Kesler basks in win over Detroit

offensive key: Canuck made smart move not dropping the

gloves against Kronwall By Ben Kuzma, The Province December 23, 2011

In a post-game summation with the needle on his intensity meter still cranked high, Ryan Kesler

offered one perspective on a night that turned out right - even if he didn't get the chance to

avenge a heavy hit from Niklas Kronwall by challenging the big blueliner to a third-period fight.

"It always feels good to get a win against those guys personally and team-wise," said Kesler.

"Bragging rights for next summer, right? We played fast and got in on a couple of their older

defencemen to make them turn it over so, yeah, it feels good."

Yes, the Livonia, Mich, native relished a 4-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday.

And as much as you have to admire Kesler's bravado by confronting Kronwall, a willingness to

drop the gloves would have risked injury and how would it look today if the Vancouver Canucks

announced that their Selke Trophy winner and a key cog in their offensive machine is out with a

broken hand or separated shoulder?

And what of the optics of sticking his leg out and dropping Hen-rik Zetterberg in the neutral

zone later in the third period? Imagine if the contact had been more brutal and resulted in an

injury to the Red Wings star and even a suspension for Kesler?

With 17 points in his last 15 games and 24 points in 29 games after returning Oct. 18 from

offseason hip surgery, Kesler is once again explosive while also ramping up his battle level and

finish. While Hen-rik and Daniel Sedin are among the top five NHL scorers and again con-

tending for the Art Ross Trophy, Kes-ler is the straw that stirs the drink. Vital to the league's top-

ranked power play and seventh-ranked penalty kill, he's a two-way dynamo who's so driven that

he can sometimes lose focus. Being a total team guy means putting personal agendas aside, but

you'd have a hard time convincing Mike Gillis that Kesler did anything wrong Wednesday.

The Canucks general manager admires the centre's passion and productivity and loved the edge

he brought to a regular-season game that played out like a postseason pressure-cooker. He had no

problem with challenging a clean hit in which Kronwall left his feet and he labelled the

Zetterberg collision as a hockey play. First, the Kronwall chronology.

"Ryan reacted the right way," stressed Gillis. "We're very pleased he wasn't injured, but you

always have to be aware when players like that are on the ice because he's going to nail you if he

gets a chance. It appeared to me that was a full-body check and he didn't target the head, but you

always have a problem when an unsuspecting player gets hit that hard and Kronwall is known for

making those type of hits.

"Ryan was clearly upset by the check and was trying to defend himself and make sure that Kro-

nwall knew there was going to be some accountability. That's hockey. I have a bigger issue when

a guy like Andrew Alberts, who hits a guy cleanly and has to fight the other team's goon

[Minnesota's Brad Staubitz on Monday]. To me, that's absurd and ridiculous. People talk about

taking fighting out of the game and a guy delivers a good clean hit and that guy doesn't fight, but

then you have to fight the other guy."

Kesler was assessed a roughing minor for challenging Kronwall. However, instead of the Red

Wings making it 3-3 on the power play, Alex Edler jammed home a short-handed rebound after

Jannik Hansen was pushed into the net by Zetterberg as he forced Jimmy Howard to make the

initial save off a hard cut to the net. The Red Wings goalie then reacted by collaring Hansen and

it only added to all the playoff-like drama. It continued into Thursday with the NHL stating that

the goal shouldn't have counted because Howard didn't have a chance to make the save. Gillis

took issue with that because Hansen was pushed and Kesler took issue with Kronwall's lack of

fight. Can't wait for the Feb. 2 rematch at Rogers Arena.

"My only problem with the [Kro-nwall] hit is he doesn't stand up for himself after," said Kesler.

"When you hit guys like that, you're going to have to drop the gloves."

Then what about the collision with Zetterberg? Kesler said he didn't know what reporters were

asking about when they referenced it and Gillis didn't seem to think it was a big deal.

"I don't think that was intention-al," added Gillis. "Ryan has never struck me as a player who has

ever intentionally tried to injure another player."

The intensity of the game was also measured in heavy checks Edler absorbed in the cornerboards

from Johan Franzen and Todd Bertuzzi. He left the game in the third period with a stiff back and

coupled with Keith Ballard's back spasms and Aaron Rome's second broken thumb, it makes you

wonder if the Canucks are concerned about back-end depth and if a physical component is

missing. Then again, they've won 12 of their last 15 games and winger David Booth has been

tweeting that he is targeting a Jan. 9 game in Florida for his return from a knee strain.

"What I saw [Wednesday] was a playoff hockey game," said Gillis. "That's the kind of hockey

that I think is going to be prevalent over the next four or five years. It's going to be high intensity

and hard hit-ting and that's the closest thing I've seen from our team this year to play-off hockey.

Based on the experience and when healthy they can meet the challenge of playoff hockey. We've

got four lines that can play and eight defencemen and two really good goalies. It's hard to

replicate last sea-son, but I'm pretty satisfied with our team and our balance."

OF NOTE: - Fourth-line winger Mark Mancari has been re-assigned to Chicago of the AHL.

Canucks gameday

By With Ben Kuzma, The Province December 23, 2011

Flames (16-15-4) at canucks (21-11-2), 7 p.m., ROGERS ARENA

TV: Sportsnet Radio: TEAM 1040

THE SETUP

the canucks:

Despite no power plays and needing a short-handed goal to win, a playoff-style 4-2 victory

Wednesday over Detroit made it 12 wins in 15 as winger Alex Burrows scored for the fourth

consecutive game.

the FLAMES:

A 3-2 win over Detroit on Thursday was a pleasant surprise, but Calgary is still concerned over

side-lined forwards Alex Tanguay, David Moss and Matt Stajan. Greg Nemisz was recalled, but

the Flames now have seven players injured.

THREE THINGS TO WATCH

1 Banged-up back end. Aaron Rome has a broken thumb. Keith Ballard took the game-day skate

Wednesday but is day-to-day with back spasms. Alex Edler absorbed cornerboards hits from

Johan Franzen and Todd Bertuzzi and didn't finish Wednesday. Has back spasms which may be

concerning after back surgery last season.

2 Alex Burrows. Anybody would relish playing with Henrik and Daniel Sedin, but the winger is

more than a sideshow to the dynamic duo. Bur-rows has become a complete player. He scores

off the rush, goes hard to the net and is adept at set-ting screens and tipping pucks. Tied for team

lead in goals (13), plus-minus lead (plus-14).

3 Mason Raymond. After a horrific vertebrae compression fracture in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup

final and with his career in jeopardy, his skating, drive to the net and finish are remarkable. Has

three goals and seven points in nine games and the return of injured David Booth next month

gives Alain Vigneault tremendous roster flexibility.

BY THE NUMBERS

+32: Canucks' goal differential after 35 games. Only Boston (+48) and Detroit (+34) were better.

LEADERBOARD

vancouver canucks

GOALS 13 2 Players

assists 31 H.Sedin

POINTS 40 H.Sedin

PIM 67 Lapierre

IN NET 14-6-Luongo 2 2.46 GAA / .913 SV%

CALGARY FLAMES

GOALS 13 2 players

assists 18 jokinen

POINTS 29 Jokinen

PIM 46 Jackman

IN NET 16-11 -2 Kiprusoff 2.47 GAA / .916 SV%

INJURIES

CANUCKS:

Ds Aaron Rome (thumb), Keith Ballard (back), Alex Edler (back), LWs David Booth (knee),

Aaron Vol-patti (shoulder).

