The Vancouver Canucks beat two teams in a row without goaltenders!
Yay!
Only one member of the media - Rick Dahliwal - on TSN1040 - actually made the connection that this writer has made all season.
IF THE CANUCKS PLAY A GOALIE WITH A SAVE PERCENTAGE OVER .905 - THEY LOSE.
It's not rocket science.
Buffalo and Minnesota trotted out 2 goalies in Hutton and Dubnyk that couldn't stop a beach ball. Their save percentages were below .895 going into the games and actually fell after the games.
It's not rocket science.
IF Winnipeg plays their goalie tonight - Hellebuyck - then Winnipeg will win.
Arizona will beat the Canucks - they both have goalies.
San Jose (the Canucks last game before the All-star game) -- if they play Aaron Dell - Canucks will likely lose. He has a .910 save %.
It's a tip for you betting individuals.
The Canucks are as close to a sure thing as you can get in betting.
But don't go crazy - I don't advise gambling - it is gambling after all.
And it's funny in this town how on TSN1040 and SPORTSNET650 - you don't hear any media members mentioning the other team.
It's just Canucks Canucks Canucks !!
But there is another team on the ice.
I know - weird right?
Buffalo was missing 2 / 3 best players and a goalie.
Minnesota was missing a goalie.
Those were schedule wins you could see coming a mile away.
Now what would Buffalo or Minnesota give to get a goalie such as Markstrom?
1st round, prospect, player - easily.
And it's a word of caution to any GM thinking of signing goalies to longterm contracts - they don't stay consistent - ever. They're based on systems and not necessarily talent.
Trade Markstrom immediately - garner the 1st rounder - because you're going to miss the playoffs - that's certain.
Look at the schedule.
The days of sub .900 goalies to play are limited for Vancouver.
And it's amazing the media has continued to state there is no market for goalies - oh boy - that couldn't be further from wrong.
Markstrom gets you a 1st rounder - easily.
Tuesday, 14 January 2020
Friday, 10 January 2020
Canucks win 7 in a row... somehow ??? Then get blasted in Florida
The Vancouver Canucks are a brutal hockey team at times. And at other times they're just a mediocre team that gets badly outshot and outplayed and can win a game or two.
Either way - they're still not a playoff team. Haven't been in more than a month even in the worst division in the NHL.
When you can't draft in rounds 2-7 - you find yourself throwing money at unrestricted free agents and having dead cap space.
The Canucks are going into most games with a $20 million deficit versus the other team. And it hits them right in the face on most nights as it did in a 9-2 loss in Tampa and 6-2 loss in Sunrise (Fort Lauderdale).
You simply can't have that much dead cap space and survive.
Then you couple that with no one in the AHL, no one in the system that is going to make the NHL roster besides the Russian they took in the 1st Round last year - you've got what you have - a team in No Man's Land.
Sutter, Eriksson, Beagle, Ferland are just dead cap space.
The only thing anyone can hope for is the owner's sell the team.
It's that bad.
I would expect in another month someone will buy a billboard encouraging the Aquillini's to sell the team - please.
The time to fire Jim Benning and entire staff - draft crew included - has come and gone.
There's virtually no way back from this fate without new vision from the top and that includes a President (Trevor Linden would be a good start). It has to be a total rebuild.
They're 5 years in and don't even have a 35 goal scorer in the system from drafting.
Now some of that is luck - because of the lottery system.
But in 5 years of drafting you should have pissed out a 35 goal scorer by now. It's not a high bar.
Could Elias Pettersson hit 35 goals? He could. But again, the NHL scoring leader has more than that right now at the 1/2 way mark.
Jimbo could have drafted the NHL scoring leader by the way - he took a pass on it.
Harry Neale got Cam Neely at 9th overall.
Pat Quinn got Trevor Linden, Mike Peca, Matt Cooke, Mattias Ohlund, Pavel Bure, Adrian Aucoin, Petr Nedved - traded for Marcus Naslund.
Mike Keenan traded for Todd Bertuzzi.
Brian Burke traded up to grab the Sedins - drafted Ryan Kesler.
Mike Gillis traded for Jakob Markstrom - traded for and drafted Bo Horvat.
And Jim Benning has done ??? What ???
No other Canucks GM has been in the position of drafting 7th overall or better year after year after year like Jim Benning.
What's he got to show for it? Elias Pettersson? That's it?
Neely or Pettersson... hmmmm let me see. Neely
Linden or Pettersson... hmmmmm, I'm going Linden.
Bure or Pettersson... hmmmmm, going Bure on that
Nedved or Pettersson... hmmmm, taking the 40 goal scoring center Nedved.
Horvat or Pettersson... Maybe Pettersson? Horvat's the captain. Toss up.
Peca or Pettersson - Peca. Period. 2 Selkes.
Kesler or Pettersson - Kesler - duh.
Sedins or Pettersson - uhh, Hart Trophies.
Again, being realistic... Jim Benning has been a pretty mediocre GM.
Drafting hasn't been his thing.
He can't trade (a potential 1st overall pick for the 20 goal scoring JT Miller who is fading fast) - ummm that's bad. Really bad.
Can't sign free agents. Tyler Myers makes people laugh.
He has been a travesty. Speaking of the coach, lol. They give up 50 shots per game and Travis Green is still coaching the team.
They're a tire fire.
Either way - they're still not a playoff team. Haven't been in more than a month even in the worst division in the NHL.
When you can't draft in rounds 2-7 - you find yourself throwing money at unrestricted free agents and having dead cap space.
