Naslund, the True Ca By Garth McLennan, Sports Editor for the game winner last season. Lp ‘Pees Vancouver Canucks history, our city hasn’t exactly been the Detroit Red Wings in producing and procuring hockey heroes. The ones we have, or have had, quickly jump to mind: Pavel Bure, Trevor Linden, Roberto Luongo, and of course, Markus Naslund. The Sedin twins might be on that list eventually, but they are not there quite yet. Due to the relative scarcity of superstars, Vancouver has a habit of heaping mountainous expectations on its top calibre players. This can be extremely trying and taxing mentally for some players. Take the case of Pavel Bure. Unfortunately, Bure’s time in Vancouver ended on a sour note. After seven years with the Canucks, Bure was fed up with team management and was more than happy to escape Vancouver’s fishbowl atmosphere towards its hockey team. Now this is no slight on Bure. Pavel Bure was without a doubt one of the most phenomenal and electrifying players ever to put on a pair of skates. However, some players thrive on the intense scrutiny Vancouver places on the Canucks, while others get tired of. Vancouver is not an easy place to play hockey in. Every detail about the team is rigorously analyzed and scrutinized by almost the whole town. While many cities are like this in multiple sports, not every athlete can withstand the pressure of playing in such a popular market. One player who has played his entire career with class is current Canucks captain Markus Naslund. Naslund has been a Canuck for 12 years. Drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round, 16" overall in 1991, Naslund came to the Canucks during the 1995- 96 season, in one of the most lopsided deals in franchise history. He was acquired in exchange for Alek Stojanov, who scored exactly two goals for the Penguins in two years before fading into obscurity in the minors. Throughout his time with Vancouver, Naslund has amassed 321 goals, 380 assists, and 701 points in Canuck colors. However, his contribution to the team, the city, and the game go beyond Vancouver’s Markus Naslund fooling Blue Jacket’s Pascal Lp¥ scoring stats. In a sports world today that includes dog fighting, _ steroid scandals, _ numerous felonies, and endless DUIs, _ Naslund represents what athletes today should strive | to be. He buys , aluxury box to every Canucks home game, which he donates to various charities, almost always involving kids. He is active at Canuck Place, and has been to fundraisers for the Make-a-wish- foundation. He is always available to the media before and after games and practices, regardless of how he or the team is playing. Despite being in a very public position, in a city where he can’t walk down the street without being hounded for autographs, Markus Naslund has handled all of his attention with class, respect, and humility, often shifting the attention and accolades off himself and onto his team-mates. He is the embodiment of a captain, and he oozes professionalism at every turn. He has been captain of the Canucks since 2000-01, been named to the NHL’s first all-star team three times, is Vancouver’s all-time goal scoring leader, and will most likely pass Trevor Linden this year to become the Canuck’s all-time points leader. In 2002-03, Naslund played the full 82-game schedule, finishing 2" in the league in points and goals, behind only Peter Forsberg and Milan Hejduk, respectively. He scored 48 goals, added 56 assists for 104 points. That same season he also finished second to Forsberg in Hart Trophy voting as the NHL’s most valuable player. He did capture the Lester B. Pearson award that year, besting Forsberg for the league top player as voted on by the players. The next season Naslund finished 4" in NHL scoring, racking up 84 points. Naslund has also proved to be one of the game’s most durable players. In his twelve years with Vancouver, Naslund has missed only 32 games out of 984 regulation contests. Naslund proved his worth to the Canucks in rather unfortunate circumstances when he broke his leg with only ten games to go in the 2000- 01 regular season. Vancouver was a mess without him and folded in the playoffs to the powerhouse Colorado Avalanche. While Naslund’s offensive totals have declined recently, his defensive play has improved dramatically, with his plus/minus rating going from minus 19 to plus 3 this year. The primary reason for Naslund scoring less lies in Coach Alain Vigneault’s coaching strategy. Vigneault favours a much more defensive approach than previous coach Marc Crawford, and he also played Naslund with virtually every other Canuck forward last year, making it tremendously difficult for his captain to establish line-mate chemistry. Naslund demonstrated what a great team player he is by buying into Vigneault’s system enthusiastically. While other players might gripe when forced to change their style of play—see Jairomir Jagr— Naslund has worked exceptionally hard and not once complained about the way he is being : asked to play, even if it does result in lower statistics. To be able to accept that responsibility, knowing full well that he is always in the public spotlight, is truly leading by example. It is similar to Steve Yzerman in Detroit, who was forced to alter his game from offensive wizard to winning the Selke Trophy as the NHL’s top two-way forward under Scotty Bowman. The only area where Naslund has been unsuccessful in is winning championships. While he did win two Swedish junior league titles and a European championship with his junior team, MoDo, in Ornskoldsvik, Sweden, he has yet to play past the second round of the NHL playoffs. He took time off to rest an aching body during the Olympic break in 2006, during which Sweden won the gold medal. However, being ptain Vancouver a true sportsman, Naslund was happy for his Swedish comrades all the same. Naslund was also absent when Sweden took gold in the 1998 and 2006 World Championship tournaments. Naslund missed out on gold again at two World Junior Championship events, his team winning silver twice. This was not from lack of production from Naslund though. He set World Junior records for goals, 13, and points by a line, 69, with good friend Peter Forsberg and Nicklas Sunstrom at the 1993 tournament. Naslund was also on the Swedish team that finished second, capturing silver, at the 1993 men’s World Championship. Markus Naslund has proven that he is truly a role model for the entire city, and indisputably a Vancouver Canucks legend. While he is entering the final year of his three year, 18 million dollar deal this season, the 34-year old Swedish superstar has repeated many times that he wishes to be a Canuck for the rest of his career, and is promising improved numbers this year, hoping to restore his wicked wrist shot that terrorizes goaltenders around the league. I for one, have no doubt that these will indeed come to pass. He is gunning for his first Stanley Cup, and judging by his remarkable character and ability, there is no reason to doubt that that vision will come true some day. Add it all up and you can summarize the captain in one word: Fantastic. Season Team Lge ( ee ie CS 1994- bittsburgh Penguins Vancouver Canucks NHL a Vancouver Canucks NHL NHL 82 NHL 81 ag Vancouver Canucks NHL 78 2004- ModoHockey 05 —Ormskildsvik gs