Flames:

G Henrik Karlsson (knee), Ds Anton Babchuk (hand), Mark Giordano (hamstring), LW Alex

Tanguay (undisclosed), C Matt Stajan (ankle), RW David Moss (foot).

If Luongo is No. 1, Schneider is 1B

Having both means flexibility; is there a deal out there worth

trading Schneider?

By Jason Botchford, The Province December 23, 2011

The general rule of thumb is the better Roberto Luongo plays, the more subdued the local

hysteria surrounding the Canucks.

So it shouldn't surprise anyone Vancouver has been as placid as a Norah Jones album this week.

After all those questions Luongo didn't enjoy answering during Cory Schneider's run of seven-

straight starts, he has emphatically provided his answer. Not so much off the ice, but finally on it.

The gist is this: Rip-ping the starter's job, or even a larger piece of the playing time pie, out of his

hands is not going to be so easy. Not as long as he's playing like this.

For three weeks, Luongo has been on a run every bit as good as the one Schneider rode in

November. He's 7-0-1 and has been definitively the better goalie in five of those games. He stole

a point in Columbus, gave his team a chance in Toronto and shut down a cornered, and

dangerous, Detroit Red Wings team in Wednesday's third period. Against Detroit, he wasn't just

the best goalie, he was the best player.

Luongo hasn't served up a McSofty since the Montreal game, and that was two weeks ago. His

play has settled down what has been a volatile goalie issue - outside of the Canucks' Rogers

Arena locker-room, anyway.

Although, everyone should know, this is a temporary condition. One bad game, actually one bad

goal tonight and the vocal tide rolls back in. In other words, if you enjoy some peace and quiet,

bask in it while you can.

It's nearly the end of the year, and many people will be outlining the biggest stories of 2011. On

the Vancouver sports scene, people will point to the Stanley Cup Final and rioting, the B.C.

Lions' Grey Cup win and the Canucks' vanquishing of the Chicago Blackhawks. But, truth is,

nothing on the Vancouver sports pages has garnered the kind of focus and attention Luongo has.

He's been polarizing and the attention he's got, a lot of it, has been negative.

You may even believe unfairly negative when you find out Luongo has the best goals-against

average in the NHL during the 2011 calendar year at 2.05.

Just imagine if he struggled. What happened in November, as Luongo essentially lost his job for

a stretch, was unchartered waters. No one could have been sure how he'd respond, especially

considering he sat out for three weeks, and handling time off has long been seen as one of his

weaknesses.

The most pronounced comparison is Tim Thomas who, not dissimilarly, lost his spot through

injury and was passed on the pecking order by Tuukka Rask two years ago.

The next year, last season, Rask was the opening night starter. Thomas did get to play in the next

game. He went on a run for the ages. He won seven in a row with three shutouts, allowing just

five goals. He earned his job back.

Thomas, of course, went on to win a Stanley Cup with one of the best seasons we've seen a

goalie have in recent memory. Rask has been given lots of credit for his role, not only for

motivating his counterpart but in being a goalie the Bruins can trust during the season to give

Thom-as the time off he needs to play at a Vezina-like level. Rask is still seen as the goalie of the

future there, and few talk about trading him. In other words, holding on to two great goalies can

work.

The same is as obviously true in Vancouver. As the Canucks move toward the second half of the

sea-son, one of the more fascinating questions is should they deal Schneider? Better yet, what

type of deal would make it worth it?

The team could still use a defence-man, a point underscored this week as the annual run of

blueline injuries begin. Aaron Rome and Keith Bal-lard have been out and Alex Edler left

Wednesday's game with back spasms. When Sami Salo is one of the healthier defencemen, it's

cause for concern.

But it will probably have to be a blockbuster to move Mr. 1B, because Schneider provides the

Canucks with an enviable safety net. Any goalie can struggle and run cold in the playoffs, but

what are the chances it could happen to both Schneider and Luongo at the same time?

With Schneider, the Canucks have options. If Luongo struggles in the first round, they can turn

to his colleague. Or they can start the playoffs keeping the rotation going which worked so well

last year, where Schneider starts every fourth or fifth game. What an advantage that would be for

a team which has to travel as much as Vancouver will need to if it is to make it through four

playoff rounds.

Many will respond by suggesting you win in the playoffs by having one goalie, but not many

teams have ever tried it the other way.

Of course, it would require a sea change in thinking by the coaching staff. Last spring, the

Canucks started Schneider just once in the post-season and that was more to wake up the team

than it was about Luongo.

If that mentality changes, the Canucks would be wise to keep Schneider as long as possible. If it

doesn't, it significantly reduces the value in keeping Schneider past the deadline.

Will Edler sacrifice, too?

By Tony Gallagher, The Province December 23, 2011

When it comes to Christmas presents there have been a number of players who have been in a

giving mood for a while so as to be involved with the Canucks in this city.

It's well known quite a few players including Kevin Bieksa, Ryan Kesler, the Sedin lads and

Alex Burrows have taken lower salaries than they might ordinarily have earned to play here and

there is one guy right now who is in the give back mode, or at least it seems that way.

We speak of Sami Salo, the 37-year-old Finnish defence-man who for so long sat on the

sidelines with his myriad injuries collecting his $3.5 mil-lion salary on the contract that expired

at the end of last sea-son. Here is a player who clearly could have made more money had he

decided to go some-where else and in fact, he probably could have had a lot more from

Vancouver had he not been in something of a payback mood and thus took the 'seniors' discount

here.

Playing for just $2 million this year, Salo is in fact performing more like a $4 million plus guy

despite his years and his contribution is as important as his continued good health to the fortunes

of this team as they nudge close to the salary cap.

The contributions of these players, most notably Salo this season, have allowed Vancouver to

once again get into position to challenge the best of the best in the league and it's for that reason

it's done.

"I don't like talking about the contracts of other guys, you make a deal and you have a job to do,"

says Bieksa. "We never talk about money in this room. But guys sacrifice to be part of something

better and we do that because it's a great organization here; the Aquilini's take care of us in every

way. There's just a lot of good reasons to play here."

We bring up these matters because down the road there is at least one significant player who will

be having to make the Bieksa - Christian Ehrhoff decision in his own life and that man is Alex

Edler.

"Hoffer had a great shot and he used it all the time, but Alex has a great head on his shoulders

and finds guys open better than maybe any defenceman in the game," says Daniel Sedin.

What he's done in many ways is to emulate Nick Lidstrom, his offensive game in particular, the

two playing the point in many of the same ways although Edler somewhat blushes when he hears

the name.

"Whenever you watch Detroit you watch the things he does and you always try to learn," said

Edler the day before he suffered back spasms against Detroit. He laughed when it was pointed

out that he has a physical element to his game that Lidstrom doesn't and fired off this retort:

"Yeah, but he has a few other things - like seven Norris trophies."

The soft-spoken defender has 24 points in 34 games and that pace works out to well over a 50-

point season, which is to say that if he can do that again next year with the same cast which isn't

much of a stretch, he would be an unrestricted free agent with the possibility of Ehrhoff numbers

dancing in his head.

And while he is extremely comfortable here and loves everything about the place pretty much

the same as everyone else, in 18 months things may be radically altered. Edler will be looking at

signing the biggest and longest contract of his career, but the Sedin window might, repeat might,

be closing given they will be nudging 33. Ryan Kesler will have been through two more meat

grinder playoffs, Dan Hamhuis will be 31 and Salo, Edler's partner right now, is almost certain to

be long gone. What sort of environment will he be committing to if he decides to stay?

Will there be enough good young players around Edler to make staying here an attractive

proposition? He may be willing to sacrifice but the environment has got to make sense.