The Canucks are going into most games with a $20 million deficit versus the other team. And it hits them right in the face on most nights as it did in a 9-2 loss in Tampa and 6-2 loss in Sunrise (Fort Lauderdale).
You simply can't have that much dead cap space and survive.
Then you couple that with no one in the AHL, no one in the system that is going to make the NHL roster besides the Russian they took in the 1st Round last year - you've got what you have - a team in No Man's Land.
Sutter, Eriksson, Beagle, Ferland are just dead cap space.
The only thing anyone can hope for is the owner's sell the team.
It's that bad.
I would expect in another month someone will buy a billboard encouraging the Aquillini's to sell the team - please.
The time to fire Jim Benning and entire staff - draft crew included - has come and gone.
There's virtually no way back from this fate without new vision from the top and that includes a President (Trevor Linden would be a good start). It has to be a total rebuild.
They're 5 years in and don't even have a 35 goal scorer in the system from drafting.
Now some of that is luck - because of the lottery system.
But in 5 years of drafting you should have pissed out a 35 goal scorer by now. It's not a high bar.
Could Elias Pettersson hit 35 goals? He could. But again, the NHL scoring leader has more than that right now at the 1/2 way mark.
Jimbo could have drafted the NHL scoring leader by the way - he took a pass on it.
Harry Neale got Cam Neely at 9th overall.
Pat Quinn got Trevor Linden, Mike Peca, Matt Cooke, Mattias Ohlund, Pavel Bure, Adrian Aucoin, Petr Nedved - traded for Marcus Naslund.
Mike Keenan traded for Todd Bertuzzi.
Brian Burke traded up to grab the Sedins - drafted Ryan Kesler.
Mike Gillis traded for Jakob Markstrom - traded for and drafted Bo Horvat.
And Jim Benning has done ??? What ???
No other Canucks GM has been in the position of drafting 7th overall or better year after year after year like Jim Benning.
What's he got to show for it? Elias Pettersson? That's it?
Neely or Pettersson... hmmmm let me see. Neely
Linden or Pettersson... hmmmmm, I'm going Linden.
Bure or Pettersson... hmmmmm, going Bure on that
Nedved or Pettersson... hmmmm, taking the 40 goal scoring center Nedved.
Horvat or Pettersson... Maybe Pettersson? Horvat's the captain. Toss up.
Peca or Pettersson - Peca. Period. 2 Selkes.
Kesler or Pettersson - Kesler - duh.
Sedins or Pettersson - uhh, Hart Trophies.
Again, being realistic... Jim Benning has been a pretty mediocre GM.
Drafting hasn't been his thing.
He can't trade (a potential 1st overall pick for the 20 goal scoring JT Miller who is fading fast) - ummm that's bad. Really bad.
Can't sign free agents. Tyler Myers makes people laugh.
He has been a travesty. Speaking of the coach, lol. They give up 50 shots per game and Travis Green is still coaching the team.
They're a tire fire.
Wednesday, 4 December 2019
Canucks lose to Ottawa in 5-2 win
The Ottawa Senators beat the Vancouver Canucks with a 5-2 loss on Tuesday night (Dec. 3, 2019) at Rogers Arena in Vancouver.
There's very little chance now of the Canucks catching the Detroit Red Wings or the Ottawa Senators in the NHL lottery draft this year because they're too far ahead.
Too bad to make the playoffs.
Too good to get help in the draft.
NO MAN'S LAND.
The space you don't want to be.
That's Vancouver.
Can't beat good teams and goalies.
Not enough bad teams below them.
They're hooped.
Screwed, blued and tattooed.
That is all.
There's very little chance now of the Canucks catching the Detroit Red Wings or the Ottawa Senators in the NHL lottery draft this year because they're too far ahead.
Too bad to make the playoffs.
Too good to get help in the draft.
NO MAN'S LAND.
The space you don't want to be.
That's Vancouver.
Can't beat good teams and goalies.
Not enough bad teams below them.
They're hooped.
Screwed, blued and tattooed.
That is all.
Monday, 2 December 2019
Blame Jake! Blame Jake! Russia! Russia! Ukraine! Ukraine!
It was Jake Virtanen's fault that the Canucks lost to Edmonton Sunday night (Dec. 1, 2019) at Rogers Arena in Vancouver.
Yeah, why not? There was a second shooter that took out President Kennedy too. The moon walk was a hoax. Jason Kenney is intelligent. Justin Trudeau is not a racist. Alberta Separation will get more oil to the BC coast.
There's lots of idiotic statements in those first 2 paragraphs but while Kenny is an idiot Jake Virtanen is certainly NOT the Vancouver Canucks problem.
For some reason on the post-game show TSN1040 strayed into "blame Jake" territory to which any sane individual went... "But he didn't play!"
Virtanen played 12 minutes. Every 4th shift or so. No PP time. No PK time. Watched a dork from the AHL get PP time while he sat on the bench.
The only thing stupider in sports right now than the Vancouver Canucks and the circus that follows them is the Cleveland Brown. Which circus is more bizarre? I honestly don't know. Pick your poison.
Virtanen doesn't play - it's his fault they lose. That makes total sense in the Vancouver market somehow.
I watched a guy named Leon Draisatl for the Edmonton Oilers, who by the way leads the NHL in points, score 2 goals and play the EXACT SAME GAME as Virtanen.
Virtanen was drafted as a scorer. BUT Willy Desjardens and Travis Green have been attempting to turn a perfectly normal goal scorer into a plumber. Only in Vancouver could you get away with that where the media is as smart as a bag of pucks.
Virtanen was drafted as a sniper. That's what he is. He floats around to open ice and scores goals when fed the puck.
