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The Tide Has Turned in Vancouver: A Prediction


King of the ES

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I see some challenges but I don't see them missing the playoffs.

Charity points notwithstanding and using last years standings as reference a team will have to go 27-21 to miss the playoffs. (23-16-9 is a record that could just barely miss the playoffs based on prorating last year's Western rankings)

I don't see the Canucks slipping that much.

I also LOL at the Oilers predictions. Last year everyone thought they would make the playoffs with their young talent. How did that work out? :lol:

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If you're not simply hating on the team (you are btw, anyone who feels the need to say they aren't just hating is in fact hating) then you're being a drama queen. (You're that as well.) There will be stumbling blocks; hell there are stumbling blocks but this is nothing new...just like your posts.Employee

I think you are full of it,Employee.

Any fan can be objective all the time,especially when going on five decades without a cup.

Drama queen ,your posts are stumbling blocks,you are a hater,sucking up to Deb.etc..

Pretty ugly stuff first thing in the morning.

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I will take a shot at countering your prediction/interpretation with my own.

-Goaltending fiasco. I think we agree partially on this situation. AV created this fiasco, and it is one, but its not so dire. Best case is we swallow the 9.33m and have two of the best dozen goalies in the league this year for the full run to the playoffs. Platoon them, or split 12-36 for either one, doesn't matter: what matters is having Lu and Cory both on the team is a better team than either one and a backup goalie. If I am wrong I will eat my orca crest, and its nasty...from an early orca jersey..its been to the middle east and back, and stained with all manner of filth. Two Lu's is better than one, specifically when one is a great goalie but unproven starter, and the other is a guy we need to prove to the league is still worth 5.33m cap hit for a decade. (*I would buy for another 5-7 years)

-Complacency. Why didn't anybody go to Europe? Some did, and I think really with a veteran team of back to back presidents cup winners, who admittedly were still tired from the stanley cup final game 7 cup run the previous year, the break will be worth while. A perfectly rested group of core players with super skills can now warm up for 48 games and then do what they do best in the playoffs. I blame a lot of last years first round exit on not so much a hangover, but simply exhaustion from playing the most hockey any one player could play over two seasons up to that point, with the short break at summer, et cetera...this time they are rested and hungry.

-Calgary has gotten better. True, no argument here, but how much better? From what I see they didn't get 21 points better, which is what they were short of last year to beat us for the division title. (*Side note: Backlund will have his breakout year this year, my opinion but I think its valid: he has matured and realizes failure is not an option, as it means out of a millionaires job and back to reality. Hungry to prove he is an NHL player and that will keep his fire burning in Calgary, along with better linemates)

-Edmonton has gotten better. Great young team to worry about in 2015..they may dabble in the playoffs the next year or two as well, but all that talent and they have Eric whatsisname Belanger as a mentor..it will take them time to gel.

-Minnesota has gotten better. Absolutely, Minny will be a tough crew to battle for the Division title, I see it as Them and Us all season long.

David Booth's injury announcement yesterday - A snapshot in time. Booth wasn't in my mind an integral cog of the team yet anyways..this will set him back in that regard, and maybe next year will be his great moment in the sun in Vancouver, I hope he can get in good form as fast as possible after he returns to the team. Certainly doesn't help us here right now, but its a moment in time, and not too crushing of my hopes. Salo will be missed so much, he was and is my favorite Canuck of all time, but I see good things in Mr. Garrison. He seems to be of the mould that Kesler and Bieksa were cast. I think in Garrison we get the goods of Sami Salo, without the injuries. Not an upgrade so much as a sidegrade, and I am excited to watch him.

I know your not hating, and I am not here to change your mind, but to provide an alternative perspective. It is always a tough road to the playoffs in the 'parity' years...but you know what, after watching for over 30 years, the teams best have been since 2001, and the very cream of the best years have been the last couple. I expect to see these guys in the post season, and from there on its a crapshoot really: we lost in the first round last year, but to the stanley cup champions...that speaks volumes more than losing to a team that goes on to lose its next four games.

Sincerely

~Optimist Prime

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And, in re-reading your thoughts (that were very well presented - I give you that), it just isn't that easy. On paper isn't guaranteed - too many variables factor in. Any of those guys you've named can go down with an injury (just like some of our top players have). Any of them can experience a slump. Teams click at times for the strangest reasons and they're not always the ones you'd expect. Which is why I like a wait and see attitude.

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I'm not as against King as most on here. Even though he usually foretells doom and gloom, he usually makes good points that are at the very least plausible.

And I found his OP, although critical, well thought out...until I read this:

...Would not surprise me at all to see the Flames win the division...

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The Canucks will do what they do...rocky stretches interrupted by huge winning streaks that put them solidly into the playoffs. If one of those streaks coincide with playoff time, and they don't run into another team-of-destiny in the first round, they could go far. If not, it's another disappointing end.

Just like what every other good team will go through.

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I'm not as against King as most on here. Even though he usually foretells doom and gloom, he usually makes good points that are at the very least plausible. And his OP, although critical, was well thought out...until here:

Now I KNOW he's just screwin with us.

