Canucks & NHL News, Rumours, and & Fantasy GM | Don’t Incur Vector’s Wrath!

[Just A Bit Outside]

On the positive side, I think the defense is set for the next couple years. With the development of DPetey and Willander, there's a good chance it becomes the best unit in the league at some point. In Hughes' contract year, they could have 5 top 4 dmen on the team, with one of them being the best in the world. There's also some longevity attached to it given everyone's age, and that dmen typically stay at the apex of their game longer than forwards.

Given that, I'd hope the coaching staff starts to do more to activate the blueline on the rush. With Hronek & Hughes showing they can run their own pairs, you have one guy on each who has good offensive instincts if the team can find enough forwards with the skill to carry the puck into the zone instead of dumping it in every time.

They need an RW1 and C2 at minimum this off-season, with the idea that both can play off the rush and that the RW1 can be an excellent contributor to PP1. One of the first places I'd look at is if the Islanders are willing to part with Barzal after an injury riddled year, especially if Lou is fired/they decide to go full rebuild. C2 is a bit of a tougher challenge to acquire, and how good said player needs to be really depends on how well Chytil plays down the stretch.

I don't think the Nucks have what it will take to acquire Barzal.

 

[UrbanImpact]

Super disappointed that we didnt use our cap space to broker trades. Extra 3rd and 4th round picks could be used as ammo for future trades.

As for Boeser, im meh about it. I think the book is out in the league on him. Cant drive play on his own, lack of food speed and then add that with the blood clot issue which can pop up at anytime again, and you can see why a 2nd round pick is probably the best offer we got for him. For a 2nd round pick, id much rather just keep Boeser and see if we can sneak into the playoffs and provide valuable experience to the likes of Dpetey, Lekk, Willander etc.

Suter is the guy i thought we should have trade and taken whatever was offered, 3rd 4th whatever... I think its time for Raty to take his place.


Otherwise, i was hoping we would add players with term that can be part of the long term solution. I know we went hard after Josh Norris and i was hoping to land players like that... young with term.

This draft is quite bad, so i expect we trade our pick by draft day.


As for next year, it quite obvious we need to add more speed, skill and maybe size to our wingers.

Targets: Ehlers, Bennet

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

The difference between this year and a Benning year is in a Benning year we’d have 4 games up on every team, still be like 11th and on the radio all id hear is how they are only 5 points out of a playoff spot. The 4 games in hand would conveniently not be mentioned.

This year we are legitimately bouncing between 8th and 9th all year. I really don’t think any team in contention for that final spot is actually better than us. Why would I pack it in as a fan in this scenario and why should I? The team isn’t going to lose all 19 in a row, and what’s the difference between picking 17 to like 12?

I’ll cheer for a tank when I see it but I’m not hoping for one because things look a little dodgy from one year to the next.

 

[racerjoe]

Been away for the weekend.

If true and prices were not good for Boeser, I get why and would then agree with not selling him.

boeser for 19 games and maybe playoffs is better for this team than a second.

Tough to now reality here though as it seems odd that some players got a haul and others absolutely didn't.

 

[Nucky]

Oh god, we're back to "meaningful games in March" discourse.

Man, so tight

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

Man, so tight

“I can’t BELIEVE it’s not playoffs”

 

[Nucky]

The difference between this year and a Benning year is in a Benning year we’d have 4 games up on every team, still be like 11th and on the radio all id hear is how they are only 5 points out of a playoff spot. The 4 games in hand would conveniently not be mentioned.

This year we are legitimately bouncing between 8th and 9th all year. I really don’t think any team in contention for that final spot is actually better than us. Why would I pack it in as a fan in this scenario and why should I? The team isn’t going to lose all 19 in a row, and what’s the difference between picking 17 to like 12?

I’ll cheer for a tank when I see it but I’m not hoping for one because things look a little dodgy from one year to the next.

Yea I don't care about picking 13th or 17th, I also think the pick should be packaged for a quality player on a reasonable contract who can help this team win games over the next 2-3 seasons, ideally longer, but even 2 or 3 seasons is good.