But the Canucks have tried to feature that from Virtanen for about 5 minutes in his 5 year career.
Insanity would definitely describe it.
Would Virtanen have more goals on the PP right now than Boeser or Petterssen if given the chance? Absolutely.
But then what would you do with Boeser and Petterssen? Turn them into 4th line bangers?
Do you think the Canucks might want to try playing Virtanen for a 1 month stretch at 22 minutes per night just to find out what they drafted at 6th overall?
No.
No they are determined to see if he can play on the 4th line.
You know who else couldn't play on the 4th line?
Todd Bertuzzi. Cam Neely. That's to name just 2 guys who playing in this market.
Tom Watt drove Neely out of town.
He didn't want the 50 goal scorer. Watt wanted a 4th line winger who could fight instead.
Yeah, why not eh? F__k goals. It's overrated. What we need is a grinder.
Who was the coach in New York who drove Bertuzzi off the Island? Wasn't it that Mike Milbury? Didn't Canucks coach Travis Green play for Milbury? I don't know... I'm just asking.
As for the last 2 games for the Canucks - Mike Smith (G) Edmonton Oilers stunk like 14 day old garbage in the Jamaican sun on Saturday.
On Sunday the Canucks played the Oiler's No. 1 goalie and lost.
That's it.
They played a NHL goalie - lost.
Petterssen, Boeser and Horvat were ineffective 5 on 5. They floated around did nothing in their 20 minutes of ice time while Virtanen watched.
A coach was fired in Calgary for abuse. But what about psychological abuse?
Isn't the treatment of Virtanen straying into psychological abuse here? I don't know. He's the only player on the team that has to "earn it". No one else does.
There's not a single player on the Canucks besides Jake Virtanen that has to earn ice time.
Everyone else was green lit.
Virtanen -- who leads the team in 5 on 5 goals -- has to "earn it".
There's zero correlation between Virtanen and whether the Canucks lose because he doesn't play for the Vancouver Canucks. He watches games for the Vancouver Canucks.
His job is to sit on the bench and watch the Vancouver Canucks.
That's what he does.
Call Neely. Call Bertuzzi.
Funny thing happened though when Neely and Bertuzzi got a chance to play. They became the best players in the NHL.
Funny how it works that way, isn't it?
A lot of what you see in the NFL is politics, say the CFL analysts. Lots of players in the CFL are good enough to play in the NFL but can't because they don't have anyone fighting for them to play. It's politics a lot of time. A GM is invested in someone they drafted.
You don't think that happens in the NHL too?
Green had Virtanen in the AHL and is determined to prove something about Virtanen.
Was Petterssen sent to the minors for his disastrous last 30 games last year? No. No, just Jake gets that treatment.
You know what I'd like to see? I'd like to see Petterssen play for 12 minutes/night on the 4th line for 3 years and see how he does.
Here kid - take a seat. Watch the game. Enjoy.
And when do we start ignoring the fact that Bo Horvat as a center stinks?
He gets beat every single night defensively. He's useless offensively.
And yet, there's Horvat! On the PP. Hell, they gave the guy the C for some bizarre reason.
At best Horvat was projected to be a 3rd line center.
Yet there he is -- OUT OF THE PLAYOFFS AGAIN!!
Is there any point at which the media might start looking at the guy wearing 53 and saying ... "you know... that Horvat guy has done a lot of losing..."
But no, it's Jake's fault.
Yeah, why not? There was a second shooter that took out President Kennedy too. The moon walk was a hoax. Jason Kenney is intelligent. Justin Trudeau is not a racist. Alberta Separation will get more oil to the BC coast.
There's lots of idiotic statements in those first 2 paragraphs but while Kenny is an idiot Jake Virtanen is certainly NOT the Vancouver Canucks problem.
For some reason on the post-game show TSN1040 strayed into "blame Jake" territory to which any sane individual went... "But he didn't play!"
Virtanen played 12 minutes. Every 4th shift or so. No PP time. No PK time. Watched a dork from the AHL get PP time while he sat on the bench.
The only thing stupider in sports right now than the Vancouver Canucks and the circus that follows them is the Cleveland Brown. Which circus is more bizarre? I honestly don't know. Pick your poison.
Virtanen doesn't play - it's his fault they lose. That makes total sense in the Vancouver market somehow.
I watched a guy named Leon Draisatl for the Edmonton Oilers, who by the way leads the NHL in points, score 2 goals and play the EXACT SAME GAME as Virtanen.
Virtanen was drafted as a scorer. BUT Willy Desjardens and Travis Green have been attempting to turn a perfectly normal goal scorer into a plumber. Only in Vancouver could you get away with that where the media is as smart as a bag of pucks.
Virtanen was drafted as a sniper. That's what he is. He floats around to open ice and scores goals when fed the puck.
But the Canucks have tried to feature that from Virtanen for about 5 minutes in his 5 year career.
Insanity would definitely describe it.
Would Virtanen have more goals on the PP right now than Boeser or Petterssen if given the chance? Absolutely.
But then what would you do with Boeser and Petterssen? Turn them into 4th line bangers?
Do you think the Canucks might want to try playing Virtanen for a 1 month stretch at 22 minutes per night just to find out what they drafted at 6th overall?
No.
No they are determined to see if he can play on the 4th line.
You know who else couldn't play on the 4th line?
Todd Bertuzzi. Cam Neely. That's to name just 2 guys who playing in this market.
Tom Watt drove Neely out of town.
He didn't want the 50 goal scorer. Watt wanted a 4th line winger who could fight instead.
Yeah, why not eh? F__k goals. It's overrated. What we need is a grinder.
