Canucks preparing to slay the Dragons
Swept Drumheller in regular season
As the Calgary Canucks prepared to open their AJHL playoff campaign, they were trying to strike a balance.
On the one hand, the Canucks had thoroughly outplayed their first-round opponent, the Drumheller Dragons, throughout the regular season and a little confidence can go a long way.
On the other, though, the slightest hint of complacency could come back to haunt them.
“I think confidence is a good thing to have for a team that hasn’t really won in the past,” said Canucks GM/ head coach James Poole. “You have to go back a long way, to the 1990s, to find a Canucks team that’s had success come playoffs.
“So knowing we had success against Drumheller this year and had success this regular season should give us confidence.”
If the regular season is anything to go by, the No. 3-seeded Canucks should be the heavy favourites in the series with the No. 7-seeded Dragons. The Canucks (37-19-4) played the Dragons (22-33-5) six times during the regular season, with all six games ending in victories for the Calgary team.
The Dragons aren’t exactly entering the postseason on a hot streak, either, although a victory over the Olds Grizzlys in the final game of the regular season snapped an eight-game losing streak.
Make no mistake, though, the Dragons have the weapons to hurt the Canucks if they’re not on their game, as forwards Jordan Taupert, Cody Young and Chad Hurtubise are dynamic offensive threats who will capitalize on any Canucks mistakes.
The Canucks, on the other hand, have the ability to roll out four offensive and three defensive lines that can all do damage, something that could have an impact if the series goes to five games.
“The strength of our team is our depth and our goaltending,” Poole said. “We’re hoping that’s going to be the difference. If we’re able to get contributions from everyone we think we’re going to be a tough team to beat.”
Poole also believes that while the six wins over the Dragons matter, the way those wins went down could benefit his team as well. Not all of the games were blowouts, by any means, with one game going to a shootout and another to overtime.
With back-to-back games on Thursday and Friday to start the series — both at Max Bell Centre at 7 p.m. — neither the Canucks or the Dragons will have much time to find their feet. The series will then shift back to Drumheller for games on Sunday and Monday before, if necessary, returning to Calgary for Game 5 on Wednesday and a 7 p.m. start at Max Bell Centre.