Not sure who the audience is for this piece but what the hell...... I got it off my chest I guess.
Several nights ago the Vancouver Canucks were shut out for the 3rd time in a row. They hadn’t scored a goal in their last 200 minutes of playing time. They may have reached a new low in their franchise history. Things couldn’t be any worse.
Several nights ago the Vancouver Canucks were shut out for the 3rd time in a row. They hadn’t scored a goal in their last 200 minutes of playing time. They may have reached a new low in their franchise history. Things couldn’t be any worse.
5 out of 7 of the Canadian NHL teams won’t make the play
offs this year. I’m pretty sure they mostly don’t have a lot of empathy for the
plight of the Canucks. The Ottawa Senators have gone from making the 3rd
round in the play offs last year to trading away their veterans and defenseman Erik
Karlsson may be playing somewhere else next year. Montreal has floundered and
Carey Price doesn’t look like their savior anymore. Calgary has 3 elite players
in Gaudreau. Monahan, and Giordano but is pretty thin after them. Connor McDavid
can’t carry Edmonton by himself and the team has several slow forwards and a
porous defense.
Although we have milder winters here on Vancouver Island
than the rest of Canada, we too hunker down somewhat waiting for the warmer
weather to return. TV is always an option for a bit of escapism. We can watch
people looking to buy beach houses or get wired into “Survivor” in some
tropical location and watch the contestants pull the rug out from each other.
If you like sports, watching them for 2 or 3 hours on TV
can while away a few hours of the winter doldrums. Golf is always being played
somewhere and I’ve been up in the middle of the night on occasion watching the
Australian Open in tennis. The Toronto Raptors are having a great season in the
NBA. The Olympics filled 2 weeks of this winter and Canada brought home a lot
of medals.
Like many other Canadians who follow pro sports, the NHL
and hockey has always been the big deal every winter. Some of us are old enough
to remember when we only got one televised hockey game per week on Saturday
nights and often neither of the teams was ones we were fans of.
Nowadays we get to see every home and away game of our
home team. Even those that prefer to pull for another team other than their
home team can buy a TV package where they can watch that other team.
We Canadians have pretty well hit the saturation point
when it comes to hockey. Strangely, one of Canada’s sports networks doesn’t
have the rights to broadcast any NHL games. Even without any broadcast rights
that network still manages to have a panel of about 18 experts on NHL trade
deadline day.
Most hockey fans in Canada closely follow the NHL team
that is closest to them geographically. There are some exceptions like people
who grew up in cities like Montreal and Toronto but later moved away.
When I was kid growing up in Montreal, I was a big
Chicago Black Hawk fan but my allegiance changed in 1970 when the Vancouver
Canucks were awarded a franchise.
I wrote a story on my blog some time ago (My First 20
Years Of Being A Vancouver Canucks Fan in December of 2013.
Every professional sports team has its ups and downs. Rebuilding
eventually becomes a part of the process. Players that once could be counted on,
can start to fade away. The legs are often the first thing to go as players get
older.
Stocking a minor league team with young players who will
eventually step into NHL jobs is a difficult thing to do. The best young
players in each year’s draft get taken by the NHL teams with the worst records.
The pickings can get pretty lean after the 1st round of the draft.
An NHL team at the top of the league or even in the middle of the pack in
points often needs some luck in finding even one young player each draft that
is going to make it to the NHL.
High scoring young players from the junior leagues,
college, and the European hockey leagues often don’t transition to high scorers
in the NHL. In the under 20 years of age leagues high goal scorers are often
playing against kids with considerably lesser skills. Defensemen usually take
longer to develop and goalies almost always need years of seasoning in the
professional minor leagues.
Anyone chosen in the annual draft beyond the 2nd round is
really a long shot to make it. There are all kinds of young players that are
not the total package. Some are small in stature, some don’t have great foot
speed, and others have trouble making split second decisions.
In the old days a career hockey player could toil for as
long as 20 years in the minor leagues. Those days are long gone. In most cases
these days decisions are made on young hockey players when they are 23 or 24
years of age as to whether or not they are going to have NHL careers. Some who
were big scorers when they were younger are converted to 3rd and 4th
line defensive players. Every hockey team needs players that can score
consistently at the NHL level and the audition for that role often isn’t very
long.
