Since Benning took over - a breakdown

[oldnews]

1 hour ago, Nathancanuck said:

2014 Offseason:

- Jason Garrison for a 2nd

- Ryan Kesler for a 1st, Nick Bonino, Luca Sbisa

- 2nd for Linden Vey

- 3rd for Derek Dorsett

- Drafted Jake Virtanen, Jared McCann, Thatcher Demko, Nikita Tryamkin, Gustav Forsling, Kyle Pettit, Mackanze Stewart

Conclusion: Very good draft for JB except for Jake Virtanen (as of now, but could still turn out to be a solid pick). He got

handcuffed in the Kesler trade and wasted a 2nd for Vey.

Grade B-

 

2014/15

- Signed UFA's Ryan Miller 3x6 and Radim Vrbata 2x5

- 3rd for Andrey Pedan

- Gustav Forsling for Adam Clendening

- 2nd for Sven Baertschi

- Eddie Lack for a 3rd and a 7th

- Patrick McNally for a 7th

- Did not trade UFA's such as Mathias, Richardson

- Drafted Brock Boeser, Guillaume Brisebois, Dimitri Zhukenov, Carl Neil, Adam Gaudette, Lukas Jasek, Tate Olson 

Conclusion: Made the Playoffs as 2nd seed in the Pacific, so it is kinda understandable that we didn't trade Mathias

and Richardson for a 2nd and 3rd and maybe miss the Playoffs. UFA signings were good. Acquiring Baertschi for a

2nd was good. Too early to tell but it looks like it was another strong draft from JB.

Grade B

 

2015/16

- Kevin Bieksa for a 2nd

- Zack Kassian + 5th for Brendan Prust

- Nick Bonino, Adam Clendening + 2nd for Brendan Sutter + 3rd

- Nicklas Jensen + 6th for Emerson Etem

- Hunter Shinkaruk for Markus Granlund

- 5th for Philip Larsen

- Jared McCann + 2nd + 4th for Erik Gudbranson + 5th

- Did not trade UFA's Vrbata and Hamhius

- Drafted Olli Juolevi, William Lockwood, Cole Candella, Jakob Stukel, Rodrigo Abols, Brett McKenzie

Conclusion: Bad season due to injuries and missing depth. JB made a couple of solid moves with

Granlund, Sutter, Gudbranson (remember McCann never wanted to be in Vancouver), Bieksa... He got

handcuffed by Vrbata and no good offer for Hamhuis at the TDL, so not much he could have done..

Got &^@#ed by the draft lottery but passed on Tkachuk which might turn out or not. Might have found

some good later round picks but too early to tell. Only thing I will never understand is the Kassian trade.

Grade B-

 

2016/17

- Signed UFA Loui Eriksson for 6x6 

- Signed Troy Stecher

 

I would say JB has done a great job overall so far, hope he gets us a new coach for next season though.

I think in 2018 the retool/rebuild will be finished when the Sedins retire and we won't have anyone on the

roster from 2011 (maybe Hansen) anymore.

 

I'd agree with you for the most part.

 

Where I'd differ would be his grade for 2015-16.  I don't care about the season's results - the M.A.S.H. unit made the season a write off in any event.

 

But the reason I'd grade him very highly there is that from draft to draft that could turn out to be one of the most important years (+ 1 day so to speak) in the history of the franchise.

Sutter, Granlund, Gudbranson, Boeser, Juolevi, Gaudette and some other wildcard draft picks - that turned the transition from a lonely Bo Horvat to a realistic emergent core.

Add Tryamkin, Demko, Stecher on either side and the team sandwiched their best year with some other key pieces.

I'd have to give him an A for that seasons work.  The other thing I'd disagree with is turning over the coaching position - imo WD gets a great deal out of his roster.

[IBatch]

2 minutes ago, ajhockey said:

JB has legitimately surprised me and proven time and time again he knows better than I. 

 

His drafting is quite solid, though that was somewhat expected.

 

But I've been proven wrong on three separate occasions regarding my snap judgements of his decisions. 

 

1) Benning trades a 2nd for Baertschi. This was a risky move in my mind for a guy I figured was already a bust. I was wrong here.

2) Benning signs Sbisa for $3.6M per. At the time, this deal was insane, but Sbisa improved greatly in his first year of that deal and has continued to improve this year to the point where he's now worth his contract. Maybe Benning say potential where I didn't?

3) Trading Shinkaruk for Granlund. I thought this was a massive loss, but Granlund has proven that he's more than a player destined to be a struggling 3rd liner and has shown potential as a middle six player.

 

Not to mention the signing of Stecher, which was a big one.

 

Where I previously doubted, I now have some faith with Benning.

 

 

All good points.  You can and Lack to your list...The amount of wtf comments exploded over that one...But now it doesn't look so bad.

Benning needs two really good drafts to turn this team around especially our first picks and even our seconds.  Normally teams shoot for one roster player per draft...He's done fine or even very good on that front considering Boesser is considered a shoe in and nothing glaring suggests Juolevi won't make it..But we need stars too.    Brisbois might make it too 

... Which would be incredible...But we need stars.   I hope we get some retribution this draft and move way up.  