Who was the coach in New York who drove Bertuzzi off the Island? Wasn't it that Mike Milbury? Didn't Canucks coach Travis Green play for Milbury? I don't know... I'm just asking.
As for the last 2 games for the Canucks - Mike Smith (G) Edmonton Oilers stunk like 14 day old garbage in the Jamaican sun on Saturday.
On Sunday the Canucks played the Oiler's No. 1 goalie and lost.
That's it.
They played a NHL goalie - lost.
Petterssen, Boeser and Horvat were ineffective 5 on 5. They floated around did nothing in their 20 minutes of ice time while Virtanen watched.
A coach was fired in Calgary for abuse. But what about psychological abuse?
Isn't the treatment of Virtanen straying into psychological abuse here? I don't know. He's the only player on the team that has to "earn it". No one else does.
There's not a single player on the Canucks besides Jake Virtanen that has to earn ice time.
Everyone else was green lit.
Virtanen -- who leads the team in 5 on 5 goals -- has to "earn it".
There's zero correlation between Virtanen and whether the Canucks lose because he doesn't play for the Vancouver Canucks. He watches games for the Vancouver Canucks.
His job is to sit on the bench and watch the Vancouver Canucks.
That's what he does.
Call Neely. Call Bertuzzi.
Funny thing happened though when Neely and Bertuzzi got a chance to play. They became the best players in the NHL.
Funny how it works that way, isn't it?
A lot of what you see in the NFL is politics, say the CFL analysts. Lots of players in the CFL are good enough to play in the NFL but can't because they don't have anyone fighting for them to play. It's politics a lot of time. A GM is invested in someone they drafted.
You don't think that happens in the NHL too?
Green had Virtanen in the AHL and is determined to prove something about Virtanen.
Was Petterssen sent to the minors for his disastrous last 30 games last year? No. No, just Jake gets that treatment.
You know what I'd like to see? I'd like to see Petterssen play for 12 minutes/night on the 4th line for 3 years and see how he does.
Here kid - take a seat. Watch the game. Enjoy.
And when do we start ignoring the fact that Bo Horvat as a center stinks?
He gets beat every single night defensively. He's useless offensively.
And yet, there's Horvat! On the PP. Hell, they gave the guy the C for some bizarre reason.
At best Horvat was projected to be a 3rd line center.
Yet there he is -- OUT OF THE PLAYOFFS AGAIN!!
Is there any point at which the media might start looking at the guy wearing 53 and saying ... "you know... that Horvat guy has done a lot of losing..."
But no, it's Jake's fault.
Friday, 29 November 2019
Playoffs are gone but Detroit is in sight
The Vancouver Canucks lost in embarrassing fashion in Pittsburgh Wednesday (Nov. 29) and they are now officially out of the playoffs before December even hits.
They are tied in points with the Toronto Maple Leafs who fired their coach.
They are 6 points up on the last place LA Kings in the Western Conference.
That's the good news.
The bad news is they are 11 points up on the Detroit Red Wings for 1st place in the NHL lottery draft.
And since the Canucks traded away next year's 1st Round Pick for the soon to be 27-year-old JT Miller for possibly a 1st overall draft pick next year... yeah, things couldn't get much worse.
But there's a chance for redemption.
The Canucks have pieces to move if they begin to fully commit to a rebuild.
Bo Horvat has value.
Alex Edler has value.
Chris Tanev has value.
JT Miller has value.
Jakob Markstrom has value.
There are draft picks to be had IF ownership green lights what needs to be done - and that's a 100% rebuild.
Put the FOR SALE sign on every player on the team and take the best offers.
There's really nothing on the roster that moves the dial in terms of making an impact or making a run to the Stanley Cup.
Pastranak in Boston has 23 goals in 24 games.
There's no one on the Canucks roster even close to that, not now, not ever.
And so without a franchise player - they're a duck out of water, a ship without a rudder.
There's really no point for them to proceed forward.
The goal now is to recoup that JT Miller idiocy and try to own the NHL draft over the next 5 years.
Whatever it takes.
So if someone wants an Elias Pettersson - you pull the trigger if the offer is high enough. If someone wants a Brock Boeser - you pull the trigger if the offer is good.
You're not moving forward with anything here. That's the point. It's a collection of some nice players and lots of 4th liners.
Keep Jake Virtanen - he's the one player you don't flip. He's still only 23 and has tremendous value and leads the team in even strength goals and is a force when played.
Obviously firing the GM and Coach are a no brainer.
They have to get someone in who can work with Virtanen and that's not Green. And they need someone who can draft properly and that's not Benning.
Time to close shop.
The ball is in ownership's hands now to fix the tire fire.
Will they?
If they're smart they'll do it. Because in the long run - this is killing them financially. You can't sell that roster.
You start the rebuild with the franchise player. You'll know that when it looks like Nathan MacKinnon.
They are tied in points with the Toronto Maple Leafs who fired their coach.
They are 6 points up on the last place LA Kings in the Western Conference.
That's the good news.
The bad news is they are 11 points up on the Detroit Red Wings for 1st place in the NHL lottery draft.
And since the Canucks traded away next year's 1st Round Pick for the soon to be 27-year-old JT Miller for possibly a 1st overall draft pick next year... yeah, things couldn't get much worse.
But there's a chance for redemption.
The Canucks have pieces to move if they begin to fully commit to a rebuild.
Bo Horvat has value.
Alex Edler has value.
Chris Tanev has value.
JT Miller has value.
Jakob Markstrom has value.
There are draft picks to be had IF ownership green lights what needs to be done - and that's a 100% rebuild.
