-07:00

This cartoon, featured on the sports page of The Province, spun around Canucks Headquarters today so I thought I'd share it in case you missed it. Illustrator Bob Krieger has mad skills, as you can see.

Click here for more of Krieger's brilliance, he's been doing cartoons regularly throughout the playoffs.

Beard of the Day

2011-05-26T09:09:00.000-07:00

All this growth, 43 days of growth to be precise, and the Jory Beard is finally being recognized for its gnarly awesomeness!

I'm participating the NHLPA Beard-A-Thon this season, alongside Vancouver Canucks Mason Raymond, Ryan Kesler, Jeff Tambellini and Dan Hamhuis, and today my gruff is the Beard of the Day (bottom left side of page).

If you've got a moment, please vote for it, or if you're in a position to donate, please do. All NHLPA Beard-a-Thon donations go towards the placement of Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) in hockey rinks, schools and community centres in provinces across Canada.

Thanks for the support!

I would walk 2,335 kilometres

2011-05-25T16:03:00.000-07:00

There was a lot of craziness Tuesday as before, during and after Vancouver's Game 5 win to advance to the Stanley Cup Final, Canucks fans were in a frenzy.

A friend ran into this guy pre-game and his sign says it all. The details are a bit foggy, as a lot of fans are feeling today, but from what we know, he left from Winnipeg, made his way to Brandon, got stuck there for a while, got to Regina and watched Sunday's Game 4 there...something, something...and he got to Vancouver Monday night.

I don't know who you are sir, but I admire your die-hard attitude. I know it was worth the 2,335 kilometre trip.

Canuck yourself

2011-05-24T10:47:00.000-07:00

It's a question as old as time: How do female fans, those who cannot grow playoff beards, support the Vancouver Canucks on their quest for the Stanley Cup?

The answer, from what I've discovered, is wearing Canucks colours. This includes everything from jerseys, t-shirts, hats and scarves, to Canucks themed make-up and nails.

Thanks to the follow tutorials, all the Canucks ladies out there can now rock a head-to-toe look displaying their fandom.

NAILS

Li Lian from shortwidenails has put together a tutorial on how to rock Canucks inspired nails that, if you play your cards right, will end up looking like this:

Radio announcer Emilie Clarke, from Emilie's World, has a variation of Canucks nails, a true mishmash of team colours and logos. Beauty.

MAKE-UP

Jessica wants you to increase the ferocity of your game face with some Canucks inspired eyes. She's come up with the look to support her team and in honour of the Stanley Cup fever that's permeating basically the entire continent.

Have another Canucks style idea? Leave a comment below to share it with other Canucks fans!

UPDATE

It seems that more fans are Canucking themselves to cheer on Vancouver than I thought. Based on the comments below, and a few emails I've received, Canucks nails is a trend that has already caught on, led by Mandy Gill, co-host on The Kid Carson Show on The Beat 94.5.

Mandy recently had her nails done to reflect Vancouver's latest accomplishment and to celebrate what the Canucks will be playing for. The Stanley Cup on each hand says it all.

This look took nearly three hours to complete and Amy from GlamStar Beauty in Vancouver did it all by hand - no stickers, no tattoos, no nothing, just pure skill.

If you want to take your Canucks enthusiasm one step further, you can follow Julie's lead and glam up your piggies. (I'm not sure if this was done by her or a professional).

Twitter bet

2011-05-23T10:00:00.000-07:00

I have 8,234 BFFs.

That's the number of followers @CanucksGame has, the official Vancouver Canucks in-game Twitter account bringing you the latest and greatest from every Canucks game.

The San Jose Sharks also have an in-game Twitter account, @SharksInGame. It's run by a few people, but mainly Alex Aragon. We both tweet during games, we both have big gross playoff beards and we both guarantee series wins for our teams.

It's only natural we make things interesting between accounts.

HERE'S THE DEAL

Loser of each game has to change their Twitter profile picture to that of the winner's choosing until the next game day. This will repeat every game until a team moves on to the Stanley Cup Final.

Make sense? We hope so. This all came together 17 minutes prior to puck drop of Game 1 and we just put our heads together. That's the best we could come up with. No money will change hands, but humiliation in on the line!

Best of luck to @SharksInGame, the twitter account NO LONGER ahead of @CanucksGame in followers after three games of the Western Conference Final.

Cue the happy emoticon... :)

GAME 1 UPDATE

The Canucks took Game 1 by a 3-2 score, meaning @SharksInGame will be using the following avatar from now until Wednesday morning, aka the next game day.

Thanks to @pablopicante13 for the above image. It's beyond amazing!

GAME 2 UPDATE

Vancouver won Game 2 by a score of 7-3 to take a 2-0 series lead, meaning that for the second time in as many games, @SharksInGame must change their avatar to one of our choosing. And this is what we chose.

I like it, I really like it. 300 is one of my favourite movies of all-time and this picture really sums up the series so far. No need for cockiness though, it's a best-of-7, not a best-of-2.

Big thanks to friend of the Canucks Wilson Tang, @wilsonjtang, for the sick avatar.

GAME 3 UPDATE

San Jose is back in the series after a 4-3 win over Vancouver Friday night. The series is now 2-1 Canucks, which is a good thing, the bad thing is that @CanucksGame is now sporting the following picture as an avatar.

Luckily for Canucks fans, Game 4 is a matinee Sunday, so this clever hideousness, although nicely done, will be gone soon.

GAME 4 UPDATE

Some 5-on-3 magic, thanks to Ryan Kesler and Sami Salo, and the Canucks took Game 4 of the Western Conference Final 4-2; Vancouver now leads the series 3-1.

I put the call out through @CanucksGame for avatar suggestions for @SharksInGame and while I received a lot of incredible submissions, none topped this photo.

There's no Canucks component to it, but it made me laugh so hard that I had to look away! I hope it proves you with the same humour for the next day.

Fight Club

2011-05-21T23:20:00.000-07:00

Take a good look at that picture. It's awesome without even knowing the back story.

So Behind the Lens photographer Jeff Vinnick and I leave the hotel this morning en route to Starbucks, Vinnick for a double-tall vanilla latte (princess) and oatmeal, while I opted for a grilled cheese (manly) from the joint next door.

Right when we leave the hotel, we notice Alex Bolduc and Victor Oreskovich sitting on a bench, minding their own. We say hello as we pass by before Vinnick notices that the boys are primed to have their picture taken; good light + unique setting = cool photo.

As Vinnick is shooting, the ladies above were passing by and they asked me who the guys on the bench were. I said they were big Hollywood movie stars. Bad move.

Next thing we know, the pair are draping themselves over Duc and Oreo.

"I have to have a photo with each of you," said the lady on the left, "my son and daughter are going to be so proud of me meeting movie stars."

Notice that her hand is actually on Bolduc's thigh. Smooth move.

So it's pretty hard to contain the laughter at this point, myself, Bolduc, Oreskovich and Vinnick are all about to lose it when Bolduc steps it up a notch.

"Have you seen the movie Fight Club?" he asked.

"No, I don't think so," said the woman on the right.

"If you see that movie, you'll recognize us," Bolduc said.

The women left after a good three pictures (taken by yours truly as you can see from the hands to the left) and then it was time for a good laugh at what had just gone down.

Somewhere in San Jose today there were two women at Blockbuster renting Fight Club and right about now, they are scared out of their minds.

It's okay though, they met and got their picture taken with stars of the movie.

California girls are funny

2011-05-21T10:20:00.000-07:00

I'm not going to lie, I just got back from laying poolside at the hotel.

The things I do for research.

I strutted out there, white as Casper, to see what the reaction was to Game 3, a 4-3 Sharks win. I found out more than I bargained for.

"Guess what I heard this morning," said the girl in the yellow bikini to her three friends. "That hackey team from Vaincoover, the Canooks, is stayin' at this hotel."

That caught the attention of a couple sitting nearby.

"I saw one of them this morning," sunhat lady said. "The one with the beard, he was like 7-feet tall and hunky"

'I'm only 6-foot-3, but thank you,' I thought to myself before panicking that I actually said it aloud. And that ended Derek's poolside adventures.

A busy Saturday today promises to be, the Canucks practice at 1:30 p.m. at the Sharks practice facility and there's sure to be lots of chatter about the loss on the scoreboard and the loss in the line-up. Both Christian Ehrhoff and Aaron Rome did not finish last night's game. Depending on what is said today, an update on both could be available on Canucks.com this afternoon.