The goal should be to retain Quinn Hughes, I'm anti-rebuild/tank until he leaves. You simply don't start a rebuild when you have a top 3 player who's 25 years old.

The time to rebuild/tank has already passed a few years ago.

 

[krutovsdonut]

I think Brock Boeser is a great person and probably a great teammate too. I just don't think he's worth the contract he's asking for (that $8MM x 8 year talk wasn't just pulled out of thin air) and I'm fine with him leaving this summer if some other GM is willing to pay him.

I was also okay with trading him and trying to use the return as part of a package to bring in an impact player; but it wasn't to be, and i agree it made more sense at that point to keep him for the stretch run than trading him for a 2nd round pick.

Hopefully the team fights to the bitter end and whether they get into the playoffs or not is less important than what you discover about your players in the process.

i agree with everything you said. we were mainly talking about playing out the season. depending on how that goes and how the dressing room dynamic works i would only make a final call on boeser once i have a plan to replace him and i might even eat a shit sandwich and extend him.

 

[krutovsdonut]

Yeah, this management team cares so much about the "emotions" of their players that they've been public tearing strips of Boeser and Petey at every opportunity this season. They sent JT to bully Petey in the hopes that would "fix" him. They're so empathetic!

Let's get real man.

Maybe that "meaningful games" banner can keep you warm at night this March. Borrow it from Benning.

i agree with your sarcastic but not the last sentence. we are where we are. however we got there, we need to pay attention to the team right now. meaningful games in march is a no brainer goal for a team on the wildcard bubble that has gone through a lot of turmoil. and, realistically, it would have been your highest aspiration last year going into the season. the fact it is now a step back seems to have unduly coloured your perspective.

 

[Burke's Evil Spirit]

Aquilini is a stupid businessman. A shrewd businessman would have realized that there was no recovery in the mid-late 2010's. He could have saved big bucks by electing for a strip down rebuild while increasing the odds of coming out of that period with a strong prospect pool and cap room to ice a competitive squad for the 2020's.

If we are talking about the 2014 off-season, it was the completely the correct call not to do a strip-down rebuild. That team had a ton of young talent (Tanev, Horvat, Markstrom), and was primed for a short re-tool and turnaround. Benning just completely f***ed it up - whiffing on the Virtanen pick, targeting the wrong defenseman in the Kesler trade, giving up way too early on McCann and Forsling, and letting cheap C depth in Matthias and Richardson walk for nothing, and chasing crap complementary pieces.

There's an alternative reality where by 2016 or so, the Canucks look something like this, with $20M+ in cap space to improve the roster:

Sedin-Sedin-Boeser
Burrows-Horvat-William Nylander
Matthias-Bonino-Hansen
Richardson

Edler-Tanev
Hamhuis-Theodore
Forsling-Bieksa

Markstrom/Demko

 

[Bgav]

Love that their bullshit lie is getting exposed already

 

[Quinning]

There's an alternate reality where the Canucks ended up with a young core of Nylander (picked over Virtanen), McCann (not going to claim Pastrnak, that was pure luck by Boston) Tkachuk (picked over Juolevi) and Makar (Colorado wins 1st overall and takes Hischier or Patrick) coming up at the same time.

 

[Quinning]

Love that their bullshit lie is getting exposed already

There you go. I just don't buy it. People saw what he could do on the playoffs last year, the dude was a wagon. He's had a down year, sure, but the team has been a shitshow.

 

[Burke's Evil Spirit]

Love that their bullshit lie is getting exposed already

This is the deal PJ reported on - it included Kotkaniemi and required a prospect coming back from Vancouver they didn't want to part with.

 

[Vector]

This is the deal PJ reported on - it included Kotkaniemi and required a prospect coming back from Vancouver they didn't want to part with.

Yup, people are going to act like this is a new thing but it sounds like what Johnston reported and is inline with how the Hurricanes operate.

