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Weak On D?


Durl Dixsun

2012 UFA Defensemen  

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It's easy to lose and point fingers on the goalie (always Luongo), but is our main issue on D?

Hamhuis - Beiksa

Edler - ______

_____ - ______

Problems I see:

Salo's career uncertain + old

Ballards inconsistent play + big cap

Tanev / Gragnani ?

Alberts / Rome ?

Heres a list of UFA defencemen on capgeek!

http://capgeek.com/f...=D&fa_type_id=2

MY Defence Pairings:

Hamhuis - Beiksa

Edler - Wideman (3-4 mil)

Alberts - Jurcina (1 mil)

Ballard - Traded ..

Salo retired or not resigned

What do you guys think?

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Totally agree, the d situation is not bleak, they just have 1 glaring need. Top 4 righty d-men are at a premium in the league/highly in demand, it's why I think trading for one is the only option (they don't have 1 in system). Likely through the goalie trade.

I was always intrigued by an Edler- Tanev pairing as Tanev makes every guy better - defensivly speaking. But he was the only guy they didn't try in that spot this season - prob. cause he's offensively challenged, lol. As you said, Salo will not be in a top 4 role next yr. They tried everything this yr to find a partner for Eddie so Salo didn't have to play big mins as he was struggling.

The other issue is whoever they bring is has to make less than Bieksa/Hammer - so Green would be nice (drool) but more expensive than them. I think Gardiner is a good option. He's offensively gifted, has good underlying numbers, played top 4 mins this yr, young, $1M cap hit for 2 more yrs etc etc.

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Ding Ding Ding :)

We need TWO guys.

> One needs to be a guy who can rush the puck!

> The other needs to be a devastating physical guy, 225 lbs or bigger ideally, who can keep up.

Good luck finding one guy who can do both, but yeah for the right side!

DING DING DING

The ONLY D-man this team needs is a replacement for Salo - a Right Handed D that can play with Edler.

Preferably one who can pick up Edler's slack when he goes dumb on us like these playoffs. Salo is great, everybody loves Salo, but he can't really be relied on anymore, and we need someone who can be relied on and be consistent.

The problem is I have NO idea who I want in that role. I don't want Tanev. Obviously I'd want Weber (as does everybody), but I would be ecstatic if Gillis could get a guy like Green. Someone who can move the puck exceptionally well, has that high intensity, and can play on Edler's right side.

Problem is, not alot of above average right handed D in the league available.

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1) Well, you CDC fans love juice because he fights. You love his fighting more than his hockey skills.

2) Vancouver Canucks, but I am also not a blind homer

Lapierre (27) and Hansen (26) still have a good 5 year lifespan with the Canucks. They are those heart and soul players you need on a playoff team. They are all versatile, can play on all lines, and provide great salary:value ratio.

Sedins only have 2 years left on contract. They are still great players, but do you see them as top-tier performers in 4 years? I think not. If a mind blowing offer came, one would have to consider it. But such a trade is unlikely, as trading them would also hurt the teams loyalty/reputation. I would likely not re-sign them. If I did, it would be a 2 year contract with the intention of reducing their role on the team. That is why they are almost untouchable because the negative attention in trading them would be very high.

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Ballard should be a throw in for the Luongo/schneider deal. Whatever happens.

If salo comes back SIGN him. Then sign another d-man. I like the wideman idea. We could also go younger, but that could involve more money or a significant trade.

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Ballard has been outstanding since being given his natural side. He has also mentored Tanev well.

Bieksa is part of the heart of this team. His only flaw is probably that he tries to do it all when we are in a hole........he's a leader in my book though.

I still think Suter is too small. We need someone big AND hard.

We already have plenty of Suter's size. If we get him, how long before we bemoan the fact that we are still being bullied, our goalie is still being molested.

Suter talks the talk because he knows Weber can walk the walk.......and does.

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A 180 lb defender who does not rush the puck or captain the PP will have (and should have) little chance of being on top pairings.

His peak is exactly what he is now; a highly effective role player. LA killed him in game 1 when we tried him on a top shut down pairing with Hamhuis.

He is here because we have not found a competent player with enough size to do the job!

Trading or moving Tanev in anyway would likley be a huge mistake.

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Ding Ding Ding :)

We do need (or need to develop) AT LEAST two guys! One is clearly a right side guy, presumeably, to play with Edler.

But one has to be a big mean SOB who is good enough to play against substantial pressure from guys like Penner, Bolland, Lucic... We are distinctly too small on D!

Agreed, you nailed it.

And the other has to be a guy who can lug the puck! We rely waaay to heavily on moving the puck through centre ice by pass. Yes we have Hamhuis, Edler even Tanev that are good puck movers. But somedays, when teams like LA clog the neautral zone, and smash you with the fore-check someon has to just lug the puck out. Since Erhoff, we dont have that guy.

Ballard does this well in my opinion and could probably do it better if given a chance. Surely Bieksa also does it.

So unless this big guy also has the speed and skills to do this, we need TWO defenders to round our team. Which one is the right side guy, and how we get him is the equation and not the answer!