Onward and upward is the attitude I'm taking, it was one game and it ended up being a game Vancouver nearly fought back to tie, despite everything going against it.

THINKS I THINK

You saw the action on the ice, but you missed a lot from the stands. Here now, for your eyeball pleasure, are some random thoughts from San Jose.

-Green Men impostors (above) are everywhere here. There were two green men and three orange men supporting the Sharks last night and another two green men backing Vancouver. Originality is dead in these parts.

-A different sun covers California than the one over British Columbia. This one is hotter and it makes my skin hurty.

-Canucks fans are taking over San Jose. Seriously. By Game 4, there could be a monstrous gathering of Vancouver support.

-You can cheer, but not too loud. Check out the picture above. A security guard made two Canucks fans pop their thunder sticks because they were being "too loud" with them. This makes less sense than the earthquake button.

-Sharks fans were given orange shirts as they entered the HP Pavilion for Game 3. Nashville this is not, as a mere 25%, at most, of the fans actually sported their free gear. Nashville sported a 100% success rate.

-Chicken fried steak. That was the press meal pre-game. Chicken fried steak. That couldn't sound more disgusting to a vegetarian like myself unless it was in a shrimp sauce with a beef glaze. I didn't even touch the chocolate cake dessert in fear it was infused with lamb.

-The folks from the Sharks have been keeping a blog called Vancouver Vibe for the series. Check it out.

-Anyone else think Bedouin Soundclash is saying Luongo and not Elongo in the song with the same name? Me does.

The earthquake button

2011-05-20T14:10:00.000-07:00

Game days are an odd beast.

As a fan, you're hyped and giddy, can't wait until puck drop, can't wait to cheer, can't wait to get cRaAaaZaaaY.

Being with the team on game days is nerve-wracking. The players are so focused it's insane; they know what needs to get done in Game 3 and they are ready to do it. There aren't many smiles and no goofing around, riding the team bus to the rink for morning skate or the game itself is like being in the family station wagon en route to a funeral.

At the same time, you can tell these guys are having the time of their lives, and for good reason. This has been one wild ride so far and the Canucks can go a long way at extending it with a win tonight in San Jose.

I offer up no predictions for Game 3, all I know is that Vancouver is ready.

THINKS I THINK

Random thoughts from San Jose:

-There's a real family feeling to being with the Canucks on the road and not just between the players. Others, like myself and Behind the Lens photographer Jeff Vinnick, are included. I joked this morning that it's our own little wolf-pack before realizing that with this grungy beard I'm rocking, I'd be Zach Galifianakis. That can't be good. Cover your drinks.

-They have lime trees in San Jose, yet no Corona trees. California is too close to Mexico for this to be acceptable.

-I heard it's illegal to have more than two cats or dogs in San Jose. Is this true? And if so, is that why Ace Ventura lived in Florida and not California?

-This morning Roberto Luongo told me my beard "is sick" and he meant it in a good way. That's like Elton John telling me I'm a good singer. Yes, it's a proud day for the Jory Beard.

-If you're a Canucks fan in San Jose, Roneil Grant is your best friend. He's organized a group of wild Canucks supporters to come down for Game 3 & 4, so there promises to be a solid contingent of fans at each game. Here's more info on his trips.

-If you don't follow @VanCanucks on Twitter and you're a Canucks fan going to the game tonight, empty handed you will remain. That's all I'm going to say.

-The photo above was taken in the elevator of the hotel we're at. WHAT THE HECK IS THE EARTHQUAKE BUTTON FOR?

-Prince, or The Artist Formerly Known as Prince, whatever he's called, played at the HP Pavilion last night and he'll perform again Saturday night. Manny Malhotra didn't know this. He played Prince's Let's Go Crazy as the first song when the guys were gearing up for practice this morning by pure coincidence. Bizarre.

-Jim Treliving is the coolest dragon ever.

-Ran into Keith Ballard, Aaron Rome and Manny Malhotra last night while out shopping. Ballard bought a gray shirt, which he said he has 30 of already. Apparently he knows what he likes.

-Follow @CanucksGame on Twitter tonight for play-by-play of Game 3, brought to you by yours truly.

Californerrific

2011-05-19T12:35:00.000-07:00

Bearded Canucks.com reporter Derek Jory somehow convinced the Vancouver Canucks to send him on the road with the team. DURING THE PLAYOFFS. How, we’ll never know. What we do know is that he’ll be blogging from the road, providing you behind the scenes access to the team and what it’s like to travel with the Canucks.

First off, that last line was a lie. Technically I'm not traveling with the Canucks as there was no room on the team plane. I'm at the same hotel though, if that matters.

No, I was up and at it at 5 a.m. this morning en route to San Jose on Alaska Air, with a short layover in Portland, Oregon. I never mess with customs, so I got to the airport crazy early not to put anything to chance with mad line-ups. Having not eaten breakfast, I pulled some banana bread out of my bag and was about to chow down before I was told 'no banana bread allowed in the declaration line.'

Naturally, I questioned if other kinds of breads (rye, sourdough or whole wheat) were allowed in the declaration line and the security dude did not think that was funny.

I then whipped out my phone to make a note of the bread exchange, only to be told that no cell phones are allowed either. Was it going to be one of those days?

Two things changed my day on the flight: I didn't have anyone beside me in the sardine can of a plane and being 6-foot-3, I appreciated that. And I read the last issue of Esquire Magazine mid-flight, an issue that features 'A Brief Guide to Detroit' on page 36. Then I remembered I could have been headed to the Motor City instead of the city with palm trees where it's really hot and awesome and Californerrific.

Now that I have landed and am settled, consider the Shark Tank infiltrated. I have a mass of Canucks Playoff towels with me for Vancouver fans attending Games 3 & 4, follow @VanCanucks on twitter for more on that. I am going to spread Canucks fandom like never before.

The Canucks are in the air on their way here right now, they have media availability when they arrive so I'll touch base after that.

If you have any comments, requests, complaints or you just want to say hey there, hi there, hello there, let your voice be heard below!

One last thing: a incredibly special happy birthday to my son Denver, who turns one-year-old today. Sorry daddy isn't with you to celebrate, but I promise to bring back some goodies. And maybe a pair of wins.

Derek

It’s our team, you can’t have ‘em!

2011-05-18T10:15:00.000-07:00

Actor Fred Ewanuick loves two things in life: perogies and the Vancouver Canucks.

Anything written about his favourite plump, cheesy, yummy food likely wouldn't get posted on Canucks.com or Fort Nucks, so he recently sent us the following patriotic piece in response to all the hubbub about the Canucks being Canada's team. Please enjoy responsibly.

It’s our team, you can’t have ‘em!
By Fred Ewanuick

You can borrow them for a bit, but they’re ours.

I don’t expect the rest of Canada to cheer along with us. And, to be honest, I don’t care if they cheer against us either. Canada’s Team, nope. I doubt it. And that's okay by me.

This moment in Canuck history is for us. The tortured fans of a franchise that has seen far more failure, than glory. How I dream of a run to the finals now, if only to stop holding on to ’82 and ’94. (yes, I’m old enough to remember ’82) And to win the Cup, well, I lost complete control of myself when Crosby won us the gold, I’m afraid what might happen if the Canucks actually come though. I’ll be wearing diapers just in case.

What do we care if the rest of Canada adopts the Canucks as their team or not? I didn’t cheer for the Flames during their last run. I didn’t cheer for the Oilers, either. Why would I?

As a Canuck fan, I’ve had to endure years of being humiliated by, not only their hockey teams, but their fans as well. That being said, if either of those teams had won, I would have tipped my hat to them. It’s a war just getting to finals, never mind winning. And to see the Cup back in the hands of a Canadian Team, would’ve been a great thing. And yes I hate the Leafs (CBC’s fault), but I don’t hate Toronto. I actually really like Toronto. If you haven’t been there, you should go. There’s a reason why people live there, it’s a great city with tons of culture and ... other stuff that I can’t think of right now. (Although, Toronto taxi drivers drive like participants in “Death Race 2000”. Watch out, the side walks aren’t safe.) But the time I spent there was great. And I’ve never heard anyone from Toronto say they hate Vancouver. I’ve heard them say they hate the Canucks, but not Vancouver.