 

[SelltheTeamFrancesco]

Love that their bullshit lie is getting exposed already

You realize this could just be the exact thing Patrick Johnston posted KK+first for Boeser+prospect. And technically it’s oh my god they offered a first. Also if it was the 2028 first which it being the Canes I bet it was, that still has second round value to me.

 

[bossram]

i agree with your sarcastic but not the last sentence. we are where we are. however we got there, we need to pay attention to the team right now. meaningful games in march is a no brainer goal for a team on the wildcard bubble that has gone through a lot of turmoil. and, realistically, it would have been your highest aspiration last year going into the season. the fact it is now a step back seems to have unduly coloured your perspective.

No. Literally false.

I want them to be a good team that has a shot at winning Cup. Not a team that thinks 8th place and two home playoff dates is the pinnacle of success.

 

[kanucks25]

Now that it's come up again I will like to reiterate that 1st + KK is a shit offer for Boeser and that's not even including the alleged quality prospect they wanted us to add.

The 1st straight up would have been a decent offer.

 

[Bgav]

This is the deal PJ reported on - it included Kotkaniemi and required a prospect coming back from Vancouver they didn't want to part with.

I haven't had a chance to listen to the hit yet, but sounds like Dhaliwal didn't bring up that trade package, and it was just a first round pick.

 

[Bgav]

You realize this could just be the exact thing Patrick Johnston posted KK+first for Boeser+prospect. And technically it’s oh my god they offered a first. Also if it was the 2028 first which it being the Canes I bet it was, that still has second round value to me.

Getting some value back is way better than losing Boeser for nothing. Ownership just doesn't care about actually creating a contender. They hung onto Suter and Boeser, probably just to cash in on two home playoff games

 

[Nuckles]

It's entirely possible the Canes originally offered just the 1st for Boeser, but the Canucks likely wanted a roster player (and centre) in return and it turned into KK+1st for Boeser+prospect.

 

[Quinning]

Kotkaniemi f***ing sucks. He's awful. He's the last thing we need, an unproductive floater on a stacked team.

 

[wonton15]

Kotkaniemi f***ing sucks. He's awful.

And he looks like a demented manchild catfish.

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

If we are talking about the 2014 off-season, it was the completely the correct call not to do a strip-down rebuild. That team had a ton of young talent (Tanev, Horvat, Markstrom), and was primed for a short re-tool and turnaround. Benning just completely f***ed it up - whiffing on the Virtanen pick, targeting the wrong defenseman in the Kesler trade, giving up way too early on McCann and Forsling, and letting cheap C depth in Matthias and Richardson walk for nothing, and chasing crap complementary pieces.

There's an alternative reality where by 2016 or so, the Canucks look something like this, with $20M+ in cap space to improve the roster:

Sedin-Sedin-Boeser
Burrows-Horvat-William Nylander
Matthias-Bonino-Hansen
Richardson

Edler-Tanev
Hamhuis-Theodore
Forsling-Bieksa

Markstrom/Demko

Was more so speaking to post 2016 once it became apparent the Sedins were on borrowed time and we had whiffed on our drafts.

 

[TruGr1t]

The difference between this year and a Benning year is in a Benning year we’d have 4 games up on every team, still be like 11th and on the radio all id hear is how they are only 5 points out of a playoff spot. The 4 games in hand would conveniently not be mentioned.

This year we are legitimately bouncing between 8th and 9th all year. I really don’t think any team in contention for that final spot is actually better than us. Why would I pack it in as a fan in this scenario and why should I? The team isn’t going to lose all 19 in a row, and what’s the difference between picking 17 to like 12?

I’ll cheer for a tank when I see it but I’m not hoping for one because things look a little dodgy from one year to the next.

What ... St. Louis is 7-1-2 in their last 10 GP, and Utah is 6-3-1 and 3 points back. Canucks have 2 games each left against Winnipeg and Las Vegas, and another one against Dallas. They also play Utah and St. Louis again. I dunno, I think they're probably long-shots for the playoffs at this point. In terms of strength of schedule, Canucks have the toughest remaining of the teams in the wildcard hunt. They are typically getting body slammed by superior opposition this season, especially teams at the top of the West.