Week In Review – February 22, 2016

The last month of the MMJHL season looks like things are going right down to the wire. The teams on the playoff line are fighting for their lives trying to make that last push, Teams between 3rd and 6th place are jockeying for position in the standings,
desperately trying to acquire that all important home ice advantage in the first round. The top 2 teams are battling it out for top spot in league play. This has resulted in all games having meaning and no teams able to coast into the finish line. For
the Canucks it’s all about trying to attain that 4th position in the standings. A realistic possibility at opening up the first round of the playoffs at the Civic Centre. But more importantly, going into the playoffs with confidence and playing hard is
what the coaches would like to see heading into the second season. Right now for the Nuckers, they are trying to overcome some adversity, acquire back some confidence and get back to their identity of what got them to this point in the season.

Adversity pokes it’s ugly head in many different forms. For the Canucks, it has come in the form of a three game losing streak. All be it each game has been a one goal loss (exception of empty net goal in last game), the Nuckers have found themselves
striving for the consistency in their game they were getting in the first part of the season. The Nuckers have dropped a 4-3 loss to the lowly Twins, a 4-3 loss to the 1st place Raiders (after relinquishing a 3-1 lead in the 3rd) and a 3-1 loss to the
Knights last night at the Civic Centre.

Sometimes during losing streaks a team will push to hard, cheat on doing the little things and get away from the identity that got them where they are. Tuesday night the Canucks face the Jets in a pivitol match up, this may determine where the Canucks
will end up in the standings. The team will not focus on the end result but the process that will get them there. Using their team speed to their advantage, finishing checks, staying discipline and getting pucks and bodies to the net will all be
important factors that will help lead the Nuckers to victory.