J.I.A.H.N Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 With the promotion of Horvat, McCann, Virtanen, and Hutton, it makes it abundantly clear, just what we have in depth of young players, ready to take their place in the Canuck lineup over the next couple of years. Sitting on the farm are possible additions of Gaunce, Kenins, and Jansen, all of which are 3rd and 4th liners. Now maybe Shinkaruk(Mason Raymond light), Cassels(slow by all reports), and Subban(small and defensively weak) can join the group but between the 6 AHL players, we will be lucky if any of them make more than 3rd line/or #5/6 Dman on the big club, this asks the question of where the top line players will come from. Well, Demko and Broeser are 2 that will have a good chance, but looking at this by the numbers, it looks very thin. Looking at our older players Hank and Dank, Burrows, Vrbata, Burrows, Hamhuis,Miller,and even Edler to a lesser extent, we really must ask ourselves, who will take these players spots in the up coming years? So why state the obvious? Well aside from Tanev , Bo and Hutton we have few young top end players, one of which is just developing, on the big club.....we are thin Looking at our roster, we are 1 or 2 injuries short of a very tough season, if we can dodge the injury bug, we can stay competitive and push for a playoff spot, but I wonder if any one of 7 were lost long term, we may be in a heap of trouble. (Hank, Dank, Horvat, Edler, Tanev, Hamhuis, Miller). I am not trying to throw cold water on the early season, but there are 82 games and a lot of injuries to come. It truly makes me wonder if we are ready? Hutton has been a nice surprise, McCann has some great potential, but we are using rookies because we have no real depth. This makes me question the moving of Garrison, Matthais, Richardson and to a lesser extent Kassian. (I only say Kassian, as if you really look at it, if Kassian was that bad, than maybe we should have moved him into stage 2 rehab ourselves, and crossed our fingers...it seems his potential is worth more than the return, or the replacement with a 4th line UFA) We have definitely weakened since the 2013 -2014 season Agree or Disagree? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gstank29 Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 With the promotion of Horvat, McCann, Virtanen, and Hutton, it makes it abundantly clear, just what we have in depth of young players, ready to take their place in the Canuck lineup over the next couple of years. Sitting on the farm are possible additions of Gaunce, Kenins, and Jansen, all of which are 3rd and 4th liners. Now maybe Shinkaruk(Mason Raymond light), Cassels(slow by all reports), and Subban(small and defensively weak) can join the group but between the 6 AHL players, we will be lucky if any of them make more than 3rd line/or #5/6 Dman on the big club, this asks the question of where the top line players will come from. Well, Demko and Broeser are 2 that will have a good chance, but looking at this by the numbers, it looks very thin. Looking at our older players Hank and Dank, Burrows, Vrbata, Burrows, Hamhuis,Miller,and even Edler to a lesser extent, we really must ask ourselves, who will take these players spots in the up coming years? So why state the obvious? Well aside from Tanev , Bo and Hutton we have few young top end players, one of which is just developing, on the big club.....we are thin Looking at our roster, we are 1 or 2 injuries short of a very tough season, if we can dodge the injury bug, we can stay competitive and push for a playoff spot, but I wonder if any one of 7 were lost long term, we may be in a heap of trouble. (Hank, Dank, Horvat, Edler, Tanev, Hamhuis, Miller). I am not trying to throw cold water on the early season, but there are 82 games and a lot of injuries to come. It truly makes me wonder if we are ready? Hutton has been a nice surprise, McCann has some great potential, but we are using rookies because we have no real depth. This makes me question the moving of Garrison, Matthais, Richardson and to a lesser extent Kassian. (I only say Kassian, as if you really look at it, if Kassian was that bad, than maybe we should have moved him into stage 2 rehab ourselves, and crossed our fingers...it seems his potential is worth more than the return, or the replacement with a 4th line UFA) We have definitely weakened since the 2013 -2014 season Agree or Disagree? I dont see how a team that finished the 6th worst in the NHL can somehow be stronger than a team that finished with over 100 points last year... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thejazz97 Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 Way to be positive. Agree or Disagree? Disagree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UFCanuck Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 no Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iggynucks Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 Not sure what you're suggesting. We should keep our youth in the minors for the sake of saying we have good young depth? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karlsson`s Flo Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 Forward depth is fine. Defence depth is questionable once we lose a top 4 but this team is easily still better off than finishing in the bottom like many pundits are predicting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cripplereh Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 disagree and as you have pointed out we have many young players to step in which makes this funny! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c00kies Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 The forward depth is great, and I feel like we have offensive players that can fill in the top part of the lineup if needed. The defensive depth is not so great, and has already been challenged by the Edler absence. I think we could replace the bottom guys alright, but the top pairing guys are going to be hard to replace with limited dropoff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YEGCanuck Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 I would argue player depth in a teams development system is a concern of all clubs. The Canucks are smart to accelerate the development of their top prospects as the status quo would simply delay their progress. To worry about the possibility of injuries is counter-productive. We need to stay the course in the accumulation of draft picks and select prospects to fit the strategic goals of the team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadcanucks Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 With the promotion of Horvat, McCann, Virtanen, and Hutton, it makes it abundantly clear, just what we have in depth of young players, ready to take their place in the Canuck lineup over the next couple of years. Sitting on the farm are possible additions of Gaunce, Kenins, and Jansen, all of which are 3rd and 4th liners. Now maybe Shinkaruk(Mason Raymond light), Cassels(slow by all reports), and Subban(small and defensively weak) can join the group but between the 6 AHL players, we will be lucky if any of them make more than 3rd line/or #5/6 Dman on the big club, this asks the question of where the top line players will come from. Well, Demko and Broeser are 2 that will have a good chance, but looking at this by the numbers, it looks very thin. Looking at our older players Hank and Dank, Burrows, Vrbata, Burrows, Hamhuis,Miller,and even Edler to a lesser extent, we really must ask ourselves, who will take these players spots in the up coming years? So why state the obvious? Well aside from Tanev , Bo and Hutton we have few young top end players, one of which is just developing, on the big club.....we are thin Looking at our roster, we are 1 or 2 injuries short of a very tough season, if we can dodge the injury bug, we can stay competitive and push for a playoff spot, but I wonder if any one of 7 were lost long term, we may be in a heap of trouble. (Hank, Dank, Horvat, Edler, Tanev, Hamhuis, Miller). I am not trying to throw cold water on the early season, but there are 82 games and a lot of injuries to come. It truly makes me wonder if we are ready? Hutton has been a nice surprise, McCann has some great potential, but we are using rookies because we have no real depth. This makes me question the moving of Garrison, Matthais, Richardson and to a lesser extent Kassian. (I only say Kassian, as if you really look at it, if Kassian was that bad, than maybe we should have moved him into stage 2 rehab ourselves, and crossed our fingers...it seems his potential is worth more than the return, or the replacement with a 4th line UFA) We have definitely weakened since the 2013 -2014 season Agree or Disagree? Don't know if OP is drunk or schizophrenic. He complains all summer about bringing in the next wave of players in the system and ridding the team of all vets, and now that Virtanen, Hutton, McCann, Baertschi are added to Horvat he p!$$e$ and moans about there being no depth in the organization. Take a close look at the depth chart, there Nut -- the Canucks are loaded with players in the 21 to 23 age cluster. Gaunce, Shinkaruk, Jensen, Grenier (albeit he's 24), Subban, Cassels, Pedan, Boeser, Demko to name a few -- if you can't get excited about the notion that these prospects at this very moment are developing into professional hockey players who may one day be decent players in the NHL, then you're sorely lacking any hockey DNA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldnews Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 With the promotion of Horvat, McCann, Virtanen, and Hutton, it makes it abundantly clear, just what we have in depth of young players, ready to take their place in the Canuck lineup over the next couple of years. Sitting on the farm are possible additions of Gaunce, Kenins, and Jansen, all of which are 3rd and 