Speculation: Alex Burrows

[Bougieman]

Just want to say that I'm pleasantly surprised that the overwhelming majority opinion in this thread so far is that it would be a mistake to buy Burr out, and that he still deserves a place on this team -- both of which I agree with 100%. But I just assumed the mood around here was "What have you done for me lately", "getting younger is the only way we'll get better", and "we want to see what the rookies can do".

So it's really nice to see this kinda support for the guy in the face of that, even though there are concerns the people running the show aren't on the same page. He not only deserves that support, he's EARNED it. Even coming directly off of a rare sub-par season.

You sometimes surprise me, Canucks fans. Thank you.

 

[Bougieman]

Burrows also took a major pay cut when he could have demanded more. He earned his money, the contract was just back loaded. I'd bring him back at 1 year for 2 mil.

Was just about to say this. Some people seem to forget that Alex took that big paycut at a time when we couldn't afford to keep that many skilled guys around and pay them all what they were worth. Team guy, through and through. We had about as good as a shot as a cup as this team will probably have in our lifetimes, and it's in no small part to Alex Burrows. And I'm not even talking about his cluuuuutch factor in playoff games -- although that was sure a beauty, too

 

[biturbo19]

Could see him working with Sutter on a checking line next year.

I'll be very disappointed if he's bought out.

Yeah. I thought in the brief stint we saw of them, the two actually had some decent chemistry. I think Burrows and Sutter at this point would make for 2/3rds of a great "two-way checking line".

Burrows has really faded hard, he's looking like he's hardly got any offense left to really contribute. Even defensively, he's not the player he once was. Just doesn't have the wheels left anymore.

But i don't think Sutter is the type of player who needs a great offensive catalyst winger to get some solid results. He's no stranger to doing most of his offensive work by himself...generating his own chances. And that'd be a good fit for Burrows at this stage as well - just work hard defensively, support whatever Sutter is doing offensively and try to get him the puck with speed. Makings of a nice "matchup line" (not that WillieD really seems interested in that).


And at this point, it's one season of "overpaid"...and we'll have plenty of cap-space this summer. I don't see a real need to buy him out and make it into a smaller, but multi-year problem. And just from a sentimentality perspective, after the history of Burrows with the Canucks, i'd certainly be biased toward just letting him play out the contract. He can still play in the NHL...albeit at more of a 3rd/4th line level well below his salary level (assuming he doesn't fall off a Higgins-like cliff next season).


What Burrows does after next season would be the big question to me. The way he's been talking about it, doesn't sound like a guy who is ready to hang 'em up just yet. So inevitably, he's going to end up playing somewhere else for the very last of his twighlight years anyway. Which is too bad sentimentality-wise...but by that point, we're going to have so many young players pushing for spots, i don't think we can afford to continue to carry old dead wood like that.

One more year would hardly hurt us though.

 

[DCantheDDad]

Just want to say that I'm pleasantly surprised that the overwhelming majority opinion in this thread so far is that it would be a mistake to buy Burr out, and that he still deserves a place on this team -- both of which I agree with 100%. But I just assumed the mood around here was "What have you done for me lately", "getting younger is the only way we'll get better", and "we want to see what the rookies can do".

So it's really nice to see this kinda support for the guy in the face of that, even though there are concerns the people running the show aren't on the same page. He not only deserves that support, he's EARNED it. Even coming directly off of a rare sub-par season.

You sometimes surprise me, Canucks fans. Thank you.

Im completely on board with this. Burr has bled Blue and Green for over a decade and, despite his paycheck, still can contribute defensively to this team. It's not like we need the cap space to be a contender next year. Le the guy play out his contract and we can let the contractors work on preparing his spot in the Ring of Honour.

 

[Kirk Mclean]

Would be so stupid to buy him out. So of course that's exactly what this management will do...

 

[tantalum]

I still think as a guy you can play up and down the lineup and be a major part of PK can have some value in the league for teams not approaching the cap or looking to reach the cap floor. His contract is designed in that manner. But I don't expect this management group to be able to move him because i very much strongly believe that the other 29 GMs know they don't need to offer value to Jim to get a deal done.

 

[NYVanfan]

Just want to say that I'm pleasantly surprised that the overwhelming majority opinion in this thread so far is that it would be a mistake to buy Burr out, and that he still deserves a place on this team -- both of which I agree with 100%. But I just assumed the mood around here was "What have you done for me lately", "getting younger is the only way we'll get better", and "we want to see what the rookies can do".

