Staple: NHL Stanley Cup Finals preview

Even though they’ve been the team to beat pretty much all season, the Canucks are looking to exorcise some demons when the Stanley Cup Finals open tonight in Vancouver.

The Canucks are working on a franchise-long, 41-year Cup drought. Right behind them at 40 years are the Bruins, who won behind Bobby Orr in 1972 but have the second-longest title drought of the Original Six clubs, with only the Leafs’ 44-year drought longer.

One of these teams will end that run in a series that features a couple of veteran goaltenders, a slew of high-end forwards and veteran defensemen whose play has been inconsistent at times.

FORWARDS

Vancouver’s Sedin twins, Daniel and Henrik, have pulled their games up a notch after starting the playoffs a bit slowly. Teamed with sparkplug Alex Burrows, that line has been a force for the Canucks the last two rounds; so has Conn Smythe favorite Ryan Kesler, who has shown the grit and timely scoring needed to lead. For the Bruins, Nathan Horton has been Mr. Clutch, scoring the lone goal in Boston’s Game 7 win over the Lightning in the conference finals. His linemates, David Krejci and Milan Lucic, have also raised their games since the Bruins rallied past Montreal in the opening round. The Canucks have better depth in the bottom six forwards and the likely return of defensive center Manny Malhotra, the former Ranger, should improve them even more.

EDGE: Canucks

DEFENSEMEN

The Bruins picked up Tomas Kaberle at the trade deadline to boost their blue line; turns out Kaberle has been the weakest link in a defense corps led by Zdeno Chara and the rather unheralded Dennis Seidenberg. The Canucks have an array of veterans, led by the emerging Kevin Bieksa; Sami Salo, Christian Ehrhoff and Alex Edler have made big contributions as well for a team that’s been banged up on defense.

EDGE: Canucks

GOALTENDING

Roberto Luongo has an Olympic gold medal and led the Canucks to the best record in the league this season, but there’s still a bit of Rodney Dangerfield when the 32-year-old is discussed — still no respect. Tim Thomas began this season as the Bruins’ backup, but now he’s likely to beat out Luongo for the Vezina Trophy. Thomas’ acrobatics have been unreal at times this postseason, especially for a grizzled old man of 37.

EDGE: Bruins

COACHING

Vancouver’s Alain Vigneault has the more talented team than Claude Julien, but Vigneault is bigger on taking risks — recall his head-scratching decision to start Cory Schneider over Luongo in Game 6 of the opening-round series with the Hawks, a move that backfired. Julien’s Bruins gamble on occasion, which runs a bit counter to his desire for a tight-checking game.

EDGE: Bruins

INTANGIBLES

The pressure is on the headlining Sedin twins to show they can lead the Canucks, with the weight of all Canada on them, to a first Cup for Vancouver. Boston has no less intimidating a fan base, but the Bruins have reacted well to adversity throughout the postseason, whether rallying from 3-1 down to beat the Canadiens or calmly stomping out the Flyers to chase away the ghosts of last year’s collapse.

EDGE: Even

PREDICTION

The Bruins have more than enough talent and grit to be competitive and even win the Cup. But the Canucks have a commanding presence up front and on the blue line; it’s their veteran defense, combined with likely MVP Kesler, that will make the difference.

CANUCKS IN 5