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Canucks “College Line” bringing American flavor to Canada’s Stanley Cup hopefuls

Brad Marchand, Kevin Bieksa

Vancouver Canucks left wing Christopher Higgins , left, battles for the puck with Boston Bruins defenseman Dennis Seidenberg during the first period in Game 2 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Finals, Saturday, June 4, 2011, in Vancouver, British Columbia. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Darryl Dyck)

AP

The Vancouver Canucks run into the Stanley Cup finals and their 2-0 series lead has given fans on the Pacific coast of Canada plenty of reasons to get excited. When you’re two wins away from winning your first Stanley Cup in team history it gives the fans a reason to be happy. For Canada it would be their first Stanley Cup since the Canadiens won it in 1993 and while that brings a point of pride for Canadian hockey if that happens, there’s one line the Canucks are rolling out there that has it’s basis in the United States.

Vancouver’s second line that features Ryan Kesler at center, Mason Raymond on the right wing, and Chris Higgins on the left wing has something in common: They all got their jump on the NHL by playing college hockey. Kesler played one season at Ohio State, Higgins played for two seasons at Yale University, and Raymond played for two years at Minnesota-Duluth. Those college roots aren’t lost on Higgins.

“It’s nice. I think it’s three guys that enjoy the work part of the game. To play with two players like that makes it easier on yourself to blend in with their style,” Higgins said.

That brand of style is a mix of scoring ability, physical play, defensive toughness, and speed. Raymond is one of the fastest skaters on the Canucks roster while Kesler’s two-way play and scoring ability have made him a Conn Smythe Trophy favorite in these playoffs. As for how it is to ride shotgun with Kesler, Higgins says it’s not too bad.

“It’s pretty easy. You know the guy is going to be working every night, same thing with Raymond. You gotta make sure you’re ready to play because those guys are always ready to play. It’s been a pleasure playing with those guys.”

In these playoffs, the “College Line” has done some great work in giving the Canucks a go-to second line that can produce. While Kesler does the bulk of the heavy lifting there with his defensive work, faceoff wins, and goal scoring ability. Kesler’s 19 points in the playoffs is one of the top marks overall. Higgins and Raymond each have countered with eight points of their own with Higgins scoring four goals and Raymond with two. Getting 35 points from a line in the playoffs is a pretty good deal.

With the three guys all hailing from different schools and different conferences (Yale in the ECAC, Ohio State in the CCHA, and UMD in the WCHA) is there any kind of competition or chirping about who’s school or conference is better? Higgins laughs it off.

“No, no... No inter-conference chirping there. I think we’re all happy to be American,” Higgins says. Clearly their line chemistry is so good that Higgins forgot that Mason Raymond is from Alberta, Canada.

With Games 3 and 4 taking place in the home of college hockey in Boston where Boston College and Boston University have won national championships in recent years, they’ll need to bring that college flavor in a big way starting tonight.