Some hockey games yield great stories, heroes, big goals, and clutch plays. This post is not about those games. This post celebrates weirdness, a quality the 87 games of the Vancouver Canucks’ 2011-12 regular season and playoffs had in spades. In fact, there were enough odd little moments this year for us to create a list of our favourite 10 bloopers of the 2011-12 season. What follows is a countdown of the funniest, oddest, and most unexpected stuff that happened on the ice this year.
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10) Linesman Mark Wheler cops a feel
Appropriately, Kevin Bieksa’s snicker-worthy encounter with linesman Mark Wheler took place the day before Valentine’s Day. Just after a whistle, Bieksa tried to flick the puck off the glass and catch it behind his back. He almost pulled it off, but instead the puck rolled down his backside. Wheler attempted to grab it before it hit the ground, but he just wound up grabbing Bieksa’s ass, to the amusement of notorious five-year-olds, John and John.
09) Henrik and Thomas hug it out
The 2012 All-Star Game may have featured the unlikely hockey hug of the year, as Henrik Sedin, playing for Team Alfredsson, went crashing into Team Chara’s Tim Thomas just after brother Daniel scored. Henrik managed to stop in time to avoid bowling Thomas over, but not in time to avoid making some contact: The two wound up in an awkward and adorable embrace at the side of the goal.
08) Alex Burrows taunts Mike Richards about recreational drug use
It probably wasn’t the nicest thing to do, but not long after being laid out by Mike Richards in the dying seconds of Game 1 between the Canucks and the Los Angeles Kings, Burrows dragged his finger underneath his nose twice in reference to Richards’s alleged “party lifestyle”. According to Jason Botchford, cameras failed to catch the follow-up routine, where the Canuck pest scooped some ice chips onto the blade of his stick and offered them to Richards. That puts the “awful” in “awfully creative.”
07) Henrik Sedin catches Salo’s flying stick
This curious incident happened in the second period of the Canucks’ 5-3 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs just before Christmas. As Clarke Macarthur attempted to find a Tim Connolly pass in his skates, he lifted Sami Salo’s stick with such force that it took off into the air, twirling end over end. As the whistle blew for an offside, Henrik Sedin casually skated underneath the stick and sntached it out of the air like a wizard.
06) Daniel Sedin heads the puck into the zone
Not to be outdone when it comes to dealing innovatively with mid-air projectiles, Daniel Sedin one-upped his brother in the following game with one of the most unique zone entries you’re going to see. Just after Alex Burrows lobbed a puck into the neutral zone, Daniel avoided Pavel Datsyuk’s backcheck pressure by refusing to let the puck hit the ice. Instead, he played it into the Detroit end off his head. It was weird.
05) Kevin Bieksa throws a glove
With 20 seconds to go in a 5-2 blowout of the Minnesota Wild, Cal Clutterbuck got it in his head that he wanted a piece of Dan “Community Man” Hamhuis. As a scrum developed, the officials stepped in front of Kevin Bieksa, who wanted to step in and defend his defence partner. Undeterred, however, Bieksa made Clutterbuck fully aware of his disapproval by throwing a glove at him. Said Bieksa afterwards, “During my release I wondered if it was a good thing, then after my release I knew it was a good thing.”
04) Luongo flails, gives birth to Bieksa
In a November game versus the Los Angeles Kings, Kevin Bieksa got tangled up with Roberto Luongo during a hectic penalty kill shift in the Canucks’ end. Luongo wound up sitting on Bieksa and flailing his arms in an attempt to keep the puck out. He looked like a big fat hen. Appropriately, when the pressure subsided, Luongo stood up and suddenly Bieksa emerged from the net like he’d just been hatched..
03) Chris Higgins and his amazing abs
Canuck fans noticed something in Higgins’s first full season with the team: he doesn’t wear an undershirt. This led to a second observation: the man has incredible abs. On more than one occasion, this was captured on film, such as during this Hockey Night in Canada replay in which he adjusts his hockey pants and inadvertently flashes his abs to the world.
In a game versus the Nashville Predators, Ryan Kesler took the puck to the net with authority. As he did so, Mike Fisher pushed him forward, and in an attempt to avoid Nashville goalie Anders Lindback, Kesler leapt into the air. He wound up landing on the top of the goal, and when the puck dropped in behind the net, Kesler decided the fastest way back there was a straight line. It was the first time in recent memory a player had gone over the net rather than around it. It won’t catch on: it looked awkward and inefficient.
