The Vancouver Canucks have a three game road trip coming up, and lord knows it won't be an easy one.

First up are the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday. The Sharks are currently 8 - 7 - 2, but more importantly they are 4 - 1 - 1 at home. Their one home regulation loss came courtesy of the Minnesota Wild back on November 5, and they lost in a shootout to the Dallas Stars this past Saturday. Teams they have beaten at home include the surprisingly good Nashville Predators, the slow to heat up Calgary Flames, the abysmal Chicago Blackhawks and the equally terrible Columbus Blue Jackets.

The Canucks recently suffered through a three game losing skid, which ended with their win over the league leading Detroit Red Wings on Sunday. Todd Bertuzzi scored a hat trick, and Anson Carter added a goal to make the final score 4 - 1. Pavel Datsyuk was credited with the only goal for the Red Wings, a flukey bounce off of Canucks defenseman Sami Salo.

The Canucks are going to have to show that they learned from their mistakes in order to win this next game. Another flat start could spell disaster, even against a team that is currently sitting at the bottom of the Pacific division along with the Ducks. The Sharks have lost their past three games and will be looking to end that streak. So far they have been decent at home, while the Canucks have struggled on the road, winning only three of their nine road games to date.

The good news is that Canucks netminder Dan Cloutier is back and playing quite well after a few games off due to a concussion suffered in the October 27 loss to the Colorado Avalanche. Todd Bertuzzi has apparently shaken the rust off and found some confidence. The bad news is that the defense still has quite a few holes, which management currently seems unable to fill.

Nolan Baumgartner has played as well as can be expected from a 30 year old AHL regular. Steve McCarthy, who hasn't impressed either, is still out with a groin pull that has seen Wade Brookbank back in the line-up on defense. Brookbank's limited ability and ice time has meant the top four defensemen taking on more minutes than they can probably handle for an extended amount of time. Sami Salo is reportedly complaining about feeling burnt out already. Another injury to this team, especially on defense, can be nothing but trouble.

Word on the various message boards is that the Canucks are quietly shopping for another defenseman, an interesting notion given their cap constraints. Canucks scouts were spotted at a Leafs vs. Capitals game last week, but who knows if that will amount to anything. Could a trade be in the cards?

There may be some other light at the end of that tunnel. Kevin Bieksa, a Manitoba Moose defenseman who has been out with an ankle sprain for the past nine weeks or so, recently started skating again and would be a good choice for a call-up. Many expected Bieksa to land a job with the big club before his injury. Here's hoping.

Up Next: The Origins of Towel Power (aka A Lesson In Asking Questions)

Mmmn, it's got that new blog smell still.

This here is going to be my Canucks only blog. And I'm going to put effort into it and everything. Of course right now I am just really gung ho about it but chances are, I'll forget about it and it will be neglected like all my other little projects.

So to start off, a little about me.

Name: Tamara

Age: 23

Location: Vancouver, BC

Favourite Player: This is where things get tricky. My first instinct is to say Todd Bertuzzi but I also have a lot of love for Jarkko Ruutu. So generally I say those two, but then my brain starts screaming "What about Trevor! And Clouts! Naslund! BMo! Matty-ass!..." See? Basically I love all of them, but some of them I love a little more, and some of them, a little less.

Puck Bunny Status: Negative. Yeah, I'm a girl. Yeah, I think some of the players are cute. But don't you dare call me a Puck Bunny or I might have to tear you a new one. I admit, however, that I do have my origins in Puck Bunny-ness. I grew up in a hockey town (Grande Cache, AB - Hometown of Dean McAmmond - barf) but was never really caught up with it. Most of the guys I knew who played were major jerks, so I associated the sport with them. Shortly after I graduated high school, I moved to Vancouver. It took me 2 years of living in this city before I realized that 1) Vancouver has a hockey team and 2) that hockey team is rad.

In the beginning, I had no idea what icing or offside was. I knew it was usually a bad thing, but I couldn't recognize it when it happened. I watched the Detroit - Vancouver series (this was back in 2002) and, although the Canucks lost in the first round, I was hooked.

That following summer, I met my current boyfriend, a hockey obsessed boy from Port Coquitlam. He helped me make the full transition. I started out screaming obscenities at the television and asking questions after every play, and thankfully he was very patient with me. Now, I can actually appreciate a great play, a nice pass, and yes, I do know what icing is. And, let me tell you, it's not just for cakes. I still ask questions now, but mainly they are questions about random trivia or things that happened before my time. I wasn't there for the 1994 Cup run, but I cry whenever I hear about it or see pictures from it. And I will most definitely be there for the 2006 run.



Basically I think that is enough for now. You get the idea.

Up next: Hopefully I'll do a quick yammer about the last game, and talk about the game to come. It should be good times, I promise.