Superstars in the NHL usually have the capability of
playing with a variety of line mates and can up the game of those players.
They used to say that every good team is built down the
center. 3 good centers that can distribute the puck well and score goals can
take a team a long way. Today’s game is all about speed and quick transition
from offense to defense and visa versa.
All of the best teams have at least 2 really offensive
defensemen who can get the puck up the ice quickly and can blast a shot from
the blue line. These guys also know how to quarterback a power play.
The last ingredient for an outstanding NHL team is having
a superior goalie. Without one everything else doesn’t matter.
The team that has the most points currently in the NHL is
the Nashville Predators. They have all the boxes ticked off…. 4 solid defensemen
with offensive skills in Roman Josi, Mattias Ekholm, Ryan Ellis, and P.K.
Subban. Strong at the center position with Ryan Johanson, Kevin Fiala, Kyle
Turris, and Nick Bonino. Wingers who can score like Victor Arvidsson and Filip
Forsberg. Role players who can chip in and one of the best goalies in the NHL
in Pekka Rinne.
So
How Could Nashville Get Things So Right And The Vancouver Canucks Get Things So
Wrong?
The easy answer is probably better management.
To get a better idea of why the Canucks are where they
are today you have to go back about 15 years. There was a period of 3 or 4
years in the early 2000s when the Canucks had one of the best scoring lines in
hockey with Markus Naslund, Todd Bertuzzi, and Brendan Morrison. The trio was
nick named “The West Coast Express”. As good as they were the Canucks never went
far in the playoffs.
In February of 2004 Colorado forward Steve Moore hit
Canucks player Marcus Naslund with a cheap shot causing a concussion. A few
games later Bertuzzi went looking for Moore and ended up smashing Moore’s head
into the ice. Moore never played hockey again and sued Bertuzzi for damages.
The whole deal was a big distraction on the team and 2 years later Bertuzzi was
traded to the Florida Panthers for goalie Roberto Luongo.
By 2008 both Markus Naslund and Brendan Morrison too had
left the Canucks as free agents.
 |
| West Coast Express |
Brian Burke was the GM of the Canucks in 2000 and the
Canucks had the 2nd pick in the draft. Somehow Burke cooked up a
deal where the team would also have the 3rd overall pick and he
chose the Sedin brothers, Henrik and Daniel.
 |
| 18 year old Sedin Bros |
 |
| Alain Vigneault |
 |
| Would it have been worse if the Canucks won? |
The Gillis Years
| Mike Gillis |
One of Gillis’s best deals was getting offensive
defenseman Christian Ehrhoff from San Jose for next to nothing. Gillis also
signed goalie Roberto Luongo to a 12 year 64 million dollar contract. That
contract would be a killer in the coming years.
In the 2010-2011 hockey season the Canucks had the best
record in the NHL and Gillis was given the manager of the year award. And then
things started to come apart for him. Young goalie Cory Schneider became the #1
goalie and Luongo became the back-up. Gillis signed Schneider to a 3 year 12
million dollar contract. Luongo wanted out of Vancouver in the worst way even
though he had a no trade clause. Trading a guy with 9 years left on his big
contract wasn’t going to be easy.
 |
| Corey Schneider and Roberto Luongo |
Unable to make a trade for Luongo, Gillis shipped Schneider
off to New Jersey for their first round pick who turned out to be Bo Horvath.
Vigneault was fired in 2013 and John Torterella became
the new coach. “Torts” only lasted 1 year and it was a fiasco. The team won 1
more game than they lost. The Sedin twins combined for 27 goals and 2nd
line center Ryan Kesler wanted to be traded. A young Eddie Lack and Luongo were
now sharing the goaltending duties. The Sedins were in the first year of their
new 6 year contracts that paid them each 7 million dollars a year.
 |
| John Tortorella |
In March of 2014 Luongo was finally traded. He was sent
to the Florida Panthers in exchange for goalie Jacob Markstrom. The Canucks are
still on the hook for part of Luongo’s salary.
In April of 2014 Gillis was fired.
The
Linden/Benning Years
 |
| Trevor Linden and Jim Benning |
After firing Gillis, the owner of the Vancouver Canucks,
Francesco Aquilini, hired former long time Canucks player Trevor
Linden as president. Gillis and Linden weren’t the best of pals and Linden
stayed away from the Canucks during the Gillis years.
