There’s a scene in “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves” (stick with me here) where the Sheriff of Nottingham runs through the castle to find the resident witch, Mortianna.
Now, aside from Alan Rickman telling a crow to shut up, this scene stands out for the ritual the witch uses in order to see the future. Throw some dice in some blood, make some vague but kind of accurate statements — boom! — you’re a future-predicting witch. The Alexa before there was an Alexa.
I imagine this is what happens pretty much anytime a team comes to town with struggling goalies. You write their save percentage and GAA on some dice, toss it in some blood (or Gatorade), and voila, you can predict the impending shutout. You’re now a witch who can “see into the future.”
So yes, it wasn’t much of a surprise that the Canucks lost. The minute the pregame chatter drilled down into just how badly Detroit goalies have been playing, you just knew the Canucks’ chances of winning were diminishing by the second.
But part of you still wondered if this Bruce-led team would find a way to break old habits and make this a bit of a statement game, to buck the trend of cold starts.
If anything, J.T. Miller can scream his way through the worst of the Canucks curses, right?
Alas, it was not meant to be, as the Canucks did not heed the advice to beware the painted masked man. He haunts their dreams, adorned with strange foreign markings, and walked away with a shutout.
For the Canucks, it represents the closest thing to a must-win game they’ve had this season.
Read More: The Vancouver Canucks participated in a game of hockey – The Athletic