01) Vernon Fiddler breaks Alain Vigneault
The blooper of the year comes courtesy of Alain Vigneault, who couldn’t help but laugh at Vernon Fiddler’s “Angry Bieksa” face. And it wasn’t just a little laughther. Vigneault broke down completely, eventually attempting to hide his teary-eyed face with his lineup card while he composed himself. It didn’t help. According to Vigneault, it was the team’s 6th game in 8 nights and he was very, very tired.
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Raj
April 29, 201287 games?
Harrison Mooney
April 29, 20125 playoff games. I’ll amend that to make it a little more clear.
Brent
April 30, 2012Only 5 playoff games….sigh……
Lucky
April 29, 2012Regular season= 82 + playoffs = 5 for a total of 87!
Ginger
April 29, 201282 reg + 5 (sadly) playoff games
Mary
April 29, 2012The reflexes shown in clip #7 still astound me to this day.
Lucky
April 29, 2012# 1 was the best. Also lu sitting on bieksa haha
Ginger
April 29, 2012#3 will always be my favourite. ALWAYS.
Kate Fullerton
April 29, 2012Ugh, this makes me want to watch Canucks hockey SOOO bad!!! The next 7 months are going to be the longest months in my entire life…
Canucksgold
April 30, 2012Yes, this just reminds me of how entertaining games can be.
Winsy
April 29, 2012I could watch Alex Burrows chillin’ any time! By that I mean I could look at Chris Higgins’ abs any time!
I totally don’t remember Bieksa throwing the glove at Clutterbuck, but I remember Lapierre’s spearing penalty was rescinded.
For #1, can you find the video of Vern Fiddler’s Bieksa impression that goes with the Alain Vigneault part and post that instead? There’s one floating around out there. John and John have NO idea what was going on.
I was right there to the side of the net when Kesler went over it! Another strange thing about that game was that we got to see ALL 4 goalies as Cory Schneider AND Pekka Rinne were both pulled. That doesn’t happen often.
And the Wizardous Sedinerie… ’nuff said!
Nee
April 29, 2012I love the Bieksa glove one. And Henrik catching the stick. Wizard!
Anyone else feel like there’s a big gaping hole without Canucks hockey right now? I know it’s only been a week but I’m already in withdrawal. I can’t believe there’s 5 months (b/c pre-season doesn’t really count) until hockey again. Watching these other teams just isn’t the same.
Ugh.
Burrinator
April 30, 2012Oh how I love this team <3
Trufan
April 30, 2012Biggest blooper= Kassian for Hodgson. C’mon!
Brent
April 30, 2012Classic stuff. Watched some bloopers on TSN a while ago and they definitely had the Kessler over the net and the header by Daniel. I think they also had the laughing AV, but not so sure. Saw it so many times on here, after hours etc that memory s fussy.
Andre
April 30, 2012If you’re gonna show bloopers like these, then you have to add new Keslurks and Schneider impressions to the collection.
Harrison Mooney
April 30, 2012No sir. These are on-ice bloopers. Those are off-ice shenanigans. They’ll get their list, don’t you worry.
Canucksgold
April 30, 2012Oh, can hardly wait for that. An off ice shenanigans list!
immie_8
April 30, 2012Woohoo! Can’t wait!!
Betty Ostwald
April 30, 2012Really enjoyed these.
Reply to “Anti Casuckq” about his comment calling Sedin’s soft sisters
and Burrows a rat. also Bieska overrated,your only jealous of these
top elite players that have no problem getting a president trophy two
years in a row. they will only be better next year also. I doubt if
your team can match their accomplishments.
iceman
April 30, 2012Finally, all is not lost. These “lighter moments” make me smile again albeit briefly.
All the more reasons I miss Canucks hockey soooooooooooo much…
rob
April 30, 2012think you have to include Cory’s losing a shut-out in Dallas by trying to play the puck behind the net, falling down and having Fielder score into an empty net.
Believe Cory did this twice this year, making him the biggest fan of abolishing the trapezoid.
Brian Beitz
April 30, 2012Does #7 remind anyone of Happy Gilmore’s caddy snatching Happy’s club out of the air after he throws it in a fit of anger?