Not surprisingly he doesn't want to talk about it. It's miles ahead yet and he hasn't had one 50-

point season let alone two. But this giving spirit we've been discussing and Vancouver fans have

been enjoying requires vigilance from management. The giving only happens in earnest when a

team can realistically compete for a Cup.

Responding to Hawks' shake-and-wake

For the past two seasons, Vancouver has gone on a tear after

being crushed by rival Chicago By Elliott Pap, Vancouver Sun December 23, 2011

Here's something for the Vancouver Canucks to ponder in their next scheduling meeting with the

National Hockey League: get the Chicago Blackhawks in town a lot earlier than mid-November.

It may just be coincidence but for two seasons running, the Canucks have caught fire after taking

a home-ice drubbing from the hated 'Hawks. Last year, they were beaten 7-1 by Chicago on Nov.

20 and then went on a 19-3-3 tear that launched them to their first President's Trophy.

This year, the same story is unfolding. The 'Hawks trounced the Canucks 5-1 on Nov. 16 and,

since then, Vancouver is a sub-lime 12-2-1 and looking almost invincible (except against last-

place teams).

Canuck assistant general manager Laurence Gilman chuckled Thursday at the suggestion the

team should insist Chicago comes to Rogers Arena in early October rather than mid-November.

The Canucks slipped to 9-9-1 following the Nov. 16 thumping and are now 21-11-2 heading into

tonight's home date against the Calgary Flames.

"For our team to suffer a loss of that magnitude two years in a row to Chicago, I think it was a

coincidence," Gilman said from Chicago, where he planned to watch the Wolves farmhands play

an American League game against the Abbotsford Heat.

"I think the fact we're a veteran team probably has more to do with it [slow starts]."

Clearly, the Canucks were neither excited nor inspired earlier in the season, especially coming

off their seven-game Stanley Cup hangover loss to the Boston Bruins. But they are excited now.

They were flying Wednesday in their impressive 4-2 win over the red-hot Detroit Red Wings and

netted their four goals without the benefit of a single power play. During their 15-game run, the

Canucks have scored the first goal 11 times. They have scored four or more goals nine times and

have shut out the opposition four times.

They outscored their opponents 57-26 and held them to two or fewer goals 12 times. They've

won six on the road (6-1-1) and six at home (6-1-0). In their last four home dates, all victories,

the Canucks have pumped in 19 goals while allowing just three.

"The team is obviously playing very well," Gilman noted, understating matters. "We're getting

balanced scoring, our defence has been very good and our goaltending has been exceptional.

We've had some injuries, too, so it is a testament to our depth."

Remarkably, 10 different Canucks have missed at least one game during the 12-2-1 run, from

first-liners to fourth-liners and from goaltenders to defencemen. Roberto Luongo, Daniel Sedin,

Chris Higgins, Mason Raymond, David Booth, Sami Salo, Keith Bal-lard, Aaron Rome, Aaron

Vol-patti and Andrew Ebbett have all been out for some portion of the run.

In goal, it's been a two-man show. Cory Schneider began the streak with five consecutive wins

while Luongo is 7-0-1 in his last eight starts with just nine goals allowed. (The Canucks didn't

practise Thursday but we're guessing Luongo will start again versus the Flames.)

The Canucks' team stats reflect their performance of late. They are first in the league on the

power play - nearly five per cent better than second-place Toronto - while sitting third in goals

per game aver-age, third in faceoff percent-age, sixth in goals against and seventh on the penalty

kill.

Meanwhile, there will be no further punishment for either the Red Wings or Canucks resulting

from Wednesday's third-period shenanigans that included Niklas Kronwall's hellacious flying hit

on Ryan Kes-ler, and Kesler's subsequent knee-on-knee check to Henrik Zetterberg. Neither

player was penalized for those specific actions.

"The league must feel they were legal hits," commented Gilman.

According to ESPN's Pierre LeBrun, the league also felt that Alex Edler's back-breaking short-

handed goal against Detroit should not have counted after Jannik Hansen, with a nudge from

Zetterberg, took out Wings' netminder Jimmy Howard. That appears to back up Detroit coach

Mike Babcock's assertion that Hansen did not deserve a penalty but that the Canucks didn't

deserve the goal either.

"The goalie has to be able to make a play," Babcock said. "I think that's what the rules are."

It was the only call that went Vancouver's way Wednesday. The Flames, no doubt, are hoping no

calls go Vancouver's way tonight, since they have been beaten twice by the Canucks by identical

5-1 scores.

ICE CHIPS: The Canucks returned winger Mark Man-cari to the Wolves on Thursday even

though the Christmas roster freeze is in effect. According to Gilman, there is a "second tier" to

the freeze that allows teams to send a player down by Dec. 23 providing he came up after Dec.

11. This is to deal with short-term injuries. Man-cari was summoned Dec. 15 and appeared in

three games.

NEXT GAME

Tonight vs Calgary Flames

7 p.m. at Rogers Arena

SNET-P/TEAM 1040

CANUCKS STARTING TO LOOK LIKE LAST YEAR'S FORMIDABLE TEAM

THE CANADIAN PRESS

12/22/2011 5:37:52 PM

VANCOUVER -- The Vancouver Canucks are starting to resemble last season's Stanley Cup finalists as they

prepare for their final game before Christmas.

Heading into Friday's home contest against the Calgary Flames, the Canucks are challenging for the

Northwest Division lead and a chance for home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. Vancouver

has lost only three of its past 12 games since November 20, evoking memories of a similar strong run (18-

1-3) around this time last year.

"You'd have to say now, for almost six weeks here, our game has been pretty good on most nights," coach

Alain Vigneault said earlier this week. "We're not perfect, but on most nights, we play the right way."

As usual, the Canucks (20-11-2) are getting considerable offensive input from the Sedin twins. Prior to

Thursday's games, Henrik Sedin sat second in NHL scoring with 40 points while Daniel, who led all point-

getters last season, had a share of third with 39.

But Vancouver is also getting offensive help from unlikely sources. Mason Raymond and Jannik Hansen have

been two of the biggest surprises.

Raymond has seven points in nine games since returning from fractured vertebrae. He suffered the career-

threatening back injury in last spring's Stanley Cup final when Boston's Johnny Boychuk sent him backwards

into the boards. The 26-year-old Cochrane, Alta., native spent months in a body brace before he was able to

resume skating, and his ability to walk normally again remained in question.

Hansen, a perennial plugger long known for making great moves in practice but missing gift opportunities in

games, has suddenly found scorer's hands. The 25-year-old Herlev, Denmark native, is on a three-game

points streak and has contributed offensively in 10 of the past 15 games while shifting between the first,

second and third line.

Vigneault said Hansen has responded to produce points more often. With 11 goals already this season,

Hansen has surpassed the career high of nine he produced twice previously. The winger is also well on his

way to surpassing the career-high 29 points he accumulated last season. After 34 games, he is just 10

points shy of the total he produced in a full 82-game slate in 2010-11.

Meanwhile, versatile forward Chris Higgins has continued to produce consistently despite being sidelined

recently with a foot infection. With 22 points, he is only six short of the 28 he managed with Florida and the

Canucks last season. The Canucks acquired him at the trade deadline, becoming his fifth team since 2008-

09.

The defence is also doing its part, at both ends of the rink. Since beginning their winning tear with a 2-1 win

over Ottawa on Nov. 20, the Canucks have allowed 30 fewer goals than they have scored, netting 56 while

only surrendering 26.

