PLAYOFFS? PLAYOFFS?! DAY 17: CANUCKS COWBOY UP TO TIE SERIES

Canucks 2 Ducks 1 in double OT (Western semi tied 1-1): When the pace started to lag about halfway through the first overtime, it begged the question of whether the game-winner might come from among the forwards who had not played a lot. Apparently, blind squirrels do find an acorn: Canucks winger Jeff (Cowboy) Cowan, who'd played only 12 1/2 minutes across the first four periods, won it for Vancouver on a bad-angle shot from inches in front of the goal line 7:49 into the second OT. The most important part of the play was that he had enough jump to beat his check at centre ice and dump the puck into a corner, where Trevor Linden retrieved it and poked it to Cowan, whose shot apparently surprised J.S. Giguere.

The Canucks' injury woes are getting a lot of attention. Anaheim should come under scrutiny since its fourth-line forwards Ryan Shannon, George Parros and Scott Thornton barely left the bench. It's a whole other thing to have a full roster, but not use it.

Blogging god James Mirtle, as you would expect from a Canucks supporter who lives in Ontario, hung in for the duration, and no doubt he is a very happy man right about now.

Sabres 3 Rangers 2 (Buffalo leads the Eastern semi 2-0): The knock on the noggin TSN's Pierre McGuire took in Game 1 might have fubarred his circuits. Witness:

• He called Buffalo's Chris Drury "Captain Fantastic" after he scored the tying goal. OK, that's not the least bit weird, but shouldn't that be Co-Captain Fantastic? What is Daniel Briere then? Lieutenant Wonderful?
• After the Sabres took the lead, he observed, "You know that movie Sleepless in Seattle where the lady says, 'I'll have whatever she's having?' I wonder what Lindy Ruff is having right now." It seems that he was referring to a line from When Harry Met Sally.
• Along with Captain Fantastic and Meg Ryan film references, there was Gord Miller screaming, "Lindy Ruff is hot! Lindy Ruff is hot" when the Sabres coach became irate over an apparent missed offsides call in the final seconds. At that point, a lot of red-blooded males started to feel just slightly uncomfortable.

That's all for now. Send your thoughts to neatesager@yahoo.ca.