You read in our papers and hear on our sports radio stations, that the rest of Canada hates us. Not just our hockey team, but US! Our city, our way of life, US. Well, I don’t buy it. I’ve been to every province. I’ve met people from just about every corner of our great country. (I’ve yet to visit the North, it’s on the list) And every person I’ve met was kind and friendly (except that guy at the Tim Hortons in Montreal. English or French, it’s called a bagel, right?). And most were genuinely curious, and excited to hear what life on the West Coast is like.

Canada is filled with fantastic towns and cities, but none come close to matching Vancouver. No other place could take me away from BC. Not because BC and Vancouver are better. Not because we have the ocean (which isn’t really ours, I guess), not because we have the mountains (Alberta gets those too) and not just because we have the Canucks. Because its home. It’s where I’m from. It’s part of me. And maybe because my Zodiac is Cancer, I love to visit other places, but I always long for home.

The rest of the country has its beauty too, incredible beauty. And you can understand why people would want to call St John's, Regina, Brandon, Thunder Bay, and even Toronto Home. The fact of the matter is that Canada is amazing, no matter what part of home you’re from. And, some of those other places have hockey teams, with hockey fans who think their team is the best in Canada ...hold on... sorry, just a sec...okay, I’m done laughing now.

Don’t hold it against anyone if they’re not cheering for the Canuckle Heads. Or if they call them Canuckle Heads. And, I for one, am not going to take it personally. What am I doing worrying about what the rest of the country thinks of us anyway. I’ll just be here in the moment, enjoying this bit of Canuck history in the making.

Canuck fans, this run is a huge deal. This hasn’t happened since 1994! Enjoy it. There is no need to get upset about what some dude bagging “bits de Tims” in Montreal thinks of us or our Canucks. If they want to support us, great! If they don’t want to buy BC wine, fine. That’s them.

If the Canucks can pull this off and the cup comes to Vancouver (knock on wood), I hope, we as fans, have learned the lesson from fans of other Canadian teams that have seen success. Let us be as gracious in victory, as we have been in years of defeat. And I hope the rest of Canada enjoys a few wobbly pops, while watching BC’s team make a run at doing something no other Canadian team has been able to do since 1993. And maybe, just maybe, the Canucks can win over a few new fans.

Hey Canada, try this out, it’s fun...“Go Canucks Go!”...we can use all the help we can get.

Nicholas' knuckles

2011-05-18T09:00:00.000-07:00

Bedtime routines are important. I like to have some yogurt and a glass of water before brushing my teeth and hitting the sack. (That doesn't sound as cool as I thought it would...)

Nicholas, always thinking of the Vancouver Canucks, is including Roberto Luongo in his bedtime routine these days. The two-year-old from Cranbrook, BC, who is already a big hockey fan and can reenact many of Luongo's poses, has a poster of his idol on his wall, which he began giving knuckles to before bed a while ago.

Realizing how important the playoffs are and how much pressure is on Luongo, Nicholas recently upped the ante to include the well-wishes "good luck in the playoffs Luongo" to his routine.

If stats are any indication of the impact of Nicholas' knuckles and kind words, Luongo is benefiting from the routine. The Canucks goaltender is tied for the playoff lead in wins, he has the third best goals against average, sixth highest save percentage and his two shutouts is tops of all netminders.

Both Boston's Tim Thomas and Tampa Bay's Dwayne Roloson were shaky at best in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final Tuesday night and it's now clear why: they don't have Nicholas' knuckles in their corner.

Thanks for the support Nicholas!

Round 3 - Nucks vs. Sharks

2011-05-16T12:58:00.000-07:00

This round there's no sneaking up on Chloe, the two-year-old Bug (a Boston Terrier crossed with a Pug) is ready to pounce, but Derek is armed with a net to catch that pesky shark.

Find out more about Derek Toye's art here.

A Vancouver favourite

2011-05-15T09:39:00.001-07:00

It's time for Round 3, Vancouver vs. San Jose, so it's time for some fresh art to open the series.

Matt Bleasdale goes finishing and reels in a towel hungry shark (ab0ve), before Jaws is hacked up and served up as a Vancouver favourite. Yum, yum!

For more of Matt's art, check out matthewbleasdale.com.

Canucks art

2011-05-13T12:10:00.001-07:00

The Vancouver Canucks community department receives a lot of love for the Canucks, it comes in the form of letters, poems, songs, pictures and posters.

Every once and a while, something surfaces on my desk that catches their eye, something web-worthy.

This is the latest: it's a drawing of Roberto Luongo, done by five-year-old Colette. Yes, there is whiteout in his playoff beard. It's fierce.

It doesn't get any cuter than that! Thanks Colette!

We Are All Canucks

2011-05-12T09:16:00.000-07:00

When the playoffs began this year, I was so inundated with content from fans that something was bound to slip through the cracks.

My apologies to Vancouver singer/songwriter Bodhi Jones as his song We Are All Canucks! didn't receive the airplay it should have.

If you haven't figured it out yet, this is me making up for it. The song is a gem - and I'm not just saying that.

Jones, a 30-year-old musician who moved from Saltspring Island, BC to Vancouver when he was 10, is a Canucks fan and he's written a piece that will join Terell Safadi's Black Red Yellow and How the West Was One by Kyprios on our Canucks Playoff Soundtrack.

Twelve teams are called out by Jones, including the Blackhawks and Predators, who the Canucks have already devoured. Twenty-three players, and coach Alain Vigneault, also get a shout out by Jones and that's basically the song. It's simple and quiet, but extremely catchy and not in a Rebecca Black terrible kind of way.

Jones wrote the tune, which he calls a dance anthem, prior to Game 7 versus Chicago in hopes of willing the Canucks to a series victory over the Blackhawks.

I can't confirm Alex Burrows was humming it when he scored the overtime game-winner, but I also can't deny it.

The song is available for download here; 100% of profits are being donated to Canuck Place.

Gleek

2011-05-11T09:30:00.000-07:00

Chicago had Vince Vaughn.

Nashville had Carrie Underwood.

Is Vancouver's celebrity Cory Monteith?

A few weeks ago the 29-year-old, who celebrates his birthday today coincidentally, was in New York filming the season finale of "Glee," Fox's musical drama in which the Canadian actor plays Finn Hudson. While in the Big Apple, Monteith appeared on NHL Live, hosted by Deb Placey and EJ Hradek, to discuss his love for the Canucks.

Post-interview Monteith picked up a Canucks hat, a 2010-11 Presidents' Trophy winning Canucks hat to be precise, and it seems as though he has yet to take it off.

The photo above appeared in GQ online as part of The Week in Style: 05.06.11; Monteith is one of 14 male celebrities featured in the Best and Worst Dress Men of the Week and while those grading his look focused on his relaxed travel apparel, I'll focus on the hat.

Monteith loves the Canucks, he's outspoken about the Canucks and now he's repping the Canucks. Has he become Vancouver's celebrity?

On the one hand, he isn't as well known as Vaughn or Underwood to the masses; on the other hand he has a genuine love for the Canucks and Glee is a pretty good show - from what I've heard...no I don't watch it...okay just sometimes...when I accidentally PVR it every week...

A Gleek I am not, but I support Monteith as our celeb.

You?

*Monteith photo courtesy of Hot Shots Worldwide/Splash News

UPDATE: Here's an up close picture of the hat Monteith is wearing. It's available at the Canucks Team Store at Rogers Arena.

Underwood Keslerbombed

2011-05-10T09:24:00.001-07:00

Artist Derek Toye summed up Round 1 perfectly, now he's taken a stab at Round 2 - and hit the nail on the head again.

Enjoy.

Shark or Red Wing?

2011-05-09T21:55:00.000-07:00

Henrik Sedin said it doesn't matter.

Kevin Bieksa hasn't even thought about it.

What say you? Who would you like to see the Canucks play in the Western Conference Final, the San Jose Sharks or Detroit Red Wings?

Weigh in below and get ready for an explosive Game 6 between these two teams Tuesday night in Detroit. Should a seventh and deciding game be needed, it would go down Thursday evening in San Jose.

Note - The photo above was emailed to me by Roni, who said it's been flying around the Internet. Apparently I'm not one of the cool kids because no one had forwarded at it to me. Single tear. It's a pretty nice shirt though, one that would look killer with a little Shark or Red Wing on it, don't you think!?

Sitting, waiting, wishing

2011-05-09T12:14:00.000-07:00

Colby Downer missed his entire hockey season with a broken leg. In order to keep up with his skills, the nine-year-old devoted himself to the Vancouver Canucks like never before, learning their names, numbers and stats like few others his age.

