Bruce Boudreau Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 Right now I think the Canucks are solid on all three forward lines except the Matthias line which has no real chemistry or identity. On d and in goal provided Miller is back come playoff time (even if only to back up) means the roster is playoff ready. I feel like without real skill or some grit guys with skill like Richardson and Kassian Matthias becomes way less effective out on the ice sure he is still skating and chips on the pk and some face off draws here and there. But he is an 18 goal scorer that needs some skill if you want 3 scoring lines that can threaten other teams in the playoffs. Either turn the line into a depth scoring line with Baertschi,Matthias, and Vey or make it a grind line with Richardson and Kassian if they are healthy come playoff time. Whatever the case that friggin line needs an identity!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mathew Barzal Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 Identity is definitely what you need. Say what you want about size but Matthias is soft. I would gladly sit both him and Vey in favour of Richardson and Kassian (who mind you have show prior chemistry) A line of Kass - Richardson - Dorsett is a great fourth line because let's face it, Horvat's line is our third. I don't mind giving KRD ~10 minutes a night at all, two defensively responsible players and baby hulk riding shotgun is enough to keep even the Kings at bay. Vey and Matthias are not. Let's face it, the Kings stunk it up tonight. If they make the playoffs and bring their A game that line gets shredded every time it hits the ice. I'd be scared to line them up against the likes of Nolan, King and Clifford. Those guys are big &^@#ing guys, and they have a decent skillset to boot. Not ideal matchup at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deus.ex.makina Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 Richardson Matthias Dorsett when healthy. bench Vey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 What to do? Just pray it clicks. The playoffs are where heroes are made. Hell, even Matt Cooke was considered a Canuck hero for a while. Only after hitting Savard while with the Pens did the fans forget about him. Is Matthias hero material? I don't think so, but what a feat it would be if he proved me wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kazmanian Devil Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 Scratch Vey and Matthias and put in Sanguinetti and Fox tbh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hatedkid666 Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 Dorsett-Richardson-Matthias Or Hansen-Horvat-Dorsett Kassian-Horvat-Matthias Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DownUndaCanuck Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 When healthy, this team's lineup isn't really a question. Sedin - Sedin - Vbrata Higgins - Bonino - Burrows Obviously Burrows and Vbrata can be flipped around, and Kassian may get some time in the top-6 but that's a pretty stable group up front. Richardson - Matthias - Kassian Kenins/Vey/Baertschi/Dorsett - Horvat - Hansen Hard to exclude Dorsett, but he's got the team's worst Corsi by a long shot and Kenins simply has more chemistry with Horvat and Hansen. Who knows who will play better in the playoffs, and that bottom-6 will likely get mashed up depending on how Game 1 goes, but whoever plays well of those bottom-6 bunch will play themselves on the team whereas one bad game from Kenins, Baertschi, Vey or Kassian will cost them a healthy scratch for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.53 Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 SVEN BAERTSCHI. Roll with Sedin Sedin Burrows Higgins Bonino Vrbata Baertschi Matthias Dorsett Kenins Horvat Hansen. Give it a try in Arizona. If he doesn't play well, put Vey back in. But maybe he can add a little extra speed and skill to the line. Baertschi brings speed and skill, Matthias brings speed and power forward ability, and Dorsett can energize and grind in the corners. I think it could work. If Baertschi plays well, let him stay and hopefully we draw Calgary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willpower Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 When healthy, this team's lineup isn't really a question. Sedin - Sedin - Vbrata Higgins - Bonino - Burrows Richardson - Matthias - Dorsett Kenins/Baertschi/ - Horvat - Hansen ... but whoever plays well of those bottom-6 bunch will play themselves on the team whereas one bad game from Kenins, Baertschi, Vey or Kassian will cost them a healthy scratch for sure. I agree with most of this in principle, but have yet to be very impressed with either Vey or Kassian, and much more impressed with the new guys, although Kenins has some work to do on his consistency. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EagleShield Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 At 100% we'll see: Sedin Sedin Kassian Higgins Bonino Vrbata Burrows Horvat Hansen Matthias Richardson Dorsett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yoshiyoshi Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 At 100% we'll see: Sedin Sedin Kassian Higgins Bonino Vrbata Burrows Horvat Hansen Matthias Richardson Dorsett so far i havent seen kassian do better with the sedins than burrows. you sure thats an upgrade? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownky Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 Hard to exclude Dorsett, but he's got the team's worst Corsi by a long shot Dorsett is one of those rare-ish wildcards where the advanced stats do not tell the whole story. His physical play and willingness to stick up for his teammates to anybody really helps the other players on the team out. Fewer liberties taken against the Canucks and "wearing down" the other team does nothing but good, especially over a playoff series. Guys like Claude Lemieux were of the same ilk; a bit of talent but mostly punishing physical play against the other team that lets the scorers do more of what they are good at. Also, for some reason, they end up as playoff heroes a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thad Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 so far i havent seen kassian do better with the sedins than burrows. you sure thats an upgrade? He started out slow this year but was outstanding before the injury. If Kass can play like that in the playoffs, it makes the entire team better with burr beefing up the Horvat line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SergioMomesso Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 If Richardson and Kassian can't go by the playoffs. Maybe WD tries switching Hansen and Dorsett a period to see if HAnsen can get Mathias and Vey working better. It's not like they are getting dominated in the defensive zone. It's just they have zero chemistry in the offensive zone. The only good thing coming out of Mahthias lackluster play lately is it gives the Canucks a better bargaining chip and puts other teams on notice that he may be a streaky player and the bigger the game, the harder it is for Mathias to show up. Big games tonight could determine if WD can tinker with his lineup a bit on Thursday. I would be ok with Winnipeg, Calgary and LA all losing in regulation. A little breathing room playing a cellar dweller would be nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hlinkas wrister Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 Replace Vey on that line with a healthy Richardson and its problem solved. Linden has shown some improvement lately but I don't think he's playoff ready yet. I would rather see Kass move into one of the top 2 lines when healthy to beef them up for playoff style hockey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghostsof1915 Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 Matthias' issues are pretty much the same as Kassian's. Both are big bodies that don't seem to enjoy the physical nature of the game. Kass is more of a scorer, Matthias is more of a two-way player. People seem to forget in mid-season Matthias was doing very well, scoring, hitting and finding his groove as a centre. Then he tapered off, and was getting out muscled, and out played. If you watch him, he's got as much potential as Kass does. It's a matter of putting his game together. I love how fans on here preach patience with Kassian but refuse to be patient or cut slack on other players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boudrias Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 If Matthias brought a slightly higher physical presence his effectiveness would jump. He simply does not finish enough checks. His board work is usually pretty solid and of course his speed is excellent. Matthias-Richardson-Kassian had a really solid stretch earlier in the year. It does not look good for either Richardson or Kassian coming back anytime soon. How do you keep Kennans out when you see the way that line can play with him in. They should have had 2 goals against LA. When they are clicking like that they are at least a 3rd line and possibly a 2nd line option. While I have not been positive on Van's playoff potential the real wild card is the 3rd line. If it ever got traction, no matter how it is constructed, the offensive upside could over come defensive issues. Could be very interesting. Kassian and Richardson have become huge wild cards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Herberts Vasiljevs Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 When healthy: Sedin - Sedin - Burrows Burrows - Bonino - Vrbata Matthias - Richardson - Kassian Dorsett - Horvat - Hansen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SergioMomesso Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 Matthias' issues are pretty much the same as Kassian's. Both are big bodies that don't seem to enjoy the physical nature of the game. Kass is more of a scorer, Matthias is more of a two-way player. People seem to forget in mid-season Matthias was doing very well, scoring, hitting and finding his groove as a centre. Then he tapered off, and was getting out muscled, and out played. If you watch him, he's got as much potential as Kass does. It's a matter of putting his game together. I love how fans on here preach patience with Kassian but refuse to be patient or cut slack on other players. When you give up an all star goalie for a supposed power forward. That is what is expected. Not a gentle giant who loses 3/4 of his puck battles in the corner.Mathias is in his UFA year and its his time to cash in. One would think he would go balls out every game to get a huge offer thrown at him by numerous teams come July 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SergioMomesso Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 When healthy: Sedin - Sedin - Burrows Burrows - Bonino - Vrbata Matthias - Richardson - Kassian Dorsett - Horvat - Hansen Double shift Burrows? I know he's been playing well but cmon now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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