A look at one Vancouver columnist’s take on Game 1:

By Iain MacIntyre, Vancouver Sun

Horns and rock music blared outside the arena an hour before faceoff. There was a deafening ovation when the Vancouver Canucks skated on to the ice and a choir of 18,000 belted out O Canada.

It was a playoff atmosphere and playoff hockey. Game 1 playoff hockey. The Vancouver Canucks beat the St. Louis Blues 2-1 to open the Stanley Cup tournament.

“You can’t beat this,” former Blue Ryan Johnson said after his first playoff game in Vancouver. “When I came out before the game and everyone was standing and waving towels, I said to myself: This is why you play the game, right here.”

The Canucks looked nervous at the start, overwound at times and occasionally undisciplined. And they were the more “experienced” playoff team, as 11 of 18 skaters on the Blues had never set foot in the National Hockey League playoffs until Wednesday.

Friday, they’ll double their playoff experience in Game 2, trailing 1-0.

The Canucks got better as the game went on, dominated the third period and won 2-1 to move within 15 wins of the Stanley Cup.

Okay, let’s not get carried away. The Canucks did what they had to do, making the Blues’ young stars disappear, limiting St. Louis scoring chances and surviving seven disadvantages well enough to win.

“It’s hard work and winning one-on-one battles,” Canuck Henrik Sedin said. “I thought we played really well. You always like to start well in the playoffs. You get on a roll. . . and we know what confidence can do.”

The process hardly matters now. After listening to daily sermons from coaches all season about systems and execution and preparedness, the process is suddenly secondary to the score. Just win.

There are no points for beauty, no pictures on the scorecard. Doesn’t matter how or by how much. Doesn’t matter whether it was earned or stolen. Just win. Worry about the flaws another day.

The Canucks can play a lot better than they did Wednesday. So, too, it’s safe to say, can the Blues.

The St. Louis organization, in the post-season for the first time since 2004, has been reborn under coach Andy Murray and president John Davidson. But the baby Blues weren’t very good in Game 1.

David Backes was dropped from the first line, replaced by veteran warhorse Keith Tkachuk. T.J. Oshie had only fleeting glimpses of the flair he displayed against the Canucks two weeks ago. Patrik Berglund was invisible, and so was David Perron except when he was taking penalties.

As St. Louis pressed in the final minute for a tying goal, still only one down because netminder Chris Mason elevated his game in the final period, it was the more experienced Blues who were on the ice: Tkachuk, Andy McDonald, Brad Boyes and Alex Steen.

The Canucks were better. Henrik and Daniel Sedin were able to create chances with Alex Burrows. Ryan Kesler was effective. Pavol Demitra and Kyle Wellwood delivered body checks. On purpose.

The Canuck defence was solid and unspectacular, as usual. Mats Sundin was terrible, but that happens some nights. Maybe he’ll be great on Friday.

“It’s not pretty, but we get a lot of wins playing this way,” Wellwood said. “It’s just nice that we played well. We didn’t have to rely too much on Louie. Our style is to play good defensively.”

Canuck goalie Roberto Luongo stopped 25 of 26 shots, but except for a couple of power-play saves against McDonald, was not required to be spectacular. He did, however, have to be alert.

On their first shift, Canuck defencemen Shane O’Brien and Kevin Bieksa, without pressure, managed to squeeze the puck dangerously across the Vancouver goalmouth.

That was indicative of the jitters coursing through players on both teams in the playoff-opener. Even the referees looked nervous, as veteran Dan O’Halloran and junior partner Chris Lee seemed determined to put their stamp on the game. There were 13 power plays.

The Blues scored on one of their seven, but were blanked during a two-man advantage that lasted 1:39 in the first period. Canuck Ryan Kesler blocked a pair of shots by Brad Boyes.

“Nowhere else I’d rather be,” Kesler said.

Mission accomplished. Hopefully that slogan won’t haunt the Canucks the way it did George Bush.

“It’s going to be a tough series,” Henrik Sedin said. “It’s 1-0. Nothing’s over.”

As promised … our friends from Vancouver have weighed in with a prediction of their own on the Blues-Canucks series. (I left it unedited because I like the way Canadiens use a “c” instead of an “s” in words … like “defencemen.”) Here you go:

Elliott Pap, Vancouver Sun

The teams split their four-game season series and were among the best in hockey since January. For the Canucks, the turnaround coincided with the return of goalie Roberto Luongo. The Blues performed a second-half miracle playing without top-four defencemen Eric Brewer and Erik Johnson.