Personally, I thought Linden was overrated as a hockey
player. His goal scoring ability ended 8 years into his NHL career. In the next
12 years he never scored 20 goals in a season. They used to call that kind of
player a “journeyman”. On the upside Linden knew a lot of the players personally
throughout the league because he was the head of The Player’s Association.
Linden hired former Canuck teammate Jim Benning to be the
new GM. Benning had been the assistant GM in Boston.
 |
| Ryan Kesler |
Long time Canuck center Ryan Kesler could see the writing
on the wall as to the Canucks future. The Canucks were going to have to go into
a rebuild mode. Kesler forced Benning’s hand and Kesler was traded to the
Anaheim Ducks for center Nick Bonino and defenseman Lucas Krajceck.
Realizing that the Canucks couldn’t rely on Jacob
Markstrom ,who they received in the Luongo trade, as their main goalie, Benning signed reliable Ryan Miller to a 3 year
18 million dollar contract.
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| Ryan Miller |
A combination of poor scouting and not having a high
draft pick because the Canucks had a string of good years previously, meant
that there wasn’t much in the system in the way of a new exciting player
joining the team.
The Canucks didn’t have a draft pick in the first 3
rounds of the 2010 draft and of the 6 players they chose, 1 player played 1
game in the NHL. The 2011 draft was another flop. 2 marginal players in the
2012 draft, Brendan Gaunce and Ben Hutton, eventually made the team. The
Canucks used the 9th overall pick in the 2013 draft that they got by
trading goalie Cory Shneider to New Jersey to take Bo Horvath.
The 2014 draft saw 4 Canucks drafts make the NHL
eventually. The #6 overall draft pick, Jake Virtanen, is the only player still
with the team.
Long time minor league coach Willie Desjardins was brought
in to direct the 2014-2015 team. Goalie Ryan Miller stood on his head some
nights and there were just enough of the old regulars to carry the team to a
winning season. Free agent Radim Vrbata helped out with 31 goals.
 |
| Bo Horvat |
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| Jake Virtanen |
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| Willie Desjardins |
Free agent Loui Eriksson was signed to a 6 year 36
million dollar contract and a Canucks first round prospect, Jarred McCann, was
traded to Florida for defenseman Erik Gubranson.
The Canucks dropped to 7 games below .500 in the 2015-2016
hockey season and to 13 games below .500 in the 2016-2017 season. 2 long time
Canuck veterans, Alex Burrows and Jannik Hanson, were traded away for young
prospects Nicolai Goldobin and Johnathan Dahlen. By this point the Sedin
brothers and defensemen Alex Edler and Chris Tanev were the only Canuck players
left from the 2010-2011 Stanley Cup run. The one bright spot for the team was
rookie Brock Boeser scoring 4 goals in 9 games at the end of the season.
Willie Dejardins was fired as coach in the summer of 2017
and Travis Green was promoted to Canucks coach from their farm team in Utica,
NY. Green. Green played close to 1,000 games in the NHL.
With nothing much down on the farm in Utica to promote to
the Canucks, GM Benning went out and signed 5 free agents, forwards Sam Gagner
and Thomas Vanek, defensemen Michael Del Zotto and Derrick Pouliot, and back-up
goalie Anders Nillson.
 |
| Coach Travis Green |
 |
| Thomas Vanek |
 |
| Nikita Tryamkin |
 |
| Derek Dorsett |
The one bright spot on the Canucks this year was the play
of sniper Brock Boeser. Unfortunately he was injured 3 times this year
including a season ending one which took him out of contention for the rookie
of the year trophy. He scored 29 times in 62 games. He has scored 33 goals in
the 71 NHL games he has played.
Boeser also proved that he isn’t just a one trick pony
with his wicked shot. It is pretty clear that like other elite players he
understands the game better than most and knows where to go on the ice and can
make great passes.
 |
| Brock Boeser |
Many predict that Boeser will become the poster boy for
hockey in Vancouver. His off-ice character is quite admirable. He once took a
mentally challenged girl to her prom.