The above photo is of Colby cheering on the Canucks. All the Vancouver memorabilia he owns is dragged into the living room for every game and there he stays, sitting, waiting, wishing for another Canucks win.

"If wishes came true do you think the Canucks would like that I used my wishes on them?" Colby asked in a recent email.

Yes, Colby, I can say with 100 per cent certainty the Canucks appreciate you using your wishes on them. But if you wished for a Game 6 win, don't tell anyone or it might not come true!

The Mongolia Canucks?

2011-05-07T10:18:00.000-07:00

I got an interesting email earlier this week from a friend of a co-worker. He has business contacts in Mongolia and it seems the Canucks taking down the Blackhawks was front page news in the land of horse racing, archery and wrestling.

I assumed that Googling hockey and Mongolia in the same sentence would simply lead me to a face palm image, but there is hockey in Mongolia and the national team is currently ranked 45th in the world. Who knew?!?

Star struck

2011-05-05T22:03:00.001-07:00

So much for Nashville having a hate on for Vancouver's Green Men.

Force and Sully made their way down to Tennessee for Games 3 & 4 of the Western Conference Semifinal between the Canucks and Predators and they were truly welcomed with southern hospitality.

They even rubbed shoulders with the stars.

During the second intermission of Vancouver's 4-2 win Thursday night, the Green Men exchanged pleasantries with Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman. I have no idea what was said, but you know Force and Sully were up to their usual tricks. I'm guessing they offered Kidman a green spandex suit to join the gang.

Sorry Glenn Healy, you're out. Kidman's in.

Ultimate Canucks Fans

2011-05-05T09:37:00.000-07:00

At first Geoff Heith was just messing around.

The Abbotsford, BC, based photographer, who moonlights as a professional videographer, got some friends together when the playoffs started and shot a few photos of how fans react to the Canucks scoring.

The feedback was overwhelming, so Heith invited Canucks fans down for a Round 2 shoot themed Fans in the Crowd. The goal was to get shots of reactions to scored goals, overtime wins, big hits, and sad Nashville fans and the amazing pictures speak for themselves.

Here's a sample of the shots, the rest can be viewed at GeoffHeith.com.

May the 4th...

2011-05-04T08:19:00.001-07:00

Here's to another win over SOB Wan Kenobi and the rest of the Nashville Predators.

Use the force Vancouver, use the force.

Stephen Harper: Canucks fan

2011-05-03T22:54:00.001-07:00

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has had a big week.

First, Harper's Conservative Party won a majority government in the federal election, then the 52-year-old Toronto hopped aboard the Canucks bandwagon.

Or has he always been on it and past hometown pressure from Toronto and current hometown pressure from Calgary has simply been too much for him to announce and display his allegiance to Vancouver?

He was, after all, spotted in the stands at Rogers Arena, alongside Trevor Linden, when the Canucks hosted the Minnesota Wild on March 14, 2011.

They laughed, they cheered, they shared popcorn.

Harper clearly wasn’t hiding his love for the Canucks then and during a recent interview with Cybulski & Co. on TSN Radio 1050, he came right out and declared his Canucks support.

Here’s the best of the best from the 10-minute interview. Click here to listen to it in its entirety.

Harper, on if he saw any Game 7s of the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs…

"I didn’t get to catch very much, we’re on the plane on the road so much. I do try and catch some of the highlights, we did see a bit of Vancouver/Chicago and that was quite a battle.

"I know some people are somewhat worried about the Canucks performance because they go in as such favourites, but they were up against the Stanley Cup Champion. I’m glad they were able to go all the way and win, obviously it’s a great victory and as a Canadian, I’m now all the way behind the Canucks."

Harper, on if he’s cheering for the Canucks going forward…

"I have to, they’re our only hope for a Canadian Stanley Cup victory and they have a great team, there are not a lot of obvious holes there so I’m optimistic. I’ve said all along that from Vancouver to whoever the last team was to scrape into the playoffs, my read has been that with good goaltending, any team is in it this year. I don’t think there’s anybody who can’t win under the right circumstances, so it’s going to be pretty hard fought."

Harper, on his reaction to the Predators tying Game 2 up late in the 3rd period…

"I didn’t actually see that one. Look, I think Luongo...I know he’s had a couple of ups and downs, but I think he’ll be good enough to carry them."

There you have it, it’s official. Harper runs the country and he’s backing the Canucks.

Looks like I should have voted for him and not Pedro. My bad.

Hairy drawing

2011-05-02T13:03:00.000-07:00

Tanner Deakin can't grow a playoff beard, but he sure can draw one.

Thanks for the sketch Tanner. Your next challenge is a drawing of the beard that Shea Weber's beard has.

***UPDATE***

Turns out Tanner is home sick from school today so he had time to take me up on my challenge and draw Weber's beard's beard. A-MAZ-ING!

Canucks - Kindergarten style

2011-04-29T15:53:00.000-07:00

Tamara Warner, a kindergarten teacher at Meadowridge School in Maple Ridge, BC, is helping her students embrace learning by learning to embrace their love of the Vancouver Canucks.

Vancouver's opening round series with Chicago was water cooler talk for the grown ups, but it also made the rounds as juice box talk for kids in Warner's class. She therefore decided to make it part of the learning process.

Since the playoffs began her students have been counting the flags around town and tracking them on a tally chart, using the Canucks as a topic while practicing writing full sentences, making Canucks coloured green and blue Play-Doh and making the Question of the Day Canucks related.

Predictions were also cast going into the series, as you can see from the photo below. I'm not sure if Jacob and Zaman served some kind of detention or suspension for choosing the Blackhawks, but on behalf of Canucks fans everywhere, I hope so. Just kidding. Not really.

Keep up the great work kids - and welcome to the bandwagon Jacob and Zaman!

The power of Roger

2011-04-28T12:28:00.000-07:00

I stumbled upon this picture today and it got me thinking...

Was this elated Canucks fan simply paying homage to Roger Neilson and towel power before Game 7 Tuesday, or has touching the statue for good luck become a fan tradition for those attending games at Rogers Arena?

Have you been to a Canucks playoff game this year? Did you stop to shine Roger's shoe in hopes some luck rubbed off? Is the Neilson statue Vancouver's Blarney Stone?

Comment below, I'd love to hear from you.

Pardon the Interruption

2011-04-27T16:02:00.000-07:00

Tony Kornheiser knows his hockey and Michael Wilbon knows his Chicago Blackhawks.

That made having Roberto Luongo as a guest on Pardon the Interruption, ESPN's best sports talk show, a special treat.

It may have only been a five-minute visit, but it's worth the watch as Luongo goes into further detail as to why Vancouver's Game 7 win over Chicago meant more to him than Team Canada's gold medal victory at the 2010 Olympics.

It's amazin'

2011-04-27T13:05:00.000-07:00

In the words of the great Kanye West:

It's amazin', so amazin', so amazin', so amazin'
It's amazin', so amazin', so amazin', so amazin'

Game 7 was amazin’, so amazin’, so much so that if it’s not a celebratory hangover you’re suffering from today, it’s an emotional hangover.

I am suffering from the latter; it was so emotional being in Rogers Arena for the game, let alone trying to cover it for Canucks.com and play-by-play on Twitter via @CanucksGame, that I still haven’t come down the Burr-fect ending to the series.

Working for the Canucks means I don’t have to be impartial and I definitely wasn’t as I jumped out of press box seat 27 and screamed a hardy scream moments after the Burrows goal. That led to the most excited @VanCanucks has ever been on Twitter and I spat out:

SCORES!!! #3VENGE AT LONG LAST! #CANUCKS WIN! #CANUCKS WIN!

Classy, I know.

Following three straight losses by the Canucks heading into Game 7, all anyone had were questions for the players. They provided the ultimate answer last night, so I’m turning the questions around on you.

Where did you watch the game and with whom? How did you react when we opened the scoring and when Chicago tied it late? Can you possibly describe how you felt during the penalty kill in overtime? How high did you jump when Alex Burrows scored?

Share your story below Canucks fans, I’d love to hear from you.

Where do you stand?

2011-04-26T09:50:00.000-07:00

First an ode, now a plea.

Actor and friend of Canucks.com Fred Ewanuick is as passionate as Vancouver Canucks fans get. He's as excited for Game 7 as you and I, and as confident the Canucks are going to win as anyone.

