At least it wasn’t embarrassing

It’s a long fall from Alex Burrows slaying the dragon to let’s not embarrass ourselves.

When that becomes the rallying cry, to not lay an egg on Easter Sunday at Rogers Arena, you know the physical and mental strain of trying to find something — anything — to view as a moral victory was going to resonate to some degree with the Vancouver Canucks.

After all, it’s not about wins now. Not with six injured regulars and six rookies trying to match skill and will with the Chicago Blackhawks. Not with the NHL draft lottery creating all the buzz.

It’s now about structure and systems and accountability and not embarrassing themselves. And that’s where you went looking for moral victories Sunday in a 3-2 setback that made it eight-straight losses — the last such sorry string came in January 2009. The defending Stanley Cup champions were even playing the back half of a double-dip and had won just two of their last eight games.

Burrows scored his first goal in 10 games to remind us the march to the Stanley Cup Final was five long years ago. He nearly scored again in the third period in the dying seconds of an ineffective four-minute power play. Ah, memories. But even a trying season of transition shouldn’t be this bad. Is there a lack of confidence?

“I would think so, for sure,” said Burrows, who was on that 2008-09 club that lost eight straight. “It affects you a little bit. A few years ago, when we couldn’t lose when we were tied or up a goal going in the third, we knew we would lock it down and get a win.

“Now, we’re not making the right reads and we’re hoping and cheating a bit.”

The Canucks had a huge advantage in hit totals, but beating the best means the margin for error has to be minimal. When Patrick Kane easily fended off Dan Hamhuis and got the puck to Trevor van Riemsdyk, who fed an untouched Teuvo Teravainen for a 2-1 lead, the stick slam of Jared McCann said it all.

They didn’t embarrass themselves. Sven Baertschi converted an Emerson Etem centring pass with 5:52 left before Andrew Ladd ended the suspense.

MARK VAN MANEN/PNG Canucks goalie Ryan Miller has the first goal of the game, by the Chicago Blackhawks forward Tomas Fleischmann, get past him during the first period at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on Sunday. Chicago went on to win the game 3-2.