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Raycroft responds to Leaf nation

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Updated Nov 7, 2009 12:09 PM ET
     
 
Andrew Raycroft was an Air Canada Centre whipping boy for two years in Toronto, but he has been a godsend for the Vancouver Canucks, winning four of five starts in place of an injured Roberto Luongo (fractured rib). Back in Canada and in the NHL spotlight again, Raycroft was asked why his name alone draws such a visceral reaction from Leaf Nation. "I'm still a little confused with the way it ended up in Toronto," the goaltender said this week. "I know I didn't have a good season my second season there, but I never really understood why no one really liked me." When asked if it was his comment that he doesn't actually watch NHL games on television, Raycroft said he was aware the remark didn't go over well with Leafs fans. "My wife doesn't let me watch hockey," he said. "I'm on the road 100 days per year. When I'm at home, I can't sit around watching hockey all night. I want to hang out with my family. It's not that I don't love the game or love my job. That's what people interpreted. I never really made a point to go back on it. It's what I said. It came out of my mouth. And I guess that's what I don't understand, that people would think I don't love what I do." Rewind to training camp, when Canucks coach Alain Vigneault said he would need his backup goaltender to play 15 to 20 games this season because of the condensed NHL schedule. In Vancouver, the comment raised eyebrows because a healthy Luongo wouldn't normally miss that many games. In Toronto, it drew guffaws. I had written about Leafs-turned-Canucks before, but Kyle Wellwood's battle against the bulge and Mats Sundin's turncoat signing didn't generate near the response. My inbox — subject line: Raycroft — heard from many Blue and White supporters, who said the Canucks were doomed if Vigneault's words proved prophetic. Then, earlier this week, Raycroft was asked about the strong defensive play in front of him, and answered with a reference to his past three years, spent with terrible teams in Toronto and Denver. "I haven't enjoyed this for a few years, and I forgot how much fun it is," he said. "I'm used to the last few years, when you get three or four or five good chances a period. It makes a big difference when you only get three to six chances over the game, just because you don't get down in games 2- or 3-to-nothing, and it gets ugly." Door open after the subtle dig, I asked about his frayed relationship with Leafs fans. Raycroft was Toronto's starter in 2007-08, playing 72 games, but he lost the job to Vesa Toskala a season later and posted some ghastly numbers (3.92 goals-against, .876 save percentage). "I didn't get off to a good start, Vesa played well, and (former coach) Paul (Maurice) loves to ride goalies," he said. "That's the way he does it, and I was fine with that. I understood it. But I didn't understand how us collapsing was my fault. I never understood it, and I always took the heat for it." Raycroft, a former Calder Trophy winner and still just 29 years old, made some spectacular saves in a 5-2 win over Minnesota on Thursday. His goals-against average is 1.60, and he is stopping 93.6 percent of shots. Cory Schneider was scheduled to start for the Canucks Friday in Dallas, and Luongo could return on Tuesday in St. Louis, so it appears Raycroft's time as No. 1 has come to an end — at least for now. But as he attempts to revive his career on the West Coast, give Raycroft an A on the first test.
Tagged: Canucks, Andrew Raycroft, Roberto Luongo

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