Defencemen have also produced points consistently. Alex Edler, currently on a four-game points streak, is

making general manager Mike Gillis look wise for not trying to acquire another high-scoring defenceman

after free agent Christian Ehrhoff bolted to the Buffalo Sabres in the off-season. With 24 points, Edler is in

position to exceed the 50 that Ehrhoff generated last season while ranking as the club's top offensive

defenceman.

Goaltender Roberto Luongo, much maligned as he dealt with his usual October funk and struggled and had

to deal with an undisclosed upper-body injury in November, is also rounding into form. He has won seven of

the past eight games in which has played, boosting his record to 12-6-2 while moving into the league's top

10.

The boos that he heard from the crowd during his struggles have been replaced by the affectionate "Loooo"

that was common in previous campaigns but has been much less frequent this season.

"He's been playing real well," said Vigneault. "Both our goaltenders, every night, have been giving us a

chance to win -- and that's what we need. Teams in the NHL, teams that win consistently, have to get great

goaltending, and we've been getting that for quite some time."

Still, fans won't be convinced the Canucks are the team of yesteryear unless they deliver another extended

playoff run. But winger Alex Burrows figures the experience of 2010-11 will help the Canucks as they

attempt to get back to the Stanley Cup final.

"Those are things nobody can take away from us," said Burrows. "We've been there in high-pressure

moments, and most of the time we've responded really well. We know this year is another chance for us to

accomplish big things."

Notes: The club had a day off from practice Thursday. ... With winger Andrew Ebbett having returned to the

lineup from a fractured foot that kept him out of the lineup since November, the Canucks returned

Mark Mancari to the minors. Mancari had no points or assists in three games.

FRASER: WHY EDLER'S GOAL ON HOWARD SHOULD NOT HAVE COUNTED

KERRY FRASER

12/22/2011 5:45:48 PM

Got a question on rule clarification, comments on rule enforcements or some memorable NHL

stories? Kerry Fraser wants to answer your emails at cmonref@tsn.ca!

Hey, Kerry;

Love the column. Keep up the great work. Watching the third period of the Canucks vs. Red Wings on

Wednesday, Jannik Hansen drives the net hard, gets stymied by Jimmy Howard, and proceeds to take the

goaltender out of the play. Edler cleans up the garbage and Vancouver takes a commanding 4-2 lead. How

is this goal allowed to stand? Clearly Howard's ability to defend his crease was impaired, and we've seen

Tomas Holmstrom whistled for far less. Why was this goal allowed to stand in this situation?

Mark in Champaign

Mark:

There are a couple of things at play here to determine if the goal scored by Alexander Edler should be

allowed to stand.

The first element to consider is if the referee, positioned along the goal line, determined that the attempted

stick check by Henrik Zetterberg on the initial puck carrier, Jannik Hansen caused the Vancouver player to

lose an edge and crash into Detroit net minder, Jimmy Howard.

If that were to be the case then rule 69.1 could apply to allow the goal to stand which states; "If an

attacking player has been pushed, shoved, or fouled by a defending player so as to cause him to come into

contact with the goalkeeper, such contact will not be deemed contact initiated by the attacking player for

the purposes of this rule, provided the attacking player has made a reasonable effort to avoid such contact."

Since Zetterberg did not push, shove or body check Hansen the only remaining alternative here would be if

the referee deemed that Zetterberg had fouled the Vancouver player. Hansen was clearly within all criteria

limits for a penalty shot to be assessed if it was determined that he was fouled from behind at this point.

There was no immediate reaction or arm raised by the referee to signal a penalty as Zetterberg reached

with his stick while Hansen cut hard to the net and ultimately lost his edge and fell, sliding into

Jimmy Howard as this video demonstrates.

There should not have been a penalty to Zetterberg for his stick reach as contact, if any, was minimal at

best and did not cause Hansen to lose an edge. The contact initiated by Hansen's fall however, drove

Howard deep into his net and definitely impaired Jimmy's ability to defend his goal.

The only signal made by the referee was pointing into the net to verify the scoring of a legal goal when

Alexander Elder followed up on the play and put the rebound past both Hansen and Howard.

My call on this (and what I believe should have taken place) is incidental contact of the goalkeeper ruled

when Hansen blew a tire and had no ability to avoid the Detroit goalkeeper. The resulting goal should have

immediately been waved off and no penalty assessed to Hansen.

Vancouver scored this shorthanded goal with Ryan Kesler serving a minor penalty for roughing after being

clocked by a Niklas Kronwall charge that went unpenalized if not undetected. Kronwall with back turned, left

his feet prior to impact and went nuclear, vaulting up and into Kesler along the sidewall.

Mark, your reference to Tomas Holmstrom brought back many memories of keeping my eyes glued this goal

crease pest right up to the last Red Wings game that I worked just prior to my retirement. The Nashville

Predators were the guests at Joe Louis Arena on this night. I documented the last crease penalty I called on

Holmstrom in the Detroit chapter of The Final Call entitled, Hockeytown, USA. I share it with you now Mark

and for those who wish to read on.

"Nashville and Detroit played hard, and as I anticipated, I would have to step up from my position at the

blue line and call a penalty on Holmstrom at 19:04 of the first period. Mickey Redmond, a former 50-goal

scorer for Detroit and long-time colour commentator on Wings television broadcasts, didn't agree (imagine

that), but it was a phenomenal call. Some things that the untrained eye might take several replays, even in

slow motion, to detect, we officials only have a fraction of a millisecond to see and make a judgment on.

This was one of those times, and from 65 feet away.

The Wings were cycling the puck low in the Nashville end zone. Holmstrom came out of the corner from a

scramble behind the net and occupied his favourite real estate, right at the top of –if not inside—the blue

paint of the goal crease, his back and butt in the face Pekka Rinne. As one of the non-puck carriers, Tomas

was part of my area of coverage, along with the other players who weren't immediately involved in the

action around the puck. Wes (McCauley) covered everything to do with action on the puck.

Tomas never seems to want to take up space on his own; he usually attracts a crowd, which he uses to his

advantage by jamming up the goal crease even more. With the puck on its way to the front of the net,

Tomas grabbed the stick of Nashville defenceman Shea Weber, tap-danced over Rinne's pads, and pulled

Weber down to the side of the goal crease, all the while flipping a one-handed shot at the goal with his stick.

Before the puck floated overtop of the net, I had my hand in the air to signal a penalty against Holmstrom.

With all the action around him, Pekka Rinne didn't realize there was a delayed penalty being called against

Detroit, so he remained in his crease until the whistle blew once Detroit gained possession of the puck.

Tomas had that confused look of innocence on his face as he went to the penalty box for the remaining 56

seconds of the period.

Prior to the start of the second period, I was standing near the penalty box when Holmstrom skated over to

occupy the real estate I had rented him for the next 64 seconds. Again flashing me that confused look,

Tomas asked me what I'd seen—notice, not what he'd done! I explained that I'd seen him engage the

Nashville defenceman at the edge of the crease, grab his stick, and pull him down, while trying to make it

look as though he was the one being fouled. A wide grin broke out across Holmstrom's face, as he smiled

and said, "That's why you're the best!" and then stepped into the penalty box.

Tomas Holmstrom makes things happen. He creates opportunities for his team and takes a huge beating in

front of the net to do so. He is just as valuable to the Detroit Red Wings as any of their other star players,

and they have a boatload of them, including Nicklas Lidstrom, Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk,

Johan Franzen, and Todd Bertuzzi."

All eyes glued to the crease from now on, Mark.

