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Brendan Gaunce | C/LW


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7 hours ago, SID.IS.SID.ME.IS.ME said:

It also depends a lot on the type of player Gaunce potentially displaces. If he played his way into a top-9 spot, I'm sure Benning does whatever is needed to make room for him. But if it's a 4th line role, or "replacement level," then things get tricky.

 

Do you expose another player to waivers that you hope to keep in the system, just to get a marginal upgrade from Gaunce at a 4th line position? And does a 4th line role, (or possibly a spare/13th forward role) help Gaunce more than him playing first or second line in Utica?

 

How much value is there in getting Gaunce minimal NHL minutes for the start of the season? Does this really help him? Does it help the team (versus the risk of losing a decent depth player on waivers)?

 

These are the types of questions Benning will have to answer.

 

That's why he gets paid the big bucks and gets to sit at the head of the management table.

Do you recall Willie D saying at the end of last season that he views the trend around the league being: "Fourth line = development line"? 

 

To me, that says: Granlund and another rookie-ish player will be developed on the 4th line while a cornerstone vet teaches them The Way. So, I can totally see Gaunce being in that spot, but I'm hard pressed to see him in that spot instead of Etem.

 

That's my take on it, anyway.

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On 9/11/2016 at 8:31 AM, Maniwaki Canuck said:

Yeah, people need to realize that this guy addressed his skating issues a couple of years ago.  Always encouraging to see a young player target areas for improvement and get the job done.  It's the Sedin way. Unless Granlund has done the same, you're looking at this year's 4C, once the dust settles.

They said Horvat was slow too...

 

 

Last I checked Burns could skate just fine.

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1 hour ago, NameFaker said:

Do you recall Willie D saying at the end of last season that he views the trend around the league being: "Fourth line = development line"? 

 

To me, that says: Granlund and another rookie-ish player will be developed on the 4th line while a cornerstone vet teaches them The Way. So, I can totally see Gaunce being in that spot, but I'm hard pressed to see him in that spot instead of Etem.

 

That's my take on it, anyway.

Yeah, I suppose it's more the numbers game of the current roster squeeze than anything else. Hard to fit Gaunce into the lineup without having to waive somebody else 25 or under who also has good upside.

 

So Gaunce has to really kill it IMO (and clearly out perform all the young waiver eligible forwards) for him to overcome his own waiver exemption.

 

But I can see him making the team regardless. I really like what he brings and I do believe he's NHL ready right now.

 

And I'd agree that a year on a "development" 4th line (if he would indeed be deployed that way) could be good for Gaunce. 

 

Just not sure (yet) that it's the best choice, given all the factors. 

 

I'm still not sure if Gaunce gains more (other than salary) this season by playing on Willie Desjardins' 4th line (even if it's a "development line") than he would in a core player and team leader role on Travis Green's 1st line (or 2nd) in Utica.

 

And even if the NHL role is a better one for Gaunce individually, I'm not sure the benefits outweigh the potential risks from a team perspective (especially as it relates to waiver risk and maintaining maximum player assets).

 

But I'm hoping Gaunce will show enough make the answers to these questions obvious to everyone by the end of preseason. 

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4 hours ago, SID.IS.SID.ME.IS.ME said:

Yeah, I suppose it's more the numbers game of the current roster squeeze than anything else. Hard to fit Gaunce into the lineup without having to waive somebody else 25 or under who also has good upside.

 

So Gaunce has to really kill it IMO (and clearly out perform all the young waiver eligible forwards) for him to overcome his own waiver exemption.

 

But I can see him making the team regardless. I really like what he brings and I do believe he's NHL ready right now.

 

And I'd agree that a year on a "development" 4th line (if he would indeed be deployed that way) could be good for Gaunce. 

 

Just not sure (yet) that it's the best choice, given all the factors. 

 

I'm still not sure if Gaunce gains more (other than salary) this season by playing on Willie Desjardins' 4th line (even if it's a "development line") than he would in a core player and team leader role on Travis Green's 1st line (or 2nd) in Utica.

 

And even if the NHL role is a better one for Gaunce individually, I'm not sure the benefits outweigh the potential risks from a team perspective (especially as it relates to waiver risk and maintaining maximum player assets).

 

But I'm hoping Gaunce will show enough make the answers to these questions obvious to everyone by the end of preseason. 

He's running out of time, thats for sure.

Drafted in 2012, 4 years after the fact and its time to make the team.

Either as a 4th liner or 13th forward. 

If he is going to get better then he needs to get used to playing with the big boys. 

