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Samuelsson insists flu bug kept him out
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CHICAGO - You know it's the playoffs when a guy has to lie about being sick ... or spend the morning trying to convince people he's not lying about being sick.
Take your pick, but not everyone is convinced that a flu bug kept Vancouver winger Mikael Samuelsson out of Game 2.
When the Canucks gathered at the airport the morning after Friday's 4-3 victory, management wouldn't allow Samuelsson to speak with the media, and reporters on the scene said he didn't look like someone trying to fight off a nasty bug. He was joking around with fans and signed autographs before the team flew to Chicago.
Hiding an injury or quick healer?
"It was the flu," insisted Samuelsson. "I don't care what you (media) guys think. I can tell you, it was."
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There is no replacing big Dustin Byfuglien, but Troy Brouwer needs to be the same kind of presence around the net that Byfuglien was last year.
"There aren't many players around the league who can do what Buff does," he said. "But I definitely need to try pulling some of his weight, I need to do a lot of the role he was doing last year in the playoffs."