The trade deadline came and went and the Canucks dealt
Thomas Vanek, who had a productive season in Vancouver, go to Columbus for
veteran Jussi Jokenen and prospect Tyler Motte. Neither of these players will
probably be with the Canucks next season. Brendan Leipsic was picked up from
Las Vegas in exchange for Canucks minor league defenseman Phillip Holm.
Hockey has been so bad in Vancouver this year that
scalpers are asking for a lot less than the ticket’s values.The only thing diehard fans are interested in now, in the
last 6 or 7 games of the year, is how well the leading scorer in American
college hockey, Adam Gaudette, does in his early audition to make the team next
year.
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| Brendan Lypsic |
Rating
The Management, The Players, And Is There A Brighter Future?
Management:
GM
Jim Benning has done a decent job of drafting in most
cases and has stockpiled a number of young prospects with scoring ability
including Adam Gaudette, Ellias
Petterson, Kole Lind, and Jonathan Dahlen.
The teams best defenseman prospect is Olli Juolevi. For
some reason the European prospects are allowed to play in men’s leagues
overseas instead of for the Canucks’s farm team in Utica.
The Canucks have a very decent goalie in Utica in
Thatcher Demko and a promising goalie prospect in junior player Michael
Dipietro.
The team desperately needs an offensive defenseman with a
big shot.
 |
| Thatcher Demko |
Benning appears to be a lot less astute at acquiring
players through free agency or trades. Imagine explaining to your boss that you
have signed free agent Loui Eriksson for 6 years and 36 million dollars and
that Eriksson has scored a total of 21 goals in his 2 years with the Canucks?
Often injured Defenseman Erik Gudbranson has 3 goals and 11 points in his 2
seasons in Vancouver and Benning recently signed him to a 3 year 12 million
dollar contract. What was the sense in trading center Nick Bonino for center Brandon Sutter and then giving Sutter
a 5 year contact for 22 million?
To be fair, Benning hasn’t had a lot to work with and limited
assets to make a trade with. On the other hand he got a new contract even
though the Canucks have been close to the bottom in the NHL for the past 3
years.
 |
| Brandon Sutter |
Coach
Travis Green is a bit hard to figure out at times. From
the start of his first year as coach he has made it known that players have to
earn their ice time. Sounds simple enough but what he really seems to mean is
“younger players” and not the vets who have big contracts.
Two of those borderline players are Nicolay Goldobin and
Reid Boucher. Both spent a lot of time with the Canucks’s farm team in Utica
this year. Both players aren’t great defensively but Boucher is pretty good on
the fore check. Boucher scored 25 times in 45 games for Utica this year. He’s a
goal scorer who I think should have been on the power play from the time he was
called up. Boucher is 24 and Goldobin is 23.
With all the injuries to the Canucks this year, Green
often didn’t have a lot of options as to would and wouldn’t play. 4th
line center Nick Dowd with his 3 goals this year got a lot of playing time and
it is unlikely he will be with the Canucks next year.
 |
| Reid Boucher |
 |
| Nicolay Goldobin |
The
Current Roster
The
Sedin Twins….
The Sedins are finishing off the 6th year of
their 42 million dollar contracts this year and have decided to wait to the end
of the year to tell the team whether or not they are coming back. 14 million
dollars a year is a lot of money to have to pay two players. They have always
been a package deal.
The Sedins have always been a class act. Several years
ago the Sedins donated 1.5 million dollars of their salary to the BC Children’s
hospital without any fanfare. P.J. Subban, on the other hand when he was with
the Montreal Canadiens, donated about 300 thousand dollars of his own money to
the Montreal Children’s Hospital and never bothered to correct fans and
reporters that he didn’t actually donate 10 million dollars.
The Sedins have been Canucks for 17 years now and both
have played over 1,000 games in the NHL. It is time for them to go. Yes they
are still putting up close to 50 points a year but they aren’t what they used
to be.
They were never fast skaters to begin with and have
gotten slower and slower with the passing years. They have started to take a
lot of hooking penalties trying to keep up. Of the 2, Daniel can still score a
bit but Henrik has lost any scoring touch he once had.
Neither of the brothers is very good at checking. Often
it seems that they are afraid to meet opposing players head on by the boards
and they choose to slide in backwards to check so they can avoid any potential
face injury. It is hard to take control of the puck when your back is turned to
it.
