The Vancouver Canucks have come a long way as an offensive team. This group is much more dangerous than previous Canuck teams, and it's a big part of why they're considered a legitimate threat to win the Stanley Cup.That said, Vancouver still thrives with their defense. Coming off a big-time meltdown in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals against Chicago, the Canucks got some bad news. One of their main defensive cogs is going to miss Tuesday's Game 3 in Chicago.
Sami Salo, who has two goals already in this series and three in the playoffs, is out Tuesday. To make matters worse, forward Pavol Demitra, who has blossomed into a key offensive contributor now that he isn't playing for Jacques Lemaire, may also miss Game 3 at the United Center.
According to Vancouver coach Alain Vigneault, Salo is "out" for Tuesday's game with a lower-body injury, while Demitra remains "questionable."I'm not sure I've ever heard it called "maintenance" before. That's actually kind of funny. Also funny is the normal NHL playoff behavior from Vigneault, who magically doesn't seem to know what's wrong with one of his best players.
"He needs some maintenance," Vigneault said of Demitra.
When pressed if Demitra's injury was a lower or upper-body issue, Vigneault replied, "I don't know."I'm sure the media totally believes that Vigneault is in the dark on this.
Complicating matters is the fact that Vancouver chose not to hold a formal morning skate Tuesday. That means that we likely won't get any answers on Demitra until pregame warmups.
