Vancouver Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo and teammate Dan Hamhuis (C) block a shot from Chicago Blackhawks Patrick Sharp during the second period in Game 1 of their NHL Western Conference quarter-final hockey game in Vancouver, British Columbia, April 13, 2011.ANDY CLARK
Spectacular goaltending, relentless body-checking, and some unsung scorers led the Vancouver Canucks to victory in their playoff opener Wednesday.
The Canucks jumped all over the arch-rival Chicago Blackhawks in the first period and held on for a 2-0 victory in Game 1 of their Western Conference quarter-final. Game 2 of the series is scheduled for Friday at Vancouver's Rogers Arena.
Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo made 32 saves for the shutout, and temporarily set aside his demons against the Blackhawks. Chicago has eliminated Vancouver from the NHL playoffs in each of the last two years, and have tormented Luongo by scoring loads of goals in series-clinching games.
"We know it's a long series, so we're not going to get ahead of ourselves," Luongo said, noting that Vancouver has won the last two openers against Chicago, yet has gone on to lose both times. "We know they're going to come back stronger next game. They're the Stanley Cup champs, and they know what to do."
Luongo was the game's first star, but full credit to Chris Higgins and Jannik Hansen, who scored goals on a night when the Sedin twins were silent.
Higgins notched the winner by deflecting a Kevin Bieksa point shot past Hawks rookie Corey Crawford in the first period. Three minutes later, Hansen took advantage of a Duncan Keith turnover and scored on a breakaway.
The next 50 minutes were scoreless, in large measure because of Luongo. Thanks to size-15 feet, he made an unbelievable toe save - the puck hit the inside of the post and bounced out - on Brian Campbell in the first period, and another beauty on Patrick Sharp in the second stanza. After the second stop, Sharp asked Luongo how he snagged the puck from mid-air on a short-range rebound.
"I didn't even know where it was," the Canucks goalie replied.
Vancouver is not known for its physical play, but it won that department, too. The Canucks outhit Chicago 47-21, including 20-9 in the first period when they were trying to set a physical tone.
"They came at us in waves, and we didn't have a good response," Hawks head coach Joel Quenneville said, adding that his team needs a better net-front presence against Luongo.
Vancouver's fourth line of Maxim Lapierre, Victor Oreskovich, and Tanner Glass did most of the damage. They had 15 hits and kept earning shifts deep into the third period.
"I thought that line was effective in getting pucks behind their defence and putting pressure [on defencemen]when the opportunity was there," head coach Alain Vigneault said. "We definitely wanted to establish a physical presence, especially on their defence. We know that their D are a big part of their team.
"All six of those defence[men]love to jump up on the attack...we're going to try to make their life challenging."