Canucks vs Flyers tonight, New Episode otw

We will be posting Episode 48 of WAACH shortly, gonna be a great game. You'll have to pardon my voice in this one, woke up sick as a dog again, and just got back from the Doc (xrays and such) ... Leafs lost a close one last night, Carolina taking that game 7-1. Are you freaking kidding me? And people have the audacity to call Toskala the next Luongo? He isn't fit to cover Roberto on a bathroom break...

Random stuff

The Oilers appear to have come back down to earth after a loss to the Red Wings last night. Let's face it, if Chris Chelios scores, you really don't deserve 2 points. Ottawa kept rolling meanwhile with a 4-2 win over New Jersey. Alfredsson, Heatley and Spezza are just amazing right now. And how about Martin Gerber? It's early, but this could be one of the best turnarounds of the season. Washington gets outshot 31-12 and still comes out of a sold out Nassau Coliseum with a 2-1 win. 3-0, are they for real? Time will tell, but Kolzig looks good so far, and they are getting balanced scoring.

Jason Blake battling Leukemia

From TSN this morning, some terrible news about newly signed Jason Blake:

"TSN.ca Staff

10/8/2007 12:19:39 PM

The Toronto Maple Leafs announced on Monday that forward Jason Blake is battling a rare form of leukemia.

"This morning I shared with my teammates news that I was diagnosed with Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia," Blake said on the team's website.

"It is highly-treatable, and I have begun taking a pill on a daily basis that has proven to be very effective in controlling this cancer. The prognosis, and certainly the expectations of my physician, myself and my family, is that I will live a long, full and normal life. This situation will not impact my ability to live my life as I otherwise would, and will not affect my ability to perform at my highest level for the Toronto Maple Leafs. I'm looking forward to my first season with the Leafs and helping our club compete for the Stanley Cup."

Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) is an uncommon type of cancer of the blood cells.

Related Info

• July 1: Leafs sign Blake to five-year deal

It's considered chronic leukemia because it usually progresses more slowly than acute leukemia, sometimes over the course of years.

CML is not a solid tumor that can be surgically removed, but the prognosis for people with chronic myelogenous leukemia may be improving because of new medications to treat the condition.

Although a bone marrow transplant may still be an option, many people with chronic myelogenous leukemia are able to manage their condition long term with the use of chemotherapy-like pills.

The team added after Monday's practice that they will be mindful of his condition.

"Jason will be able to continue to play fully with the team and will be monitored closely by both the team's physician and his CML specialist," team doctor Noah Forman said.

It's the second time that Blake's family has been affected by cancer.

In March of 2001, Blake's wife, Sara - eight months pregnant with their first child - was told by doctors that she had thyroid cancer. Blake left the team to be with her, and Lauren Blake was born March 20 after Sara underwent an emergency Caesarean section.

Sara had a portion of her thyroid removed without complications shortly afterwards, and the lump that was removed was determined not to be cancerous.

Toronto signed Jason Blake to a $20 million, five-year contract on July 1.

The four-time 20-goal scorer finished with career highs in goals and points (69) while playing all 82 games with the New York Islanders last season."

Terrible news, but hopefully they are correct in the diagnosis that it is treatable and he makes a full recovery. We wish him all the best for a speedy and full recovery. Sure we kid Leafs fans, but at times like this we are hockey fans. Hang in there, guys.

Sunday Worship

hat tip to sspyndel on CDC

Sunday Blog Roundup

A little delay in posting the post-game show, as I deal with this damn cold coming back again... so a new feature here on WAACH, the Sunday Blog Roundup will highlight some great articles that you may have missed during the week...
* Alanah at Kukla's Corner has some Jeremy Roenick love, plus a look at last night's game
* The boys at Orland Kurtenblog have provided a handy Do's and Dont's list for watching Canucks games this season...
* Over at Stick In Rink, Isabella introduces the Canucks Regular Season Fan Care Package
* The Chief Canuck has a breakdown of last night's game
* The Yankee Canuck gets us through the Sharks game, um...well lubricated
* Waiting For Stanley weighs in on the Burke vs. Lowe saga
* James Mirtle highlights some of the rookies to keep an eye on
* In honor of Thanksgiving up here in Canada, we bring you the Battle Of Alberta's Thanksgiving Ditty
* Covered In Oil has some issues with Kevin Lowe's new 4 year contract...

Canucks 4 Flames 3 OT

Couldn't have picked a better time to come in late to a game than this one. We got back from Nanaimo with about 10 minutes remaining, and while I still think it was a pick play on the 3rd Calgary goal, nice to see the boys bounce back and get the winner just before the shootout. Phaneuf looks good in the box for the winner, too. I guess if there's one thing that's disappointing as a Canucks fan, it's that Iron Mike is the guest on After Hours. So that means they will have to put off the profanity-laced tirade until tomorrow morning.

And for those of you interested, since in our rush to head out on the highway this afternoon we forgot to post it here, it's episode 47.

Will have a post-game show tomorrow, but I will need to watch the replay tonight so I can see the first 3/4 of the game...

And oh yeah, it is sooooooooooo not surprising I find I am unable to sign in on CDC right now lol.
Let's hope this doesn't happen every time we beat the Flames, eh?

Second Intermission

A much better effort, with a lot of chances, but it looks like Nabokov is on top of his game tonight. That powerplay looked really good, but it really emphasized how much we need to stay out of the penalty box, as we really haven't had much of a look at the Sedins, Nazzy and co. Ryan Shannon had a great period, and Mitchell made amends for his gaffe in the first with some strong play, especially on the 5 on 3. It's gonna be hard, but they can still do it. An early goal to change the momentum is crucial.

First Intermission

Well gee whiz, what the h-e double hockey sticks was that? Not the start they wanted at all. I want to not blame Luongo, as two of those weren't really his fault, but the Thornton goal... meh. Either way, not the game anyone was expecting from him. As far as positives go, Ryan Kesler looked really good, as did the Sedins, Naslund and Ryan Shannon (though he will probably having nightmares about that open net tonight). As far as defense, Aaron Miller has looked good, as has Bieksa and Krajicek. Lots of hockey to play still, and Roenick isn't going to get any more bounces like those tonight. Watch for a strong comeback in the 2nd.

Episode 46

Pregame for the Canucks and Sharks and our Eastern Conference preview right here .

Why you should never run around high fiving...

until you know for sure... just ask Nathan McIver.
The Canucks have made their cuts... and then a move with another cut. On Monday the Canucks announced their final cuts to get the roster to 24. They released Dan McGillis, and sent the following 7 players to Manitoba:
Luc Bourdon, Mike Brown, Patrick Coulombe, Jannik Hnasen, Micheal Grabner, Jason Jaffray and Rick Rypien. That means that Ryan Shannon, Mason Raymond and Nathan McIver can step forward to the Opening Night lineup. Not so fast Nathan. He was sent to the Moose today as the Canucks claimed D Mike Weaver off waivers from the LA Kings.

Brendan Morrison expects to play Friday night, as does Alexander Edler. Roberto Luongo revealed his new mask today, but when you click the link at canucks.com to see pictures of the new design, you get a message saying "Oops! A system error has occurred.

Sorry for the inconvenience. Please click here to continue.

If problem persists, please try again later." along with the NHL logo. Maybe the Rangers are on to something...

And finally... from TSN's NHL Season Preview, James Duthie interviewing Roberto Luongo (thanks to Dr. Death of CDC for posting it on youtube), and congratulations to Roberto and his wife Gina who are expecting their first child... no word on the rumor the baby will be named Jesus.