CANUCKS, FLAMES PUT WINNING STREAKS ON THE LINE IN VANCOUVER

THE SPORTS NETWORK

12/23/2011 10:54:40 AM

(Sports Network) - The Vancouver Canucks will try to head into the Christmas break with sole possession of

first place in the Northwest Division, as they welcome the rival Calgary Flames for tonight's battle at Rogers

Arena.

The Canucks, who have won three straight, enter tonight trailing idle Minnesota by just one point for the

division lead. Vancouver has put pressure on the Wild over the past month, compiling a 12-2-1 record over

its last 15 games.

Vancouver's two most recent wins have come at the start of a four-game homestand and those victories

have improved the Canucks' record as the host to 10-4-1 this season.

The Canucks last played on Wednesday, when they recorded a 4-2 decision over the Detroit Red Wings.

Roberto Luongo made 38 saves to secure the win and improved his record to 7-0-1 over his last eight starts

in net.

"[The Red Wings] always make for some exciting games," said Luongo. "They are fun to play in. They shoot

a lot. That's the way I like it."

Chris Higgins, Cody Hodgson, Alexandre Burrows and Alexander Edler lit the lamp, while Jannik Hansen

added a pair of assists for the Canucks, who have won six of their last seven games at home.

Vancouver has played the last two games without defenseman Keith Ballard and he is questionable for

tonight with back spasms.

The Canucks have dominated the recent series with the Flames, winning five straight and posting a 10-0-2

mark in the last 12 encounters. Vancouver has beaten Calgary twice this season, winning both tilts by

identical 5-1 scores.

The Flames have lost two straight and five of their last six games in British Columbia.

Calgary has won its last two games after a four-game losing streak. The Flames beat visiting Minnesota on

Tuesday by a 2-1 score and then notched another home win last night in a 3-2 decision against Detroit.

Miikka Kiprusoff stopped 29 shots on Thursday to help Calgary hold off the Red Wings at the Saddledome.

Curtis Glencross had two goals while Blake Comeau scored the other for the Flames.

"The last couple of minutes was kind of hectic, but we'll take the result," said Comeau. "That's a great team

over there and you can't make any mistakes against them. This is a big win for us."

Tonight marks the start of a season-long seven-game road trip for the Flames, who have lost five straight as

the guest and are 6-10-2 away from Calgary this season.

Flames forward Rene Bourque will be eligible to return tonight after sitting out the last two games with a

suspension. Bourque, who has 11 goals this season, was given the ban for an illegal hit on Chicago's

Brent Seabrook.

FIGHTING FOR TOP SPOT December 23, 2011, 10:24 am

Thanks largely to Henrik Sedin and Roberto Luongo, the Vancouver Canucks are in

position to take over the lead in the Northwest Division.

Watch LIVE on Sportsnet WEST at 8:00 p.m. MT and Sportsnet PACIFIC at 7:00

p.m. PT.

Curtis Glencross, meanwhile, is making sure the Calgary Flames don't fall farther back

in the Western Conference race.

The surging Canucks try to extend their dominance of the Flames on Friday night at

Rogers Arena.

Buoyed by a 12-2-1 stretch, the Canucks (21-11-2) have moved within one point of

Minnesota - losers of six in a row - for first place in the Northwest.

Henrik Sedin has tallied nearly half of his team-best 40 points during Vancouver's hot

stretch. All three of his goals have come on the power play and he's chipped in 16 of his

NHL-leading 31 assists.

Fantasy notes: Olli Jokinen was blanked in his previous two games against the Canucks this

season. Ryan Kesler had a hat trick of assists the last time these teams tangled. | Follow Chris Nichols on Twitter

A notoriously slow starter, Luongo has turned things around. After struggling to a 7-6-1

record with a 3.05 goals-against average over the first two months, Luongo is 7-0-1

with a 1.46 GAA and his only shutout of the season since Dec. 4.

He made 38 saves and Vancouver got goals from four players in a 4-2 win over Detroit

on Wednesday.

"Our goaltender stood his ground like a great goaltender does," coach Alain Vigneault

said.

The Canucks have won both matchups with the Flames this season by 5-1 scores, and

are 9-0-1 in the series since March 14, 2010. Luongo has earned both victories to

improve to 9-0-2 with a 1.79 GAA since last falling to them in regulation on Oct. 16,

2009. Offensively, Henrik and twin brother Daniel haven't been huge factors this season

against Calgary, combining for two goals and two assists.

Vancouver, however, has gotten two goals and two assists from Chris Higgins, while

Ryan Kesler has chipped in four assists.

David Booth, who was acquired from Florida on Oct. 22, has three assists among four

points versus the Flames, but is out with a sprained knee ligament and not expected

back until the end of January.

Calgary (16-15-4) heads west to open a season-high seven-game road trip after

Glencross scored twice in a 3-2 win over the Red Wings on Thursday. Glencross has

four goals in a three-game streak - doubling the total from his previous 13 games - and

is tied with Jarome Iginla for the team lead with 13 tallies.

In 25 games against Vancouver, Glencross has managed just four goals and three

assists.

The Flames are 7-0-1 in their last eight at home, but they've dropped five straight away

from the Scotiabank Saddledome.

Iginla still needs three goals to become the 42nd player in NHL history to reach 500,

tying former Flames great Lanny McDonald. But it's not likely that Calgary's captain will

reach the milestone in British Columbia.

Iginla has 27 goals in 82 career regular-season games against the Canucks, but has

never scored more than twice in any of those contests. His last multi-goal game versus

Vancouver came on Dec. 4, 2003.

Miikka Kiprusoff, who's stopped 58 of 61 shots in wins over Minnesota and Detroit this

week, is 3-9-0 with a 4.32 GAA in his last 13 games in Vancouver. Two of those wins

have come via shootout.

Calgary is expected to get Rene Bourque back in the lineup after a two-game

suspension for a hit Sunday on Chicago's Brent Seabrook.

Bourque is tied for second on the club with 11 goals but doesn't have any in his last

eight games versus Vancouver.

NHL notes: Engelland gets three-game ban

By QMI Agency

Pittsburgh Penguins defenceman Deryk Engelland has been suspended for three games for his unpenalized hit Tuesday on Chicago Blackhawks centre Marcus Kruger.

At the 8:55 mark of the first period, Engelland left his feet and launched himself into Kruger, driving his left forearm into the forward's head at 8:55 of the first period.

"Although Engelland has Kruger lined up for what could potentially be a clean, full body check, his elevation and launch upon impact ... makes this in our eyes a recklessly targeted shot to Kruger's head," NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan said. "It should be noted that while Kruger remained in the game to finish the first period, he experienced symptoms during the first intermission and has been diagnosed with a concussion>

Engelland is eligible to return on New Year's Eve against New Jersey.

McLEAN LOANED TO CANADA

The Chicago Blackhawks will loan forward Brett McLean to the Canadian team playing in the 2011 Spengler Cup.

The 33-year-old from Comox, B.C., has been playing with Rockford of the AHL after signing with Chicago as a free agent last summer. He has seven goals and 12 assists in 29 games with Rockford.

The Blackhawks also sent forwards Jeremy Morin and Brandon Pirri to Rockford Thursday.

ELIAS ALL SET

New Jersey Devils forward Patrick Elias is expected to play Friday against the Washington Capitals.

Elias missed Tuesday's game against the Rangers due to illness but was back on the ice Thursday.

"He got through practice," Devils coach Peter DeBoer said. "He's obviously a little drained and a little tired, but he battled through it and got through an entire practice, which is a good sign.

"Based on the fact that he got through the practice, as long as there's no setbacks, I would assume he'll play."

