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Last night's win starts our official ascent upwards to the Stanley Cup. A wise man once said "You can't be number one if you can't beat number 30"

TCISO with the statement that matters.

The fun starts now. Losing is now constructive. Trades are for future excellence. We can watch a team get better.

The question would be how much we want to see that

An interesting clip of comments from a TBL post wishing Douglas luck in Vancouver:
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Tciso wrote: ↑Sat Mar 07, 2026 8:18 am Last night's win starts our official ascent upwards to the Stanley Cup. A wise man once said "You can't be number one if you can't beat number 30"

Yeah.

Seriously, with a 10 point cushion to hold last place, and 20 games left..

I would like to see the first 10 games be 1-7-2
And the last 10 games see us go 8-2

Still finish last by 4-5 points, but end the season with a few wins that might stop the ‘losing culture’ from creeping in.

Madcombinepilot wrote: ↑Sat Mar 07, 2026 11:35 am Still finish last by 4-5 points, but end the season with a few wins that might stop the ‘losing culture’ from creeping in.

I think that's a little optimistic. The losing culture is here - a few wins to finish out the year would be "something to build on" - and get players to show up for training camp.

Madcombinepilot wrote: ↑Sat Mar 07, 2026 11:35 am And the last 10 games see us go 8-2

...and then our owner will think we have turned a corner and all we need is Stenberg who will bring EP back from the dead.

Finally the true story came out:

Hughes, Miller, Pettersson, Lindholm, Demko, and Tocchet are huddled in the All-Star locker room. The vibe is electric—a rare, dangerous spark of Canuck optimism.

"Look at us," Miller says, slapping a table so hard his "A" almost vibrates off. "The Pacific is ours. Demko’s a brick wall. Petey’s sniping. I think we’re actually going to be the first Canucks to lift the Cup."

Suddenly, the lights flicker and the smell of stale Pacific Coliseum popcorn fills the air. The temperature drops to a bone-chilling -32. A figure in a heavy-knit, blood-stained 1970s jersey drifts through the door, gripping a vintage wooden Northland stick like a battle-axe, with a fresh, ghostly drip of Ted Green’s blood on the blade.

"A Cup?" Wayne Maki’s voice rattles the lockers like a puck off a post. "I didn’t put up 63 points for an expansion team and face a judge for a stick-swinging duel just to listen to you boys talk about 'dreams.' I see nothing here but soft hands and expensive haircuts. The next time you back-check, Miller, will be the first."

Tocchet stands up, trying to out-stare a ghost. "Listen, Wayne. We’re bringing back that 'hard to play against' style you started. We’re re-establishing a Never-Quit identity!"

Maki lets out a hollow, terrifying laugh that sounds like the 1970 draft wheel spinning into a brick wall. "Identity? Rick, your team let a guy from New York wear my number because he had a few rings and a chip commercial. You traded my legacy for a 'leader' who stole the captaincy and sued the team for extra cash while I was busy making sure the lottery balls stayed stuck on 'Loser' for eternity."

He points the blood-dripping blade at Elias Pettersson. "I see you, Petey. You’ll be rich! For those millions, I would’ve taken Ted Green’s head off twice a night and stayed for the 5-minute major. I see your future—that contract isn't a reward; it’s a gilded cage. Your jealousy with Miller’s will generate enough spite to power the Skytrain and an inevitable locker-room collapse."

He drifts toward Demko. "And you, Thatcher - so proud. You’re the best they’ve had since Luongo, which means the Curse is going to hit you twice as hard. By 2026, your groin, your hip, and your knee will be in a three-way tie for 'Most Likely to Snap.' Sami Salo will look at your medical records and feel pity. You’ll be watching from a hospital bed while Boeser leads the team to the worst plus-minus in the decade. Soon I’ll be skating faster through mud than he’ll be moving on a breakaway."

Maki looms over Tocchet, the wooden stick hovering inches from his nose. "Keep talking, Coach. By the time I’m done, you’ll choke on that 'Never-Quit' mantra. You’ll lead the rats off this sinking vessel so fast you’ll leave a wake. The whispers of 'quitter' will follow you wherever you go. Your Captain over there? Your Stanley Cup leader. He’ll be one of the rats following you off my sinking ship. You’ll all return to Vancouver as tourists, realized you never belonged... just more failed statistics in my record book."

The ghost began to fade, raising his stick in a final, menacing salute. "Enjoy the All-Star game. This is the highlight of your Canuck’s career. Until the team exorcises Messier from my sweater, the only thing you’re winning is my patience for your repeated collapses and failures. I’m going back to the lottery room to make sure the first-overall pick falls to a team that actually deserves to win a Game 7."

The lights snap back on. The room is silent.

Lindholm is the first to break the silence. He stands up, his movement slow and deliberate, and begins stuffing his gear into his bag with cold, clinical precision. He doesn't look at Tocchet. He doesn't look at the captain. “To hell with this," Lindholm says, his voice flat, stripped of all the fake locker-room "brotherhood" bravado. "I’m not re-signing with this team.”

Miller doesn’t even try to be the leader anymore; he just spits on the floor, his eyes darting toward Pettersson with pure, unadulterated venom. "You hear him, Petey? You’re going to screw up the whole team!”

Pettersson doesn't flinch. He just stares at the floor, his expression hardening into something cold and unrecognizable. "Good," Pettersson mutters, his voice dropping into a dangerous, jagged register. "Leave. Get the hell out of Vancouver with those two, go to the KHL for all I care. Just don't expect me to keep carrying the weight of a centre who won’t back-check!”

Tocchet stands in the center of the room, looking at his players—his "never-quit" team—and seeing only a collection of mercenaries waiting for their big pay days and escape strategies to kick in. He looks at his whiteboard, where his All-Star line-up is written out in dry-erase ink. He wipes it clean with his sleeve, leaving a streak of grey smudge that looks exactly like a cloudy Vancouver sky.

"Maki was right about one thing," Tocchet says, his voice devoid of any coaching intensity. "None of you belong here. You were never built to survive this. Get out of my sight before I start charging you for the therapy I’m going to need to forget I ever took this job."

As the players rush to get out of the locker room—their footsteps heavy, their eyes avoiding one another—the silence returns. The only thing left in the room is the faint, mocking scent of stale popcorn and the lingering, spectral chill of a franchise that has officially given up on being a hockey team and accepted its true identity: a multi-million dollar monument to human suffering.

Jesus that's dark....and brilliant!

Well, that one needs to be framed.

Excellent read. I was transfixed until the end. Will there be a sequel?

Hockey Widow wrote: ↑Sat Mar 07, 2026 1:59 pm Excellent read. I was transfixed until the end. Will there be a sequel?

I hope not
But you never know when I’ll listen to The Sound of Silence on loop for 24 hours straight again.

Goddamn - that was beautiful. It's the first entry in our "Hall of Fame"

Love it, great job?