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Given injuries, goalie situation, the fact competing teams have improved more than we have, I can honestly say I'm less confident about our chances for a cup than I have been in the past couple of years.

With that said though, to predict the Canucks will *miss* the playoffs? Not at all likely. We have far too much talent for that to happen.

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In a sentence, I am officially predicting that the Vancouver Canucks will MISS the playoffs in 2013.

Here's why:

-Goaltending fiasco. Don't care about PC responses from the players or the GM, this will be a major distraction that will have an adverse effect on team morale. Awkward locker room. Poor allocation of cap dollars. I've said for a long time that the Canucks really missed the boat by not trading Schneider for something that could've seriously helped up in a Cup run last year, and it will for a long time be a regret of ours, IMO. Whatever we get for Luongo will be unexciting and we'll still have a relatively unproven goalie backstopping an alleged "team built to win now". Not a good combination.

-Complacency. Why didn't anybody go to Europe? Practicing with the UBC team is hardly an adequate preparation for the season. Makes me think that this bunch has largely lost their hunger. A 5-game post-season exit last year adds credence to this thought. By not going to Europe/Russia, the message in essence is that they'd rather stay in their posh Vancouver homes than be bothered to go try and compete to help stay sharp. Not a good sign. Of course, this doesn't include everybody, but the vast majority of the team chose to not play hockey in the downtime. I expect it to cost them.

-Calgary has gotten better. Added good scoring depth in Hudler, and late-season acquisition Cammalleri. Got rid of Jokinen, which is addition by subtraction. Got a proven PP QB in Wideman. Most importantly, a new coach. Would not surprise me at all to see the Flames win the division, somewhat like the Canucks did in '06-'07, out of nowhere and under AV's rookie year behind the bench.

-Edmonton has gotten better. Justin Schultz is going to be a star. I like the Fistric acquisition a lot. Dubnyk was very good at the Spengler Cup. Heavy momentum going into the year. Key guys are already in mid-season form.

-Minnesota has gotten better. Granlund, Parise, & Suter should all have an immediate and material impact.

David Booth's injury announcement yesterday just makes me more confident that this is one of those years where essentially everything's going to go wrong for the Canucks. The Jason Garrison signing is also one that I was/am vehemently against. Don't expect it to turn out good. Sami Salo's presence on the back end will be sorely missed.

And no, I am not "hating", so please don't suggest that I am. This is an opinion of mine that I am fully entitled to. Feel free to debate and/or include your own prediction.

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The OP has made some points, albeit on the pessamistic side.

- Our Goal tending issue is not a distraction for the Canucks , we have 2 of the top 14 , they are buds so no prob.

The Op has made no allowance for our marginal players or severely injured players to make a return ( Raymond/Manny) to form.

The OP has failed to recognize the emergence of some young talent ( Kassian, Ebbett, Volpatti & ?)

There is opportunity for players to step up , especially in their final years of contract.

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Have some of us forgotten that we have lost key players to long injury's? Kesler, Sedin, Raymond...etc. Also at times our Defense has been down to depending on our spares?? This team has great chemistry...working out at UBC builds great team unity as well as do a lot for the locker room. Vancouver has reach the playoffs by working as a team.

And just to throw in...Booth wasn't an important piece...yes he is an NHL'er but his production hasn't been great.

Have we really had a second line lately....Higgins is more of a 3rd in my mind. Raymond hasn't been in top form for two years....Personally i'm excited to see one of our prospects get a chance at top minutes...or atleast to crack the lineup. Not many teams can shift their lineups as much as we can.

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Given injuries, goalie situation, the fact competing teams have improved more than we have, I can honestly say I'm less confident about our chances for a cup than I have been in the past couple of years.

With that said though, to predict the Canucks will *miss* the playoffs? Not at all likely. We have far too much talent for that to happen.

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I've yet to see much of an issue between the goalies. It's possible they trade Luongo and the pressure gets to CS. The team would be in trouble should that happen.

I think going to Europe could be seen either good or bad. I would have preferred guys stayed home but trained fairly hard. But I think every team has some guys that are more prepared than others.

The Canucks have injury problems on the second line but the up side is that secondary scoring is a disappointment almost every year.

The Canucks have so many decent/good players close to the prime of their career it's hard to imagine them missing the playoffs for any reason other than injuries.

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Have some of us forgotten that we have lost key players to long injury's? Kesler, Sedin, Raymond...etc. Also at times our Defense has been down to depending on our spares?? This team has great chemistry...working out at UBC builds great team unity as well as do a lot for the locker room. Vancouver has reach the playoffs by working as a team.

And just to throw in...Booth wasn't an important piece...yes he is an NHL'er but his production hasn't been great.

Have we really had a second line lately....Higgins is more of a 3rd in my mind. Raymond hasn't been in top form for two years....Personally i'm excited to see one of our prospects get a chance at top minutes...or atleast to crack the lineup. Not many teams can shift their lineups as much as we can.

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