Elias, the team's leading career goal scorer, has 13 goals and 16 assists in 32 games this season.

BRIEFLY

Detroit Red Wings defenceman Niklas Kronwall won't be fined or suspended for his hit on Ryan Kesler of the Vancouver Canucks Wednesday. The hit was reviewed by the NHL but no punishment will be forthcoming ... Los Angeles Kings forward Mike Richards was activated off

injured reserve after missing eight games with an upper-body injury. Richards has 11 goals and nine assists in 25 games.

Police make second bid to seize media footage

Vancouver Sun December 23, 2011

Police are trying again to seize evidence of the Stanley Cup riot from Vancouver newsrooms

after a B.C. Supreme Court judge last week blocked an initial attempt.

The production order would require that all digital photos and/or digital videos taken by The

Vancouver Sun and other media outlets between 5: 30 p.m. June 15 and 12: 30 a.m. June 16

within a specified area be turned over to police.

The new application properly names the media entities and changes the streets that form the

boundary for the order.

VPD reapply for film

Police pursue riot footage once more

By John Colebourn, The Province December 23, 2011

Vancouver police have reapplied to have newsrooms turn over Stanley Cup riot footage.

Six media outlets were served with an amended production order Thursday for their media

footage from the riot.

On Dec. 16, a B.C. Supreme Court ruling quashed an earlier production order by the riot

investigation team. Since then, modifications have been made and a new application was

submitted and granted by the judiciary.

Vancouver police Insp. Les Yeo, the officer in charge of the riot investigation, said the requested

footage will help get more suspects into court.

"An important part of the investigation is obtaining riot footage from the media," he said.

"Today's judicial approval on our application assists us in gathering additional evidence, on

crimes commit-ted by rioters.

"I am convinced the footage from the production orders will further our investigation, and result

in more charges against those that rioted on June 15."

A Supreme Court judge in a ruling released Dec. 16 threw out a series of production orders

because of "inadvertent" errors in documents used to obtain them.

The judge in his ruling agreed with media lawyer Dan Burnett that the orders issued by a justice

of the peace in September were over-broad in the geographical area and had not properly named

the media organizations.

Police served court orders to CTV, Global TV, CBC, the Globe and Mail, the Vancouver Sun

and The Province, seeking all raw footage taken over a large part of the downtown area the night

of the destructive June 15 riot.

Legion of blog: There's three kings, and four

stars

The Province December 23, 2011

Did you catch who the fourth star of the game was on Wednesday night? You know, when the

Canucks beat the Wings?

Yes, we're talking about the fourth star. That's the guy who Legion of Blog's J. Bowman honours

after every Canucks win.

Those following Bow-man's regular feature, at theprovince.com/ legionofblog, will recall that

he's honoured equipment manager Pat O'Neill, athletic trainer Mike Burn-stein, the defensive

blue line and the eastern net, among other notables.

And, on Wednesday, he added Manny Malhotra to the list. For more from Bowman, Cam

Charron, Wyatt Arndt and Steve Shalagan, head to the Legion of Blog.

The Legion can also be found at provincesports. com/blogs, along with our other bloggers. Such

as Kyle Benning, who comments on Liverpool's explosive Luis Suarez case at his Inside the 18

blog, and E. Spencer Kyte, who celebrates the MMA knockout of the year at Keyboard Kimura.

Meanwhile, at province sports.com, Jonathan McDonald gets you ready for a busy weekend by

serving up the Week-end Warmup, where he recommends five sporting events you really should

watch (if you're not still shopping - desperately, desperately shopping).

Flames ignite on the rush

Keeping things simple pays off for Calgary with a 3-2 win on

home ice

By Scott Cruickshank, Postmedia News; Calgary Herald December 23, 2011

Brent Sutter had been raving about the quality of the night's challenge.

Quite rightly.

"Obviously, they're a talented group," the Calgary Flames head coach was saying after Thurs-

day's morning skate. "So when you play against them, you have to be sharp, you have to be pre-

pared to compete, and you have to have a tremendous high-will factor."

Sutter got exactly what he wanted from his lads - for the first 40 minutes.

For the final 20 minutes?

The Detroit Red Wings put the frighteners on the local lads.

But the Flames made their three-goal lead stick - just barely - as they tiptoed to a 3-2 triumph at

the Scotiabank Sad-dledome.

"We played pretty well the first two periods, the way we wanted to," said Jay Bouwmeester,

minutes after the Flames received holiday wishes from Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his

posse in the dressing room. "With a team that's played the night before (in Vancouver), if you

can get in their end, cycle them, get on their defence, tire them out - all that good stuff - it makes

it easier on yourself. In the third period . . . we probably sat back too much."

Added Chris Butler: "You look at how dangerous and how skilled they are when they're

controlling the puck. Tremendously skilled team and always tough to play against."

What's the key to surviving when the Wings smell blood?

"Just simplify things," said Butler. "Just make sure, no matter what, you've always got

somebody's stick and you're close to somebody and you're taking away passing lanes. At times

when you do get lost, you work from the middle of the ice and out, force things to the outside."

All in all, it was a good taste to leave in the mouths of their fans.

The Flames don't get a home date for 16 days - Jan. 7 against the Minnesota Wild being the next

one. Before that, however, are seven road games, starting tonight in Vancouver.

But Thursday's goodness - with no aid from unavailable forwards Rene Bourque, Alex Tanguay,

David Moss and Matt Stajan - allowed them to improve to 16-15-4.

"For whatever reason, that .500 mark has been an obstacle for us all year," said Butler. "As soon

as we get there, we throw a bit of a stinker for a couple games in a row. Now that we're there -

and we're playing the type of hockey we need to be playing - we just need to continue rolling

with it.

"Have fun and enjoy it."

Pacing the Flames, who led 1-0 and 3-0 by periods, were Curtis Glencross with two goals, and

Blake Comeau.

The Wings waited until 4: 55 of the third period to solve goalie Miikka Kiprusoff - Jiri Hudler

did the honours, from in tight, as part of the guests' surge down the stretch.

"Even into the third, I thought we played pretty well," said Butler. "A couple of goofy goals."

Ian White's 3-2 tally, for instance. His harmless shot from the right point struck a defender and

fluttered in at 15: 48.

How close did the Wings manage to make it?

Henrik Zetterberg hit the post with two minutes to go.

"You don't want to hang on, you want to do the things that you were doing," said Bouwmeester,

whose club was outshot 15-5 by the wound-up Wings in the third. "You want to get pucks deep,

don't turn it over, play in their end. I mean, that's the easiest thing. They're going to send guys,

they're down, they're going to try to get chances."

And the Flames prevailed, in part due to renewed aggression in the early going. They looked like

they were hard to play against. Ornery, actually.

And when Wings' Todd Bertuzzi was banished for hooking, Glencross gobbled up a rebound and

shovelled into the Detroit cage at 16: 10 of the first.

That marked only the 13th time in 35 games that the Flames had opened the scoring.

That marked only the 11th time in 34 games that the Wings hadn't.

"We did a good job on the forecheck, we did a good job of maintaining possession in the

offensive zone, of trying to take away their time and space," said Butler.

602174 Calgary Flames

Flames grab two points versus weary Red Wings

By George Johnson

Any edge you take and run with. Any weakness, however temporary, is to be exploited to the fullest.

No compunction.

No apologies.

The surging Detroit Red Wings had been embroiled in a nasty, chippy, compelling, playoff-style Pier-6er at GM Place the night before against the equally-ambitious Vancouver Canucks.