If he doesn't make the team this year then he will have only one more year to avoid being called the b-word, bust.

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6 hours ago, Horvats_Big_Head said:

He's running out of time, thats for sure.

Drafted in 2012, 4 years after the fact and its time to make the team.

Either as a 4th liner or 13th forward. 

If he is going to get better then he needs to get used to playing with the big boys. 

If he doesn't make the team this year then he will have only one more year to avoid being called the b-word, bust.

I don't agree with you at all. He'll be with the team on a sort of part time basis this year and will be in the opening night roster next year. Barring the unforeseen of course. 

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On September 18, 2016 at 3:56 AM, alfstonker said:

Interesting closing statement from Gaunce in his Kenward interview.

 

The other 3 players were all asked what their goals and intentions were now and all three gave the standard answers while Gaunce said he would "be keeping that to himself"

 

I can't think of any scenario where he could not answer that question unless he has been taking MMA and he intends to beat the crap out of someone at the earliest possible opportunity. (that might be worth keeping to himself I suppose :) )

I am thinking its "Make Granlund my B***H and take his job"

 

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13 hours ago, Horvats_Big_Head said:

He's running out of time, thats for sure.

Drafted in 2012, 4 years after the fact and its time to make the team.

Either as a 4th liner or 13th forward. 

If he is going to get better then he needs to get used to playing with the big boys. 

If he doesn't make the team this year then he will have only one more year to avoid being called the b-word, bust.

How is he running out of time. Detroit season their draft picks for even longer and it pays off.

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2 minutes ago, Horvats_Big_Head said:

I'm just saying that he needs to make the most of his opportunities this year. If he plays 20+ games this year he needs to muster more than 1G and 0A. Just calling a spade a spade. 

If you look at his underlying numbers, it's a very good bet his next 20ish NHL games will see him post much better scoring totals.

 

On my way out the door so I'm going from memory but I believe his teammates only shot 1.85% when he was on the ice last season. That's a terrible shooting percentage and it's almost certain to improve (which would covert into more points for Gaunce).

 

His events differentials (Corsi Rel, etc) were some of best on the team so it's likely his poor raw numbers were almost entirely percentage driven and will improve with more games. 

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This is the thing. Championship teams need players like Brendan Gaunce. A Bottom 6 dependable guy that can match up and defend against other top lines. Either at center or on the wing. You need depth. I see Gaunce, with his versatility playing a role on this team for a while. He can fit in, in multiple ways.

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On 18/09/2016 at 5:56 AM, alfstonker said:

Interesting closing statement from Gaunce in his Kenward interview.

 

The other 3 players were all asked what their goals and intentions were now and all three gave the standard answers while Gaunce said he would "be keeping that to himself"

 

I can't think of any scenario where he could not answer that question unless he has been taking MMA and he intends to beat the crap out of someone at the earliest possible opportunity. (that might be worth keeping to himself I suppose :) )

I don't mind a guy who sets goals so lofty that he knows people will roll their eyes and laugh.

 

Maybe he's thinking Eriksson is going to only be used with the Sedins on the powerplay and he's gonna steal that job from Hansen.

It's not a bad thought on a trial basis to be honest, 'pace' or not, he probably has about the right foot speed to hang with them, he's big enough to make some space and he's got that bit of cerebral-ness to him that works well with the Sedins.

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3 minutes ago, Derp... said:

If Gauncer plays a full season he should score about 11 goals and 18 Assists. That's pretty good for a bottom 6 forward in his first full year.

Agreed.  I think Gaunce will surprise any doubters.  There's a reason why Brendan is still with the team and Shinks is not.  He put up similar points last season and has a more rounded (NHL) game. 

 

A very smart player who works extremely hard.  I can see him eventually settling as a very good 3rd liner who can fill in on the 2nd if needed.  Reminds me a lot of a young Higgins.

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1 minute ago, Gooseberries said:

I think that's a little high for him. I'd be happy with 5 goals 10 assists. 

His shot rate in the NHL and point projections from the AHL say otherwise. It's not a perfect predictor, but it was accurate for Guys like Hoffman, Nyquist, B. Nelson and Lindberg for example. 

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My fear is that Gaunce has a solid year and is plucked from us in the expansion draft.

 

If we took (must likely) keep safe 7 forwards

 

Daniel, Hank, Sutter, Horvat, Baertschi, Eriksson ....you have one spot...for Rodin, Gaunce, Granlund, Hansen and Etem.

 

Me thinks if Gaunce has a solid year, teams will always take a chance on a good two way big bodied forward over anything else.

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