Expectations, Realistic or Not?<br/>
Deanna Schaper-Kotter<br/>
     The city of Vancouver is pulsating with excitement as the onset of the 2010  2011 National 
Hockey League season is almost upon us. Never before in the forty year history of the Vancouver 
Canucks have the expectations of winning the Stanley Cup been so high. Experts and fans all agree 
that this could finally be the year the city of Vancouver gets to hoist the Holy Grail of professional 
hockey. The long suffering faithful truly believe that the fortieth edition of the Vancouver Canucks 
have the management, ownership and players to compete with and defeat the upper echelon teams that 
stand in their way.<br/>     
Since 1970, the first year the Canucks entered the National Hockey League, 
the team has managed to make the finals on only two occasions; and only in 1994 did they have a 
legitimate chance to win. They lost the seventh game of a best of seven final to the New York Rangers 3 -2. 
They have not made the finals, or even the conference finals, since that heartbreaking loss to the Rangers. 
However, that was then and this is now; the organization as a whole has gone through a major restructuring 
during the last four years that have delivered tangible results and reason for optimism. 
The first thing the Canucks did was find an owner who actually resides in Vancouver, a man with 
extremely deep pockets, a burning passion for the sport, and a do or die desire for winning. 
Francesco Acquilini, a local multi-millionaire, took over and gave the team an identity that was 
non-existent with its previous ownership. Acquilini wasted little time putting his stamp on his 
newly acquired asset by hiring Mike Gillis as his new General Manager. Gillis inherited a team with 
a good group of core players, however, the team lacked depth because of the poor choices made by the 
Canucks when drafting young players during the past ten years. Gillis, being a former player agent, 
recognized this problem and began rebuilding the team while trying to keep his core players and 
staying within the salary cap for franchises imposed by the National Hockey League. Gillis did just that, 
he added players through trades and he brought up young talent from the minor leagues. 
Vancouver finally had a team that people could get exited about, they finished first in their division 
the last two years and went into the playoffs with the belief that they could go a long way. 
Unfortunately, the Chicago Blackhawks had other thoughts. The Blackhawks used their superior talent, 
speed, size and goaltending to defeat the Canucks in the second round of the playoffs the past two years. 
Gillis identified the three biggest problems with his team that led to their demise the past two years. 
During the off season, Gillis addressed these areas of concern; many experts are saying the Canucks 
are the most improved team in the league and are now favored to win the cup. Gillis realized that his 
defense lacked depth so he traded for two very highly regarded players, Dan Hamhuis and Keith Ballard. 
He also recognized that he needed to upgrade his third and fourth lines with bigger and more skilled players, 
so he brought in Manny Malhotra and Raffi Torres. Gillis also knew that his highest paid player and 
goaltender would need to play fewer games during the regular season so that he would be better rested 
for the playoffs. The goaltender, Roberto Luongo, who is also the captain of the squad has relinquished 
his captaincy and has agreed to play fewer games during the season. Luongo thought that being the captain 
was a distraction that took his focus away from playing. After discussing this issue with Gillis, 
they agreed that someone else would be better suited to wear the C.<br/>
     The Vancouver fans and even the media all agree that the pieces to the puzzle are now in place.
     Never before in the forty year history have the Canucks looked as strong as they do now. 
     The owner of the team is sparing no expense to make this happen, he has given long term 
     lucrative contracts to his four best players as well as providing everything from specially 
     chartered flights to nutritionists and high level coaching. The management team is highly
     motivated and very dedicated to the cause. The Canucks even have the scoring champion and 
     most valuable player in the league last year, Henrik Sedin. However, with all these lofty 
     expectations, the pressure to win must be immense for the players and the organization as a whole. 
     Forty years of futility and disappointment is always present in the back of the die-hard fans mind. 
     Hope does spring eternal in Vancouver and the buzz on the streets brings back memories of the 
     atmosphere around the Winter Olympics. Hundreds of thousands of Canuck fans eat, sleep and 
     breathe with this club and they truly believe this could be the year, but nobody is planning the parade route yet.