4th liners. Now maybe Shinkaruk(Mason Raymond light), Cassels(slow by all reports), and Subban(small and defensively weak) can join the group but between the 6 AHL players, we will be lucky if any of them make more than 3rd line/or #5/6 Dman on the big club, this asks the question of where the top line players will come from. Well, Demko and Broeser are 2 that will have a good chance, but looking at this by the numbers, it looks very thin. Looking at our older players Hank and Dank, Burrows, Vrbata, Burrows, Hamhuis,Miller,and even Edler to a lesser extent, we really must ask ourselves, who will take these players spots in the up coming years? So why state the obvious? Well aside from Tanev , Bo and Hutton we have few young top end players, one of which is just developing, on the big club.....we are thin Looking at our roster, we are 1 or 2 injuries short of a very tough season, if we can dodge the injury bug, we can stay competitive and push for a playoff spot, but I wonder if any one of 7 were lost long term, we may be in a heap of trouble. (Hank, Dank, Horvat, Edler, Tanev, Hamhuis, Miller). I am not trying to throw cold water on the early season, but there are 82 games and a lot of injuries to come. It truly makes me wonder if we are ready? Hutton has been a nice surprise, McCann has some great potential, but we are using rookies because we have no real depth. This makes me question the moving of Garrison, Matthais, Richardson and to a lesser extent Kassian. (I only say Kassian, as if you really look at it, if Kassian was that bad, than maybe we should have moved him into stage 2 rehab ourselves, and crossed our fingers...it seems his potential is worth more than the return, or the replacement with a 4th line UFA) We have definitely weakened since the 2013 -2014 season Agree or Disagree? Sorry, but the fact you refer to Shinkaruk as "Raymond light", Cassels as slow, etc leads me to believe that you don't really know what you're talking about. The team has a lot of depth imo, and the fact that the majority of it is young and approaching NHL readiness only adds flexibility - in terms of the roster and the salary cap, free agency, etc. I think you've really whiffed here tbh. Gaunce, Vey, Jensen, Cassels, Keninis, Grenier, Shinkaruk, even Jones in a pinch....lots of potential there to step up. Even the blueline - Biega has shown he's serviceable, Fedun, Pedan, Cederholm, Subban.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smithers joe Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 benning has said that they will look to defensemen now...not just drafting them but looking to pick up a good d-man via trade... maybe someone like shattenkirk, who the blues may be forced to move next season..we'll be fine... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canuktravella Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 our center depth is huge in our youngsters horvat mccann cassels and gaunce if need be plus sutter as for wingers shinkaruk is not a light mason ramond he battles in corners well which mason never did once in his career except when bruins broke his back. oops to soon? lol shinkaruk grenier kenins cassels subban biega will develop the pro game more in utica but aoso be decent callups like laat ur when team ahl made plauoffs for canuck when we werre injured Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.I.A.H.N Posted October 12, 2015 Author Share Posted October 12, 2015 Don't know if OP is drunk or schizophrenic. He complains all summer about bringing in the next wave of players in the system and ridding the team of all vets, and now that Virtanen, Hutton, McCann, Baertschi are added to Horvat he p!$$e$ and moans about there being no depth in the organization. Take a close look at the depth chart, there Nut -- the Canucks are loaded with players in the 21 to 23 age cluster. Gaunce, Shinkaruk, Jensen, Grenier (albeit he's 24), Subban, Cassels, Pedan, Boeser, Demko to name a few -- if you can't get excited about the notion that these prospects at this very moment are developing into professional hockey players who may one day be decent players in the NHL, then you're sorely lacking any hockey DNA. First off BIGBADCANUCK, I love what I have seen from our rookies, and have not said anything other than that, and they may all turn out exactly as we hope. I HOPE! But the mere fact that we are playing 3 rookies, a unproven 2nd liner, and a young unproven goalie, says a lot about depth.....I am not saying anything bad about these guys, only pointing out that teams with depth do not rely on so many young players, unless your team is Edmonton. "IF" these guys are rushed, or just as bad "sat" aka Virtanen, too much it could change our future path a lot. I am not saying that will happen, but I ask you. Are we doing the right thing relying on these young players so heavily? And if we are now, I wonder what will happen when we do run into injuries....as what happened with Edler getting sick.....Hutton was the player that was elevated, and that is because he is truly the only one that can play top 4. As for Shinkaruk , and Cassels, well if you read the fans comments down in Utica, you may get an understanding of what I am talking about.......not that it hasn't been talked about up here.....their best player was Jensen for the first game, and that says a lot to me........ Our brightest prospects are in the NCAA, and one is a goalie.............. But I digress, as this post was about depth, I merely posted about the youth as an indication as to why I thought that. Again, when you look past the players on this club, do you see any NHL ready players ready to help us win a cup ? And that is why I question depth! PS.............just look at who our goalie is tomorrow if Miller goes down! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c00kies Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 "IF" these guys are rushed, or just as bad "sat" aka Virtanen, too much it could change our future path a lot. I am not saying that will happen, but I ask you. Are we doing the right thing relying on these young players so heavily? And if we are now, I wonder what will happen when we do run into injuries....as what happened with Edler getting sick.....Hutton was the player that was elevated, and that is because he is truly the only one that can play top 4. Virtanen earned his spot during the pre-season and is only sitting because of (eye) injury. If the young guns are not ready they will be sent down. Don't know if OP is drunk or schizophrenic. He complains all summer about bringing in the next wave of players in the system and ridding the team of all vets, and now that Virtanen, Hutton, McCann, Baertschi are added to Horvat he p!$$e$ and moans about there being no depth in the organization. Take a close look at the depth chart, there Nut -- the Canucks are loaded with players in the 21 to 23 age cluster. Gaunce, Shinkaruk, Jensen, Grenier (albeit he's 24), Subban, Cassels, Pedan, Boeser, Demko to name a few -- if you can't get excited about the notion that these prospects at this very moment are developing into professional hockey players who may one day be decent players in the NHL, then you're sorely lacking any hockey DNA. I don't think that means what you think it means. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.I.A.H.N Posted October 12, 2015 Author Share Posted October 12, 2015 Virtanen earned his spot during the pre-season and is only sitting because of injury. If the young guns are not ready they will be sent down. I must have missed that.......I knew he had a couple of stiches around the eye, but didn't think it was enough to keep him out of a line up......can anyone confirm this Thanks for the update.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Watermelons Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 2015 Summer: Fans/media complain all summer about how the Canucks won't have rookies on the team and will give free spots to Vey and Corrado 2015 Season Opener: The Canucks have three rookies on their NHL roster for the first time in over a decade Result: People still find something to complain about Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canacks1970 Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 I must have missed that.......I knew he had a couple of stiches around the eye, but didn't think it was enough to keep him out of a line up......can anyone confirm this Thanks for the upda Well lets put it this way. Like I meantion to you in a previous post that Benning been know for his scouting and here we are his two top picks in McCann and Virtanen both made the big club. Can you honestly say to me you have heard of Hutton before this training camp? You meantion we are using rookies because we have no real Depth? So when do you plan on using them? Wait until our core is too old and about to retire? If you were paying any attention what Benning been saying since he has taken over was that if a rookie out plays a vet he will find a spot for him period. And AS i recall you didn't think we had a player in our system that can make a first pass,has a high hockey IQ, AND a player that can shoot with skill and you were willing to trade McCann for that player when we had scouting reports around the league that McCann was in the top 5 with those skills. If we didn't move guys like Garrison and others could you tell me where we are going to find cap space for our rookies to learn from our vets? As with Kassian a player who had lots of skills and other issues. You went through three organizations and and 5 coaches in a short period . How many chances do you give a person. And how do you know that Vancouver didn't offer him help. So if let say we did keep Kassian . What are you going to replace that roster spot with in that position since in your opinion that were only using rookies because we have no depth? Now as for our future. It looks alot brighter then you think. Gaunce