Over the Edge + March 16, 2011 13 Canucks Claim the goal JARROD WEISNER CONTRIBUTOR ONLINE SOURCE It Ain’t Over ‘Till It's Over How hard is it to start an article with a question? Not as difficult as you’d think when it comes to asking Vancouver Canucks fans their origins and where they stand among the other twenty-nine teams competing for a champion title of ‘the best of the best’ each year. The year of our peak, 1994, has come and gone, and reimbursement of talent such as we proclaim in the year of our Lord Stanley, 2011. However, again | ask my fellow fans, how is this possible? Record years, my fellow club-wielders, record years. And let’s face it, since the club came into effect in 1970, we native Canadians have been itching, literally scratching our eyes red at the chance for a record homeland dominance over the American saturation the National Hockey League has endured since the appointment of Gary Bettman as president of that organization; the sole individual, might | add, was previously employed by an internationally recognized sports league (heard of the NBA?) and tanked it hard into the ground while chewing his martini olive and stroking his pussy cat. The one thing Canadians clutch as closely as a Robson mistress does her Gucci purse, is our identity. If you are sitting here and wondering what our identity may be, you are clearly not born and bread for this taste of butter on the table one could call competition. Canadians represent everything that is whole and close to the heart; we are multicultural, protective of our rights and freedoms, and fed up with how the rest of the world views us as a nation without a solid stepping stone of beliefs. Why do we accept everyone? Because Canada believes we are elite among many — there are no boundaries, no limits on what you may achieve within our country — we are vast and free, true and brave. The National Hockey League is no different. Four of the original six teams may have begun within the United States, but it is Canada who had the last laugh when push came to shove. It’s history - it is our calling. What on Earth does this have to do with the Vancouver Canucks in 2011, you ask? Destiny. This isn’t only dynasty (which Canucks fans have proven to guard at all costs), this year is long overdue. Standing strong alongside our gold medal-winning goalie Roberto Luongo, we have our near-perfect rookie tender Cory Schneider, who isn’t a man to take lightly. Luongo is a goal-stopping machine that can only improve on his ability to puck-handle (we get a little nervous, don’t we?) and control his rebounds. Roland Melanson can praise his product all he wishes as the past three years his All-Star goalie has only seen half-time effort from split- time goalie coach lan Clarke. He deserves the respect in the way one has witnessed Luongo’s glove-side become more of a safety than a liability. Again, let’s begin with a question. Is it right to consider a team based solely on their goaltending abilities? Yes, absolutely. Who else is going to stop the pucks? Don’t get me wrong, shot blockers such as Ryan Kesler and Alexandre Burrows, as well as fore- check specialists including Jannik Hansen and summer acquisition Manny Malhotra, have seen their fair share of turnover time. However, with an increase in the pure skill and talent that these players have had, one can only imagine the effect it has on the backbone of the team — the goalies. Roberto Luongo and aggressively-reliable backup Cory Schneider have proven they are more than willing to support a top team: counting solely on the scoring prowess divided between the Sedin twins and Alexandre Burrows, as well as the highly touted second line sharpshooting of Ryan Kesler, Mason Raymond, and Mikael Samuelsson. By the end of the summer 2010 and beginning of training camp in September, Canuck fans everywhere understood that this year was vastly different as compared to the last forty years. Vancouver has not one sole leader, but several. This team has not one sole goaltender, but two. Our Canucks have not one scoring line, but three out of four. And the fourth? A punishing, crushingly massive gore of players including proven offensive talents Tanner Glass and Maxim Lapierre, as well as rough em’ up hard-hitter Chris Higgins. Could we ask for anything more?Let’s be greedy. Let’s call up Gary Bettman and declare our year. One does not fly without height, one does not fight without might. Our Canucks sweated punishment, and we yearn for a goal that is now within reach. This is our time, and we must claim it. It has been nearly half a century, seasons good and bad, of a dynasty without repayment, and | have to be honest, Canada, our time is due. We are next in line, poised and and proper and madly proud. We are all Canucks. UNBC Biathlete Loves Canada Winter Games Student-athlete Allie Dickson discusses her experience at this year’s games in Halifax BROCK CAMPBELL SPORTS EDITOR For Allie Dickson, a BC Team biathlete, the 2011 Winter Games in Halifax this February, was a moment she'll never forget. “It was just so much fun.” said Dickson, a Burns Lake resident currently attending UNBC, “I met so many great people, the opening ceremonies were so exciting, and the entire arena was full. It felt like the Olympics, but on a smaller scale, and the people of Halifax were amazing.” Dickson, who’s been competing in biathlons for six years, qualified for the games by placing in the top four at the Canmore North American Cup last December. In Halifax Dickson raced in three categories, the 7.5 km sprint, the 12.5 km individual, and the 10 km pursuit. The biathlon which incorporates shooting and cross-country skiing varies depending on the category. The sprint consists of three laps and shooting twice, once from the prone position (lying down), and once from standing. on the other hand the individual race requires shooting four times, alternating from prone to standing, and in the pursuit, skiers start at intervals separated by time differences from a previous race, usually the Sprint. In each category athletes are penalized for missing targets, in the individual race, time is added on to skiing time for each target missed, and in the pursuit and sprint, skiers must complete a 150 metre penalty lap for each target missed. In the sprint and pursuit, Dickson, who struggled with injury all week and didn’t shoot as well as she has in the past, placed twenty-fourth and finished seventeenth in the individual. “| wasn’t really pleased with my final results” said Dickson, whose best career finish was eighth at last year’s nationals, “| could have shot a lot better, it’s usually the area | excel at, and also my shins got to me.” Dickson suffers from compartment syndrome, which is the compression of nerves and blood vessels in the muscle compartment, leading to her fighting through immense pain up and down her legs every race. Despite the awful pain, the upbeat Dickson admits she always enjoys herself, “I always have fun that’s what it’s all about.” The biathlon season continues for Dickson as she prepares for the 2011 Nationals held in Charlo, New Brunswick, March 20-27. She is looking forward to improving on last year’s results but says it can be pretty grueling juggling a full course load while training six times a week. Dickson also has her sights set on qualifying for the next University World Games, also known as Universiade, hosted by Slovenia in 2013. Although she'll be too old to compete at the next Canada Winter Games held here in Prince George in 2015, Dickson, who’s been cross-country skiing for as long as she can remember, hopes to be involved somehow. “| know | want to coach in the future. If I’m not coaching by then I'll definitely be volunteering.” Dickson also added, “It’s awesome that the games are coming here, | can’t wait. The games are a great opportunity for Prince George and the surrounding area to show off all that northern B.C. has to offer.” Whatever her involvement may be, you can be assured Dickson will be having fun doing it. BROCK CAMPBELL Allie Dickson with her medal from the Canada Winter Games