Today’s NHL is geared towards speed. The Sedins don’t
have that. At this point in the season Henrik has 3 goals and Daniel 21. 8 of
Daniel’s goals have come on the power play which means for 14 million dollars
the Sedins have scored 16 goals between them at even strength. This is not a
good deal.
Opinions on the Sedins future are split in Vancouver. It
is highly unlikely that the Canucks will make the play offs next year and even
if they did the Sedins aren’t going to lead the team anywhere. It is time to
move on and play the younger guys as far as I’m concerned.
Forwards:
Brock Boeser and Bo Horvath are definitely long term
Canucks. After these guys, things get a little thin at the forward positions.
Jake Virtanen has speed and size along with a decent shot. Goldobin is “iffy”
as is Reid Boucher. Baertchi also has some skill. Sutter is s decent shut down
player.
The team is stuck with Eriksson and his 6 million per
year for 4 more years contract as they are with Sam Gagner and his 3.15 mil
deal for 2 more years.
Forwards on the bubble for next hockey season: Goldobin,
Boucher, Archibald, Leipsic, and Granlund.
 |
| Sven Baertchi |
 |
| Loui Eriksson |
 |
| Sam Gagner |
Forwards who I think should move on or sent to the
minors: Gaunce, Motte, Jokinen, and Dowd.
Defensemen:
Alex Edler is getting on in years and too much has been
expected from him. Lately he has been playing about 25 minutes a game. Regular
shifts against other teams top lines, power play time and killing penalties
have worn him out at times. He hasn’t had much support on the back end.
The often injured Chris Tanev is the other “senior”
defenseman. Defensively he is great but has almost no upside offensively.
Free agent signees Derek Pouliot and Mike Del Zotto have
puck moving capabilities but aren’t great defensively.
Troy Stecher is hard worker but often seems undersized up
againt opposing forwards. Ben Hutton has been benched several times this year
and his play seems to have dropped off.
Eric Gulbranson actually has a heavy shot but doesn’t play on
the power play. His best asset is his size. Spare defenseman Alex Biega is at
best a good spare part.
 |
| Alex Edler |
 |
| Chris Tanev |
 |
| Troy Stecher |
 |
| Eric Gulbranson |
The
Goalies:
The Canucks goalies Markstrom and Nillson are both big
guys at 6’6”. Both have the habit of letting in soft goals, often at the
beginning of games. They are also both 28 years of age. Markstrom is clearly
the better of the 2 and has 2 years left on his contract. Nillson has 1 year
left on his contract.
 |
| Jacob Markstrom |
Armchair
Quarterback.........
The
Draft
This year’s draft has a number of good young players
available. Like all other bottom dwelling teams in the NHL, the big prize would
be landing Swedish defenseman Rasmus Dahlen. The Canucks desperately need 1 or
2 grade A defencemen including one who can run the power play.
It is very hard to get a top 4 defensemen in a trade.
Edmonton had to let star player Taylor Hall go to get defenseman Adam Larsson.
There are 3 other defensemen rated in the top 10 in this
year’s’ draft. One of them is only 5’9”.
As I see it there are a couple of ways the Canucks could
go if they don’t get the #1 pick in Dahlen. If they pick 2nd or higher they
could go with a forward like Brady Tkachuk who will play in the NHL for sure.
They might also pick up one of 3 defensemen in Adam Boqvist, Jared McIsaac, or
Bode Wilde if they find themselves picking 4th or higher.
The Canucks may also get a chance to get something from another team with a top draft pick by backing off a forward and choosing a defenseman who isn’t rated as high as that forward.
The Canucks may also get a chance to get something from another team with a top draft pick by backing off a forward and choosing a defenseman who isn’t rated as high as that forward.
If the Canucks have the 2nd pick I would take
6’3” winger Brady Tkachuk. 3rd pick 6’1” Filip Zadina. 4th
pick I would pass on Russian winger Andrei Svechinov. The Canucks have not had
a lot of luck with Russians. 4th/5th/ or 6th
pick they should take the best defenseman available.
There is a good chance that whoever they draft will have
a shot at making the Canucks next year if they draft 1 to 5.
Free
Agency
There are some possibilities this summer for the Canucks
in free agency. At 27 John Tavares is a proven star. It is unlikely that he
wants to go another team other than the Islanders. If I was Canucks management
I would pitch him at 10.5 million per year for 7 years. Players like this just
don’t come around. That would be 3.5 million less than the Canucks are now
paying the Sedin twins. Tavares is a guy a team can be built around.