On offence, the Canucks have a balanced attack, with five players hitting the 20-goal mark and another, Kyle Wellwood, at 18, but the Sedin twins are still the main cogs and key to the offence and will be under pressure to perform. On defence, the Canucks have a nice blend of size and experience. The only thing lacking is a puck-rushing/power play quarterback.

The Blues have a Stanley Cup winner in centre Andy McDonald, while warhorse Keith Tkachuk will be on a mission in perhaps his last chance to win a Cup. They’re complimented by a group of dangerous young forwards in David Backes, T.J. Oshie, Patrik Berglund and David Perron. Brad Boyes is dynamite on the power play with 16 goals.

In goal, Luongo has a great regular-season resume but his playoff portfolio is reed-thin. Chris Mason’s playoff resume is even lighter than Luongo’s: one win in five games. So who wins? The Blues could, if they pressure the Canuck defence with a heavy forecheck and create turnovers that turn into scoring chances. But the Canucks should, especially if Luongo performs like the elite goaltender he’s been in the regular season.

Prediction: Canucks in seven.

THE WATERCOOLER

QUESTION: It’s prediction time … The Blues and Canucks will kick off their seven-game series tonight in Vancouver. What do you see being the key areas in how this series plays out, and who comes out on top?

JEREMY RUTHERFORD

There’s a lot of pressure on the Canucks and virtually none on the Blues. Fans in Vancouver are waiting for the big contract given to Mats Sundin to pay off, they’re waiting for the Sedin twins - Henrik and Daniel - to produce in the playoffs and they’re waiting for Roberto Luongo to prove he’s a goalie that can take them deep into the postseason.

Meanwhile, the Blues aren’t supposed to be here. They aren’t Cinderella . . . instead folks should start calling Cinderella “The Blues.” And yet while they’re underdogs, they were 2-2 against the Canucks in the regular season, and that was with Chris Mason not playing as well as he has shown this season. Mason is 1-3 with a 3.44 goals-against average and an .863 save-percentage against the Canucks this year.

The edge may come in the special teams. The Blues have the No. 3-ranked penalty-kill and the No. 8-ranked power-play in the NHL and those categories will become even more important in the playoffs. If the Blues can play physical, continue to get balanced scoring and Mason can come close to matching Luongo, they can beat the Canucks.

Prediction: Blues in six.

DAN O’NEILL

For the Blues, the key areas will be stopping those darn Sedin twins, pounding on 38-year-old Mats Sundin and scoring ugly goals against elite goaltender Roberto Luongo.

To that end, the Blues have to win the special teams battle. They were better than Vancouver with both the penalty kill and the power play units during the regular season, and that must hold true. Obviously, Chris Mason has to make big saves and bail the team out when the opposition pressures. And it wouldn’t hurt to have Brad Boyes get hot.

For the Canucks, the biggest key is Vlade Divac look-alike Luongo. He has been outstanding since returning from an injury and he can win a series single-handedly. At the same time, Vancouver has to get balanced scoring from its forwards. During the regular season, five different Vancouver players scored 20-or-more goals, with the emerging Alex Burrows scoring 28 to compliment Daniel Sedin’s team-leading total of 31.

Prediction: This is truly a toss-up, but Canucks in seven.

JEFF GORDON

The Blues have tons of momentum coming into this series. Sadly, the Canucks are rolling, too. Vancouver has the edge in goal, with Roberto Luongo, and on defense, where the Canucks are highly skilled. Vancouver also has the home-ice advantage.

So the Canucks ought to win in six games. But . . . I’ve picked against the Blues down the stretch and they kept winning. So maybe this continued negativity is good Karma.

Prediction: Canucks in six.

ROGER HENSLEY

Let’s keep this simple and take the emotion out of it. The Blues are the better team right now. As Bill Parcells is fond of saying, “You are who your record says you are.” And the Blues record since January says they are ready to compete and win this postseason. I say they steal one game in Vancouver and win all three while playing to the crowd at Scottrade. A tall order? Maybe. But using that math it adds up to …

Prediction: Blues in six.