Put the FOR SALE sign on every player on the team and take the best offers.
There's really nothing on the roster that moves the dial in terms of making an impact or making a run to the Stanley Cup.
Pastranak in Boston has 23 goals in 24 games.
There's no one on the Canucks roster even close to that, not now, not ever.
And so without a franchise player - they're a duck out of water, a ship without a rudder.
There's really no point for them to proceed forward.
The goal now is to recoup that JT Miller idiocy and try to own the NHL draft over the next 5 years.
Whatever it takes.
So if someone wants an Elias Pettersson - you pull the trigger if the offer is high enough. If someone wants a Brock Boeser - you pull the trigger if the offer is good.
You're not moving forward with anything here. That's the point. It's a collection of some nice players and lots of 4th liners.
Keep Jake Virtanen - he's the one player you don't flip. He's still only 23 and has tremendous value and leads the team in even strength goals and is a force when played.
Obviously firing the GM and Coach are a no brainer.
They have to get someone in who can work with Virtanen and that's not Green. And they need someone who can draft properly and that's not Benning.
Time to close shop.
The ball is in ownership's hands now to fix the tire fire.
Will they?
If they're smart they'll do it. Because in the long run - this is killing them financially. You can't sell that roster.
You start the rebuild with the franchise player. You'll know that when it looks like Nathan MacKinnon.
Tuesday, 26 November 2019
Tire fire continues on 6 game road trip
Canucks got smoked in Dallas, beat an AHL goalie in Nashville, tied in Washington and got hammered in Philadelphia on their current 6 game road trip.
It's a broken record. If the Canucks play a team that has an NHL goalie they get 1 goal at best.
And then they play for the shootout.
It's not exactly a recipe for winning.
What's confounding is the media on TSN1040 and SPORTSNET650 that refuse to admit that the team Jim Benning put together is absolute shit.
What the media fails to report, or doesn't know, is that other teams don't give a flying F about the Canucks.
"But the process was good in Washington!" Ya, so they needed a 5-3 PP goal to tie it up.
Washington was drunk. I mean come on people, was it really that long ago when the Canucks were No. 1 in the NHL and would play 5 minutes in a game and win? When the Canucks took nights off against crappy teams and still got a point? Where they played the "How little can we play against _____ and still win?" game?
5 on 5 they're absolute garbage - the worst in the NHL in November and getting worse.
Yes, I guess technically they're still in the playoff hunt, but not by this weekend. It's come and gone.
The horses are out of the barn.
What's more confounding is that it's a team that Canucks GM Jim Benning and crew looked at and said, "This is a playoff team!" and traded a 1st round pick for JT Miller who is turning 27.
Miller is a neat little player who might get 25 goals. Yay! But the point is HE'S 27 !!! The 1st round pick is 10 years younger and might be a 1st OVERALL pick. And so it's an automatic trade loss.
Quinton Hughes has an amazing 2 goals !! He has 13 points on the PP all of them from eye are 2nd assists! Yay! Look at me! I'm on the PP! We beat an AHL/KHL goalie Pekka Renna for 5 goals in Nashville and I got points! Other than that he's invisible.
They compiled a crop of D that at best will score 15 goals this season - Cale Makar in Colorado is closing in on 15 goals at the 23 game mark and he plays D and is going to win the Norris Trophy, Calder (DUH!) and the Hart Trophy.
That's what tanking does for you. It gets talent! Not picking 7th or 5th - you have to get in that Top 4 -- and really the Top 2 to get bonafide game changing talent.
The Canucks don't have any bonafide game changing talent and I know that because they average 1 goal per game.
They have ZERO centers.
I mean who looked at that roster and said, "We're good! Let's go for it!"
How did you not notice you had no centers on the team?
Complete crap.
To sum up Jim Benning's drafting --
If the Canucks offered Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser and Quinton Hughes to Colorado for Cale Makar - Colorado says NO! Are you kidding me? NO! Of course not.
This "rebuild not really rebuilding going for the playoffs every year" has failed. Period. End of story.
Why on Earth Jim Benning and crew and Travis Green are still employed here is a complete mystery.
And why the owner won't commit to an actual rebuild, not a fake one, is also a complete mystery. You're not making the playoffs with that crap.
And so you're not getting further ahead in the selling tickets department.
All you've done is compounded the misery. You're delaying the inevitable. The TANK must begin in earnest.
Bo Horvat - trade for picks
Tanev - trade for picks
Edler - trade for picks
JT Miller - trade for picks
Jakob Markstrom - trade for picks
Elis Pettersson - entertain offers
Brock Boeser - entertain offers
PUT THE FOR SALE SIGN UP !!
Whatever you want - it's for sale for the right price!!
Get back into the draft and get the 1st overall pick that must be a franchise center - THEN AND ONLY THEN DO YOU START THE REBUILD.
Until then - everything goes for the right price.
There's nothing there that wins you a Stanley Cup. Nothing. Zip. Nada.
It's a broken record. If the Canucks play a team that has an NHL goalie they get 1 goal at best.
And then they play for the shootout.
It's not exactly a recipe for winning.
What's confounding is the media on TSN1040 and SPORTSNET650 that refuse to admit that the team Jim Benning put together is absolute shit.
What the media fails to report, or doesn't know, is that other teams don't give a flying F about the Canucks.
"But the process was good in Washington!" Ya, so they needed a 5-3 PP goal to tie it up.
Washington was drunk. I mean come on people, was it really that long ago when the Canucks were No. 1 in the NHL and would play 5 minutes in a game and win? When the Canucks took nights off against crappy teams and still got a point? Where they played the "How little can we play against _____ and still win?" game?
