Goalie Cory Schneider of the Vancouver Canucks stops Milan Michalek of the Ottawa Senators during the third period in NHL action on Nov. 20, 2011 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia.Rich Lam/Getty Images
On the inside of goalie Cory Schneider's blocker, there are a few words in black ink inscribed in small block letters on white hockey tape: "Don't fear failure. Compete. 100%. Play for others. Enjoy the process."
He's had the words there since he tended net in university in the mid-2000s for his hometown Boston College Eagles. The 25-year-old Vancouver Canucks backup calls them "mental notes."
On Sunday night, as he backstopped the struggling Canucks to a much-needed 2-1 overtime win against the visiting Ottawa Senators, Schneider hardly looked like he needed the inspiration. With star goaltender Roberto Luongo still nursing a mystery upper-body injury, Schneider in his second-consecutive start was strong from the start of the night to the end. In overtime, he made several key stops to give his team the shot at victory on a night when the Canucks did not look great.
"Some times you win ugly," said Schneider of the Canucks' win, which improved the team's record to 10-9-1 but didn't help in the standings, a ledger where the team remains mired in 11th place in the Western Conference.
For the Sens – widely predicted to be the top contender for last place in the Eastern Conference – the overtime loss was a disappointment but came with a point, enough to lift the ragtag team of veterans and rookies into eighth place in the East at 10-9-2, ahead of fading Washington and behind surging Boston.
It was a case of almost for the Senators, who had previously beaten Toronto, Calgary and Edmonton on the road before arriving in Vancouver. The team outshot the Canucks 29-27, with the likes of Jason Spezza constantly buzzing, notching five shots, including a near-winner in overtime. Milan Michalek, on left wing, banged four shots on Schneider but could not increase his season goal total past 12, which ranks second in the league.
Schneider called the win "hugely important" for the Canucks, a team still searching for momentum and its best form one-quarter of the way through the NHL's long 82-game regular season.
"You never want to lose two in a row, especially at home."
As the Canucks head off for a three-game roadtrip – Colorado on Wednesday, Phoenix Friday and San Jose Saturday – the team didn't seem frustrated after the what looked like a so-so outing, especially given that they were looking to put a 5-1 drubbing by Chicago last Wednesday behind them.
"We'll take the win," said Daniel Sedin, whose pass to brother Henrik in the second on the power play opened the night's scoring.
The Sens have surprised many and Daniel described the team as "very good" offensively. He said he was happy with the Canuck's defensive effort. All in, however, the team is "off and on – not consistent enough."
The return of Alex Auld
Alex Auld must like something about the sea air in Vancouver, or maybe the vibe at Rogers Arena. The 30-year-old Sens goaltender, a backup through most of his career, had the one real shot of his career for a starting role for the Canucks back in 2005-06, before the arrival of Luongo. Then-starter Dan Cloutier went down with a season-ending knee injury and Auld fared well, going 33-26 for a team that didn't make the playoffs – and he was named the team MVP. He thereafter was sent to Florida in the trade that brought Luongo to the Canucks.
Auld started on Sunday night in place of the Craig Anderson – and came to the match with the league's worst save percentage (0.823) and second-worst goals-against-average (4.23). While his 2011-12 record worsened to 0-3-1, and the Canucks didn't exactly hammer him with a Stanley Cup-like performance, the netminder from Cold Lake, Alta. was solid, stopping 25 of 27 shots.
Canucks power play
The one big bright spot for the Canucks this season has been their power play, which is No. 1 in the league. The team entered last night's game with a better than one-out-of-four conversion ratio of 26.7 per cent, even more sterling than last year's league-leading 24.3 per cent. But in the first period, it didn't look so hot, as the team managed a paltry three shots on two power plays. The breakthrough came in the second, when captain Henrik Sedin scored from in front of the net, on a shot that deflected off Ottawa defenceman Chris Phillips's stick and slipped through Auld's five-hole. The Canucks were one-for-four with the man-advantage on the night.
Help!
Once again, Schneider's teammates did little to help the goaltender. In his past three starts, the Canucks twice managed a single goal and were shut out the other time – while Schneider gave up 13 goals in the three games to book losses for each outing. The last drubbing came on Wednesday in Vancouver when the visiting Chicago Blackhawks won 5-1, a match that was close at 2-1 until midway through the third.
Schneider delivered the game he had hoped, after getting off to a 2-4 start this season. Coming into the game with a save percentage (0.904) and a goals-against-average (2.76) that ranked him about 30th among the league's goalies, Schneider was looking to begin to recapture the form he reached last year, when he was 16-4 during the regular season. He knows he'll never been the No. 1 in Vancouver and has to prove his NHL bona fides on an erratic schedule. On Sunday, after the morning skate, he was happy to have two consecutive starts. "When you play more frequently, you think less, which is a good thing," Schneider said. "You just go out there and play."
For the Canucks, the value of Schneider's success is twofold. First, obviously, wins are wins – and a reliable backup is a great asset. But there will come a time, relatively soon, when the Canucks look to trade Schneider, and hot numbers will bring more to Vancouver in return.
David Ebner