KEVIN WHEELER (Host of “Sports Open Line” on KMOX)

Three days ago on the Blues post-game show, right after the 1-0 win in Colorado, a caller asked me if I thought the Blues were going to beat the Canucks. While allowing for a change of heart after a few days of consideration, I said I thought Vancouver would probably win.

Well, I’ve had a change of heart.

The Blues are loose, playing better hockey than anyone in the NHL over the last 40 games - and the last 10 games for that matter - and the weight of the world is on the shoulders of the Canucks. The tension here in Vancouver is palpable. There are questions about key Canucks’ players, like the Sedin Twins and Mats Sundin, and whether or not they’re “playoff tough.”

Plus, Vancouver is Canada’s great hope for the 2009 playoffs. It’s been 16 years since Lord Stanley’s Cup made it’s home in Canada (1992-93 Canadiens) and the pressure is clearly on this Vancouver team. It all adds up to a Blues series win to me.

Prediction: Blues in six.

ANDY STRICKLAND (Hockeybuzz.com, KFNS)

First off, how great is it to once again be breaking down the Stanley Cup Playoffs? Only if my dog didn’t chew up my passport I’d be in Vancouver!

Just because it’s the playoffs doesn’t mean you are forced to change your game. You want to continue to do the things that got you here. Obviously if you see something Vancouver is doing on the PP or PK you may be forced to make an in-game adjustment, but besides that, the Blues don’t need to worry about changing what they do.

It is important however that the Blues get to the Canucks “D” on the forecheck. Vancouver’s D-men are all mobile skaters who have the ability to move the puck quickly. The Blues need to prevent guys like Ohlund, Edler, Bieksa, and Salo from making their usual long stretch passes through the middle of the ice. The Blues will try to make Vancouver go D to D and force them to go up the boards when they are leaving the zone.

My point here is that a strong forecheck will cause problems, create turnovers, and allow St. Louis to spend a lot of time in the offensive zone. My other point is that everything needs to be taken to the net hard. Don’t pass up chances to shoot the puck and it’s important the Blues forwards drive hard and makes things as difficult as possible for Vancouver all-world goaltender Roberto Luongo.

It goes without saying the Blues checkers need to be successful in keeping Vancouver’s top offensive players off the score sheet. This is no different than any other game, but the Jay McClements of the world have an opportunity to create a strong reputation as quality NHL shutdown players.

It’s going to be a long, physical series and the Blues need to make life miserable for the Sedins, Sundins, Keslers, and Demitras of the world. If the Blues can do this they can win the series, and I think they will. It’s critical they get a split in the first two games.

Enjoy the playoffs Everybody.

Prediction: Blues in six.

THE WATERCOOLER

QUESTION: With 10 games to go, how many total points do you think the Blues need to secure the eighth and final playoff spot; and assuming they were to do so, where do you see the points coming from on the remaining schedule?

JEREMY RUTHERFORD
The 11th-place Blues will need at least 90 points to make the playoffs. That’s based on the premise that one of the three teams ahead of them in the West — No. 8 Nashville, No. 9 Anaheim, or No. 10 Minnesota — will win seven of its last 10 games and reach the 90-point plateau. (Teams 6-13 in the West have each played 72 games, so no one has any games in hand as of today). So with 75 points and needing 90, the Blues must earn 15 of the remaining 20 points on the schedule to give themselves a chance. You can say the Blues need to go 8-2, 7-2-1, 6-1-3 . . . whichever way, they need 15 points.

Assuming the Blues pick up those 15 points, let’s forecast where they’ll come from:
Tonight vs. Los Angeles: 2 points
Thursday vs. Vancouver: 1 point
Saturday vs. Columbus: 2 points
Sunday AT Columbus: 1 point
April 1 AT Chicago: 1 point
April 2 AT Detroit: 0 points
April 4 AT Dallas: 2 points
April 7 AT Phoenix: 2 points
April 10 vs. Columbus: 2 points
April 12 AT Colorado: 2 points

DAN O’NEILL
I think the Blues may need at least 15 points in their last 10 games to secure a playoff spot, beginning with a home game against Los Angeles tonight. They have a three-game stretch that will be especially difficult — at Columbus March 29, at Chicago April 1 and at Detroit April 2. There also is a game at Dallas on April 4 to deal with.

