Music: {allcanada} Vancouver fans fill streets for final puck drop

Thousands of noisy Canucks fans clad in the team's bright blue and green jerseys started filling the streets of downtown Vancouver by noon on Wednesday, anxious to claim their spots in front of the big screens for the big game.

By game time, more than 100,000 nervous Vancouver Canucks fans are expected to pack the streets of the city when the team takes on the Boston Bruins at the Rogers Centre in the deciding game of the Stanley Cup final.

The anxious fans began setting up lawn chairs even before the arrival of the trucks carrying the giant outdoor screens and the army of city workers and police setting up barricades.

Others were lining up outside bars, claiming seats inside, or searching for tickets from scalpers and brokers.

Transit officials reported crowds were so large by 2 p.m. that buses in the downtown core were being significantly delayed. Both SkyTrain and the SeaBus were also running at near full capacity.

BC Ferries was also reporting sailings from Nanaimo and Victoria were jammed with 800 foot passengers on each trip, and extra buses were being dispatched to meet them.

If the Canucks win, it's expected fans will kick off the biggest party in the city's history — even bigger than the massive street party that took place in the city last year after the Canadian team won the Olympic hockey gold medal.

No repeat of '94 riot expected

But if the Canucks lose, police say they are prepared to head off any unruly mobs hoping to spark a repeat of the infamous riot that followed the team's loss to the New York Rangers in the final game of the 1994 Stanley Cup final.

Police said much has changed since those days, including the closure of downtown liquor stores hours before the game begins, better targeted crowd control, bag checks at transit stations for liquor — and perhaps most importantly — a family-friendly mood in the massive fan zones set up on the streets.

"The key for us is really getting out and employing that meet-and-greet strategy. It's about positively engaging the public and getting out there and shaking hands and posing for photos and high-fiving and saying 'hello', and not standing off in a corner somewhere," said Const. Lindsay Houghton.

"Long gone are the days where officers wouldn't be out on the street or interacting with the public. For us now it's being part of the crowd," said Houghton.

"When we see a hotspot in the crowd we just move our resources over there quickly," Vancouver police spokeswoman Const. Jana McGuinness said.

"We are not anticipating any problems — just a really boisterous crowd. Win or lose, we expect to be out there until 5 a.m.," she said.

40 years of waiting

It's been two months since the team's gruelling playoff run began and when the puck drops shortly after 5 p.m. PT at Rogers Arena the team will have one last chance to defeat the Boston Bruins and seal the deal.

The Vancouver Canucks have never won the Cup in the team's 40-year history, and after decades of praying and cheering, fans are hoping tonight is the night their dreams will come true.

The series is tied at three games apiece, with each team winning all their games on home ice, giving many Vancouver fans faith that tonight's home ice advantage will give the Canucks the edge.

Pat Quinn, who was the Vancouver coach last time the team played Game 7 in the Stanley Cup final, said the dramatic swing in performances for the Canucks between home and away games in the series has been startling.

But with the home-ice advantage for Game 7, he said the Canucks will have a statistical advantage.

"Historically, we've seen that only three teams out of 20 or something like that have been the visitor and won a Cup. I don't know if it's the crowd, if it's facing that 'Tonight it's over if we don't do it right,'" he told CBC Radio.

When Quinn's Canucks lost in 1994, Game 7 was played in New York's Madison Square Garden, he noted.

But Boston will also have its own statistical advantage going into Wednesday's matchup. Since the NHL's first wave of expansion in 1968, no team has won the Stanley Cup while being outscored in the post-season.

The Canucks, the NHL's highest-scoring team in the regular season, have been outscored 65-58 in the playoffs, and Boston has a 19-8 edge in the series heading into the final game.

Goaltending will be key

Throughout the close series much has been made about the streaky goaltending of Vancouver goalie Roberto Luongo and the unflappable goaltending of Bruins netminder Tim Thomas, whom the Canucks have struggled to beat.

Luongo has been outstanding at home, allowing just two goals in three games while posting two 1-0 shutouts, but the Canucks' $10-million man has struggled badly in Boston, giving up 15 goals in slightly more than four periods while getting pulled twice, including from Game 6.

After Luongo revealed he went for a private walk around the Stanley Park Seawall before his Game 5 shutout, several fans left a colourful chalk message along the route on Tuesday night in case he does it again before Game 7.

Janelle Daos and Casandra Tam sketched-out "We believe in Luu" and "Go Canucks Go!" on the pavement for him to see.

"People have been criticizing him lately, but we want to tell him that we still believe in him," said Daos.

"We want to show him that fans are behind him no matter what happens, but we know for sure he's going to bring his A game," said Tam.

Ticket prices continue to climb

According to online ticket broker StubHub, the price of tickets to Game 7 continues to climb, but about 350 tickets were still for sale on the broker's website on Wednesday morning.

"Throughout the course of sales yesterday, fans paid an average price of $2,749," said spokesperson Joellen Ferrer on Wednesday.

"A new high-priced ticket was purchased – two tickets for $7,800 each – by a buyer in Florida to sit in Club 107, Row 1," said Ferrer.

"The cheapest ticket purchased yesterday was $1,249 for upper bowl goal seats," she said.

About 30 fans have been camped out at the ticket windows of Rogers Arena, some since Monday morning, in the hopes that the Canucks organization would release last-minute tickets before the game.

The organization sent out a tweet on Tuesday saying, "We will make every effort to release as many as we can to our loyal & passionate fans."

But as of 11:30 a.m. Wednesday those in line said they were still waiting in hope.

Massive fan zones take over streets

One of the major successes of the playoffs has already been the massive fan zones created by the city, shutting down several blocks of the downtown core to traffic and broadcasting the game on four massive outdoor screens, including one outside the CBC building.

All six lanes of West Georgia Street between Richards and Cambie will once again be closed at noon, along with Hamilton Street outside the CBC building and Homer Street outside the public library.

"The excitement and support for the Canucks is off the charts. Game 7 on home ice is what we've been waiting for and the atmosphere in the city is electric," said Mayor Gregor Robertson.

On Friday night after the Canucks' win in Game 5, about 100,000 fans were on hand to celebrate well into the evening and police reported they seized about 3,000 bottles and cans of liquor.

But apart from one incident involving people who were arrested attempting to smash the windows of the public library, police have reported the fans have generally been well behaved during the celebrations.

For Game 6 on Monday, police did order 18 downtown liquor stores to close at 4 p.m., and that order remains in place for Game 7 on Wednesday.

Dozens of portable toilets and extra trash cans have also been staged around the site. City officials have estimated the total cost for hosting the celebrations and for policing will run about $1.2 million.

Other cities host celebrations

Other municipalities across Metro Vancouver have also hosted their own fan zones with giant screens, with about 5,000 turning up to watch games at the City Centre Plaza in Surrey.

Similar events are being held at: