BureisBest

Playoff highlights. First goal is sick.

Only 2 options? I think Benning & Linden might take a look at Ritchie and Virtanen.

Here's a few players who dropped down CSS's rankings quite a bit from mid-term to final ranking: North American: Nikolay Goldobin - #24 (mid-rank: #14) Brycen Martin - #26 (mid-rank: #20) Roland McKeown - #27 (mid-rank: #15) Conner Bleackley - #35 (mid-rank: #31) Chase De Leo - #36 (mid-rank: #26) Jack Glover - #38 (mid-rank: #27) European: Adrian Kempe - #6 (mid-rank: #3) Anton Karlsson - #11 (mid-rank: #6) We've shown a tendency to take sliders in the past, with the same scouting staff, but different G.M.

Well, most of them, anyways.

He had some bad injuries last year and it was really a lost season. He didn't look good at all when he came back from them. Last year he had 33 points in 42 AHL games and 9 in 31 NHL games. He was on the right track and got derailed this year. I feel both management and player may want to move in separate direction, but I would sign him to a 1-year, 2-way contract for the minimum (whatever that is), and let him compete for a job, but likely end-up centering one of the top two lines in Utica. I could see him and Shinkaruk having some nice chemistry in the AHL.

I wouldn't say it's a concern, but it is an area of improvement for him to work on, just like his fitness and physicality. As long as Bo works hard and the Canucks develop him well with off-season training, etc, he should grow into a very strong all-around player for us. Brendan Gaunce on the other hand, his skating is a concern, imo. Big guy who doesn't move too quick, but very smart so he plays well positionally.

He has been used by London as their #1 shutdown centre against the top players of the OHL, but he is also one of their best danglers, snipers, and playmakers. Bo can pretty much do it all and the sky is the limit for him. His areas of improvement are definitely his skating and his physicality. He has an NHL frame at over 6'0 and 200 lbs; he just needs to learn how to get quicker and use that strength in the show.

AV wasn't the sole problem, but he was part of it for sure. He mismanaged players and failed to make adjustments in games and playoff series'. I don't believe you can say because Tortorella did one of the worst coaching jobs in league history that AV did a better job in hindsight. The only guy who wasn't better than Torts, and it's arguable, was Keenan.

Here's where Goldobin is ranked: ISS - #26 Central Scouting - #24 I don't personally put much merit in Craig Button's rankings, but if anyone else wants to know, he has Goldobin at #28. If Shinkaruk, a Canadian, can slide almost 20 spots from the top of the 1st round, I think there is a point in discussing if Goldobin can slide from the end of the 1st round into the early 2nd round. Another Russian playing in the CHL, Valentin Zykov was ranked #7 last year and ended up getting picked #37.

Nikolay Goldobin, RW (6'0, 185 lbs) - 38 goals, 94 points, on the worst team in the OHL, Sarnia Sting. The only OHL draft eligible prospect who outscored him this year was Dal Colle, and it was by 1 point. I could see him sliding due to the "Russian factor" (even though he played in CHL, it is still a concern for teams) and because he played on a horrible team and had a bad -30. Here are his highlights from his previous year, when he put up 68 points as a 17-year-old. We could use some of that raw talent.

Not a chance Garrison is bought out. - Leads our d-core in goals (7) and points (32). Next closest in points is Bieksa (24). - Leads our d-core in PP goals and PP points. - His (+/-) is -5, which is better than Edler and Weber, and only one point less than Bieska at -4. - He lead our d-core with a +18 last year, and was 2nd on the team overall behind H. Sedin (+19). - He lead our d-core in goals last year as well. - It is entirely possible that like pretty much the entire roster, he has struggled to adjust to Tortorella's system, while a guy like Booth has just individually struggled over several seasons and different coaches.

I simply can't get past Gillis' biggest mistake, which was trading Cory Schneider for peanuts. This to me this was an absolute bomb of a move, that has the potential to set us back for 5 years or more, while it set New Jersey up for the next decade (just look at Edmonton who is still searching for a #1 goalie). Here's why it was such a colossal failure: - Schneider was developed patiently and pretty much perfectly for 6 years by our organization. - That type of time and investment is not easy to re-create. - He is still only 28 years old and puts up some of the best numbers in the NHL. - We got a (barely) top-10 pick for him. - I like Horvat and hope he can be a top-6 centre, but he's a prospect. Schneider is a blue chip asset just entering his prime. - Now we are in a position for the forseeable future where we "hope" Lack can take us there and get hot at the right time. If we aren't careful, we will turn into the Edmonton Oilers, a veteran group that ages out of form, is replaced by young prospects, and has no goaltending, leaving the organization and fan base hoping that a young core can lift the team back up again. A lot harder to do without the pillar of strength of a Cory Schneider between the pipes.

