CBC-Sports

Sundin a bonus, but Luongo is key

January 13, 2009 05:00 PM | Posted by   Craig Simpson  

For Vancouver Canucks fans it has been a very exciting holiday season.

The Canucks are in the thick of a playoff race and still have their sights on battling the Calgary Flames for the Northwest Division. Their ownership group stepped up in a big way and landed the most sought-after free agent on the market, and every night GM Place is packed to the rafters and the atmosphere is electric.

Last Saturday, the fans got to see their newest star score his first goal as a Canuck, and for Mats Sundin, it must have been a shocking reminder how pumped the fans are to have him on the West Coast. A raucous standing ovation for a regular-season goal in a 4-2 home loss is not common in NHL rinks, but the fans gave their newest saviour a warm welcome.

Offensive threat ... in time

Three games into his return to the NHL, it’s clear Sundin is nowhere near at the top of his game. What can you expect from a soon-to-be 38-year-old who hasn’t played or trained at an NHL level since early April?

As one would expect given the short turnaround, Mats had trouble getting back up to speed and his timing and quickness was a step behind. That timing and fitness will improve in the coming weeks. The one thing that his power-play goal did display was what a valuable asset he will be to the Canucks for the second half of the season. Sundin gives the Canucks some more offensive depth, something they desperately need.

Having a big right-handed centreman is a huge asset for coach Alain Vigneault, too. Sundin may be rusty in his overall game right now, but in the faceoff circle he is already an impressive 58 per cent, something every coach looks for in big games.

With his heavy shot and poise with the puck, the Canucks’ power play, sitting at 19th in the NHL, will only get better. Sundin has a bomb for a one-timer, and as a right-handed shot, he will have plenty of chances to use it with the left-handed Sedin twins working the cycle out of the opposite corner and teeing him up with cross-seam passes. Add to that his ability to kill penalties and Sundin could have a huge impact to the team.

The move to sign him was an aggressive one, but one the Canucks felt they needed to make them a contender. With only three players in double digits in goals at the halfway point in the season, they needed some scoring.

And while Sundin’s presence will help the offence, let’s face it, the key to success for the Canucks will be a healthy Roberto Luongo.

Luongo has been out since he injured his groin five minutes into a Nov. 22 game in Pittsburgh. To their credit, Vancouver has stayed competitive without him going 10-11-3 in the 24 games he has missed, but a healthy Luongo is a must for any long-term success for the Canucks.

Thanks but no thanks to all-star

Luongo was having one of the best seasons of his career before the injury. His 11-5-2 record, 2.17 goals-against average, .928 save percentage and five shutouts were still good enough to earn him an all-star selection, despite playing just 19 games.

With so much at stake and with two months of rehab behind him, the Canucks would be crazy to let him play in the all-star game on Jan. 25 (CBC, CBCSports.ca, 7 p.m. ET). He will have only been back, at most, a week to week and a half and a groin is something that you don’t want to risk for an exhibition. Just ask Rick DiPietro, who had a similar problem last year, but decided to play only to injure it again in the all-star skills competition.

No way for Luongo. If I am Alain Vigneault, the only time Luongo would be on the ice at the all-star game would be for a team picture, that’s it. It’s time to say, “thanks NHL, but no thanks.”

The Canucks have the opportunity to get on a roll and see how much the presence of Sundin up front will change their offence, but without a healthy Luongo, the investment they made in Sundin would be a waste.

" Previous Post | Main
  •