Our man Roberto Luongo, goal tender for the Vancouver Canucks, has been out for the last four games because of a rib injury he received in a game on December 2nd. Now, he is benched and Canuck fans are terrified that also benched are any hope we may have at a chance at the Stanley cup this season.

Now, at first glance it may not seem all that bad; after all, we have only lost one game since he has been benched. True enough, but the simple fact is that Curtis Sanford just does not have the experience in front of the net we need to continue to play at a world class level.

The ‘Nucks defense based strategy is based around Roberto Luongo being in front of the net, and if that is going to change, then so must the Canuck’s defense strategy.

Right now rumors are flying everywhere about Roberto Luongo’s injuries. Personally, i am thinking he will be out for several more weeks, but boy do I hope I am wrong.

Yes, it is sad, but the cold hard truth is that we are just not a good enough team (at least, not using our current strategy) to win a lot without Roberto Luongo.

The rumors are flying on the internet forums and in the sports pages; Some sources are saying Roberto could be on the ice as soon as the game tonight against Edmonton, while there are “insiders” on the Canuck’s forum saying they “heard from someone” that he could be out as long as four weeks.

One thing is now certain, however: He was obviously hurt much worse than we thought. What was supposedly a bruised rib has now turned into something so serious he has trouble breathing… Reportedly, it is his decision to still travel with the team, as he was told to go home and rest.

Hurry up and get better, Roberto. We need you!

The good news first; The Canucks beat the Anaheim Ducks last night, with a final score of three to two. It is always good to win, and there were several reasons why this victory was particularly sweet, but we won’t go into that here (go read the Canucks web page if you want game coverage). After all, we are the Roberto Luongo fan blog, not the Canucks fan blog.

The bad news: Roberto is on the injured list, sitting out his second game in a row because of a rib injury he received in the Minnesota game.

How long will he be on the bench?

We do not know and the Canucks are not saying. We do know that Roberto says he is taking it day by day, and that he is not rushing it.

Good luck, Roberto, and get well soon.

“It just got worse over the last two days, and I’ve been in pain all day,” Luongo said. “I was trying to see how I felt in warmups, but it wasn’t good enough for me to go. It’s not broken, but it hurts when I breathe and it hurts when I move. It’s tough to do your job under those circumstances. It’s day to day right now. Hopefully it’s just a few days. It’s almost got to heal on its own.”

We hope so too, Roberto.

His presence was missed last night in the Staples Center, as Curtis Sanford guarded the goal in Roberto’s place, performing a respectable 27 saves. Sadly, the rest of the team was just not up to that level, and the LA Kings just rolled on over them, with a final score of 4-2.

Will Roberto play in Wednesday’s game against Anaheim? Well, no official word has come down yet, but we sure hope so.

Roberto Luongo managed 25 saves in last night’s 3-2 victory, it being his sixth straight start.

“It was an ugly win for us,” said Luongo. “At the same time, it was a good road win. We’ ll take the two points and move on to Nashville tomorrow. I didn’t feel my sharpest that I’ve been over the last few weeks. Sometimes you’re going to feel like that; you can’t always feel great. But the important thing is you have to battle through these situations and make sure you’re sound technically.”

Things got a bit tense at the end when Roberto made a save with 33 seconds left in the game to preserve the win. Let’s hope for the best tonight in Nashville.

Roberto Luongo can only do so much.

As I mentioned earlier this year, the Canucks depend on Roberto waaaay too much. Never was this more evident than on Sunday night, when the rest of the Canucks pretty much phoned the game in, for all intents and purposes. Roberto on the other hand had a hell of a game, with 28 saves for the night.

Lest you think I am alone in my praise for Roberto, check this quote out.

“He played as good as I have seen him play,” Minnesota coach Jacques Lemaire said. “We had a lot of great chances, good shots from angles, or even in front in the high slot.”

Even the opposition praise him.