And the effort expended, the toll exacted, hung on them heavily, like a shroud, for 44 official minutes Thursday.

A step slow.

A beat behind.

The usual artfulness sadly lacking. That famous geometric interplay disjointed. Flagging in spirit and dull in mind.

How very un-Wing-like.

But lord-a-mighty, once they stirred to life . . .

From what seemed to be a foregone conclusion, the Calgary Flames were forced to hang on grimly, survive a savage, relentless onslaught, to once again gingerly tiptoe north of the NHL equator, the .500 mark.

A 3-2 victory sends them off to the Canadian West Coast tonight for a last pre-Christmas meat grinder at least in a positive frame of mind.

For displaying such dogged determination, they do deserve props. The Wings, a showy 12-4 over their latest 16 starts, have been rounding into top form over the past month. And once aroused from their lethargy Thursday, that indisputable class shone through.

So these are two found points for a team desperately in need of them.

The final 15 minutes turned into a study in claustrophobia. For the Flames and the Scotiabank Saddledome faithful, it seemed as if the scoreclock was moving slowly, if at all. The Wing swarmed the Calgary zone with the single-minded ferocity of a colony of African Army Ants descending on a remote village.

Lacking any discernable pulse, Jiri Hudler’s backhand goal at 4:55 of the third period brought Detroit off the gurney and back to life.

From then on in, the ice tilted; it was strictly one-way traffic.

When the relentless pressure finally paid off again, ex-Flame defenceman Ian White bombing a shot home off at 15:48, the locals’ sphincters had shrunk to the size of pomegranate seeds.

Miikka Kiprusoff then took matters into his very capable hands: Flicking his left pad at Justin Abdekator’s try from 15 feet out, prime territory; quicker than a cat to deny Henrik Zetterberg.

In the final 55.7 seconds. the puck kept being sucked back to the front of Kiprusoff’s net.

Most spectacularly, Johan Franzen ballooned over from right in front and Brent Sutter’s crew escaped.

The Flames seized on Detroit’s sluggishness, and the presence of backup Ty Conklin between the pipes, to establish an apparently-insurmountable three-goal lead by the second intermission. They struck first at 18:10 of the opening third, Olli Jokinen’s shot nicking off the shaft of Niklas Kronwall’s cue, dropping down from fastball to change-up speed, and off Conklin’s left pad. Curtis Glencross lifted the rebound into the roof of the net.

Kronwall, involved in a senses-sapping hit on the Canucks’ Ryan Kesler 24 hours earlier, chalked up another unwitting victim. Stepping up near the blueline, he absolutely plowed an inattentive Tim Jackman, sending the Flame to the deck and his stick flying.

Ironically, Kronwall’s appetite for destruction had sent the Flames off on a 2-on-1, Brendan Morrison saucering a lovely pass for Blake Comeau to finish only 1:30 in the second period.

White banking a pass off Pavel Datsyuk’s left skate, set the locals away on yet other odd-man situation. On this occasion, though, Glencross ignored the pass and hammered the puck past Conklin.

That seemed to be more than comfortable, given Detroit’s sluggishness. But teams with the skill set of the Wings need only an opening, an inkling, to turn a game on its head in no time flat.

These have been an encouraging last few days for the Flames. Shading the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday. Then, 48 hours later, taking out the Wings.

And now, one last pre-Christmas test. The toughest of the lot, against the twins, Kesler and a rejuvenated Bobby Lou.

Win, and it will the unlikeliest of hat-tricks.

Calgary Herald: LOADED: 12.23.2011

602175 Calgary Flames

Game Story: Calgary 3 Detroit 2

By George Johnson

Three Stars

1. Calgary LW Curtis Glencross: Two goals, Nos. 12 and 13 on the season, to tie for the team lead. We’ll forgive him that appalling empty-net miss, considering.

2. Calgary D Jay Bouwmeester: Never seemed to leave the ice surface.

3. Detroit C Pavel Datsyuk: Arguably the most complete player in the game.

Why the Flames Won

Because it took the Wings, embroiled in a knock-down, drag-out playoff style game in Vancouver the night before and using their backup goalie, 44 minutes to stir to life.

The Flames

Forwards

C. Glencross O. Jokinen J. Iginla

B. Comeau M. Backlund L. Stempniak

P. Byron R. Horak G. Nemisz

T. Kostopoulos B. Morrison T. Jackman

Defence

C. Butler J. Bouwmeester

S. Hannan D. Smith

T. J. Brodie C. Sarich

Goaltenders

M. Kiprusoff

L. Irving

scratches

Calgary scratches: D Joe Piskula, G Henrik Karlsson (knee), D Mark Giordano (hamstring), D Anton Babchuk (hand), D Brett Carson (upper body), C Matt Stajan (ankle), LW Rene Bourque (suspension), LW Alex Tanguay, (unspecified), RW David Moss (foot).

Detroit scratches: D Jakub Kindl, RW Patrick Eaves (jaw), RW Jan Mursak (ankle), RW Chris Conner (hand).

The Summary

Flames 3 Red Wings 2

First Period

1. Calgary, C Glencross 12 (pp) (O Jokinen, T Brodie) 16:10.

Penalties — H Zetterberg Det (Hooking) 12:04; T Bertuzzi Det (Hooking) 15:41.

Second Period

2. Calgary, B Comeau 2 (B Morrison, T Jackman) 1:30.

3. Calgary, C Glencross 13 (J Bouwmeester) 5:47.

Penalties — C Sarich Cgy (Interference) 3:58; T Holmstrom Det (Goaltender Interference) 4:32; D Smith Cgy (Tripping) 10:12.

Third Period

4. Detroit, J Hudler 8 (J Ericsson) 4:55.

5. Detroit, I White 5 (P Datsyuk) 15:48.

Penalties — None.

Shots on goal by

Detroit 5 11 15 —31

Calgary 9 13 5 —27

Power plays (goals-chances) — Detroit: 0-2. Calgary: 1-3.

Goal (shots-saves) — Detroit: T Conklin (27-24, L, 1-4-0). Calgary: M Kiprusoff (31-29, W, 16-11-2).

Referees: Marc Joannette, Tom Kowal.

Linesmen: Don Henderson, Mark Wheler.

Game Day Tonight

Calgary at Vancouver

(16-15-4) (21-11-2)

8 p.m., GM Place

TV: S’Net West Radio: SN 960

The Canucks

KEEP YOUR EYE ON

Ryan Kesler

Fresh off Wednesday’s Kronwallian starching, the best No. 2 centre in the league is sure to be in a fine mood.

The Canucks

Forwards

D. Sedin H. Sedin A. Burrows

C. Higgins R. Kelser M. Raymond

M. Malhotra C. Hodgson J. Hansen

A. Ebbett M. Lapierre D. Wiese

Defence

D. Hamhuis K. Bieksa

A. Edler S. Salo

A. Alberts A. Sulzer

Goaltenders

R. Luongo

C. Schneider

Injuries — D Aaron Rome (thumb), D Keith Ballard (back), RW David Booth (knee), RW Byron Bitz (hip), LW Aaron Volpatti (shoulder)

Calgary Herald: LOADED: 12.23.2011

602176 Calgary Flames

Flames withstand Wings’ rally to post 3-2 triumph

By Scott Cruickshank

Brent Sutter had been raving about the quality of the night’s challenge.

Quite rightly.

“Obviously, they’re a talented group,” the Calgary Flames skipper was saying after Thursday’s morning skate. “So when you play against them, you have to be sharp, you have to be prepared to compete, and you have to have a tremendous high-will factor.”