5 on 5 they're absolute garbage - the worst in the NHL in November and getting worse.
Yes, I guess technically they're still in the playoff hunt, but not by this weekend. It's come and gone.
The horses are out of the barn.
What's more confounding is that it's a team that Canucks GM Jim Benning and crew looked at and said, "This is a playoff team!" and traded a 1st round pick for JT Miller who is turning 27.
Miller is a neat little player who might get 25 goals. Yay! But the point is HE'S 27 !!! The 1st round pick is 10 years younger and might be a 1st OVERALL pick. And so it's an automatic trade loss.
Quinton Hughes has an amazing 2 goals !! He has 13 points on the PP all of them from eye are 2nd assists! Yay! Look at me! I'm on the PP! We beat an AHL/KHL goalie Pekka Renna for 5 goals in Nashville and I got points! Other than that he's invisible.
They compiled a crop of D that at best will score 15 goals this season - Cale Makar in Colorado is closing in on 15 goals at the 23 game mark and he plays D and is going to win the Norris Trophy, Calder (DUH!) and the Hart Trophy.
That's what tanking does for you. It gets talent! Not picking 7th or 5th - you have to get in that Top 4 -- and really the Top 2 to get bonafide game changing talent.
The Canucks don't have any bonafide game changing talent and I know that because they average 1 goal per game.
They have ZERO centers.
I mean who looked at that roster and said, "We're good! Let's go for it!"
How did you not notice you had no centers on the team?
Complete crap.
To sum up Jim Benning's drafting --
If the Canucks offered Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser and Quinton Hughes to Colorado for Cale Makar - Colorado says NO! Are you kidding me? NO! Of course not.
This "rebuild not really rebuilding going for the playoffs every year" has failed. Period. End of story.
Why on Earth Jim Benning and crew and Travis Green are still employed here is a complete mystery.
And why the owner won't commit to an actual rebuild, not a fake one, is also a complete mystery. You're not making the playoffs with that crap.
And so you're not getting further ahead in the selling tickets department.
All you've done is compounded the misery. You're delaying the inevitable. The TANK must begin in earnest.
Bo Horvat - trade for picks
Tanev - trade for picks
Edler - trade for picks
JT Miller - trade for picks
Jakob Markstrom - trade for picks
Elis Pettersson - entertain offers
Brock Boeser - entertain offers
PUT THE FOR SALE SIGN UP !!
Whatever you want - it's for sale for the right price!!
Get back into the draft and get the 1st overall pick that must be a franchise center - THEN AND ONLY THEN DO YOU START THE REBUILD.
Until then - everything goes for the right price.
There's nothing there that wins you a Stanley Cup. Nothing. Zip. Nada.
Wednesday, 20 November 2019
8 wins, 9 losses, 5 ties for Tire Fire
(We don't count any garbage after 60 minutes -- that's circus time and misleads consumers).
Vancouver Canucks are now
8 Wins
9 Losses
5 Ties
They are a .480 hockey team and headed south. And keep in mind virtually everyone on local sports radio stations TSN 1040 and SPORTSNET 650 gushed and gushed about how much better this Vancouver team was going to be this year. I did not buy or believe the hype for one single minute because common sense said that without centers -- it was going to be a long year.
The Vancouver Canucks got beat down 6-1 in Dallas on Tuesday Nov. 19, 2019 in the latest loss of a team that can't score goals, can't stop goals from being scored on them and is in general disarray.
The important thing to remember is that someone in the management group looked at JT Miller and said, "Let's give up a (potential) 1st overall pick for JT Miller!!"
That happened.
Someone looked at JT Miller and saw a piece of the puzzle. It actually happened.
Furthermore someone made the assessment that the Vancouver Canucks, the team they worked for, was close to making the playoffs and that JT Miller was a final piece of the puzzle.
Miller pretty much got his entire point total of 20 in 22 games during October when they played Patsy after Patsy after Patsy.
Well... lol, now the playing Detroit is over and wow. JT Miller is who anyone who looked at him thought he was. He's a 13 goal scoring, 40 point winger WINGER! who is ... meh. He's MEH.
Here's the KICKER for Canucks fans.
It's not up to the Vancouver Canucks when they give the Tampa Bay Lightning the 1st round pick.
When the Canucks miss the playoffs this year the Canucks MUST draft this year.
That means they will be heading into next year needing to make the playoffs with pretty much the exact same roster they have now because the contracts they have signed are unmovable and the roster is full and unless they get the 1st overall pick in next year's draft they won't get help in the draft.
A new GM is required immediately so that they can start unloading any available talent to recoup 1st round picks.
In short, ownership must either sell the team - or commit publicly to a complete rebuild of the roster if this franchise is going to move forward.
What's done is done. JT Miller is going to cost the Vancouver Canucks next season quite dearly because they can't improve the team fast enough to make the playoffs next year, let alone this year.
This year is done.
But hopefully ownership is looking at this team and realizing that they have not drafted any help in the NHL draft.
Boeser is a neat little player.
Pettersson is a neat little player.
Neither of them make any impact on games.
Bo Horvat is a -10 (and as I said previously making him captain was a massive mistake). They should have put the C on Alex Edler because Horvat wasn't good enough to carry the weight of the C.
Horvat is a winger.
Pettersson is a winger.
That is no longer in doubt. A team that can't score is a team without centers. They haven't been able to score since Henrik Sedin was their center in 2012.
It's not rocket science.
They need a franchise center.
They don't have a franchise center.
They gave up a potential franchise center to get JT Miller. THE JT Miller.
The point isn't anymore about this season.
