United They Stand: Canucks Win 3-1, Reclaim Home Ice Advantage

An electric United Centre, no Sami Salo or Pavol Demitra, and a Hawks team clicking on all cylinders were all the ingredients that could have spelled disaster for the Canucks.  An absolutely breathtaking national anthem only sparked the Hawks cause more as they had everything going their way before puck drop Tuesday night. 

However this is a resilient group of Canucks, and they showed their character in this one as they had an answer all night for everything the Blackhawks threw at them. 

Early on, the Hawks appeared to really feed off the energy at the United Centre, forcing the Canucks into an early penalty as they looked to blow the roof off the building. The Canucks hung in there and weathered an early storm. Once they did, they got into the groove we have been used to seeing from these Canucks during the 2009 calendar year. 

With Demitra out that meant Mason Raymond moved up to add some much needed speed with Ryan Kesler, and Sundin bringing his size. This new combination seemed to spark the team, as Raymond and Kesler's speed appeared to really put the Hawks D-men on their heels. 

Less than five minutes to go in the frame they were rewarded on a good pinch by Bieksa who got the puck to Kesler, who quickly fed it to Mason Raymond who did well to wait out Khabibulin and fire it upstairs for his first NHL playoff goal. The Canucks carried that momentum into the second period, as a minute into the period they grabbed a dreaded two-goal lead as Steve Bernier fired a rebound shot past Khabibulin for his second of the post season. 

Just before the midway point of the game Henrik Sedin scored his fourth of the playoffs to give the Canucks a three goal lead. No doubt most Canucks fans were clenching their teeth and saying "Oh God not again."  It appeared their fears would be realized, as Brian Campbell fired home a point shot on the power play past Luongo to make it 3-1. This is a storyline the Canucks know all too well: great start, early lead, but letting it slip away. 

However, there would be no third time lucky this time, as the Canucks and Luongo shut the door, stopping 23 shots and getting a little luck from the bar in the third as the Canucks hung on. 

Vancouver's defence, who took the brunt of the criticism Saturday, was air tight tonight as they did a marvellous job clearing Byfuglien from Luongo's crease for most of the game, and were outstanding in their lanes taking away the Hawks cross ice passes and fast breakouts. 

Willie Mitchell and Kesler were perhaps the two best on the ice as Mitchell and that long stick were invaluable on the penalty kill, and Kesler had alot of jump all night on both ends of the ice. 

Taylor Pyatt, playing his first game back in over a month, had a great game. He blocked three shots and really added some size and grit to the third line. He appeared to give the team a huge lift which was much needed after the debacle of game two.

"Without a doubt it was a very emotional moment for us as a group," Vigneault said. "He played a really good game for somebody who has been out for some time. It is a great thing he did tonight."

This was much more of a Canucks style game: low scoring and very opportunistic from a Vancouver stand point. 

"One thing we don't want to do against this team is play chance-for-chance," Vancouver coach Alain Vigneault said.

"There is too much skill and speed. We're going to keep it high percentage. I think if we do that and play a good puck possession game, we give ourselves a better chance to win."

Vancouver with the win remains perfect this season when holding a lead after 40 minutes. Demitra, who did not play, may be out awhile as it was announced he will be re-evaluated in a week. 

Sami Salo reportedly flew into Chicago late and should be with the team for either game four or five. 

So the Canucks remain perfect on the road as the Hawks lose for the first time on home ice. Vancouver will look to grab a stranglehold on the series Thursday for game four at the United Centre