Our man, the world class Goaltender for the Vancouver Canucks Roberto Luongo, has done it again. Last night in General Motors Place Roberto shut out the Columbus Blue Jackets, with a final score of two to zip. This is the third shut out in a row for both the ‘Nucks and for Roberto. Luongo’s shutout streak now officially sits at 193:56. That surpasses the old club record set by Ken (Spider) Lockett in the 1974-75 season. Lockett posted back-to-back goose-eggs on the way to a shutout streak of 184:20.

Roberto was, as is typical of himself, modest and quick to share the glory.

“I think the whole group should feel good about themselves,” said Luongo. “It helps to know that the guys are doing a good job taking away back-doors and slot plays and rebounds and stuff like that. It just gives me the opportunity to challenge a bit more.”

The team and coaching staff was having none of it, however.

“Anytime you get an athlete like that that’s on top of his game, it’s just a whole different scenario,” said head coach Alain Vigneault. “Roberto right now is really focused and really sharp and has done a great job for us.”

Defenceman Mattias Ohlund:

“He plays just like this most games he plays and obviously the last three games he’s been unbelievable,” said Ohlund. “He gives us a chance to win each and every night. Especially us defenceman, I think you appreciate that a lot.”

Even the opposition paid their respects. Rick Nash of Columbus, when asked about the puck he shot and Roberto stopped:

“We didn’t bury our chances when we had good ones,” said Nash. “When you play against that kind of goalie you really have to work him and we weren’t good enough tonight.”

The NHL record is held by Brian Boucher, who posted five consecutive shutouts during the 2003-04 season on his way to a scoreless stretch of 332:01. Boucher made 146 consecutive saves during that run. Dare we hope?

A much anticipated game in light of the history these two teams have, all eyes were on Roberto as he save 26, with 15 saves in the action filled first period.

Obviously last season was on everyone’s mind, including Roberto’s. Here is what he told the AP about the game:

“Well definitely we had [last year’s playoffs] in the back of our heads,” said Luongo, who now has three shutouts this season.”They’re the team that eliminated us last year and it was important for us to try to get the win and we did a really good job on that especially once we got going in the second period.”

For Canucks. we are always happy to see any win, but a shutout is especially sweet. For Roberto’s fans, we love seeing the big man in top form like he was last night. Now we are sitting on pins and needles to see the outcome of this Thursday’s game against Columbus.

NOTE: I know I missed Sunday’s shutout over the Blackhawks. My laptop had severe issues and I was off-line for about 4 days. However, Santa came early with a new laptop, so all is back in order now and we resume our regular blogging efforts.

Whatever it was, the ‘Nucks went down to St. Louis and got their butt kicked last night as the Blues rolled over them and won, 3 to 1.

So what exactly happened? Well, no one really knows. Yes, the got more shots on goal than we did, and yes, Roberto got a bit sloppy (I rally do think it might have been too much turkey…) and let 2 goals past him that he should not have, but in the end, we have nothing less (and certainly nothing more) than what we have had many other times this season; a game we lost that we should have won.

It could just be my imagination, but everyone on the Canucks seems resigned to the fact that they are just gonna suck this year.

Even the coach seems a bit too… laid back to me. Like this quote:

“I thought our guys played hard. I thought both teams played hard,” Canucks coach Alain Vigneault said. “There’s probably two of those three goals that Roberto would like to have back there, but sometimes those are things that happen. It was just a tough start. We tried to battle back and we weren’t able to.”

How about… “We suck”!

As Canucks fans, we are thankful for the win last night over the Wild, coming in at 4 to 2, Vancouver. I know you all look forward to my putting pics from the game up, but Roberto Luongo sat out last night (perhaps to be with his wife and family for Thanksgiving?).

Instead, the back up goalie Curtis Sanford sat in and helped the Canucks achieve victory. One thing I was very happy to see was the Canucks were actually shooting, getting 26 shots on goal. It is not rocket science… when we shoot a lot, we win.

I hope all of you enjoy today with your family, whether you celebrate Thanksgiving or not, and I hope we can continue our winning ways against St. Louis Friday night.