It is reasonable to suggest they can win the other six games on the schedule, so they have to find a way to get three points out of those four games, be it a win and an overtime loss, or even three overtime losses. Pivotal to the cause will be beating Vancouver at home on Thursday and beating Columbus at home April 10.

The challenge is mighty for a young team that has to be growing weary of playing for its life, night in and night out. But, regardless of the outcome, it beats the heck out of last year’s lead balloon finish.

TOM TIMMERMANN
The rule of thumb is you need 90 points to make the playoffs, but this year should be an exception and 87 or 88 should do it in the West. So the Blues need to get 12 points from their final 10 games and the way the schedule shakes out, I’m envisioning a mad dash to the finish. They can get four points from their next three games, with LA, Vancouver and Colorado, and then it looks like three straight losses: at Columbus, at Chicago, at Detroit. That will leave them at death’s door, but the schedule shapes up with four winnable games down the stretch, all of which they will likely have to win: at Dallas, at Phoenix, Columbus and at Colorado. I’d only rate it about a 40 percent chance, and they can’t afford to have Nashville, Anaheim or Minnesota get hot. It’s tough that the Blues don’t play any of those teams.

ANDY STRICKLAND (Hockeybuzz.com, Team 1380)
I look at the remaining games as nothing more than a ten-game season. It’s a ten-game race with the best team advancing to the playoffs. After each game the Blues will assess their health and move on to the next opponent. Blues management has been scoreboard watching all season long and you know their eyes will be all over the Western conference throughout the final ten games.

This is the real March Madness.

The problem is Nashville already has a two-point cushion on the Blues and leads Minnesota and Anaheim by a single point. Right off the bat I am going to eliminate the Minnesota Wild. They, along with the Blues, have the toughest schedule of the teams fighting to get in. Like the Blues they play four home and six away but they are staring at a four-game road trip that begins tonight in New York and ends in Western Canada. They will also visit Detroit in the first week of April.

Let’s assume Nashville wins only half of their remaining games and loses one of their five in overtime or a shootout. That would mean the Predators would collect at least 11 more points the rest of the way. Under this scenario the Blues would need to collect at least 13 points over the next ten games to tie the Predators, where the Blues hold the tie-breaker. Nashville does have head-to-head meetings with Anaheim and Minnesota remaining.

Anaheim is also looking at four home games vs. six on the road with head-to-head meetings with Nashville and Dallas. They still need to go to Vancouver and will battle San Jose in back-to-back games. Not an easy road for Anaheim either.

I see the Blues finishing with 89 points. It may not be enough but you never know. How do they do it? They need a minimum of five points on this upcoming three-game stretch. I have them beating LA and Columbus but losing in a shootout or O.T. vs. the Canucks this Thursday. The five-game road swing will ultimately determine their fate. To be honest. I don’t usually go through the schedule and say here is who they’ll beat and here is who they’ll lose to, but for the sake of this blog entry here are my predictions.

I predict St. Louis earns a single point in Columbus this Sunday, beating Chicago, losing to Detroit, losing to Dallas, and beating Phoenix. The club will return home to defeat the Blue Jackets and then close out the regular season in Colorado with a victory giving the Blues 89 points on the year.
I’m not convinced a 6-2-2 record over the final ten will do it but it most certainly could. It will at least keep the season interesting and entertaining which is more than what Blues fans expected when the club was pretty much buried just a few short months ago. Enjoy!

KEVIN WHEELER (Host of “Sports Open Line” on KMOX)
The short version: The Blues just need to be one game better than the three teams right ahead of them the rest of the way if they’re going to get the 8th seed. If all three teams ahead of the Blues play the final 10 games at the same pace they played the first 72, then Nashville will finish with 88 points and both Anaheim and Minnesota will finish with 87. That means the Blues will probably need at least 13 points to get in. The Blues win the tiebreaker against Nashville because they won the season series.

If they do get that 8th spot I think it will have been the result of getting 6 points for beating the Kings, Coyotes and Avalanche, managing 3 points in their three remaining games against the Blue Jackets and then finding 4 more points somehow in their games against the Canucks, Blackhawks, Red Wings and Stars.

The Blues are 16-8-6 in their last 30 games and even at that torrid pace (which would be good for 100-points over 82 games) they’d finish 5-3-2 in their last 10, netting 12 points. As good as they’ve been the past two months they need to be just a little bit better here at the finish line. Or they need to get some help.