So it's really nice to see this kinda support for the guy in the face of that, even though there are concerns the people running the show aren't on the same page. He not only deserves that support, he's EARNED it. Even coming directly off of a rare sub-par season.

You sometimes surprise me, Canucks fans. Thank you.

It's just that
a) its only one year
b) he's maybe $2M overpaid ..most of that would get eaten overpaying for a FA anyway
c) this team is going nowhere anyway
d) his leadership and intangibles outweigh his shenanigans, which are farther in the past now
e) im terrified this management will do something stupid with the cap, like give Ericsson 6 years

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

over the years a lot of guys have left that i thought should have retired in this uniform. i was so excited for russ courtnall, but gus adams should have retired a canuck. cliff ronning was another guy that for sentimental reasons i would have kept around until he was done. and he played a pretty high level, outscoring messier in the three years messier was here. ohlund, but i saw the necessity in letting him go. bieksa, but he had to leave too.

but alex burrows will take the cake here. this is exactly the kind of player who should be kept around until he decides he is done. the things he can teach our kids, his versatility, and the skills that probably won't go away: on the shootout, on the PK, etc... makes no sense to dump him except to make some kind of stupid point.

but then again the two years have seen a lot of increasingly stupid points, whether it's the sbisa extension, or insisting on playing miller even when his understudies are on a roll, or giving shinkaruk away for... i still have no idea what.

 

[kanucks25]

I don't think it's as big of a deal as some if he's bought out but he definitely shouldn't be first on the list. A couple of Benning guys (we all know who they are) should be ahead of him when it comes to salary dumps.

If they're actually going to use that money wisely then go for it.

 

[Nick Lang]

Whatever happens I just hope he's not in Vancouver next year. I'm sick of seeing his wasted cap space and terrible play year after year.

 

[MS]

To lay the groundwork for this thread, these are the facts that are not in dispute:

- Burrows makes a 3M salary next year but carries a 4.5M cap hit.
- Burrows is not under contract after next season.
- Buying out Burrows would save 2M in cap space for 2016-17.
- Buying out Burrows would reduce 1M in cap space for 2017-18.

I don't even remotely think it is worth it. Burrows is probably worth about 2M on the open market, so there is not even any real cap savings at all once you factor in replaced value. Just let him play one more year and not ****ing buy out a player who is already a Canuck legend.

The notion is just completely idiotic. It shouldn't even be a consideration.

Burrows is still a solid bottom-6 forward, our best defensive winger and best PK winger, and a great guy in the dressing room.

We'd save $1 million over 2 years, or $500k/year. You couldn't even replace him with a minimum wage guy for that savings.

It literally makes no sense on any level. It's just complete nonsense.

Buying out Burrows makes no sense which is why I have a feeling management will do it. Common sense and logic has not been a part of any moves made previously by this management team.

And yeah, pretty much exactly.

 

[tantalum]

The buyout for Burrows is as follows:

Salary $3 mil, cap $4.5 mil

16/17: cost $1M, cap hit $2.5 mil (cap saving $2 mil)
17/18: cost $1M, cap hit $1 mil (i.e. cap penalty)


This isn't a guy you buy out and get 3 or 4 years of cap savings with a few years of cap penalty afterwards when you can anticipate the cap going up to a fair degree minimizing the impact 4+ years out.

Is the buyout worth it to save $2 mil in cap this year at the near immediate expense of $1 mil in cap penalty next year?

If you're going to take a $1 mil cap hit in the next year or two on a buyout in order to save a couple million the next year or two in cap look to our friend the pizzaman instead. Similar cap savings but for two years, an then two years of $1 mil hit.

Dorsett would bring 3 years of $1.7M cap relief followed by 3 years of 833k penalty. Another possibility I'd put before looking at Burrows. Is it too early to buy out Sutter.....

 

[tyhee]

... Prust should be bought out. ....

Prust's contract is about to expire.

 

[crazychimp]

It wouldn't be smart to buy him out, veteran guy that's worked his butt off to get to where he is that's the guy you want to surround the young guys with.

Dorsett and Sbisa would be the ideal candidates for a buy out.

 

[Timmer44]

I wonder how much offseason training Burrows had last season. This was a guy who was stretchered off the ice with a broken rib last summer. I'm sure his offseason training was setback. He's healthy and with a good summer of training, I think he can be a 15/15 guy who kills penalties and is a good leader in the room. I can't see why he isn't brought back to be honest.

Shed the Higgins and Miller's on the team, play the kids with the veteran leadership from the Twins, Burrows and Hamhuis.

