The third time is the charm. At least that's how the old saying goes. However, the recent history between the Vancouver Canucks and the Chicago Blackhawks would not be best described as "charming."
The teams seemed to maintain a healthy dislike for each other. It's the kind of dislike that a tough Stanley Cup playoff series always seems to help grow.
For the Canucks, the Blackhawks have become their playoff demon. A demon that has ended promising runs, exposed weaknesses and seemed to reside permanently in the collective consciousness of their players and fans.
After last season's meltdown against Chicago, Vancouver looked to make some changes.
They realized that they allowed the Blackhawks to get under their skin, and eventually take them out of their game.
More interested in exacting revenge than in playing well, the Canucks embarrassed themselves and went meekly in six games.
This year is supposed to be different.
The Canucks went out and beefed up their defense. They added some depth to their bottom six and tried to lessen the mental and physical load on Roberto Luongo.
In ...
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Article written by Andrew Eide
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