And also his 2 goals the other night:

Here it is:

Built for the playoffs, which is all we as fans should really be concerned about.

Looks like Rodin is done. http://canucksarmy.com/2013/5/28/anton-rdin-signs-with-bryns

Mike Kitchen Current role: Chicago Blackhawks assistant coach (3rd season) Here's why he will be named our next head coach, imo: 1) He is Chicago's #2 behind Joel Quenneville, and as we all know, the Blackhawks just recorded one of the most successful seasons in NHL history. It was ridiculously dominant. I don't care how talented they are, to win that many games in a row, and overall, you need extraordinary coaching. In fact, it actually made some of those "Be a GM" seasons you dominate on XBOX seem a little more realistic. 2) All the noise says Ruff and Tippett, or even Eakins, but when has Gillis ever gone with the crowd and made the obvious decision? He's too arrogant to pick one of the front-runner candidates; he wants to pick someone out of the lesser-known crowd, not who the media talks most about. 3) The Blackhawks play exactly the style of game that Mike Gillis and ownership wants. Despite his flip-flopping between "big, physical, dump-and-chase hockey", to "up-tempo, puck possession, offensive hockey"...(the guy can't make up his mind), he has said time-and-again that at his very core, he will always believe in offensive hockey. Kitchen, despite the fact that he was a defenseman in his playing days (not sure how much that matters anyway), has been part of the group that has set the offensive standard, and he has been together with Quenneville for most of their coaching careers. It would be a big blow to our biggest rivals to steal Kitchen away. 4) Kitchen and Gillis played together for the Colorado Rockies, and in case you're wondering why Ron Delorme still has a job as our Chief Scout despite his below-average results, he was on that team as well. Gillis has shown that he lets personal relationships and emotions interfere with his ability to make hard business decisions, being loyal to a fault, imo. Don't be surprised to see his ex-teammate behind the bench. With the tremendous success of the Blackhawks in recent years, Kitchen is in line for another head coaching gig in the near future, and I'm putting my money on Gillis to be at least setting up an interview, and wouldn't be surprised in the least if Kitchen was named our next coach.

One thing that sounds different from MG as opposed to recent years is that it looks it's not "the best player wins the roster spot", it's that "we have to have young players in the lineup, we have no choice, and we have to deal with the mistakes and growing pains". Sounds like some prospects are getting slotted in unless they have brutal camps.

Schroeder's Wolves highlights from last year, his strongest in the AHL.

Mike Gillis said he has "Good parents" after drafting. Certainly a shot at Hodgson's family and a bit immature for a GM imo.

I'm sure this has been pointed out before, but there are some eerie similarities between the paths of Gaunce and Hodgson: - Both from the Greater Toronto Area - Both played for the Markham Waxes - His brother Cameron actually played with Cody for the Waxers. - Both captained their OHL teams and were/are praised for their character and leadership - Both train with Gary Roberts (who thinks Mike Gillis is a moron) in the off-season - Both obviously 1st-round draft picks by the Canucks - If Gaunce gets sent back next year (like Hodgson did), both will likely have played for Team Canada at WJC. As far as their playing styles, skill level, and size, that's different, but a lot of personal similarities between the two.

Why do you think he was a "waste of a pick"? Going into that draft he was poised to become USA's all-time leading scorer at the World Jrs, and he achieved that, passing Jeremy Roenick for points and Doug Weight for assists. He showed the ability to put up big points against the best players in the world at his age group, which is about the best measuring stick you get as a scout. He's just had a big year of growth in his development, putting up 33 points in 42 AHL games. His AHL points per game has grown like this: 2010-2011: .45 PPG (34 points in full season, which is 76 games in AHL) 2011-2012: .57 PPG (43 points in full season) 2012-2013: .78 PPG (59 points in full season) He also impressed and flashed elite playmaking ability in the NHL at times this year. The kid is trending in the right direction, and he has NHL speed and skill, it's just a matter of continuing on that path of development and finding consistency. Coaching and chemistry with linemates is a big part of that, too. There's also the fact that he was the #5 ranked N.A. skater heading into the 2009 draft, only behind Tavares, Duchene, Kane, and B. Schenn. I think he fits into our lineup just fine. Aren't we in need of players with offensive ability? Guys who can create chances and work the powerplay? We also only have two centers under contract for next year right now. Let the kid continue to grow and flourish as a Canuck.

Let's go to the tape. Does this look like a player who can have an impact in the NHL in short order? I'm going with yes.