 

[crazychimp]

I wonder how much offseason training Burrows had last season. This was a guy who was stretchered off the ice with a broken rib last summer. I'm sure his offseason training was setback. He's healthy and with a good summer of training, I think he can be a 15/15 guy who kills penalties and is a good leader in the room. I can't see why he isn't brought back to be honest.

Shed the Higgins and Miller's on the team, play the kids with the veteran leadership from the Twins, Burrows and Hamhuis.

He actually mentioned that in the press conference today, he started working out late due to that rib injury.

 

[Rotting Corpse*]

Was really hoping for some sort of an interview today where they backed Burrows and squashed these rumours.

Their silence makes a buyout very likely to happen IMO.

 

[GailWilliams]

Keep him, stash him in the AHL if his play really falls off a cliff.

Buying him out means Benning has more cap space at his disposal, that's not necessarily a good thing...

 

[Rotting Corpse*]

Keep him, stash him in the AHL if his play really falls off a cliff.

Buying him out means Benning has more cap space at his disposal, that's not necessarily a good thing...

With 2M in savings, we can re-sign Bartkowski!

 

[Intangibos]

Whatever happens I just hope he's not in Vancouver next year. I'm sick of seeing his wasted cap space and terrible play year after year.

What nonsense. You are aware that buying him out gives us essentially 2m savings this year, right? Not 4.5m

 

[JanBulisPiggyBack]

Am I the only one who still thinks Burrows can contribute to this team in three big ways:
1. On Ice - I still think he plays a sound game, he's not out of this league by a long shot
2. Off Ice - Obviously a huge locker room guy, deserves to play for the city that gave him his chance and in return gave us the best goals of the last 15 years
3. Tradable asset - Yes our team next year isn't going to make the playoffs, we will be sellers if we aren't in a position to make the playoffs so therefore Burrows becomes very valuable to us at the deadline to a team that needs the quality guy I believe Burrows still is. If he wants to retire a canuck we can always do the Hamuis treatment and have him come back after a cup run.......wait whats that we dropped the ball on trading Hamuis at the deadline only to have him return to the Canucks next season SHUT THE FRONT DOOR????

Either way I don't think he has played his way out of this league yet. Salary Cap has created so much disdain for players who are making the money. Was Bobby Holik ever hated for having a huge contract in the pre-salary cap world?

 

[Shareefruck]

He's still better than half of our forwards. Mentorship gets overblown, but Burrows/Hamhuis are two guys who I think would help to keep around.

 

[Catamarca Livin]

What nonsense. You are aware that buying him out gives us essentially 1m total savings, right?

How much cap saving I read somewhere 2 or was it 2.5 million. If they can bring in core guy with that extra money buy him out. He is gone after next year for sure anyways.

 

[Intangibos]

How much cap saving I read somewhere 2 or was it 2.5 million. If they can bring in core guy with that extra money buy him out. He is gone after next year for sure anyways.

fixed the above post

2m this year I think. We're not going to get a much much better player than Burrows for that much money, and it's an even bigger joke when this management has talked about character and leadership constantly to explain the Dorsett contract. Burrows is a core guy who is a leader in the lockerroom and an excellent example of hard work.

If they can get a player as good as Burrows that brings the same off-ice qualities as Burrows, for that 2.5m (would have to be better than Burrows for it to even be worth it), then it's maybe worth considering. Even then though, he's really important to our room I think, and it sets a bad example when a lifer with the team is bought out needlessly.

 

[Verviticus]

over the years a lot of guys have left that i thought should have retired in this uniform. i was so excited for russ courtnall, but gus adams should have retired a canuck. cliff ronning was another guy that for sentimental reasons i would have kept around until he was done. and he played a pretty high level, outscoring messier in the three years messier was here. ohlund, but i saw the necessity in letting him go. bieksa, but he had to leave too.

but alex burrows will take the cake here. this is exactly the kind of player who should be kept around until he decides he is done. the things he can teach our kids, his versatility, and the skills that probably won't go away: on the shootout, on the PK, etc... makes no sense to dump him except to make some kind of stupid point.

but then again the two years have seen a lot of increasingly stupid points, whether it's the sbisa extension, or insisting on playing miller even when his understudies are on a roll, or giving shinkaruk away for... i still have no idea what.

the wings have said they are not even going to seek relief from datsyuk's cap hit out of respect for what he's done and we're looking to dump burrows to not even move the needle on our exceptionally bad team