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Cody Hodgson with the goal of the year?


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was that in slow motion what was the D doing he skated past and around them like he was on a sunday stroll looking at the puck the whole time. that was not a goal of the year that was worst Defensive play by a team of the year .

he did make it look good but I could skate around a team that is standing still and dangle at crawling speed too.

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It's safe to say the A.V. screwed us over. The reason Coho wanted to leave, is because he wasn't getting ice time. Ice time he rightly deserved. Over the past two seasons Coho has been better for Kesler yet Kesler always gets lots of ice time because of his past play. I'm not saying that Kassian isn't going to be a good player as he is more of a long term project but I think many people hate Coho undeservingly. He deserved the ice time, A.V. was just being A.V.

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And now AV is just being AV with Kassian.

I understand the concept about "deserving ice time", but after watching how Buffalo has been dealing with its younger players (incl. Hodgson), I'm starting to think there's something to be said for skipping the whole notion of "deserving" and "earning", and plugging in a bit of it just makes sense to give players some rope to play with - IF you want them to develop!

I don't follow any teams but Canucks and Buffalo (this year only), but between watching how coaching staff does stuff between those two teams and my own 5+ years experience developing players on our amateur rec hockey team, I really question how AV does the whole "deserving" thing with some players....

Take, for example, Buffalo's issue in the dot this season... their centers are generally younger, inexperienced and were entirely out of their league earlier on in the season, yet the coach(es) didn't just dump using them in the dot, but instead gave them the experience, game after game, and now they're steadily improving FO %. Sure, Buffalo suffered for it earlier on in the season, but it's not like the team's FO% was the leading problem for their losses, and now at least they've gotten stronger down the center in that function. So, it can be argued that while their centers didn't "deserved" the unearned opportunity, it was a worthwhile investment for the team as a whole long term.

Same goes to Hodgson's defensive abilities - he looked out of place and lost earlier on the season, but he was given the support of his coaches and persistently given defensive roles (key d-zone faceooffs, PK duty, etc.) anyway. Unearned, "undeserved" chances, but well worth the investment too as he's clearly come a long way in his defensive game.

These are the types of examples that make me wonder if perhaps AV should get off his high-horse about players "deserving" chances, and get on with supporting, developing ALL his assets (not just favourites who seem to get chances no matter how undeserving!)... It'd mean not benching a rookie every time he screws up, or dumping Kassian from a top 6 role because he had a couple weak games, or scratching a healthy D because he wasn't perfect, or flipping all the lines every which way between periods because some guy on another line needed a "boost"....

I'm glad for Hodgson that he's had some coaching support to develop his game. I'm not so convinced that Kassian will receive the same benefit under his coach...

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If you're pulling for him, maybe you'd like to pay a little closer attention.

Kassian has spent far more time on the first, second and third lines than the fourth.

He's not going to take years to develop - he's a solid NHL player as a rookie - and he's getting over 14 minutes a night - on a contender (ironically, more than Hodgson last season)...

He's being used nothing like a "backup goon". It sounds like you haven't watched a single game. He has merely 23pm this season - thats's less than Burrows, Bieksa, Weise.

He has a resectable 5 goals and 8 points - 9th on the Canucks - and is also 9th on the club in relative corsi despite only 47% offensive zone starts and facing the 9th strongest quality of competition on the team.

What that all means - Kassian, as a rookie, is trusted by AV to play tough minutes, in various roles - he is not getting sheltered or 4th line minutes - not tailored ozone starts against weak competition - as AV did with a rookie who wasn't ready for the defensive role or NHL matchups - I won't name anyone, but I'm not talking about Schroeder here, who has also been trusted up and down the lineup - he has played as many fourth line minutes as Kassian...

The current rookies on the Canucks roster - Kassian, Tanev and Schroeder - are all players that AV feels free to and does integrate into a range of challenging roles - AV is used to developing quality young two way players (as in Burrows, Hansen, Kesler, Edler, Bieksa, Raymond...all notable two way NHLers developed by AV).

Kassian, like any rookie, has had a few anxious moments (actually, very few - no more than the rest of the roster) - overall, he's been excellent - very disciplined, responsible defensively (his ozone finishes are higher than his starts, and has a +rel.corsi), passes the puck very well (a few giveaways like any player, but very good vision), adapts well to different roles, a good attitude and a good team-mate (yes, when it came time to deter Eager from taking runs at the Sedins, he stepped up for his teammates), and his physical game is measured - couldn't be more pleased with him. No need to wait on his development - he's already a solid contributor in a range of valuable ways, and settling into a top 6 role playing with Booth.

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Good on Cody, I'm glad he's doing well for himself in Buffalo. It sure would have been nice to see him in a nucks uniform :( we could have acquired Kassian for less IMHO.

I don't mind Kassian, I just question the timing of the trade. Why not make a trade in the offseason? I don't think i'll ever understand the urgency Gillis was in to make that trade by the deadline. In any case, the fact that it was made at all means he obviously has a different opinion from us on the length of our 'window', since Kass may take another few years to develop.

In any case, Good goal Cody, and I wish success to them both! (unless on the off chance we ever see Cody in an SCF vs us haha)

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was that in slow motion what was the D doing he skated past and around them like he was on a sunday stroll looking at the puck the whole time. that was not a goal of the year that was worst Defensive play by a team of the year .

he did make it look good but I could skate around a team that is standing still and dangle at crawling speed too.

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You would have saved yourself a lot of typing if you had just said something along the lines of, "AV uses him more than you think he does. Kassian gets moved to where he's needed the most, and is not just stuck on the fourth line like you think he is". That would have saved a lot of typing/reading.

You're right though, I've watched only about 10 'Nucks games this year. I've only had a sampling of what's going on, on the ice. Over those games I just noticed that his playing time was lacking as time went on and I worried that he was being turned into a goon.

As to him being a solid rookie, that's to be expected. However, he has at least 2 more years of development until you see how he will shape up as a power forward. He hasn't reached his full potential yet. That's what I meant when I said give it a couple of years.

I regularly watched Kass as a Portland Pirate, a Rochester American, and as a call-up for the Sabres. I've seen the rate at which he picks up his skills. He isn't a player that improves slowly and steadily. When he gets ice time, he improves in "growth spurts". I wish I could think of a better way of putting it. He needs to be able to soak up every second that AV throws his way.

As I said before, I like Kass and always will, and I want to see him do well no matter where he plays.

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Any bets on how long it will be before people stop talking about Cody and the trade?

Who am I kidding...It'll never stop

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The way to win games is to score more goals than the other team. Cody Hodgson has 21 points, and Kassian has 8. Kassian hits though so he's better.

CDC Logic :rolleyes:

PS: Power Forwards take more time to develop isn't a positive, we need players NOW because our window is closing.

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The way to win games is to score more goals than the other team. Cody Hodgson has 21 points, and Kassian has 8. Kassian hits though so he's better.

CDC Logic :rolleyes:

PS: Power Forwards take more time to develop isn't a positive, we need players NOW because our window is closing.

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