He wears his heart of his sleeve and writes what he feels. Tuesday's Game 7 is Vancouver's biggest game since the 1994 Stanley Cup Final and Ewanuick, like the Canucks, is at a crossroad.

Where do you stand? A plea to Canuck Fans

Hold judgment on this team until the final buzzer sounds. We have come to a crossroads for this Franchise. One road leads down a haunted past. The other leads to glory. Which fate do you see? I see the path to Glory. I see Stanley's shimmering silver. We as fans must put our team upon our shoulders, and carry them to victory. We as fans must fill our team with such a frenzy, no team would be able to hold them off from achieving their Goal. This is when we not only learn what our team is made of, but, we learn what we as Fans are made of. As supporters! As Canucks!

Not only am I firmly planted ON the Wagon, I will proudly DRIVE it. Who's with me?!

Go Canucks Go!

Fred Ewanuick, Loyal Canuck Supporter.

What say you Canucks fans? Is your support with Vancouver for Game 7?

Violet's song

2011-04-25T09:31:00.001-07:00

Meet Violet. This adorable 4-year-old Violet is a Vancouver Canucks fan and she, like the rest of us, has had enough of the Chicago Blackhawks.

Unlike the rest of us, she put her feelings to song.

Dear Canucks,

I wanted to send you this song that my 4 year old daughter Violet recorded last week when we were getting ready to watch Game 5. She was born with a universal love of hockey- watching the Canucks from day one, practicing her slapshot and skating (falling), and even cheering her mom and dad on. She most recently developed a passion for the playoffs ever since she realized home games allow her to stay up past bedtime. Being 4, her future aspirations are always changing-- but Canuck and Rockstar are both on the list. However, if there is a career path for professional heckler, I believe she is well on her way.

Enjoy and Go Canucks Go! In Violet's words, "Chicago is the bad guy!"

Sincerely,
Violet's Mom

Violet's song by derekjory

What Daniel Sedin sees

2011-04-24T09:21:00.000-07:00

I'm still getting laughed at about this one, but to me it was the equivalent of taking a hit to make a play.

I'm in the Canucks dressing room every day during media availability, sometimes getting quotes for a story or two, other times just tweeting news through @VanCanucks. If you follow you know that we try to send out as many photos as possible and last Thursday I had a golden opportunity for a killer picture. Here it is.

The problem is that Kristin Reid was shooting a Reid Report and she included the interview with Daniel Sedin that I snuck in behind. I've been called out at work quite a few times for obvious reasons, as you can see below.

The moral of today's story is when you go behind Daniel Sedin to take an awesome picture, make sure you are not in anyone's camera shot.

C is for Cookie

2011-04-21T09:20:00.000-07:00

“What starts with the letter C? Cookie starts with C, let’s think of other things that start with C…ah, who cares about other things. C is for cookie, that’s good enough for me!” – Cookie Monster

You’d be hard-pressed to find wiser words spoken about cookies.

I’d love to hear what Cookie Monster would say about the Canucks cookies below, courtesy of die-hard fan Kelsey of goodiesbygus, who provides step-by-step instructions on how you too can bake success.

Ladies and gentlemen, Canucks cookies! Here's Kelsey.

I first made these cookies for a friend who, like myself, is a die-hard Canucks fan. My plan was to make these so often throughout the season that I'd have them perfected by round four of the playoffs. But here we are in round one, and I'm only on my second attempt...

The recipe I used for these cookies is Emeril Lagasse's Stained Glass Cookie Recipe. You can really use any roll-out cookie dough recipe however since it's the icing that gives these cookies its flair... The reason I like this particular recipe however is because it doesn't have baking powder in it; I find recipes that use baking powder tend to lose their shapes a bit once baked.

Step 1 - Cookie cutter - This is my cookie cutter of choice... I shaped it myself using an old large metal cookie cutter. The cheaper the cookie cutter, the easier they seem to bend but using a craft heat gun also helps. Failing that, go the way of the old hockey sticks and give them a bit of the bake in the oven. Gloves recommended ;)

Roll out your dough and cut out your cookies baking at 350 degrees for about 10 - 12 minutes depending on the size of the cookies. You'll notice my dough isn't the usual white colour that sugar cookies often are and that's because I used whole wheat flour in place of some all purpose flour. I wish I could say it was because I'm a health nut but really I just ran out of white flour.
After you bake and cool your cookies comes the fun part... Icing your cookies! I use Wilton’s Royal Icing recipe which uses meringue powder but if you don't have meringue powder, here is a standard recipe using egg whites.

Once you have a sugar-coma inducing amount of icing prepared, separate it into three batches and use food dye to tint it Canuck colours. The blue and green are pretty rich so I recommend food dyes such as gels or pastes compared to the liquid ones. You'll find you use way less to achieve a vibrant colour and it doesn't change the consistency or taste of the icing as others can.

Step 2 - Outlining - When decorating the cookies, you'll use two consistencies of icing. Fill a sandwich bag with thicker icing to draw in the green and outline the blue on each of the cookies. You can either cut off the tip of the sandwich bag or use icing tips when piping the outline.

Step 3 - Flooding - Once the outlines have dried and hardened, use watererd-down icing to fill in the blue and white areas. When watering down the icing, be sure to add only a couple drops of water at a time to make sure you get the right consistency. As with the outlining, fill a sandwich bag with icing and cut off the tip. Slowly squeeze icing into the areas to be filled, using the tip of the bag to spread the icing into the corners and throughout the space.

Step 4 - Detailing - After the flooding has dried, add the final touches such as the eye and the white detailing on the helmet.

Last minute tips

Tools

Different sized icing tips and couplers
Gel and Paste food dyes
Sandwich Bags

Although helpful, don't think you need fancy tools to decorate these cookies; the first time I made these I used sandwich bags with the corners cut off.

I like to use butter instead of margarine when I make these cookies... When made with butter, the dough seems to firm up better which makes it easier for rolling and cutting out shapes.

Before you pop the cookies in the oven, stick them back in the fridge for a bit to help them keep their shape while they bake.

Kids say the darndest things

2011-04-19T10:09:00.000-07:00

Ms. Sumra's Grade 1 class at John Henderson Elementary School in Vancouver has some tips for the Vancouver Canucks.

If the Canucks hope to hoist a certain silver trophy this year, the following suggestions from Justin, Kyle and Oscar, three future Canucks in the making, might help.

Coming soon...

2011-04-18T22:17:00.000-07:00

In early 2010, Canucks.com helped shed light on Force & Sully, the Green Men.

Soon, thanks to ESPN, the world will know of their antics.

A few weeks ago a camera crew from E:60, ESPN’s award-winning prime time newsmagazine, visited Vancouver to get the story of the Green Men. They watched a game, they were in the Vancouver Canucks locker room, they were everywhere - just like Force & Sully.

On Tuesday, April 19th, the Green Men will be front and centre as E:60 tells their story. Here's an exclusive first look at the feature.

UPDATE

In case you missed it, below is the full profile of the Green Men from E:60.

Puck Bites

2011-04-17T12:39:00.001-07:00

Hunger and playoffs go hand-in-hand.

The Vancouver Canucks are hungry for a first round series win against the Chicago Blackhawks. Fans, on the other hand, get hungry watching the Canucks feast on the opposition.

If you're hosting a playoff party or going to one, food is a must. Puck Bites, pictured above, will do the trick and get everyone buzzing before Vancouver even hits the ice. These scrumptious treats are the creation of Leanne from How Sweet It Is, and she's sharing the recipe and step-by-step instructions for Canucks fans everywhere to enjoy.

Ladies and gentlemen, Puck Bites! Here's Leanne.

What are cake bites? Good question. They're these wonderful little balls of mushed up icing and cake, made into an endlessly clever array of shapes. I attempted them a few years ago in what ended up being a huge disaster. This past Christmas my mom gave me Bakerella's Cake Pop book, and I came around a little bit. Bakerella has made quite a few sports-themed pops and bites, but hockey was mysteriously absent. I am here to fill that gap.

These cake bites are about 1.5 inches wide, and are made with homemade chocolate cake and buttercream icing, and coated in real semi-sweet chocolate. The taste shows the quality of the ingredients, and the little pucks are just like creamy truffles.

