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As the trade deadline approaches, potential free agents are getting re-signed and talk turns toward salaries and cap hits. With the standings so tight in the Western conference, nobody's sure who the sellers and buyers are going to be yet. A lot is going to change in the next 2 weeks; heck, even the Blue Jackets are in the hunt. Tonight's contest features the extremes of cap spending, as the highest payroll in the Western Conference, the Vancouver Millionaires Canucks take on the lowest payroll in our St Louis Blues. Sitting in 4th place, compared to the Cancuk's 7th place, feels like scoring a bargain. Admittedly, it's only 2 points that separate the two teams, but holding our own against the big spenders of the league sure feels good.
Thrift Shop / Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
The Enemy: The Vancouver Canucks just played last night, losing to the Minnesota Wild 3-1. Roberto Luongo took the loss, allowing 3 goals on 25 shots against. That being the case, I'd expect Cory Schneider to get the start for the Canucks. He has a 6-5-3 record, with 2.63 GAA and a .910 Sv%. As for scoring, the usual names top the list. Overall scoring is lead by Henrik Sedin (7-19-26), followed by the goals leader Daniel Sedin (8-16-24). After that, there's a drop-off to three players tied with 16 pts. The team has been hampered by injuries, notably to Ryan Kesler and Kevin Bieksa. Additionally, the Canucks will be without the services of David Booth, lost to a lower body injury.
The Canucks have had some power play troubles, at one point going 0-for-36 before scoring with the man advantage last night. They currently rank 27th in Power Play percentage.
Further Reading:
Final Verse: It's a late one folks, with the game being in Vancouver. The puck drops at 9:00 St Louis time. The TV broadcast is on Fox Sports MW, and the radio call is on KMOX 1120 AM. The GDT should drop shortly ahead of the puck. Until then, this is your pregame warmup. Reheat the hate leftover from the 2009 playoffs, give us your favorite @Strombone tweet, and get ready for a long night.
Hilarious Luongo & Schneider Goalie Skit [HD] (via CanucksVid)
LGB!!!
-CrossCheckRaise