Bazooka Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 Definitely Ballard! Nothing wrong with having all that extra depth though. P.S. 1:28 Mark in the video in my signature Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ohnoeszz Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 Ballard should be playing 4th line LW. He looks really good at wing actually - makes a lot of good defensive plays, supports the Dmen a lot in his own zone, handles the puck very well, and is a good forechecker with top notch effort. He also doesn't have to adhere so much to the system as a wing and that was his biggest drawback as a Dman. Corrado hopefully won't have to play. He has a good base skill-set but he is FAR from polished. He looked pretty bad last game in various instances (sacrificing positioning for the catch attempt, multiple inaccurate or off speed shots/passes). His decision making is pretty good but his execution needs work and under playoff circumstances it could get victimized. What Tanev was capable of is not the norm for a young player and I don't see the same type of ability in Corrado. I'm really concerned with Bieksa's play which has been abysmal at points in this season. He has an issue with picking up the 2nd or third man on the rush and relies too much on zone positioning, always recovering to the net instead of identifying the threat soon enough to defend it. His decision making results in seemingly a bone-headed play every game. Edler has had his own puck decision issues at times but Bieksa has far outdone him in that regard with seemingly little commentary in comparison. I hope that changes with better health. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeanBeef Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 What you said was just too in general. What do you mean fight when the big boys cowered? Who did Ballard fight? Which one of our players cowared in? Who are you saying coward in? I still don't get it. The man cleared the net, fyi, the game tying goal Kings scored on us in game 5, was actually defensive break down by Ballard last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABNuck Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 If you've ever seen the movie "Little Big League" there's a scene where the young kid manager gets excited because the player he idolized growing up finally gets a long overdue hit (a bloop single or something pathetic). The older wiser hitting coach made the point that it's pretty sad when someone gets that excited about a nothing play. Now please don't read too much into my point here...I'm not saying anybody is "nothing" here...just trying to add some levity to the discussion. We were all saddened and crushed when we lost LB. But have we been looking at every young prospect coming up hoping for the next great young defensive prospect? Are we really this excited about a 5th round player cut from the world juniors...based on a small pro playing sample? I readily admit and agree that one day (young d-men take a while to really develop) Frankie C. will be a regular 4 to 6 d-man with us. But headed to the post season this year we need Ballard, if not in the line-up at least ready to go in the pressbox. We have Ballard, Tanev, Alberts, Barker and Joslin all with much more NHL experience...let's not quickly push aside their value because we're all excited about the "new kid in town". Corrado was only brought up to play in a meaningless game as have a handful of other prospects over the years who never end up sticking with the team. When we land a 1st round d-stud then we can get excited and start comparing him to established NHL quality d-men. Until then, well as nice as it is to see a young prospect get some ice time it's pretty sad when get excited over him. Are we desperately seeking something that isn't quite there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DownUndaCanuck Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 Depends on our opponent. Our 1st round matchup is going to be against L.A, St Louis or San Jose - all 3 teams have giant forwards up front. Ballard and Tanev have been dominated by these sorts of forwards in past playoff rounds. They were IMO the 2 biggest reasons we lost to Boston and Los Angeles. Sure Tanev looked ok, but big guys were ramming them hard into the boards all series long and it ended up costing us turnovers and odd-man rushes against. To contend with big forwards, we need big defencemen. Enter Alberts and Corrado. That defensive unit has held the 2 best teams in the West to 3 goals against in 2 games which is amazing considering they're scoring at an average well over 3 per game. Corrado took the body hard in both games and Alberts is always there throwing big hits, but it's not just hitting - the way those two ride guys hard into the boards and jam them along the walls is what Ballard and Tanev can't do. Alberts and Corrado have size and physicality that can contain big, skilled forwards. I want both of them in the lineup for round 1. Size wins in the playoffs - you look at Boston and Los Angeles' defences. Both had strong, big guys throughout their pairings who pounded forwards and weakened them over a 7 game series. Ballard and Tanev simply can't do that - Alberts and Corrado can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldnews Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 I don't see this as the question. Ballard or Alberts? Tanev or Corrado? (In other words, is Tanev healthy?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Karlsson Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 Farhan Lalji @FarhanLaljiTSN6h I've never been a "fire the coach" guy, but I shake my head at how Ballard & Kassian have been handled. #canucks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
higgyfan Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 For the playoffs I take Alberts over Ballard. Although, in classy behaviour, Ballard stands taller than most. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldnews Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 Farhan Lalji @FarhanLaljiTSN6h I've never been a "fire the coach" guy, but I shake my head at how Ballard & Kassian have been handled. #canucks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Brahma Bull Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 He should elaborate. I don't care for statements like this on twitter. If you're going to call out the coach, then back it up with a context and reasons - otherwise it comes accross as presumptuous imo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
higgyfan Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 He should elaborate. I don't care for statements like this on twitter. If you're going to call out the coach, then back it up with a context and reasons - otherwise it comes accross as presumptuous imo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldnews Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 I hate AV's guts, but this is pretty pathetic coming from a reporter that has so many people reading what he says. I agree. He should elaborate instead of just taking a random shot at AV. Leave that to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ossi Vaananen Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 Woah, super vague statement by Lalji, I mean it's true, but he can't just drop bombs like that. Ballard should be a defenseman, and Kassian should be in the top 9 at all times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesB Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 I would take Ballard for several reasons. IF Corrado is in the lineup it will only be because Bieksa and/or Tanev are out. .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoneypuckOverlord Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 Ballard actually played tough in the Boston game last year, agitating the hell out of Horton and getting into scuffles with Thornton. In that game, our "toughest defenseman" Bieksa shied away from all that stuff and was clearly scared to get involved. That game winning goal wasn't Ballard's fault, in fact he wasn't even on the ice when it happened... Hamhuis tried to skate the puck up by himself but lost an edge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghostsof1915 Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 game tying goal. BTW Bieksa doesn't fight anymore. He's been asked not to do it, since 2008. BTW guys Tanev is at least out for round 1 right? Just letting you know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgt. grumbles Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 Keep Ballard as a forward and put Kesler on the defense. He said he could do it today if they wanted to. Let's take the AV line juggling routine to a whole 'nother level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burnsey Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 Ballard. Easy decision for me tbh. I haven't seen Corrado play yet (missed the last couple of games) but just remembering how he played in vs St.Louis and how he has played pretty much all year, he is definitely the right choice. He has good speed and can rush the puck, a fairly decent sized guy, and will always stick up for teammates. Thats what you want and need in the playoffs. I've heard great things about Corrado and his play but he should be considered the future and Ballard the now Also I'm not a fan of having a rookie with the team in the playoffs unless they have played a big part of the season with the big club. Hansen and Tanev both got their first NHL experience in the playoffs if I'm not mistaken and they looked a little nervous and a little shaky when they first played. Better to use players that are more comfortable at this point in the season... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elvis15 Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 I'm not sure why we're still talking about this, since as I pointed out earlier Ballard plays left side and Corrado plays right. Or are any of you suggesting that Corrado would take Ballard's spot on the left or Ballard would take Corrado's spot on the right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canuck hero Posted April 27, 2013 Share Posted April 27, 2013 Who would you rather see in the line up come playoffs? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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