Jump to content
The Official Site of the Vancouver Canucks
Canucks Community

Elite Tandem Goaltending, Solid Defense, Missing what now?


Primal Optimist

Recommended Posts

We will need to acquire either by signing or in a Luongo trade:

- a fairly low earning right handed D

- another skilled winger for the 2nd line.

I see signing Huselius for a 1yr $2.5 million contract if we can't get a bigger/better piece back from Luongo. He is not ideal as he doesn't improve the toughness in our top 6... but he does seem to be the ideal fit with Kesler and Booth in terms of being one of the best pure playmakers in the NHL.

If we are going into wishlist mode, trading for or sending an offer sheet to Weber would be a big bold move.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think we need a pure goal scorer and Semin comes to mind. He is a point a game player. Not going to happen though cause Gillis has character high on the list of qualities. Parise doesnt work here because we already have Kesler. Dont know enough about Nash to tell if it'd work. In my mind Id rather actually have Suter. The teams that have won have extreme depth in D. Another problem is we could not match up with Penner. I know this is beat to death but IMO we need someone tougher with skill and so far its not Kassian. He looked like a lost puppy last playoffs.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

RICK NASH!!!!

I can't figure out why there isn't more buzz on this board about getting this guy in a Canuck's uniform. I realize it's not an easy deal to pull off but I truly believe that Nash playing with Hank and Daniel would make a formidable top line. Danny, Hank and Nash together could each top 100 points next season.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm not surprised if we turn down garbage offers and start the season with both goalies. We could get better value closer to the trade deadline when teams are a little more desperate. Anything could happen. The posters calling Lu being traded all off season are going to be mad though, because they look stupid.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A second line playmaking centre. We have the best 3rd line centre in the league but that doesn't excuse ourselves from getting a second line centre. If I was Gillis I would ask for one of FL's 2 centres for Lu.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

nash sounds good buuuut to expensive for a 30 goal scorer even tho he has a better opportunity to excel in our system. Knuble sounds like am upgrade. As much as it hurts to watch Raymond fall down every shift, i still think he's got a rebound season as well as manny does. Both came back from major injuries.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Vancouver Canucks sit this morning with 5,321,000 worth of cap space.

They still hold onto two of the leagues elite goaltenders, and have both locked up until the summer of 2015. Not without cost however, 9.3 million worth of cap space is parked inside the blue paint as of right now, but just how bad a scenario is this?

The blue line, most fans feel, is aptly guarded, even with the departure of beloved Sami Salo, the team has 7 capable guys locked up in Hamhuis, Bieksa, Edler, Garrison, Ballard, Tanev and Alberts. Ballard had a rough transition to Vancouver, and I believe came here injured. I expect him to have a bounce back year, but even if he plays just as well as he did last year: If Keith Ballard is your 6th Dman, you have DEPTH like no other! Do we need any more upgrades on D right now? I say we don't. We have some talent in the minors, and we could stand to add more sub million dollar depth for the wolves, and emergency call ups, obviously, but our D as it sits is one of the more rounded, deep defenses in the league. Thank you @JasonGarrison52.

The real questions are up front, and have been since our game 7 exit of the Stanley Cup Finals. It is no secret that it was not Lu's fault we couldn't score, and its no secret that despite Schneiders amazing turn in net in the postseason when he got a chance, we still could not score. These two goalies are the best tandem in the league today, but even they can't deke around 5 opposing players and go top shelf glove side on the likes of Quick and Tomas.

Most fans, at least the vocal ones are yelling to trade Luongo and bring in the fire power to help that situation out. This is not as easy as it looks, nor should it be, and to what end result? I believe Mike Gillis will and should keep both of these guys at least until the trade deadline, maybe even for a few years. It appears more and more that teams expect Lu to be on sale at Wallmart during the Rollback of the decade event. This will not add to our fire power, and frankly, you need to find a willing suitor before you can even begin to F leece them. stomping around talking about trading Lu for specific top six players in the league is putting the cart before the horse. But I digress..

The forward group as it stands has a great core, but not as big a core as we all imagine. Sure there is your Daniel, your Henrik, Kesler and Burrows, 2/3rds of two lines. That is amazing as it is, and there is a good group of 'not quite star top sixers' as well in that core, players like Raymond, Hansen, and I consider Lapierre part of that group as well. A fantastic bottom six centerman, who came to Vancouver under rated and almost unknown. While David Booth is relatively new to our team, he did manage to put up 16 goals in just 56 games, on par for a 24 goal season. His 5 game playoff experience was the first of his career, and one that will teach him more than any game footage or text book ever could. With a healthy Kesler, Booth will improve on his best Points Per Game average since 2009: last year a wonderful .52 ppg with Vancouver, and he also gets another year beyond his concussion, suffered in October 2009. I won't go on about all the guys playing Offense, but we can say the bottom six is well stocked, the top six have 5 solid performers. So we are once again missing that one piece up front.

The difference this coming year is that while we are missing that piece that we have been missing since the dawn of winning hockey in Vancouver, I call that year 2001, for the first time in what seems like ever we have no other holes on the club. In fact, with our two all star goalies, even at their price, we don't have to miss a beat if one gets hurt. Our seventh Dman is likely to be Andrew Alberts, and that is not a bad situation to be in. I have full faith in the other six guys being able to each hold down heavy minutes, and more than one of them put up points on the PP. Our bottom six with kassian, malhotra, Lapierre, Hansen, Higgins, and even Raymond, if he is not played on the second line, would be one of the most complete bottom sixes in the league. The Twins need no explanation, Burr and Booth are excellent complimentary players and Kesler when he gets better and joins the club remains the heart and soul of the club. What more do we want as fans? Oh yes, that elusive ELITE winger to fill the only hole on the club. Well, I can tell you there are 29 other teams that wish they had Vancouvers problems, and none of them will help us fix the only one we have by trading a star winger for one of our excellent goalies, and anything less would be ridiculous.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest gumballthechewy

Who the heck is that? It sure isn't Malhotra or Lapierre. Thoug I agree that a centre coming back for Luo would be desirable, but is it do-able without throwing a pile of cash into the deal? I don't think it is cap that hurts Florida in a Luo deal, but cash to pay the contract.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The things that are currently concerning me with the Canucks are: Size/Grit (getting a bit better but still a question mark) and defensive soundness. I watched waaay too many games last season where the opposing teams players just walked straight into our zone and we just chased the puck around.

I'm not sold on the back end as of yet, unless we are talking our goaltending which is fantastic as of right now.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Typical "Rose-coloured Glass" post

4 of your top 6 D are under 6' or 210# or both- that is a problem.

40 years in the Canucks still need a Norris quality D-man

One of you 2 "elite" goalies will want out before next trading deadline- causing that dreaded "Locker room dischord"

top line needs a winger

2nd line needs a winger.

Booter hanging around making 4.5 but not earning a spot on either top line

3rd line needs a center and a grinding winger (Raffiesque)

12th or 13th forward needs to stike fear into the other team or at least his teammates.

Coach and Mgr are both afraid of players who take penalties

Mgr keeps trading for bad cntracts

yup pouyr me some more Koolaid!

Ra ra sis boom ba

Link to comment
Share on other sites

there missing the same thing they over look every year except when they went to the finals. a torres, tooto, ott kind of player that when a guy like brown starts running around they counter. enforcers are a thing of the past. the hit to hurt and hit everything in sight is what keeps other teams honest now thats the new nhl thanks bettman. the forth line should have three players that aren't afraid to get suspended so when a dirty duncan or brown decide to head hunt stars on this team you have the guys that will return the favor. just ask hossa

they don't need bitz or a heavy weight goon they need a fast hard hitting forward that will punish d-men more than anything else or it will be an early spring again.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...