To make them you’ll need:

Food:
One 8x8 cake, completely cooled
2 cups buttercream icing, or can of premade frosting
1.5 cups royal icing
500 grams semi-sweet chocolate chips

Hardware:
1 – 3 Pastry bags
Blue and green food colouring
#1 and #2 decorating tip (or the equivalent)
Several large metal spoons or tongs
Parchment paper
Cookie sheet
Wire cooling rack
Large slotted spoon

1 - Cut the cake into four sections, and crumble each section by hand into a large bowl. Alternately, you can use a food processor. Make sure there are no large chunks—this will give you lumpy pucks. Once the cake is finely crumbled, dollop 1.5 cups of frosting into the middle, and using the back of a metal spoon, mix until evenly combined. You do not want too much frosting. It will make the pucks goopy.

2 - Now it’s time to make the pucks! Roll a 2 inch ball out of the cake mixture, squash it gently with your palms, and form it into a small puck shape. Place it on a parchment-lined cookie sheet, a centimeter or two apart, and repeat until the sheet is full. Place the shaped pucks into the freezer for approximately 15 – 20 minutes—enough time to become cold and solid without freezing.

3 - While the pucks are in the freezer, melt the chocolate chips in a double boiler. Be sure to not burn the chocolate. Place parchment paper underneath a metal cooling rack for the freshly dipped pucks. (You can also use the cookie sheet, but the edges won’t be as clean). Using a slotted spoon, gently dip each puck, one at a time, into the melted chocolate. Turn them once to ensure even coverage, lift out, and gently tap the side of the spoon on the edge of the double boiler to take off excess chocolate. Place on the cooling rack for 20 – 25 minutes, or until the chocolate is set.

4 - For the logo, separate the royal icing into 3 bowls. Thin each bowl of icing with 1-2 tsp of water. Dye one batch blue, one green, and keep the other white. Cover and set aside the blue and green for now. Using the white icing and a #2 tip (or the cut end of a ziplock bag—whatever works) carefully pipe and fill small circles on the bites.

5- Once the white has dried to the touch, use the #1 tip to pipe a blue square inside the white circle. Outline the stick inside the square, and then fill in the space between. Let dry.

6 - Using the #1 tip again, pipe a thin careful circle outside the blue square. Use a toothpick to clean up any messy bits. Let them dry, and you’re done! It might not have been easy, but it’s definitely worth the results. Enjoy!

Simulations don't lie

2011-04-14T23:35:00.000-07:00

Video games are pretty cool. Or so I’m told. Truthfully, I haven’t picked up a joystick – they’re called controllers now? – since P-wings were the bomb.

That’s not the case with you, or someone you know, so this blog is for you.

In case you missed it, EA Sports is running an NHL Bracket Challenge on the EA Sports NHL Facebook Fanpage and there are some stellar prizes up for grabs. Even though the playoffs have begun, you have until Sunday to get in on the action.

Go. Do it now. Or don’t. Just know that NHL11 In the Crease has been nothing but kind to the Vancouver Canucks this season.

Most recently, a simulation of was done of the Eastern and Western Conference Quarterfinals and the Canucks, beginning with a win over the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 1, go on to enact revenge on the Blackhawks and take the series in six games.

Even before Vancouver’s masterful season began, EA Sports used its crystal ball simulation to predict great things for the Canucks.

Vancouver, according to the simulation, will indeed end its 40th anniversary by winning the franchise’s first Stanley Cup.

Cue the drool.

Put your gaming skills to the test, take part in the NHL Bracket Challenge and help the Canucks hoist the Cup in your living room. You might just win something for your efforts.

If you do, remember who pointed you in the right direction…

Burrows the piñata

2011-04-14T12:35:00.000-07:00

Normally, if Alex Burrows were to break, it would be a bad thing.

In this case, it would be a treat.

Burrows recently celebrated his 30th birthday and as a gift, Breakfast Television co-host Riaz Meghji gave him a Burrows piñata. No one is sure what it’s filled with so I suggested Burrows hang it in the Chicago Blackhawks dressing room to find out.

The piñata is holding a rose, apparently because Burrows is a romantic. He could not confirm or deny this.

Happy belated birthday Burr, we hope it was smashing.

Good luck charms

2011-04-12T09:41:00.000-07:00

Most Canucks fans believe this three-match with the Blackhawks will finally go in Vancouver's favour and later this week Vancouver and Chicago will hit the ice to settle things for themselves.

Once puck drops, fans have no control on the outcome - or do they?

Canucks fan Vivian has created Canucks good luck charms, which also double as key-chains, that resemble her favourite players. She started making them with some leftover polymer clay and other supplies, all things available at your local craftorium. As you can see from the photo above, the end result is pretty sweet and only good can come from cheering on the Canucks with good luck charms.

Here is a step-by-step guide to creating Vivian's Canucks good luck charms. If you create one, comment below with a link to your mini-Canuck!

This Is Our Year

2011-04-11T21:07:00.000-07:00

'Tis the season for fan made Canucks videos with everyone anxious to display their team pride heading in the playoffs.

Tammy Yang is one of those fans. This 13-year-old from Vancouver wasn't around back when Trevor Linden, Pavel Bure and Kirk McLean were leading the Canucks to within a game of the Stanley Cup in 1994, but her love for the team is as strong as anyone's today.

During spring break a few weeks ago Tammy had ample time on her hands, so she put those hands to work and attacked her computer for two nights to create one of the best Canucks fans videos we at Canucks.com have seen this season.

She initially put together This Is Our Year for her Tumblr blog, but after receiving some positive feedback, it was launched into cyberspace via YouTube. Check it out.

Hit the pause button 1:07 in and you'll discover another reason why I love this video. That's right, Tammy included a picture of yours truly with Alex Burrows at Madison Square Garden.

Video skills and impeccable taste - the future looks bright Tammy!

*****

Do you have a video you'd like to share with Canucks fans? Leave a comment below with the link and we'd love to have a look!

Luongo mosaic

2011-04-08T14:51:00.001-07:00

Canucks fans have a lot of love for their team, especially come playoff time. Teacher Brayden Gordon harnessed that Canucks passion to create this fantastic mosaic.

I'll let Mr. Gordon explain the project. I couldn't handle him grading my blurb. The letter F still scares me from grade school.

"Thirty grade 6/7 students at Hollyburn Elementary in West Vancouver collaborated on this Roberto Luongo mosaic in tribute to the 2010-2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The students researched online pictures of the Canucks and voted on which one to choose. The chosen picture was then separated into 35 pieces, with each student randomly choosing a piece. They were rquired to reproduce their piece into a larger picture using a medium of their choice. The result was a life size picture of Luongo and it is now the focus of our school foyer. As an aside, Hollyburn is made up of a very diverse ESL population and we use the Canucks as a cultural link into our society. We integrate the Canucks into much of our curriculum and find them a valuable part of our school community."

Bravo everyone, this Luongo tribute is unlike anything we've ever seen!

If you ever need help with your homework, please don't hesitate to ask - someone else!

Malhotra breaks the silence

2011-04-06T14:16:00.000-07:00

In a statement released on Canucks.com Wednesday, Manny Malhotra spoke out for the first time since suffering an eye injury on March 16th.

In case you missed it, Manny's full statement is below. Feel free to comment and leave some words of encouragement for Malhotra.

The past three weeks have been a very emotional time for myself and my family. I owe a great deal of thanks to a number of people. First and foremost my wife Joann who has been a pillar of strength for me and kept me focused on the best possible outcome at all times. Thank you to my teammates, coaches and training staff, your care and concern has meant a great deal to me. The Aquilini family, Mike Gillis and Laurence Gilman have made my recovery a priority; I have received the best possible medical care throughout this entire process. It is truly a blessing to be part of an organization with such quality, caring people and I can't thank them enough.

The NHL is a tight-knit community. I would like to thank all the players, coaches and GM's around the league, some I've never even had the chance to meet, who extended their regards and best wishes for a speedy recovery. My most heartfelt and sincere thank you to all of the incredible fans in Vancouver and around the league for keeping me in your thoughts and prayers. Your messages were a daily reminder of what a privilege it is to play for you.

I will forever be grateful to the incredible group of surgeons both in Vancouver and New York who performed two successful surgeries, to restore the vision in my eye. Although there is a lot of recovery and healing to take place, I am very optimistic for a good outcome. Thank you to my agent and good friend Paul Krepelka for being with me through surgery and recovery in New York. Your friendship over the years has been invaluable.

My family and I are very grateful for the patience, concern and privacy we've been shown by the media and thank you for your continued support.