Does anyone believe Connauton or Sauve can fill one of these roles? I think KC can be if we take our lumps and let him play through some mistakes next season. I believe we should sign Gragnani then trade either him or Ballard as our 3rd line left D. I believe trading Tanev (too small) to create a spot is part of the solution. In spite of his amazing composure, Tanev creates match up headaches for us & does not solve our problems. But he could add value to a trade.

Connauton........and we will certainly take those lumps.

He is much more offensive but he needs to work on his defence, a lot. Sauve is to me more like Tanev, quiet, reliable, but bigger, however like Tanev not much offensive upside yet.

I actually like Ryan Parent best of the three. 6'-2"@ 205 and he leads by example. He looks the more finished article in Chicago.

Souray & Kevin Connauton is the budget route. Mike Green & Sauve the upgrade? Or has Sauve fallen off the map & its Mike Green & ??? (even more expensive solution)?

Does anyone else agree that we are at least these two players away? And even if I am wrong on who they might be, who else???

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A 180 lb defender who does not rush the puck or captain the PP will have (and should have) little chance of being on top pairings.

His peak is exactly what he is now; a highly effective role player. LA killed him in game 1 when we tried him on a top shut down pairing with Hamhuis.

He is here because we have not found a competent player with enough size to do the job!

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Ballard will most likely be traded along with raymond and Luo.

Suter would be the best fit in Van, Hopefully MG can land him, I think maybe MG with start to use some prospects next year instead of signing more FA's that will never play, makes no sense to sign a guy for 1000000 to 2000000 to play on the farm team, seems a waste!

Just have to wait and see, should be interesting to watch.

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Sign Suter for 20.8 million for 4 years (5.2 million per year)

Sign Kabina for 2.5 million for 1 year

••••••••••••

Trade Ballard to A team in order to free 4 million in Cap space.

Luongo's salary as well gives More cap room.

•••••••••••

Edler Suter

Hamhuis Beiksa

Salo Kabina

*Tanev Rome*

*Alberts Connauton*

^Solid Depth

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A 180 lb defender who does not rush the puck or captain the PP will have (and should have) little chance of being on top pairings.

His peak is exactly what he is now; a highly effective role player. LA killed him in game 1 when we tried him on a top shut down pairing with Hamhuis.

He is here because we have not found a competent player with enough size to do the job!

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Edler, Bieksa, and Hamhuis are all locked down, and rightfully so. But we should not expect any of these guys to be nominated for a Norris Trophy next season (although Edler has the potential to in the near future). I think our biggest problem against L.A. was our lack of a real shutdown pairing; Bieksa and Hamhuis were too worried about offence.

While signing Suter to a contract of $7 million/yr+ would make him the highest paid on the team, I think it's worth it for the Canucks to sign a potential Norris candidate/winner. Lidstrom, Chara, Keith, and Niedermayer are the winners of the last 10 Norris trophies, and 4/10 seasons, the Norris winner goes on to win the Cup. Having a Norris-type guy on the team makes a huge difference--more so than having a Vezina or Art Ross player, in my opinion. The stats show that if you have even a Norris candidate, you're most certainly a contender and often make a deep playoff run.

I think it's about the time the Canucks picked up a top 5 defenceman and Suter is that guy. He'll be expensive, but pair him up with Hamhuis, and the opponent's top-end talent won't see any open ice, especially in the playoffs when match-ups are key.

I don't dislike Ballard as much as Vigneault, but he is obviously over-paid by a couple million. I would not be opposed to placing him on waivers. I don't want to re-sign Gragnani either; he provides us with offence from the D (which isn't what we need) and seems to be mistake-prone.

If Salo wants another year, I guess we should re-sign him, but not for more than $2.5 million. I also think Tanev has played well enough to earn a roster spot for next year, but I would also like to see Rome or Alberts for some of the more physical games--if not both of them--and perhaps scratch Salo the occasional game. Depth is important, but 8 NHL-caliber defencemen is plenty, and we can always call up Connauton or Baumgartner.

Suter-Hamhuis (Shutdown, +50 plus/minus)

Bieksa-Edler (80+ points and some big hits)

Salo/Tanev/Rome/Alberts (Versatile pairings: experience, calmness, toughness)

Connauton/Baumgartner (call-ups, in case 3 or more d-men are injured)

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wideman - he has to make it too free agency first and he isnt going any lower then 4.5m....if wisniewski can get 5.5m then wideman sure as hell can......i have no problem giving him 4.5m, 5.5m on the other hand....meh, i would need to see more

stuart - cross him off the list, he is going back sj

suter - the best d-man available but i would give him 6.5m no problem but a team with more money to spend will have no problem giving him 7.5m...so he would really haft to wanna play here and i cant see that. and he his another left side d-man so edler would haft to moved

carle - phi is gonna re-sign him

rozsival - his market value is about 3m....but i think we could use that money for someone more youthful and brings more to the table

kubina - the phi experiment hasnt worked out so maybe he has hit the wall...maybe he better suited to be a 3rd pairing defenseman but i wouldnt expect him to play in the top 4 anymore

kuba - ott will re-sign him because he plays so well with karlsson...and you dont wanna fix something that aint broke

we do need defensemen thats for sure and the dust will begin to fall as soon as we know what we get for luongo or schneider then we can pin point what we need going into free agency

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