had a great camp. Unfortunately for him it became a numbers game. As for Cassels know I don't know where you have this idea that he's slow but isn't he the player that shut down McDavid in the playoffs last year. Shinkaruk is recoving from a hip injury last year and is still learning the pro game after one season. As for Jordon Subban .. Guess what even big brother P.K said he's the best of the them all , so will find out soon enough. In todays NHL its about speed and size no longer matters. Sorry Janis I don't agree with you. We have stronger management and coaching staff then we do from the 13/14 season. There is no way that Gillis and Tortorella were on the same page at all a team that didn't made the playoffs that year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nuxfanabroad Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 If any decent D hit waivers, perhaps claim one(ala Stanton).Probably need 1 or 2 mediocre yrs, in transitioning to the next wave of players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyhee Posted October 12, 2015 Share Posted October 12, 2015 With the promotion of Horvat, McCann, Virtanen, and Hutton, it makes it abundantly clear, just what we have in depth of young players, ready to take their place in the Canuck lineup over the next couple of years. ... Well, yes, promoting young prospects to the NHL club is going to weaken the remaining prospect pool. I presume that isn't what you meant. ... The Canucks are smart to accelerate the development of their top prospects as the status quo would simply delay their progress. ... Delay isn't necessarily a bad thing. (It isn't always a good thing, either.) We may have a better idea in 3-4 years whether bringing Virtanen, McCann and Hutton to the NHL this season was good for their long-term development. Imo the long-term futures for the three of them are more important, both to them and the Canucks. ... We have definitely weakened since the 2013 -2014 season Agree or Disagree? Fascinating question. I apologize for the long-winded answer, but think Jan's ideas deserve some in-depth consideration. First for a simplistic answer, we can all prognisticate (though I don't think that's what is being asked for) and my prognistication would have the 2015-16 Canucks being at least as successful as the notoriously unsuccessful 2013-14 version. Accordingly, I'd have to say the team isn't going to be weaker than in 2013-14. Otoh, I don't think that's what Jan meant by weaker. The discussion about the weakness of the remaining prospect pool suggests there was something else in mind than how successful the Canucks will be in 2015-16. If I'm getting the right point, Jan is suggesting the future looks dim because of the lack of strength of the prospect pool. To use a line I borrowed and have used before, my crystal ball is looking kind of cloudy right now so it's hard to tell the future. However, let's compare youngsters (on the NHL team or not) now with 2013-14. I'm going to arbitrarily pick under 26 as of Dec 31 in the season in question as the cutoff, but players who ended the season as Canucks or Canucks' prospects will be included. Ages are as of Dec 31, 2013 and Dec 31, 2015. First a simple prospects list (which will probably be a little inaccurate but hopefully not meaningfully so. Again, players must be 25 or younger on Dec 31 of the season in question to make my arbitrary age cutoff. 2013-14 listed as Centers: Shawn Matthias (25) Zac Dalpe (24) Jordan Schroeder (23) Jeremy Welsh (23) Alex Friesen (23) Joe Labate (20) Brendan Gaunce (19) Alexandre Mallet (21) Bo Horvat (18) Cole Cassels (18) 2015-16 listed as Centers: Bo Horvat (20) Jared McCann (19) Linden Vey (24) Alex Friesen (25) Cole Cassels (20; moving to wing?) Kyle Pettit (19) Dmitri Zhukenov (18) Adam Gaudette (19) 2013-14 listed as wingers: Darren Archibald (23) Nicklas Jensen (20) Zack Kassian (23) Kellen Lain (24) Michael Zalewski (21) Anton Rodin (24 having returned to Sweden) Alex Grenier (22) Ludwig Blomstrand (20) Hunter Shinkaruk (19) 2015-16 listed as wingers: Sven Baertschi (23) Jake Virtanen (19) Ronalds Kenins (24) Brendan Gaunce (21) Hunter Shinkaruk (21) Nicklas Jensen (22) Alex Grenier (24) Ludwig Blomstrand (22) Mackenzie Stewart (20) Brock Boesser (18) Lukas Jasek (18) Joe Labate (22) Dane Fox (22) 2013-14 listed as defencemen: Frank Corrado (20) Yann Sauve (23) Ryan Stanton (24) Chris Tanev (24) Yannick Weber (25) Peter Andersson (23) Patrick McNally (23) Henrik Tommernes (23) Ben Hutton (20) Jordan Subban (18) Anton Cederholm (18) Mike Williamson (20) Miles Liberati (18) 2015-16 listed as defencemen: Ben Hutton (22) Jordan Subban (20) Anton Cederholm (20) Mike Williamson (22) Miles Liberati (20) Nikita Tryamkin (21) Guillaume Brisebois (18) Carl Neill (19) Tate Olson (18) Andrey Pedan (22) Ashton Sautner (21) 2013-14 listed as goalies: Joacim Eriksson (23) Jacob Markstrom (24) Joe Cannata (23). Lack almost made the cutoff. 