6 players the Canucks miss.

[The Honey Badger]

Although I totally agree that we miss Ehrhoff, I did think that was the year the management had to figure out whether to keep him or Bieksa and MG opted for the latter. Given the situation, I hate to say it, but keeping Bieksa made more sense at that time because if Bieksa left, the only right-handed defensemen left with the team would be Salo and Tanev, and we all know how dependable is Salo.

[CodyHodgson's #1fan]

I completely agree, I would take all of those guys back in a heartbeat. (well manny with the injury too but, they didn't technically "lose" him like the others) Add in Mitchell because of his physical yet productive play and that would be great. I honestly don't have anything else to add because these are all spot on. Well done OP! EDIT: I'd like to add jovo IF he was still in his prime, with his ingury now who even knows if hes ever going to play again, as a family member I feel so sorry for the guy, he just gets the "C" and now he cant play right after he got it.

[k_man08]

To all AV haters.

Read.

[k_man08]

To all AV haters.

Read.

[k_man08]

Nailed it with all 5

They got cheap. Should have paid up and done what needed to be done to retain Ehrhoff

And the players who we've brought in are complete crap. David Booth to replace Mikael Samuelsson!? Not a chance.

[Canuck hero]

This again...

Cody is not Logan Couture. I'll leave it at that on the Cody subject.

I'll take Higgins over Raffi as a 3rd line LW.

Ehrhoff, whatever. I would rather Garrison. At the time Bieksa was the better guy to keep.

Salo, it just didn't make sense for us to offer him the contract Tbay gave him, we would have loved to keep him but we couldn't. No way that contract makes sense.

And we don't miss Sammuelsson. Check out his GP this year...

[messier's_elbow]

The OP should take over for Botchford at the province.

[Canuck hero]

Trevor Linden - nuff said. This team need leadership that has gone thru blood, sweat & tears.

[Canuck hero]

Looking at free-agents there is Cullen, Lombardi, Handzus, Gordon, Reasoner, Halpern, Nichol, Steckel.

Nichol 60.6%

Gordon 57.4%

Steckel 57.1%

Handzus 55.6%

Halpern 55.6%

Cullen 54.7%

Reasoner 52.5%

Lombardi 43.9%

Nichol, Gordon, Steckel, Halpern and Reasoner are 4th line guys at best, and shouldnt be on a 3rd line of a contending team.

Lombardi's faceoffs are bad... But he is interesting, as hes fast, defensively reliable, can provide some offensive, and is the youngest of the bunch.

Handzus is very big, but slow and old.. I'll leave it at that.

Matt Cullen may be the best. A veteran forward with 1000+ NHL games and 60+ playoff games, which includes a Stanley Cup with Carolina. Speedy, versatile, can play wing, center or point on the powerplay. Provides offensive and reliable in his own end.

BUT...

[6string]

Ehrhoff, yes. Guy made our PP lethal and could reliably log big minutes on the right side.

Samuelsson ... Played 4 games this year, probably going to retire. While we're at it, we also miss Bure and Linden. They would be as much help to us this season as Samuelsson would've been.

Torres ... I guess he would be useful as a checker, but he never provided much offense which is what we're lacking.

Salo, sure, but we replaced him with Garrison, who is a much better player at this point and is much younger.

Hodgson ... Is Hodgson better than Roy? I have a hard time believing that. He's better than Kassian right now, obviously.

[Patrick Kane]

The OP should take over for Botchford at the province.

[Smashian Kassian]

your nuts.... erhoff awesome d man... salo, if it makes sense for tb then why not us... what we missed was sammuelsson at the starting time he was here.... he tailed off so ya we did miss a part of his time with us.. and higgins over raffi... lol really, common man... higgins for two years now has been a complete no show in the play offs... raffi is built for the playoffs...

[Smashian Kassian]

In summary, this is our argument, tell me if you agree.

Hodgson:

I believe Hodgson has very high potential, and would of been able to help the Canucks due to his offensive talent and smarts.

You believe he is a good player (I think?), but not enough to help the Canucks due to defensive skills and lack of experience and upside.

Ehrhoff:

I believe Ehrhoff was a vital part of the teams offense, elevating the game of the Sedins and Edler, and was a huge addition to our puck-movement and powerplay.

You believe that while Ehrhoff brought some unique qualities to the table, his defensive abilities made him more bad then good, and you would rather have two-way defenders such as Hamhuis and Garrison.

Samuelsson:

I believe that Samuelsson was the best line-mate for Kesler so far in his career(stats prove this) and we weren't able to replace his 50 point production.

You believe that Samuelsson was old, washed up, and past his expiry date. David Booth is a superior player, who hasn't been able to showcase his abilities due to injuries.

Salo:

I believe management could of signed Salo, but opted out due to Salo wanting two years. He obviously believes his body can handle two more years. He should of stayed as he was a proven to be a good partner for Edler.

You believe Salo wanting two years was ludicrous, and so were his contract demands. Garrison replaces Salo in your opinion, and the Canucks have upgraded their defense.