All the best to Manny, get well soon.

How The West Was One

2011-04-05T12:53:00.000-07:00

Kyprios, "not Nick or Kippursoff," has outdone himself in writing a classic Vancouver Canucks anthem showing his love for his team.

First Terell Safadi gave it up for the Black Red Yellow, now Kyprios, a founding member of the two time Juno-nominated Sweatshop Union who now raps on his own, describes How The West Was One.

How The West Was One by Kyprios BayDay

Awesome, I know. There are more Canucks references in this three minutes and 54 second jam than there are in most of my game recaps. Kyprios covers all the bases, he even includes a shout out to Luc Bourdon and Manny Malhotra.

How The West Was One, welcome to the Canucks playoff playlist!

Props to Rob The Viking and Kevin Coles, who co-wrote the song with Kyprios.

Click here for the song and full lyrics.

***UPDATE***

Kyprios has kindly provided the download link to How The West Was One. Enjoy!

Canucks delectables

2011-04-05T11:40:00.000-07:00

If you're like me, you eat a lot going into, during and after Canucks games. It's a stress reliever, especially press box popcorn.

What exactly whets your appetite during games? Do you prepare any kind of unique Canucks treat such as the Cake Bites in the photo above? They're the creation of Leanne P, who also makes a few other Canucks goodies.

Playoffs is a time when family and friends come together to watch games and whether you're the host or a guest, food is a must. If you have a Canucks themed recipe you'd love to share with Canucks fans, email me at derek.jory@canucks.com with a photo of the treat*.

I'm hoping to have enough goodies assembled to create a playoff food guide that includes a step-by-step blog for each item so everyone can create deliciousness while the Canucks are creating playoff memories.

*Note: If your Canucks food looks scrumptious enough, a sample may be needed... ;)

Best buddies

2011-04-04T13:38:00.000-07:00

(Photo courtesy of Susan Gray)

I'm starting to feel like a Dan Hamhuis cheerleader - for good reason.

First it was dropping in on Hamhuis' hotel room during a road trip to find him having a webcam chat with his daughter that made me a fan (No caviar for Hamhuis), then I accompanied him to Britannia Elementary School in Vancouver to read to kids (Hamhuis goes to school). Both instances reinforced what a solid person Hamhuis is.

The latest example of his outstanding character comes to us from Bryan Mullen of The Tennessean. Hamhuis was injured March 27th in Columbus and he has yet to return to action for the Canucks; his injury came with only one game left on a four-game road trip so he remained with the team as they visited Nashville, Hamhuis' old stomping grounds.

In Nashville, Hamhuis again went above and beyond the call of duty by checking in on his friend Clay Butler. The pair watched the game from a suite at Bridgestone Arena before Hamhuis took Clay, who he met through the Best Buddies program, to the Vancouver locker room.

Read the full story here.

Thanks to Bryan Mullen for reminding us what a stand up guy Hamhuis is.

To Mason Raymond...

2011-04-01T14:47:00.000-07:00

Hockey ABC

2011-03-28T14:31:00.000-07:00

Think about a nursery rhyme you think you know the words to.

Now sing those words.

Do you actually know them all?

For the past 10 months I’ve been getting by singing the words I know and mumbling the rest. My son still doesn’t know that I’m a goof, but he’ll clue in soon enough.

In the spirit of improving my nursery rhyme skills, I recently went to the bookstore in hopes of coming away with the mother of all children’s books, the Bible of nursery rhymes. Instead, I got distracted, ended up in the children’s sports section and walked away with Hockey ABC – My first NHL book.

What could be better than this? Instead of trying to explain how Little Bo Peep could lose her sheep or why Jack was wearing a crown to fetch a pail of water or why the king’s horses were trying to put Humpty Dumpty back together again, I thought I’d really sink my teeth into Canada’s pastime and lay the groundwork for my little guy's impending love of hockey.

I was tempted to skip ahead to V and see what it stood for, but I didn’t. We cracked that hardcover together this weekend, neither of us knowing what to expect – and in my wildest dreams I didn’t expect what I got.

First off, every letter has team logos up top that begin with the same letter. Makes sense. Then each letter has an adjoining photo. A is for Arena, D is for defence, G is for Gretzky, I is for Ice, L is for Lord Stanley’s Cup; the pattern here is that all these things make sense with their letter. Until you get to V.

The build-up was insurmountable. Scrolling from A-V was like sitting through the Oscars to see which movie won Best Picture. Then you get to V and find out it stands for Visor AND THERE’S A PICTURE OF JONATHAN TOEWS WEARING A VISOR. That’s equivalent to The King's Speech swiping an Academy Award from The Fighter.

Riddle me this author Christopher Jordan (unless you weren’t the one in charge of the photos, in which case your book is solid), could you not have used an actual Vancouver Canucks player? The Sedins wear visors, as does Ryan Kesler, Alex Burrows and quite a few others.

I’m glad my intentions were good heading to the bookstore because I am tainted now. If I was strong enough, I’d just rip the U-V page out of the book, but my son’s alphabet would be forever lacking.

I don’t want to cringe when I see the Chicago Blackhawks anymore. I want to meet them in the first round of the playoffs and enact some revenge with a nice series beat down. Then I’ll write my own nursery rhyme about overcoming adversity that my son will love.

End rant.

Strength of schedule

2011-03-25T11:28:00.001-07:00

(Note: This is what I imagine a strength of schedule chart would look like, I'm too daft to crunch the numbers myself)

Does strength of schedule mean anything?

Ask Canucks coach Alain Vigneault and he'll tell you that every game is a tough one, no team is to be overlooked in the NHL. There are no sure wins because even teams far removed from the playoff picture are playing for pride.

That being said, with eight games remaining this season, the Canucks have a .510 strength of schedule, which is based on cumulative points percentage of future opponents. Only the Washington Capitals (.508) and Calgary Flames (.500) will face an "easier" stretch of games to close out the year.

Of Vancouver's remaining games, Nashville and Los Angeles are the only teams that have a shot at making it to the second season.

At the other end of the spectrum is the San Jose Sharks, who, according to a strength of schedule of .601 - a league worst - could struggle to maintain possession of top spot in the Pacific Division. The Sharks have seven games left and each and every one is versus a team currently in the playoffs, including three matchups with the Phoenix Coyotes, who trail them by just two points.

Over in the East, Washington could overtake Philadelphia for 1st in the conference with a schedule that includes Ottawa, Columbus, Toronto and two games with the declawed Florida Panthers.

The good news for the Canucks is that despite the "easy" schedule for the Capitals, they have nine points to make up on Vancouver in the race for the President's Trophy, with the same amount of games remaining.

Best. Letter. Ever.

2011-03-24T10:42:00.000-07:00

Sukhjit Sanghera loves the Vancouver Canucks and she decided to tell them about it.

Below is a letter Sukhjit sent to the Canucks community department, which was shared with a few players.

Dear Vancouver Canucks,

Thank you. Thank you for giving me hope when I had none left. Thank you for always bringing a smile upon my face every time I see your innocent and angelic faces. Thank you for giving me something to believe in. Thank you for creating a brand new religion for me. Thank you for bringing all of us British Columbians close together. No matter which corner each of us may be in, we are all one big humongous family. Thank you for being who you are: warm, kind, and beautiful caring human beings. And most of all, thank you for being my second family. My Superheroes.

Each and every single one of you guys has made an impact on my life. And I want to thank you for that.

To Lu: thank you for carrying the burden of a whole city and team upon your shoulders and bringing them to a close victory each year! You have sparked the true goalie in me during gym class and have taught me never to give up no matter what!

To Hamhuis: you have made me believe, that even a B.C. boy can make it in the big leagues, showing everyone what us British Columbians are made of!

To Juice: what can I say? Your fists are like comets flying high in the starry sky. Pounding down onto the enemy’s face, giving each fan to a chance to make a wish for some kind of miracle!

To Ballard: your hits are pure beauties. Every single one crafted for each player who may come in your way! I take my hat off to you sir! I’ve learnt much from you!

To Ehrhoff: I just have to say, you have the absolute most beautifully structured face that I have ever had the privilege of laying my eyes on. Oh God...that sounded cheesy, didn’t it? Either way, whenever I see you on the ice it makes me proud to call you a Canuck!

To Sami: you’ve been through thick and thin, and cuts and guts! It always makes me smile whenever I see you score a goal! It may be because we have the same initials! It somow makes me feel connected to you in some small way!

