Who knows how far Vancouver will go in these Stanley Cup playoffs, but the
fact that they’ve advanced to the second round is – in very large part - a
tribute to their spectacular goaltender, Roberto Luongo. To paraphrase Mark
Twain, rumors of Luongo’s playoff inexperience affecting his performance were
greatly exaggerated. Specifically,
his save on Stu Barnes in the third period of game seven against the Dallas
Stars will heretofore be known as The Save, capital letters required. Barnes
still has his stick raised in anticipation of the red light flashing behind
Luongo, but the guy they call Louie was able to stretch that 6’3 frame and snare
that shot between his left arm and left leg pad. It was an enormous save,
absolutely brilliant, and it was made even more so by the fact he left no
rebound. And make no mistake, Luongo appears quite capable of getting in the
heads of the highly favored Anaheim Ducks. If he does, the series will go a lot
longer than many pundits are predicting. For him to steal the series, however,
would require some offense from his teammates, something they showed precious
little proficiency at in their series against Dallas.
*****
As I was watching game six between the Lightning and the Devils last weekend,
the legendary line uttered by the late, great Jack Buck came to mind. You know,
“I can’t believe what I just saw!” New Jersey forward Travis Zajac had broken in
alone on Tampa Bay’s goalie Johan Holmqvist but seemed to lose an edge as he was
skating down the slot and fell to the ice. Now from one angle, it appeared he
may have had his skates taken out by a Lightning defender, so I could understand
why a minor (for tripping, I believe) was called. But Zajac was also called for
diving. Diving? On a breakaway? I can still hear Mr. Buck.
*****
Of all the memories from this year’s first-ever appearance by the Thrashers in
the playoffs, I think the most memorable for me is the way his teammates reacted
to Scott Mellanby when the final horn had sounded at Madison Square Garden, and
the Thrashers were officially eliminated. Player after player skated to Mellanby
and embraced him, fully aware it was likely his final game as an NHL player. As
you know by now, it was indeed his last game, and Scott
has officially retired from the NHL. His teammates’ reaction at the end of
game four – amidst what had to be profound disappointment – was a poignant and
eloquent statement of the esteem in which they held their captain. It was an
impressive showing of respect, much deserved for one of the NHL’s great leaders
and people. Scott Mellanby learned very early in his career what it took to be a
winner, on the ice and off the ice, and he will be sorely missed.
