The Sedins have become masters of spin over their years in the NHL, both on the ice, spinning opposing defenders with the cycle, and off the ice, spinning the Canucks鈥� lows into highs in the media. So, when one of the Sedins loses his relentless positivity, it gets noticed.
By Sedin standards, then, Daniel Sedin lit into his teammates after their loss on Saturday night, calling out the lack of effort. It was startling, to be sure, but if anyone has earned the right to speak that way, it鈥檚 Daniel, whose consistent effort game after game throughout his career is a model for his teammates.
The speculation after the game, both on social media and on TSN1040, was that Daniel鈥檚 frustration was a sign that the Sedins may have some new teammates in the near future. Do the Sedins want out? Have they had it with Vancouver? Is this the end of the road?
Slow your roll, folks, this has been a tad overblown.
Here鈥檚 the interview itself, starting at 2:00:
Those are definitely some strong comments: 鈥淭he effort should always be there. It doesn鈥檛 matter where you are in the standings, what kind of team you are. That鈥檚 not good enough.鈥�
When asked about the confidence of the Canucks鈥� youth, Daniel didn鈥檛 pull his punches: 鈥淐onfidence, you get that from working hard. It鈥檚 not about points, it鈥檚 not about that, it鈥檚 about working hard. If they don鈥檛 have confidence, it鈥檚 because they don鈥檛 work hard enough.鈥�
Regarding what needs to change: 鈥淭his is too tough a league to just go out there and hope. You鈥檝e got to work for you chances, you鈥檝e got to work for your teammates. Once we realize that, I think we can be a good team.鈥�
Combine Daniel鈥檚 interview with Elliotte Friedman鈥檚 post-game comments on Hockey Night in Canada and you get the perfect conditions for wild speculation.
Friedman put together a well-reasoned argument for why the Sedins and the Canucks should, at the very least, have a conversation about their future in Vancouver. He suggested it might be in their best interest to play for a contender for a couple seasons before returning to 麻豆传媒映画to retire as Canucks.
He wasn鈥檛 suggesting that the Sedins and Canucks absolutely should part ways, though it鈥檚 understandable why he might have been misunderstood, as Nick Kypreos couldn鈥檛 keep his mouth shut for five seconds to let Friedman speak. If anyone should be frustrated enough with his teammates to leave, it鈥檚 Friedman.
To my ears, Daniel didn鈥檛 sound like someone who wanted out. Instead, it sounded like someone who plans on being here for many more seasons and wants to ensure that the younger players who he鈥檒l be playing with for years to come are putting in the requisite effort and hard work to get the team back into contention before he retires.
It鈥檚 the same reason , subtweeting the Oilers:
鈥淵ou don鈥檛 want to be happy with losing,鈥� he told TSN 1040. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a dangerous road to go down, especially with young guys coming in. We鈥檝e seen other teams around us where it becomes okay to lose, and we can鈥檛 have that. You have to try and create a winning culture.鈥�
That鈥檚 not a player that wants out of Vancouver; that鈥檚 a player who wants to stay in 麻豆传媒映画and wants the team to be better in the near future.
You even saw the spin come back at the end for Daniel: 鈥淚 think we can be a good team,鈥� he said, but, y鈥檏now, they鈥檙e not. They鈥檙e not going to be a good team this season, at least, no matter how much effort they give. They have too many injuries, not enough skill, and not enough experience.
But they could be a good team, or at least a better team, next year. Or the season after. Or after that.
The Sedins should be there for all of them.
听