Sutter got exactly what he wanted from his lads — for the first 40 minutes.

For the final 20 minutes?

The Detroit Red Wings put the frighteners on the locals. But the Flames made their three-goal lead stick — just barely — as they tiptoed to a 3-2 triumph in National Hockey League action at the Scotiabank Saddledome.

“We played pretty well the first two periods, the way we wanted to,” said Jay Bouwmeester, minutes after the Flames received holiday wishes from Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his posse in the dressing room. “With a team that’s played the night before (in Vancouver), if you can get in their end, cycle them, get on their defence, tire them out — all that good stuff — it makes it easier on yourself. In the third period . . . we probably sat back too much.”

Added Chris Butler: “You look at how dangerous and how skilled they are when they’re controlling the puck. Tremendously skilled team and always tough to play against.”

What’s the key to surviving when the Wings smell blood?

“Just simplify things,” said Butler. “Just make sure, no matter what, you’ve always got somebody’s stick and you’re close to somebody and you’re taking away passing lanes. At times when you do get lost, you work from the middle of the ice and out, force things to the outside.”

All in all, it was a good taste to leave in the mouths of their fans.

The Flames don’t get a home date for 16 days — Jan. 7 against the Minnesota Wild being the next one. Before that, however, are seven road games, starting tonight in Vancouver.

But Thursday’s goodness —with no aid from unavailable forwards Rene Bourque, Alex Tanguay, David Moss, Matt Stajan — allowed them to improve to 16-15-4.

“For whatever reason, that .500 mark has been an obstacle for us all year,” said Butler.

“As soon as we get there, we throw a bit of a stinker for a couple games in a row,” Butler added. “Now that we’re there — and we’re playing the type of hockey we need to be playing — we just need to continue rolling with it.

“Have fun and enjoy it.”

Pacing the Flames, who led 1-0 and 3-0 by periods, were Curtis Glencross with two, and Blake Comeau.

The Wings waited until 4:55 of the third to solve goalie Miikka Kiprusoff when Jiri Hudler did the honours.

Ian White then scored to make it 3-2. How close did the Wings manage to make it? Henrik Zetterberg pinked the post with two minutes to go.

“You don’t want to hang on, you want to do the things that you were doing,” said Bouwmeester. “You want to get pucks deep, don’t turn it over, play in their end. I mean, that’s the easiest thing. They’re going to send guys, they’re down, they’re going to try to get chances.”

And the Flames prevailed, in part, to renewed aggression in the early going.

They looked like they were hard to play against. Ornery, actually.

And when Todd Bertuzzi was banished for hooking, Glencross gobbled up a rebound and shovelled into the Detroit cage at 16:10 of the first.

That marked only the 13th time in 35 games that the Flames had opened the scoring. That marked only the 11th time in 34 games that the Wings hadn’t.

“We did a good job on the forecheck, we did a good job of maintaining possession in the offensive zone, of trying to take away their time and space,” said Butler. “That’s a team that loves puck possession, that doesn’t like dumping the puck.

“It felt like, at times, we forced them to dump the puck, which I don’t think is their strong suit.”

Calgary Herald: LOADED: 12.23.2011

602177 Calgary Flames

Surprise forecast: minus-40 tonight against Wings

Scott Cruickshank

To the shock of everyone, including coach Brent Sutter, the Flames will not have the services of Alex Tanguay tonight against the Detroit Red Wings.

“I can’t even pinpoint anything on it,” Sutter said after Thursday’s morning skate, which also did not include forwards Rene Bourque (suspension), Matt Stajan (ankle) and David Moss (foot). “I will say that I was somewhat surprised after the game (Tuesday against Minnesota) . . . he’s played some of his best hockey in the last four games of the whole year. I was quite surprised to see that he was going to be out on a day-to-day basis. We’ll just monitor it and see where it goes.”

Being minus-40 leaves the following Flames lines (including a bona fide kid line — honestly):

Glencross/Jokinen/Iginla

Comeau/Backlund/Stempniak

Byron/Horak/Nemisz

Kostopoulos/Morrison/Jackman

For Nemisz, it marks his second NHL match of the season. His other appearance included six minutes of work Dec. 10 against Edmonton.

“In fairness to him, that was a tough situation,” Sutter said of Nemisz’s 2011-12 debut. “Had a six in the morning flight, just a tough day travelling. Played the night before. It was three games in three days for him, I believe. He didn’t have one of his better games . . . but he gts that opportunity again now and a whole different setup going into it.

“It’s another young guy we’re going to install in our lineup. We’ll see where he’s at and how close he is.”

Calgary Herald: LOADED: 12.23.2011

602178 Calgary Flames

Flames on pace for better year

By RANDY SPORTAK

Calgary Flames' Jarome Iginla (L) celebrates his goal with teammate Brendan Morrison during the first period of their NHL hockey game against the Carolina Hurricanes in Calgary, Alberta December 6, 2011. (REUTERS/Todd Korol)

Compared to a year ago, the Calgary Flames have a better record and are closer to the Western Conference's top eight clubs.

That's the good news.

But nobody is doing celebratory cartwheels or lighting up fireworks to celebrate.

"The gap's closer, but it's still not where we want to be. There's no hiding that fact," said centre Brendan Morrison. "Our inability to win games early in the year, close games, our powerplay not coming through for us early on really put us in a hole.

"We've played better hockey and are starting to gain a little bit of ground, but we've got a long way to go."

Before the puck dropped on Wednesday's NHL action, the Flames (15-15-4) were only three points back of the eighth-place San Jose Sharks, although the Sharks had played four fewer games.

After 34 games last season, the Flames were fumbling and bumbling to a 14-17-3 record and were eight points back of eighth spot.

"Well, we were pretty bad last year," succinctly stated centre Olli Jokinen. "There shouldn't be any guys in our room happy right now.

"Our goal was to be three or four games above .500 at the 35-game mark. Obviously, that's not going to be the case. We're .500 now with a couple of tough games before Christmas."

Before they break for Christmas, the Flames play host to the Detroit Red Wings Thursday night at the Saddledome (7:30 p.m., TSN) before heading to Vancouver to face the Canucks the next night.

It ends a tough stretch of games -- seven in 10 nights in all four NHL time zones -- and all but one versus squads currently in playoff positions.

"The schedule doesn't get any easier (after), it doesn't for any team, it just gets tougher," said coach Brent Sutter. "That's why these two games are big. They're huge for us. We want to be with the pack. We want to make sure we continue to push and continue to try and push up the standings."

Pushing up the charts won't be easy immediately after Christmas. The Flames will embark on a six-game road swing while the world juniors tournament takes over the Saddledome.

No matter how you look at it all, it's four weeks of hard time.

"I don't think it's a daunting task. It's a good challenge for us, no question," Morrison said of the difficult stretches before and after Christmas. "Our road record hasn't been great and we lost four on the road (the last trip).

"We can't get too caught up in worrying how long this trip is or how many games we have on the road. It's just the next game, that's the only way to approach it."

After that six-game road swing with games against Columbus, the New York Islanders, Ottawa, Nashville, Washington and Boston, the Flames have 40 games remaining, 26 of them at home.

As goofy as it sounds, they do have a chance to make a run similar to the hot streak they had to finish last season.

"That would be pretty far-fetched to say we're going to do it again," Morrison said. "Can it happen? Yeah, it can happen, but to sit here and rely solely on that is ...," he said looking for the right word.

Lunacy would be one.

"Exactly."

Considering so many are writing off the Flames at that point, they could use wild and crazy hopes.

Calgary Sun: LOADED: 12.23.2011