The Canucks ’thrilling run ends in remorse, but there are lessons for the young core

Edmonton – No matter how much a team raises past expectations, even if others do what they think is impossible, any NHL season will end in defeat without any grief or regret.

The Vancouver Canc లేదుs don’t even have to do the Stanley Cup tournament this season, but they have won two playoff rounds and are away to go to the conference finals for the fourth time in 50 years of the franchise.

COVID-19 As their extraordinary season of summer, finally ended Friday with a 3-0 game 7 defeat to the Golden Knights of Vegas, sadly, there was nothing left for the skaters to draw to help the goalie. Thatcher Demco.

With the arrival of Demco in the playoffs this week, starter Jacob Markstrom was injured and the Canucks fell 3-1 to face elimination, the most unbelievable storyline of Vancouver’s spectacular six-week adventure in Edmonton.

In all three starts, the first action taken by Demco after closing the league in March, he stopped 123 Vegas shots and allowed only two goals – and still not enough to get his teammates beyond the Golden Knights.

“It clearly hurts,” said Connex coach Travis Green. “We’ve got a bunch of guys who are upset right now. That’s the way it should be. Stanley Cup is hard to win. You have to grieve when you lose.

“Most of the time when you play their first playoff game with 10 boys you go into the playoffs and you win the Stanley Cup. You have to learn … you have to learn, you have to go, you have to get up. You have to fall, get up and know how hard it is. It’s a good experience for our guys and we Very good.

“I don’t think a lot of people thought it would be a goal without going to the semi-finals. What our team did, the mental part, the physical part, it helps our team. It helps our team next year. It helps us in five years.”

Playoff rookies Elias Peterson, 21, and Quinn Hughes, 20, – finally, Knights defenseman Shia Theodore finally hit a shot through the sea of ​​players and Denko left the last 6:08 – handled the intensity and pressure of the playoff superbly and they look like superstars in this league.

Captain Bo Horwat scored 10 goals and had an inspiring tournament. Winger JT Miller took the lead overnight, with Connex defending itself better than most people thought and both Markstrom and Denko were the best. The platform has never looked bigger to Canucks.

The team needs to be better, go deeper and stronger on defense and be even faster.

“I think across the board, through our lineup, I feel there is so much to be proud of,” said veteran forward Brandon Sutter. “For the guys who experienced it for the first time, their level of combat, level of competition – some of them were only 21, 20 years old – showed a lot. I think we can all be very proud of the way we played.

“You never know when your chances of winning the cup will come. I think this year has been awesome and awesome to get back into the fight. We can be proud of what we’re done, but it gives you a little bitter taste. It makes you hungry for another chance.”

Friday’s Sour Power Play will be longer on Canak’s palm.

The strength of the team in all seasons, which failed miserably in Game 7, the lack of strength and shots at five-by-five, turned the power into the most plausible way to an unlikely victory for the Canucks.

But they only managed two shots in the 11-minute advantage, including a five-minute power play that started at the end of the second period when Golden Knights forward Ryan Reeves predicted a major penalty for a check over Vancouver’s head and game misconduct. Tyler Motte.

Shots to Vegas 36-14 with empty-net goals from Alex Tuch and Paul Stastney. The only time any team in Canucks history recorded fewer shots in a playoff game was when Vancouver defeated San Jose in the 2011 Western Conference Final – because of its power play with three goals against the Sharks.

On Friday, the Canucks power play unit did not come close to scoring against the Knights.

This is something Connex players will remember in the autumn months before the start of another NHL season.

The team, then, is different every time they play.

Career stroke, winger Tyler Tofoli and heart-and-soul defenseman Chris Tanev deserve an unrestricted free agency – and it is almost impossible for Vancouver to re-sign all three during the flat-cap crisis.

Restricted free agents such as winger Jake Virtanen and defenseman Troy Statcher, who have excellent playoffs, can also have a financial impact that brings uncertainty.

But with a young core that has been cleverly and rigorously crafted since being in Edmonton, this summer’s Connex success could only be a preview of the brightest times yet.

“From the puck drop [against] Minnesota (in the qualifying round) Until the end of the game today, we fought hard, ”Tanev said. “It is very valuable to all young people who are exceptional players. Tasting the playoffs and playing three rounds is an amazing experience for them. You know how hard it is when you lose like this, so those guys are ready to go next year. ”

At the end of his first season as captain, Horvath said: “In many ways this is the year of Hequa. I can’t behave the way our guys handled themselves on and off the ice. We played very good hockey. (Vegas is) Good team there and we took them to seven games. We must not hang our heads; We need to learn from it. We are going to learn from it. All of us have already said in the living room: ‘We can’t wait to come back next year and prove it again.’ “