2015-16 listed as goalies: Joe Cannata (25) Thatcher Demko (20) Clay Witt (24). Markstrom almost made the cutoff. By position comparison: Center: 2013-14 Matthias (25) was bottom 6 in the NHL; Schroeder (23) had just finished his 2nd unimpressive partial season with the Canucks and his star was descending; Gaunce and Horvat were seen as good prospects that weren't ready for the NHL yet (though Horvat then proceeded to make the Canucks in the fall of 2014) 2015-16 Horvat had a solid rookie season and moved up at least to 3rd line center-he then won 2nd line center in training camp. McCann is starting the season as the 3rd line center. Vey made the NHL team in 2014-15 scoring 24 points but his prospects have gone downhill and he passed through waivers this preseason. Gaunce has been shifted to wing. The edge at center:-2015-16 seems definitely stronger. Wing: 2013-14: Kassian was in the NHL with 29 points in 73 games, frustrating his 2nd Canucks' coach. He was seen as an inconsistent player with much potential. Shinkaruk was a highly regarded prospect but mostly didn't play in 2013-14 because of injury. Archibald was a 3rd line AHL player in 2013-14. Nicklas Jensen was a highly regarded prospect who played mostly in Utica but had a decent 17 game stint with the Canucks, not scoring much but playing ok. Alex Grenier was viewed as a project, having completed a reasonably 1st year in the AHL at 22. 2015-16: Baertschi has made the Canucks after finishing last season impressively in Utica. Virtanen at 19 has made the Canucks but hasn't gotten into the lineup yet and may not stick. He is a highly regarded prospect, thought extremely likely to play in the NHL at some level. Gaunce, converted from center, was Utica's most improved player in 2014-15 and showed very well in the preseason, some being surprised he wasn't kept with the Canucks. He appears very close to being ready to fill a bottom 6 role. Shinkaruk has struggled to score but is still a highly regarded prospect, though there are concerns about his development and potential. Kenins made the NHL part way through 2014-15 and played well in a bottom 6 role, but was apparently beaten out for a spot on the team this season by Virtanen. Grenier played well last season in Utica and could be close to making an NHL team, though he isn't there at this time. Boesser is a highly regarded NCAA rookie. The edge at wing: This is made close by Kassian having been in the NHL. I'm more impressed though with the potential for the future with the current group. Overall I think it's close but would give a slight edge to 2015-16. Defence: 2013-14: Tanev was an impressive looking top-4 NHL defenceman. Stanton and Weber were both playing in the NHL as depth defencemen (Stanton with little upside, Weber with considerable offensive upside but some troubling weaknesses.) Yann Sauve's time as a Canuck prospect was coming to an end. The others were still long-term projects, though Hutton had just finished an impressive year in the NCAA. 2015-16: Hutton is showing extremely well so far as an NHL rookie. Pedan is looking like he may be capable of filling a depth role within a year. Tryamkin is starting to get considerable playing time in the final year of his current KHL contract. Subban was an impressive junior with potential but a long way to develop. The edge on defence: Pretty clearly the edge right now goes to 2013-14, despite how good Hutton looks. If he becomes a 1st pairing d-man then the 2015-16 group could get close. Goal: 2013-14 Markstrom was an excellent prospect who hadn't put it together in the NHL. Eriksson was seen as a good prospect but unlikely to stay in North America more than one more season because he wasn't going to make the NHL in that time. Cannata was the 3rd goalie, a reasonable prospect. 2015-16 Demko is seen as the best Canuck goalie prospect and there are hopes for him, though he hasn't played at anything higher than the NCAA. Cannata had a good season in Kalamazoo and Utica. The edge in goal: I'd have to give this edge to the 2013-14 group. The combination of Markstrom and Eriksson made for considerable potential. Demko also has considerable potential but is younger and less experienced now than Markstrom was two seasons ago. Note: Those that aren't mentioned are players I considered still some way away from being able to contribute in the NHL, with enough development required that they might not make it. In total-Center looks like the biggest difference to me, with the current group looking much better. I think the 2013-14 group had a noticeable advantage on defence. At wing and goal there isn't all that much of a difference in total for future hopes. Agree or disagree that the Canucks of 2015-16 are clearly weaker? I have to disagree. While there is a mixture, the 19-22 age group is looking better to me overall than it did in 2013-14. It would be nice if that crystal ball wasn't so fuzzy, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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