The season ending press conference at Rogers Place on Monday, April 8th, 2019, was perhaps the most bizarre thing to hit the Vancouver market in some decades.
It started with the Canucks media man continuing to urge that they were going to wrap it up about 10 minutes into the event.
It was kind of like their season - over before it started.
Things that made me laugh
1) We took a step forward this year
Uhh... I had them at 22 regulation wins. 22 regulation wins in 82 games. .250 hockey. Perhaps the worst team in franchise history.
2) We have some good pieces moving forward
Uhhh... did I miss something? I don't think 2 guys finishing 2nd in the Calder Trophy voting is a good step forward. Was there a 30 goal scorer on the team? Did I miss something?
Even Cam Atkinson in Columbus had 42 goals. That was about 15 goals ahead of the best Canuck player. CAM ATKINSON. The great CAM ATKINSON. No disrespect intended to Mr. Atkinson... but ummmm... he's not Sidney Crosby. You're not wining a Stanley Cup because of Cam Atkinson.
Is Elias Peterrsson even a NHL player ? He had 2 goals in 25 games when the game speed got dialed up past the All-Star break. I don't know. Those numbers tell me he's not a NHL player. Bo Horvat is what he was drafted to be - a 25 goal scoring center. Is that a Stanley Cup winner? Are you kidding me? Really?
Brock Boeser hasn't crested 30 goals yet. If he doesn't hit 40 goals by year 3 he won't ever be a 40 goal scorer. That's this year coming up. That's a massive improvement for him in year 3 if they want to hope he's something you could build around. Are you banking on that? Really?
3) Stanley Cup Champions are 26-35 years old.
Uhhh, no. Not actually. If your "impact" players aren't "impact" players by the age of 22 they're not "impact" players.
Folks, they haven't started the rebuild yet.
The rebuild starts with a 1st or 2nd overall draft pick.
You're not building around a 10th overall pick or 6th overall pick or 5th overall pick or 26th overall pick or 7th overall pick. That gets you a box of steak knives.
Trevor Linden - 2nd overall - Stanley Cup Finals.
Hank Sedin - 2nd overall - Stanley Cup Finals.
King Richard Brodeur - RED HOT GOALIE - Stanley Cup Finals.
That's the history here. And that's the history everywhere.
LA - Drew Doughty - 2nd overall.
Chicago - Patrick Kane - 1st overall.
Wash - Alexander Ovechkin, Malkin, 1st, 2nd overall.
The rebuild hasn't started here in Vancouver.
There is no "Core 4"
You get a 1st or 2nd overall pick or you get the steak knives.
Boston - 2nd overall pick - Tyler Seguin... And would Zdana Chara go 1st overall in a draft redo? do you think ???
You get a 1st or 2nd overall pick or your rebuild hasn't started.
Now, can you get a team that makes the playoffs without that?
Sure. Can you win without that? No. Absolutely not.
4) We think Quinton Hughes can add a lot to our offense
Wow. Just wow. If he was a "Franchise" D man - he would have gone higher than 7th overall. He has a muffin shot. He's not a fast skater (straight ahead). He's horrific defensively. HE'S NOT DREW DOUGHTY!!! Pinning your hopes on a NCAA player, not used to 82 games, who scored 5 goals in his final NCAA season - is beyond bizarre.
5) We saw some good development this year.
In what players? Pettersson collapsed. Horvat was the same as last year. Boeser was the same as last year. Markstrom improved to a .902 save % - but he's not coached by Travis Green or was acquired by GM Jim Benning...
They're basing this on the 7 wins they got after the team was eliminated from playoffs?
6) They had a lot of injuries.
Uhhh, ya, you have a teeny tiny hockey team without an enforcer and you get slapped around, beat up, rag dolled with impunity.
They built a team that clearly plays better once they're eliminated from the playoffs.
What's required?
As I've said before - the rebuild starts when you get that 1st or 2nd overall pick.
And so what's required is the bottoming out of the franchise. And it begins with 3 draft picks in this year's NHL draft.
Players required to be traded to move the franchise forward (again - to bottom out, and get a 1st or 2nd overall pick).
This is not to say these are not terrific people or bad hockey players. The opposite is true. But you can't rebuild with them.
1) Bo Horvat - he's 25. Window has closed, and at 25 goals so what? His value starts to decline now.
2) Quinton Hughes - his value decreases the moment next season begins. Parlay that 7th overall pick into a top 2 pick - package him with a Horvat - GO GET A PLAYER !!!!!
3) Troy Stecher - he has value - move it NOW.
4) Jakob Markstrom - he has value - MOVE IT NOW!
5) Package spare parts - Granlund, Goldobin, -- anyone not named Virtanen, Pettersson and Boeser - and move it along. Get what you can in draft picks.
Next year - play the kids - Gaunce, Lind, Gaudette - what the hell do you have to lose? You're the lowest scoring team in the NHL since December - so just bottom out anyways. Play them all. Bring up the kids. Let it ride.
Again, you can't get worse than 22 regulation wins anyways.
In order to rebuild something you do have to tear it down to the studs. You need to see everything behind the walls. Strip it down.
Get those top draft picks.
The longer this franchise delays in stripping it down the longer it will take to win a Stanley Cup.
You're not winning anything with Horvat, Boeser and Pettersson and Hughes. Those are leftovers at the dinner table. They are the steak knives sales bonuses. They're not the gold watches for sales WINNERS.
You can try to convince yourself until you're blue in the face that they're franchise players.
But the numbers don't lie. You can either score goals in the NHL or you can't.
You either have an impact or two player to lead you or you don't. There's no covering it up.
Pettersson a franchise player? He has to worry about making the NHL roster next year and sticking there. And before you go, "Oh, come on, he's got 60 points this year" -- you remember that 2 goals in 25 games and collapse after game 50. The NHL has his number folks. He may never learn to compete at the NHL level.
At best Pettersson is Petr Nedved. I think Pettersson is going to bounce around a lot. I think eventually he's going to find a home somewhere as a 2-way winger. A useful player to someone. But I don't see him ever as a franchise player because of the size issue. And that's what scouts said. It might be wise for people to start listening to scouts.
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