I think it's clear now at the 22 game mark the team is what it is -- it struggles against teams with goaltenders. It struggles against teams with defense. It struggles with teams that are organized.
The point is about the next 2 years now.
How do they recoup the disastrous JT Miller trade?
And how do they begin to rebuild?
They don't have any components of a rebuild on the team, yet.
Quinton Hughes appears to be not ready for the NHL. At times he looks okay, at times he looks like he's in way over his head. I do believe that under GM Pat Quinn Hughes would be in Utica. He's not getting better he's getting worse. He's not ready. That doesn't mean he won't be a neat little piece in the future - but he's not ready now. And he certainly won't be a Norris Trophy consideration.
So
When it comes to NHL drafting
What have the Vancouver Canucks done?
Jake Virtanen has been their best player. He's big enough, strong enough, but is playing without a center (and I would argue he IS the center), but the reality is he's yet to crest 20 goals.
Juolevi is finished.
Brock Boeser is a neat 25 goal scorer.
Elias Pettersson is a neat 25 goal scorer.
The Russian in last year's draft is ??? He didn't score well at the recent world junior tournament in October... but ??? Who knows?
That's the 1st round. Not a single 30 goal scorer. And keep in mind Vancouver has been picking in the Top 10 of the NHL draft.
2nd round -- Goalie Thatcher Demko. He's been Okay. Not great. He's okay.
5th round -- Adam Gaudette. He's okay. He might be a player. Not a 30 goal scoring center but he might be okay.
Did I miss anyone? I don't think so.
Virtanen, Boeser, Pettersson and Gaudette. Combined they won't get the same points as Edmonton Oilers Leon Draisatl.
It's a pretty big indictment of the entire management team in Vancouver.
Remember when everyone was touting GM Benning and Judd Brackett?
lol
Look, they're all well-meaning nice people I'm sure. But they have put together the single worst record of drafting in the Canucks history as far as I can tell. I mean, who knows? Boeser might turn into a player. Pettersson might. Who knows?
But is there a Stan Smyl there? No.
Is there a Thomas Gradin there? No.
Is there a Trevor Linden there? No.
Is there a Pavel Bure there? No.
Is there a Mattias Ohlund there? No.
Are there Sedins there? No.
It's pretty dismal.
If you look at their farm team - it's worse.
Reid Boucher leads the team, followed by Nik Goldobin - both aren't NHL players.
Remember Kole Lind? 3 goals this year in 16 games.
There's nothing there and again I'm sure they're all well-meaning very nice people and players. No disrespect to any of these players or any of the players in the NHL - they all seem to be nice players. They just can't play hockey real good or draft real good or trade real good or sign players on July 1st real good.
And so the following year - Alex Edler is another year older and he's their best D man and he doesn't have help coming. He'll be 35.
And so when you move this team forward to next season -- they're in a lot of trouble. That defense gets worse, not better. There's no help coming from draft picks. There's no help coming the NHL draft even if they get a top 3 pick and get the best D man in the draft - you can't ask an 18-year-old to stabalize the Canucks.
And they're tied down with contracts like Tyler Myers who has, I think, 3 points this season.
In fact I think their entire D squad has 6 goals in the 22 games the 6 D men have played so that's 6 goals in 132 man games.
6 goals in 132 man games available to them. Is that bad? Do you think?
Dan Hamhuis and Kevin Bieksa and Luca Sbisa and Andrey Pedan would have helped Alex Edler. Would it have been a great D? No. But it would have been viable.
And from what I understand, but could be wrong, the coach of the Canucks, Travis Green, had input on the players they signed, and has had input on the players they have signed.
And so you let a rookie coach help sign players to come in and kill penalties. Because that's pretty much all they can do, but even that they don't do very well.
So what's needed?
A sit-down from Canucks ownership at the microphone where
A) they own the mess they've created.
B) A commitment that they will now go fully and completely into a rebuild
C) Embrace a rebuild over the next 5 years that will include a 1st overall pick and stockpiling of 1st round picks.
D) A new management team and president who will oversee the rebuild and one that can draft impact NHL players. Not 25 goal scorers but actual players who have a chance at 50 goal scorers like Nathan MacKinnon.
E) A commitment that they will not rest until they get a FRANCHISE PLAYER.
Vancouver Canucks are now
8 Wins
9 Losses
5 Ties
They are a .480 hockey team and headed south. And keep in mind virtually everyone on local sports radio stations TSN 1040 and SPORTSNET 650 gushed and gushed about how much better this Vancouver team was going to be this year. I did not buy or believe the hype for one single minute because common sense said that without centers -- it was going to be a long year.
The Vancouver Canucks got beat down 6-1 in Dallas on Tuesday Nov. 19, 2019 in the latest loss of a team that can't score goals, can't stop goals from being scored on them and is in general disarray.
The important thing to remember is that someone in the management group looked at JT Miller and said, "Let's give up a (potential) 1st overall pick for JT Miller!!"
That happened.
Someone looked at JT Miller and saw a piece of the puzzle. It actually happened.
Furthermore someone made the assessment that the Vancouver Canucks, the team they worked for, was close to making the playoffs and that JT Miller was a final piece of the puzzle.
Miller pretty much got his entire point total of 20 in 22 games during October when they played Patsy after Patsy after Patsy.
Well... lol, now the playing Detroit is over and wow. JT Miller is who anyone who looked at him thought he was. He's a 13 goal scoring, 40 point winger WINGER! who is ... meh. He's MEH.
Here's the KICKER for Canucks fans.
It's not up to the Vancouver Canucks when they give the Tampa Bay Lightning the 1st round pick.