Torres:

I believe in compensating a little bit in the regular season for a playoff performer in Raffi Torres and would take him over Chris Higgins and his new 2.5m NTC contract.

You believe Chris Higgins is a superior player, and is a better fit on the 3rd line then Torres.

[Smashian Kassian]

I would honestly take Hodgson over Kassian at this point.

I was thinking about this yesterday. Kesler would be the perfect linemate for the Sedins. Kes is speedy on the forecheck, hits hard and wins puck battles and is a great finisher.

That would however leave a gaping hole at 2C. Hodgson could fill that role nicely as long as he's complimented by solid 2 way players on his line like Burrows and Booth. (Booth not so solid defensively but quick, big and strong)

Ehrhoff? Garrison is better defensively but Ehrhoff had more speed and could help with the transition game. Garrison on the other hand just stands at the point and blasts it. Still dont understand why he's not on 1st PP...

I would call this a wash.

Salo? I agree we miss Salo and the opportunity was there to sign him before Tampa gave him a ridiculous contract. We had rights during the reg season and if we offered Salo a similar deal to his last one 1.5ish, he would have taken it. However we left it until FA summer and left ourselves open to competitive offers. That's a fail on MG's part.

At the end of the day though, Sami is getting old and we saw the evolution of Tanev and a great look at Corrado this year.

As for Higgins over Raffi, I think those two could co-exist. They are not mutually exclusive. Raffi's cap hit is very decent and he brings good value for his salary.

[Gollumpus]

one important element you forgot is called chemistry. Move too many parts in your team, and this is what we get now. First round exit for 2 STRAIGHT YEARS

[Gollumpus]

There's a common trend that all those 5 players managed to bring to the Canucks: Secondary scoring. The problem right now is that the Canucks cannot generate any offence. During the playoffs, teams spend hours watching tapes on the Sedins and Burrows cycling the puck - they devote a lot of effort into shutting down our first line, even moreso than the regular season obviously. This is why secondary scoring is so crucial to going deep in the cup.

- Salo and Ehrhoff both had rocket shots and contributed offensively.

- Samuelsson was THE most playoff clutch player we had on our team (eg. 1st round LA 2010).

- Torres may not fall into this category entirely, but he was a huge physical force out there with the ability to turn a game around, like he has for the Sharks during this series.

- Hodgson.. well.. I'm sure I don't need to explain his offensive scoring ability any further.

Bottom line is, Gillis traded a lot of our major playoff impact players and got crappier returns in comparison.

[Gollumpus]

Mike Gillis the NTC fetishist

[joecanada777]

Trevor Linden - nuff said. This team need leadership that has gone thru blood, sweat & tears.

[zoner.]

The only two I'd really agree with out of this list is Ehrhoff and Malhotra. Samuelsson/Salo were aging, as good as they were. Torres is hit and miss (though I'd love to have him back) and Hodgson just didn't fit in here

Malhotra anchored a third line and was being talked about for the Selke in the early going of the 10-11 season. He won face-offs, he shut down other teams top players, he was a rock on the PK, and he's a leader in the locker room. You can't be a puck possession team if you aren't winning faceoffs, using Kesler as the shutdown man takes him away from offensive play, and our PK faltered when it was needed most.

People are saying Garrison is an upgrade on Ehrhoff. I thought he was an upgrade on Salo? He can't be both. Garrison has been a fantastic addition, but no one has replaced what Ehrhoff brought to the team. His first pass and ability to skate the puck out of trouble were a huge part of why our PP was dominant and why the team's transition game was excellent in 10-11. Edler cannot replace Ehrhoff. He cannot skate the same way, he doesn't get shots through the same way, and his first pass isn't on the same level. The drop pass play we've all come to hate worked when Ehrhoff was here as well, because he would drive the opponent into their own end before dropping it back. Edler's dropping the puck back at the center ice line for some reason.

I think the two biggest priorities for the team have to be 1) A third line center who can win faceoffs and anchor the PK, taking some of the pressure off of Kesler and 2) a smooth-skating, puck-moving defenseman who can replace what Ehrhoff brought to this team. Though that isn't exactly an easy task to complete.

[Gollumpus]

While I agree with your assessment of Samuelsson, I point out that his replacement (Booth) has NOT done a better job at bringing what Samuelsson did. Ya, Booth has crazy wheels, ya Booth is younger, but Booth hasnt come close to providing the offence that Samuelsson brought. Samuelsson scored more goals than Booths entire point production. Yes, Sammy was on the decline but his contract worth 2.5 was off the books by that seasons end. Where Gillis messed the bed, was that he traded Sammy for a player that was already deemed "damaged goods". Booth was a year removed from a serious concussion and i swear STILL hasnt fully recovered from. Not only that is that we are on the hook with his 4.5 contract for 4-5 more years. NOW all of us here and surely yourself is begging for him to be bought out. I dont know but is that just an example of poor pro scouting and bad example of being "fiscaly responsible"?