The Canucks should have enough goal scorers in the system
and the only other free agent forwards I think they might consider are Josh
Bailey and James Van Reimsdyk.
There are a few decent defensemen available including John
Carson.
Making offers to free agents other than Tavares should
have 2 requirements, that the players be under 30 years of age and the offered
contracts should be no more than 4 years.
Changes
Over The Summer And Next Year?
Goalies:
The team may have to go out and find a more capable
back-up goalie and eat Nillson’s contract or send him to the minors. Possibly
Thatcher Demko could be the new back-up and challenge Markstrom.
Defense:
Something has to be done with the team’s defense. A defensemen
who can pound the puck would be a good start.
Unfortunately both Ben Hutton and Troy Stecher didn’t get
any grooming in the minors. Hutton has the size but makes a lot of bad
decisions on the ice. Stecher doesn’t have the size but has a lot of tenacity.
It may be time to ship Hutton somewhere else or send him down to Utica for
seasoning if he clears waivers.
Mike Del Zotto has 1 more year on his contract at 3
miilion per and Derrick Pouliot is a restricted free agent this summer. I would
resign Pouliot. He’s only 24.
 |
| Mike Del Zotto |
Gulbranson at 4 miilion a year for the next 3 years isn’t
going anywhere.
Alex Edler is 31 and has 1 year left on his contract. He still
has some miles on him but the team needs another offensive defenseman to help
run the power play.
Chris Tanev has 2 years left on a no trade contract. He
is sound defensively but has little upside offensively. Also gets hurt a lot.
It might be an idea to see if he would wave his no trade deal.
29 year old Alex Biega is signed for 2 more years. A 7th
or 8th depth defenseman. Ashton Sautner is just 23 and has looked
good defensively in the 4 games he has played for the Canucks.
Hutton and Pouliot may be on the outside looking in or
traded depending on what other defensemen the Canucks can upgrade to.
THIS
JUST IN…..THE SEDIN BROTHERS WON’T BE COMING BACK NEXT YEAR
This changes a whole lot of things including freeing up
14 million dollars annually in cap space. It also means that there will be
several positions at forward open for competition next fall.
There are a number of forwards that will make the team
simply by their existing contracts including Sam Gagner, Loui Eriksson, and Brandon
Sutter. Sutter is a competent shut down center who can kill penalties. Gagner
and Eriksson make 9 million a year between them and their contracts would be
hard to move.
On the bubble: Nicolai Goldobin, Reid Boucher, Jussi
Jokinen, Darren Archibald, Tyler Motte, Brendan Leipsic and Marcus Granlund.
Should be waved or sent to the minors: Brenden Gaunce and Nic Dowd.
Core forwards from this years team: Brock Boeser, Bo
Horvath, Sven Baertchi.
Jake Virtanen needs to be signed to a new contract this
summer.
Training camp this fall: The Canucks have a boatload of
prospects at the forward positions including Kole Lind, Adam Gaudette, Elias
Petterson, Jonah Gadjovich, Jacob Strukel, Adam Gaudette, Jonathan Dahlen and Oli Juolevi.
 |
| Kole Lind |
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| Adam Gaudette |
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| Jonah Gadjovich |
 |
| Jonathan Dahlen |
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| Oli Juolevi |
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| Elias Petterson |
Prediction
Of What The Canucks Will Look Like After Training Camp This Fall
There are 22 players on an NHL team including 2 goalies.
Markstrom is in for sure but the Canucks may need to look for a more competent back-up.
Defense: Edler, Del Zotto, Tanev, Stecher, Pouliot,
Sautner, Biega, and a free agent. Oli Juolevi starts season in Utica. If their
#1 pick is a defenseman other than Rasmus Dahlen, he too starts in Utica, Dress
6 or 7 defensemen per game.
Fowward lines: Boeser, Horvat, Baertchi……Lind, Petterson,
Goldobin…..Virtanen, Gaudette, Gagner…..Archibald, Sutter, Eriksson….Lepsic,
Dahlen
Let’s see what happens!
A special salute to the Sedins.
Go Jets!
Go Jets!
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