Every time Vancouver Canucks’ goalie Roberto Luongo steps on the ice, he’s ready to roll. It’s seen when practice starts and he’s fending off pucks like it’s game time; it’s seen when the puck drops during every game. This NHL captain is serious about his performance.
The Vancouver Canucks
In fact, GM Mike Gillis decided to sign a contract to keep him a Vancouver Canuck for the next 12 years.
Gillis told the press back in February: “Today is a very exciting day for the Canucks organization. Roberto Luongo is the leader of our hockey team; he is in the prime of his playing career and has a tremendous desire to make the Canucks a championship team. His leadership, competitiveness and character are what this team will represent for many years to come.”
So how does Luongo assess his own performance this season?
“Pretty well so far,” he tells writer Lori Henry. “I mean, I was out a couple of weeks with the rib injury. I just got back four or five games ago and things have been going well. I had a couple of games out of the gates where I had little problems, I struggled a little bit, but since then I’ve been feeling great and am back to the form that I usually am. I’m just looking to build on that hopefully and peak at the right time here.”
2010 Playoffs
Last season, the Vancouver Canucks were knocked off their playoff run in the Western Conference Semifinals with the Chicago Blackhawks in six games. Roberto can take that experience to improve this year’s team for their 2010 playoff run.
“Obviously every year the goal is to win the Stanley Cup, but individually, just every time I step on the ice I want to improve my game as much as I can and be at the top of my game as much as I can,” says Luongo, talking about his goals for this year.
“We all know that there’s peaks and valleys in this game, especially for goaltenders. You just want to remain on the top as long as you can and not go through those little slumps.”
Vancouver Canucks Captain
And it’s his job to keep his performance top notch. He is, after all, the Canucks’ captain, a rare choice in the NHL because he’s the goalie (and can’t wear the “C” on his jersey).
But in his second season as the top leader, Luongo thinks “it’s great. It was a wonderful experience last year, I really liked it. I like that extra pressure you put on yourself to lead the team and be the guy that guys look up to and stuff like that. I think it’s great and I’m happy that they chose me as captain.”
Team Canada: The Men’s Hockey Team
Just announced today, Roberto Luongo will be one of three goalies ( Martin Brodeur and Marc-André Fleury) to represent Team Canada at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games this February. No doubt this also adds fuel to his fire to make this a season to remember.
With the approval of the faithful fans at Vancouver’s GM Place, they’ll keep shouting “Luuuuu” from the crowd with each show stopping save this season and during the Olympic Games.
Lori Henry - A travel writer, Lori flits between exploring the world with incessant curiosity and huddling over her laptop writing.
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