TheCammer Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 I was looking up Lumme highlights on youtube and ran into some '94 Canuck lore that i forgot even happened: The 1994 Canuck fan appreciation event held at BC Place. A few thoughts about it: 1. We packed BC Place to capacity and yelled and screamed like we won. (This event is usually reserved for winners.) 2. The event blows our reaction to the 2011 cup finals loss out of the water. It became more clear to me why we still hold '94 in such high esteem. 3. We absolutely LOVED Bure. As it was commented on in the footage, he turned a lot of 'meh' hockey fans in this town into real hockey fans. 4. Every player on that team stood up and made a speech to the fans, including guys like Shawn Antoski. The premier was there. The Campbell trophy was on display. Again, odd event for a non-championship team, but the demand for it was obviously there. 5. My apprecation for our fanbase just went up a few notches. It was uploaded in 2007 and i'm sure a lot of you have seen it already, but it's worth another look, imo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmpunk Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 still never understand why we let him go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugemanskost Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 You're probably right even tho he didn't play that long for the Canucks. I would throw out Dale Tallon as well. He had some great years with little support. Canucks rushed him into the NHL and it was sink or swim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugemanskost Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 Ohlund is definitely in the conversation along with Reinhart, Lumme, Jovanoski, Edler, Salo, Bieksa and possibly HAmhuis if he keeps playing like he does. I have been watching the Canucks since 1971 and the 70's and 80's were pretty sparse when it came to top end D-men. Kearns was a good playmaker, McCarthy was okay, Rick Lanz & Doug halward, Doug Lidster were okay in the 80's Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aladeen Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 Yes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dorrcoq Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 I'm sad we let him go, but the eye injury was not something he could come back from, and im afraid that neither can Malhotra... We should try to trade him this year for someone else! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jai604 Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 Now I like Ohlund, he was a very good defenseman for us, but does anyone else find it a little off putting that in 40+ years of existence he's arguably our best? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 It's not hard to say "ever" when talking about the Canucks. Our most notable defensemen before Ohlund were Jyrki Lumme, Doug Lidster, Harold Snepsts and Garth Butcher. We didn't have much of a history before the Bure years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bossram Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 Given his long tenure here and the role he played for this team all these years, I'd day Ohlund is the best Canucks defenseman we've had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disisdayear Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 As I read the list of potential candidates for all-time best Canucks defenceman, it struck me that we have not had a player that can be defined as a truly elite defenceman, in the likeness of a Shea Weber, Drew Doughty, Paul Coffey, Ray Bourque, Niklas Lidstrom, Larry Robinson, Denis Potvin, Bobby Orr, etc. I think the closest Canuck guys for me that is classified as having franchise-dman skills would be Paul Reinhart (though his best days were with the Flames) and possibly Ed Jovanovski. When Babych was drafted by the Jets in 1981, he was billed as a franchise defenceman, but that never panned out (he was subsequently dealt to Hartford Whalers for Ray Neufeld, straight up...one of Fergie's worst trades ever), and by the time he got to the Canucks, he was a good top-4, but wasn't the franchise guy he was supposed to be for the Jets. We've had some very good d-men (many of whom have been listed in previous posts), and our current lineup boasts some of the best B+ to A- type guys in Bieksa, Hamhuis, and Edler. But unfortunately, through our history, we haven't had anyone who stands out as a franchise guy...and I wouldn't classify our any of our current d-men as A+ franchise guys. Under the category of "what could have been", perhaps Luc Bourdon could have emerged as that Franchise defenceman. Having said all of the above, if we were to take a body of work that consists of offensive/defensive skills, toughness, and longevity, I would have say Ohlund is it. I think Edler has the POTENTIAL to unseat Ohlund (that's if he remains a Canuck past this season), as a top flight A- defenceman. One name that hasn't been mentioned is Harold Snepts...he didn't have a lot of talent, but he sure did a lot with what he had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bang Bang Boogie Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 Ohlund is my all-time favourite Canucks defenseman. Solid defensively, physical and can chip in offensively. What more do you need from a d-man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sedated Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 Ohlund was a beast. He was actually Norris calibre before his eye injury, even then the was still pretty good. He didn't just do random big hits, he actually like devastated with them. He was mean along the boards, and he was pretty good offensively on top of that. He was great all around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Biestra Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 No. He's on the short list, but Reinhart and Lidster were both better. He's in the mix with Babych, Kearns, Lumme, Salo, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Biestra Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 As I read the list of potential candidates for all-time best Canucks defenceman, it struck me that we have not had a player that can be defined as a truly elite defenceman, in the likeness of a Shea Weber, Drew Doughty, Paul Coffey, Ray Bourque, Niklas Lidstrom, Larry Robinson, Denis Potvin, Bobby Orr, etc. I think the closest Canuck guys for me that is classified as having franchise-dman skills would be Paul Reinhart (though his best days were with the Flames) and possibly Ed Jovanovski. When Babych was drafted by the Jets in 1981, he was billed as a franchise defenceman, but that never panned out (he was subsequently dealt to Hartford Whalers for Ray Neufeld, straight up...one of Fergie's worst trades ever), and by the time he got to the Canucks, he was a good top-4, but wasn't the franchise guy he was supposed to be for the Jets. We've had some very good d-men (many of whom have been listed in previous posts), and our current lineup boasts some of the best B+ to A- type guys in Bieksa, Hamhuis, and Edler. But unfortunately, through our history, we haven't had anyone who stands out as a franchise guy...and I wouldn't classify our any of our current d-men as A+ franchise guys. Under the category of "what could have been", perhaps Luc Bourdon could have emerged as that Franchise defenceman. Having said all of the above, if we were to take a body of work that consists of offensive/defensive skills, toughness, and longevity, I would have say Ohlund is it. I think Edler has the POTENTIAL to unseat Ohlund (that's if he remains a Canuck past this season), as a top flight A- defenceman. One name that hasn't been mentioned is Harold Snepts...he didn't have a lot of talent, but he sure did a lot with what he had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Biestra Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 I just looked up Babych... 24th all time for defenseman scoring in NHL history. Would have been higher up when he retired too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cIutch Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 Come on guys.. We all know it's Aaron Rome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendan Gaunce Posted January 18, 2013 Share Posted January 18, 2013 salo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disisdayear Posted January 19, 2013 Share Posted January 19, 2013 I just looked up Babych... 24th all time for defenseman scoring in NHL history. Would have been higher up when he retired too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zissou Posted January 19, 2013 Share Posted January 19, 2013 Lumme for me with Ohlund a close second. But (not to jinx anything, *knocks on wood*) I think Edler, with his new deal, has the potential to eclipse both of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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