When the Canucks miss the playoffs this year the Canucks MUST draft this year.
That means they will be heading into next year needing to make the playoffs with pretty much the exact same roster they have now because the contracts they have signed are unmovable and the roster is full and unless they get the 1st overall pick in next year's draft they won't get help in the draft.
A new GM is required immediately so that they can start unloading any available talent to recoup 1st round picks.
In short, ownership must either sell the team - or commit publicly to a complete rebuild of the roster if this franchise is going to move forward.
What's done is done. JT Miller is going to cost the Vancouver Canucks next season quite dearly because they can't improve the team fast enough to make the playoffs next year, let alone this year.
This year is done.
But hopefully ownership is looking at this team and realizing that they have not drafted any help in the NHL draft.
Boeser is a neat little player.
Pettersson is a neat little player.
Neither of them make any impact on games.
Bo Horvat is a -10 (and as I said previously making him captain was a massive mistake). They should have put the C on Alex Edler because Horvat wasn't good enough to carry the weight of the C.
Horvat is a winger.
Pettersson is a winger.
That is no longer in doubt. A team that can't score is a team without centers. They haven't been able to score since Henrik Sedin was their center in 2012.
It's not rocket science.
They need a franchise center.
They don't have a franchise center.
They gave up a potential franchise center to get JT Miller. THE JT Miller.
The point isn't anymore about this season.
I think it's clear now at the 22 game mark the team is what it is -- it struggles against teams with goaltenders. It struggles against teams with defense. It struggles with teams that are organized.
The point is about the next 2 years now.
How do they recoup the disastrous JT Miller trade?
And how do they begin to rebuild?
They don't have any components of a rebuild on the team, yet.
Quinton Hughes appears to be not ready for the NHL. At times he looks okay, at times he looks like he's in way over his head. I do believe that under GM Pat Quinn Hughes would be in Utica. He's not getting better he's getting worse. He's not ready. That doesn't mean he won't be a neat little piece in the future - but he's not ready now. And he certainly won't be a Norris Trophy consideration.
So
When it comes to NHL drafting
What have the Vancouver Canucks done?
Jake Virtanen has been their best player. He's big enough, strong enough, but is playing without a center (and I would argue he IS the center), but the reality is he's yet to crest 20 goals.
Juolevi is finished.
Brock Boeser is a neat 25 goal scorer.
Elias Pettersson is a neat 25 goal scorer.
The Russian in last year's draft is ??? He didn't score well at the recent world junior tournament in October... but ??? Who knows?
That's the 1st round. Not a single 30 goal scorer. And keep in mind Vancouver has been picking in the Top 10 of the NHL draft.
2nd round -- Goalie Thatcher Demko. He's been Okay. Not great. He's okay.
5th round -- Adam Gaudette. He's okay. He might be a player. Not a 30 goal scoring center but he might be okay.
Did I miss anyone? I don't think so.
Virtanen, Boeser, Pettersson and Gaudette. Combined they won't get the same points as Edmonton Oilers Leon Draisatl.
It's a pretty big indictment of the entire management team in Vancouver.
Remember when everyone was touting GM Benning and Judd Brackett?
lol
Look, they're all well-meaning nice people I'm sure. But they have put together the single worst record of drafting in the Canucks history as far as I can tell. I mean, who knows? Boeser might turn into a player. Pettersson might. Who knows?
But is there a Stan Smyl there? No.
Is there a Thomas Gradin there? No.
Is there a Trevor Linden there? No.
Is there a Pavel Bure there? No.
Is there a Mattias Ohlund there? No.
Are there Sedins there? No.
It's pretty dismal.
If you look at their farm team - it's worse.
Reid Boucher leads the team, followed by Nik Goldobin - both aren't NHL players.
Remember Kole Lind? 3 goals this year in 16 games.
There's nothing there and again I'm sure they're all well-meaning very nice people and players. No disrespect to any of these players or any of the players in the NHL - they all seem to be nice players. They just can't play hockey real good or draft real good or trade real good or sign players on July 1st real good.
And so the following year - Alex Edler is another year older and he's their best D man and he doesn't have help coming. He'll be 35.
And so when you move this team forward to next season -- they're in a lot of trouble. That defense gets worse, not better. There's no help coming from draft picks. There's no help coming the NHL draft even if they get a top 3 pick and get the best D man in the draft - you can't ask an 18-year-old to stabalize the Canucks.
And they're tied down with contracts like Tyler Myers who has, I think, 3 points this season.
In fact I think their entire D squad has 6 goals in the 22 games the 6 D men have played so that's 6 goals in 132 man games.
6 goals in 132 man games available to them. Is that bad? Do you think?
Dan Hamhuis and Kevin Bieksa and Luca Sbisa and Andrey Pedan would have helped Alex Edler. Would it have been a great D? No. But it would have been viable.
And from what I understand, but could be wrong, the coach of the Canucks, Travis Green, had input on the players they signed, and has had input on the players they have signed.
And so you let a rookie coach help sign players to come in and kill penalties. Because that's pretty much all they can do, but even that they don't do very well.
So what's needed?
A sit-down from Canucks ownership at the microphone where
A) they own the mess they've created.
B) A commitment that they will now go fully and completely into a rebuild
C) Embrace a rebuild over the next 5 years that will include a 1st overall pick and stockpiling of 1st round picks.
D) A new management team and president who will oversee the rebuild and one that can draft impact NHL players. Not 25 goal scorers but actual players who have a chance at 50 goal scorers like Nathan MacKinnon.
E) A commitment that they will not rest until they get a FRANCHISE PLAYER.
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