To Tambellini: You are a brother to me and you mean the world to me!!! You are a very powerful force on the ice and I don't know where we'd be without you! Your smile can brighten up anybody's day!

To Raffi: the guys on the ice fear you, the fans look up to you. But the guys on the ice don’t know you for who you are. The fans know you as a sweet loving person, who’s tough on the outside but a real softy on the inside!

To Burr: I know this may sound weird, but I look up to you as a brother! The way your skate cuts into the ice with such elegance, it makes me proud to say that I am a Canucks fan, and it really makes me proud when you score a goal! I feel as if my bro just tipped the puck in for the game winning goal...and I end up doing my embarrassing happy dance...

To Mr. Scrabble: is there ever a time when you don’t have your gloves off and your fists plummeting onto the other guy’s face? I hope not, ‘cause that’s what makes you such a good hockey player! The fact that you would risk your beautiful mullet from getting destroyed to defend one of your own only makes us love you more!

To Kess: I love ya bro! Yeah, I consider you to be my brother too! I can’t help it though! I’ve looked up to you since forever! The way you get under the other guy’s skin, piss him off, and make him do something real stupid has always given me great ideas of what to do when that annoying guy in my English class won’t shush... And you have no idea how good it makes me feel whenever I step onto the ice in the Richmond Hockey rink...maybe it’s because there’s a picture of you on the boards for team power smart...

To Tanev: I haven’t really seen you play that much, but I can definitely tell that you’ll do great in the future! You skills are impeccable; and I’m soooooo proud to be able to call you a Canuck!

To Raymond: Everybody loves you! Ha, get it? But seriously, your presence on the ice makes all of our hearts stop, praying that you’ll score a goal! Especially my friend Lauren...believe me...she is definitely your biggest fan. In fact, she’s met you a couple of times!

To Daniel: I’ve grown up watching you guys on the ice for the past 11 years and ever since I was small, all I ever heard was people calling you Henrik, which made me kind of disappointed because they called themselves Canucks fans. From the way that you skate on the ice to the way that you speak, there is definitely a difference between you and Hank. Both are special and amazing in very different ways!

To Edler: I have to tell you, you look A LOT like Nick Carter from the Backstreet Boys, which is an excellent thing! Trust me, you may look like him, but you’re waaaaaaay better! I’m sure he can’t skate nearly as well as you do, or look as good!

To Samuelsson: Your smile is even brighter than Mathieu Schneider’s was! Especially whenever you score those magic goals of yours! You are definitely a huge part of our success!

To Manny: You have no idea how happy, proud, and happy (yes, I said happy twice) we were when we found out that you were on the Canucks! What makes it extra special is that you’re half Indian!! Yay!! It has given my ten year old brother so much hope that maybe he can make it into the NHL as well when he first saw you. And I can’t thank you enough for that.

To Rome: You kinda sorta have really pretty eyes, and those same eyes are driven with determination to score the game winning goal, and to make sure that the guy on the other team doesn’t get through you. And I look up to you for that determination!

To Hank: I just want to congratulate you on your “C”! You truly deserve it! I still remember when you and Danny first came onto the team, I was about 4 years old, and all I can remember thinking is that they have a sparkle in their eyes that perhaps no one else saw. But from that moment, I knew that you would make it big, and here you are now!

To Schneiderman: You are literally Spiderman dude! But...to me, you’re also kind of Michael Bublé’s red-headed twin! Seriously, you sort of look like him from the side! Especially the nose! Although, one thing that you have that he doesn’t is your amazing awesomely awesome goalie ninja powers!

To Hansen: Over the past couple of years I’ve seen you improve greatly! And I’m super duper proud of you for that! You are an outstanding player and I don’t know where we would be without you!

To Rypien: I haven’t seen you on the ice lately. I hope everything’s all right, because I really miss seeing you giving it your all! Especially when you’d knock out the 6’5” guy in front of you!

To Oreskovich: I just love saying your last name, it’s so flow-y! You have great potential my friend! And I’m positively sure that you’ll do great in the NHL!

To Hodgson: Congratulations on your first goal man! I was sooooo happy!! I’ve been praying that you would finally play a game for the Canucks and score a beauty! And you did!

To Alberts: I love seeing your flaming fists of fury on the ice! They always bring the crowd to life when the game’s going not so great.

To Sweatt: How sweet it is to have you on the team! Great work by the way! You’ve been doing really well! And you deserve all the credit that you get; because, you are one hard worker!

To Coach V: Thank you for being the best coach ever! You have brought hope to this dead city once again! And I can’t thank you enough for giving us hope that every single game will be a great one! And you’ve never let us down!

To Mike Gillis: I just want to thank you for being such an awesome G.M.! You’ve done so much for this team and I just can’t describe how much it means to me!

And to the rest of the Canucks organization: Thank you for making us who we are! We as Canucks fans, would never be where we are now without you!

My whole life, I’ve been devoted to hockey. It’s all I’ve ever dreamed about, all I’ve ever talked about, and all I’ve ever lived for. And I’ve always told myself and everyone around me each and every single year, that this is it. This is the year that we will win Lord Stanley. This year though, I don’t know why, but my faith has never been stronger. So, I just want to take this chance to thank you guys for everything you’ve done for all Canucks fans around the world. Thank you for bringing us together as one big family as we cheer you on in the stands, on our couches, in pubs all around the world, and in our hearts. Thank you for giving me something worth living for. I’ll never be able to repay you for what you have given me. Love. I did, I do, and I always will love you guys as my brothers. You guys are my second family, and forever will be! I realize that the trade deadline is coming up real soon, and I want you guys to know, that no matter what happens, I’ll always love you as brothers and cheer you on! J God bless.

Love,

Sukhjit Sanghera (the sister who has always followed and been with you every step of the way, but you guys just never knew!)

Can Canucks clinch?

2011-03-16T12:59:00.000-07:00

Hi Derek,

I've heard 98 different things the last couple of days and I'm losing my mind. I've heard that Vancouver clinched a playoff spot three times this week already, but I don't think they have. Can you say, one way or another, with 100 % certainty?

Go Canucks!
Joanne

Thanks for the email Joanne, your timing is impeccable and I'm sure you are voicing the opinion of a lot of confused folks out there in Canuckland. I too was confused earlier this week, but it's now official, the Vancouver Canucks will clinch the Northwest Division title and a top-3 spot in the Western Conference playoff picture if they collect at least one point tonight against the Colorado Avalanche.

Here's a story from NHL.com to back me up, although this same story also says the Canucks have only been to the Stanley Cup Final once, so it's not the most credible source ever.

On a related note, if you've been following Vancouver's hunt for the President's Trophy, then you've been following the standings. Something you may have noticed is the new ROW category, found right after POINTS on NHL.com.

What the heck is ROW?

When all is said and done with the regular season and two teams are tied for the last playoff spot, ROW, aka Regulation Plus Overtime Wins, is the first tiebreaker. Essentially, whichever team has won more games in regulation and overtime (shootouts wins mean nothing) would earn the nod. This is a new tie-breaking format, one that has Vancouver leading in ROW with 42 points and Edmonton dead last with 21.

Hooooow-rold?

2011-03-14T09:18:00.000-07:00

Admit it, you wish you had a chant all your own. I do. I'd love it if I came into work every day and co-workers saluted me with a Joooory. Sleeping in would be the only other way I'd want to start a day.

But how do chants start, and more specifically, how/when/why did the Haaaaarold cheer begin for Harold Snepsts? The brute defenceman will be inducted into Vancouver's Ring of Honour Monday when the Canucks host the Minnesota Wild and of all the things that needed to be touched on in my Snepsts feature was the chant - read the full story here.

How it began is part of Canucks folklore. I'm sure you know how it started, or you think you know. I thought I did. I was wrong and you might be too. Only the man himself knows how it really started.

“There was a gentleman in Washington and they had a poor team and to get excitement in the crowd he had a megaphone, so his idea to get the fans into the game was to pick on someone on the other team,” explained Snepsts.

“I didn’t wear and helmet and I looked like a villain, so he started yelling Haaaaarold into this megaphone. Then it exploded, in Detroit they started doing the Haaaaarold and then it just continued around the league.”

Put that nugget in the vault for next time you're talking Canucks with your know-it-all buddy. It's a gem.

*****

Have a Snepsts memory to share? Mustache related or not, we'd love to hear it! (You do not need to be a member to post)