With another hockey season just around the corner, TSN.ca looks back at the most unforgettable moments of 2009-10; from Stanley Cup overtime to Canadian Olympic gold and everything in between, join us as TSN.ca revisits the Unforgettable Moments from the last 12 months in hockey. Game on!
If, at the end of your NHL career, you could say that you had been an All-Star, won the Hart Trophy as the league's MVP, the Art Ross as the league's leading scorer and had broken three franchise records, it would probably be fair to say that you had enjoyed a long and successful run as an elite player.
To do all of those things during one season? Well that was Henrik Sedin’s contribution to the Vancouver Canucks in 2009-10.
The Swedish forward registered 83 assists and 112 points; setting the Canucks team records for assists in one season and points in one season and becoming the team’s all-time assist leader in the process.
Of course the most impressive accolade for Sedin (in our completely biased and shamelessly self-promotional opinion) was capturing TSN.ca's Play of the Year Showdown (along with his brother Daniel) as the twins combined for a breathtakingly sweet tally against the Flames. While it may have just been one play, it was a representative of a season where just about everything went right for Henrik Sedin.
During the Canucks’ last game of the season, the brothers put poetry in motion on the ice.
Following a picture-perfect pass, Daniel buried the goal with style, while Henrik sealed a four-point game that all but clinched the league scoring title.
The gorgeous pass and ensuing trick-move (which gave Daniel a hat trick on the night) were so flashy that the whole play looked like something you'd pull in a video game while playing against your buddy. Maybe it was a connection that only twins could make.
"As spectacular as Daniel's execution was, the no-look tip pass by Henrik was just silly," says TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger. "Henrik knew exactly where his brother would be and made no mistake in getting him the puck. I never get tired of watching that replay."
Surely Henrik would have traded it all to hoist the Stanley Cup (the Canucks went out in the second round of the playoffs), but as far as personal accolades go, it was an extraordinary year. This particular play was symbolic of a massively successful campaign for a player who sometimes seems to fly under the radar simply due to geography.
"Playing out west, the Sedins often get overlooked," says TSN hockey analyst Ray Ferraro. "Henrik's play this past year was so consistent, but took another step when Daniel was injured. Henrik became a goal scorer, finished with a career high 29, and this play was the icing."
The Sedins’ goal not only delighted the Vancouver crowd but their own teammates as well.
"I probably had the best seat in the house," said a grinning Alexandre Burrows after the game.
Video of the play has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times on YouTube, guaranteeing its place in of the pantheon of unforgettable NHL goals.
A month and a half after the goal, amid a field of 29 entries and whittled down thanks to over 280,000 online votes, TSN.ca fans overwhelmingly voted the Sedins’ goal Play of the Year.
"Great goal, great move, great pass and all those greats equal your 2009-2010 Play of the Year," wrote one commenter in the most popular comment on the forum.
The play even transcended stubborn team loyalty.
"I am not a Canucks fan, but I voted for the Sedin goal," wrote another user. "Not only because of the between the legs move, but more for the tip pass between the legs right on the tape."
Another commenter wrote, "The play was sick. Two brothers making probably the best pass and best finish all year on the same play. Hats off to the Sedins."
Fans in Vancouver are definitely hoping some of that magic will carry over to this season.
As always, we want to hear your thoughts using our Your Call feature. Do you think Henrik Sedin can top last year’s performance? Is this finally the Canucks’ year to take home Lord Stanley’s Cup?