[Sbriggs]

1 hour ago, Nathancanuck said:

2014 Offseason:

- Jason Garrison for a 2nd

- Ryan Kesler for a 1st, Nick Bonino, Luca Sbisa

- 2nd for Linden Vey

- 3rd for Derek Dorsett

- Drafted Jake Virtanen, Jared McCann, Thatcher Demko, Nikita Tryamkin, Gustav Forsling, Kyle Pettit, Mackanze Stewart

Conclusion: Very good draft for JB except for Jake Virtanen (as of now, but could still turn out to be a solid pick). He got

handcuffed in the Kesler trade and wasted a 2nd for Vey.

Grade B-

 

2014/15

- Signed UFA's Ryan Miller 3x6 and Radim Vrbata 2x5

- 3rd for Andrey Pedan

- Gustav Forsling for Adam Clendening

- 2nd for Sven Baertschi

- Eddie Lack for a 3rd and a 7th

- Patrick McNally for a 7th

- Did not trade UFA's such as Mathias, Richardson

- Drafted Brock Boeser, Guillaume Brisebois, Dimitri Zhukenov, Carl Neil, Adam Gaudette, Lukas Jasek, Tate Olson 

Conclusion: Made the Playoffs as 2nd seed in the Pacific, so it is kinda understandable that we didn't trade Mathias

and Richardson for a 2nd and 3rd and maybe miss the Playoffs. UFA signings were good. Acquiring Baertschi for a

2nd was good. Too early to tell but it looks like it was another strong draft from JB.

Grade B

 

2015/16

- Kevin Bieksa for a 2nd

- Zack Kassian + 5th for Brendan Prust

- Nick Bonino, Adam Clendening + 2nd for Brendan Sutter + 3rd

- Nicklas Jensen + 6th for Emerson Etem

- Hunter Shinkaruk for Markus Granlund

- 5th for Philip Larsen

- Jared McCann + 2nd + 4th for Erik Gudbranson + 5th

- Did not trade UFA's Vrbata and Hamhius

- Drafted Olli Juolevi, William Lockwood, Cole Candella, Jakob Stukel, Rodrigo Abols, Brett McKenzie

Conclusion: Bad season due to injuries and missing depth. JB made a couple of solid moves with

Granlund, Sutter, Gudbranson (remember McCann never wanted to be in Vancouver), Bieksa... He got

handcuffed by Vrbata and no good offer for Hamhuis at the TDL, so not much he could have done..

Got &^@#ed by the draft lottery but passed on Tkachuk which might turn out or not. Might have found

some good later round picks but too early to tell. Only thing I will never understand is the Kassian trade.

Grade B-

 

2016/17

- Signed UFA Loui Eriksson for 6x6 

- Signed Troy Stecher

 

I would say JB has done a great job overall so far, hope he gets us a new coach for next season though.

I think in 2018 the retool/rebuild will be finished when the Sedins retire and we won't have anyone on the

roster from 2011 (maybe Hansen) anymore.

 

 

 

 

Kassian had to go he was a bad influance on our young guys, a cancer in the room, now if he has improved his life then good for him but we gave him plenty of chances.

[Sbriggs]

38 minutes ago, Nathancanuck said:

I know about that but still I don't get the trade. At that time he was still a young power forward with upside and substance issues.

He has shown, that he can be a dominant player at times (second half of the Torts season and over stretches in 2014/15)

Then he had games where he was completely invisible, I know... But overall I like what Kassian brought to the team, he was tough

and unpredictable.. I think a guy like Kassian could have handled Ferland in the playoffs.

But what I don't get, even if you want to get rid of him badly why not put him on waivers instead of paying for it? 

Kassian never handled anyone physically when he was here, that was another part of letting him go was he wasn't a physical presence on the ice as much as he needed to be.

[LaBamba]

Virtanen = bust (F-)

McCann = Gudbranson = 3rd pairing Dman. (F-) 

I love Juolevi but we sure missed on who was taken after. By the time Juolevi has a comparable impact as Tkachuk. Tkachuk will have 100goals . (C)

 

LE (F-)

 

Passing picks around like a hookers STD.  (F-)

 

blabbering about Subban and Stamkos like a blundering idiot (F)

 

3rd round drafting and up (because he doesn't have 2nds ever)  (A++)

 

Boeser  (A+)

 

Farm team/ lack of prospects in WJC (F-)

 

Spending to cap vs what is on the ice (F-)

 

Sacrificing assets for the future to become slightly better in a nothing  era that nobody will remember or care about instead of using his A++ drafting skills in the later rounds. (F-)

 

His fixation on "eye test" players. *see Gudbranson or what I like to call him "Handsome Aaron Rome" (F-)

 

His stubbornness and unwillingness to look further than like 5 games ahead. "I don't know if we are sellers"?!!? (F-)

 

his readiness at the trade deadline (F-)

 

 

 

 

[CaptainLinden16]

1 hour ago, Alflives said:

And how good will we be in two or three years?  IMHAO it's an average young group JB is building.  Unless Boeser, Gaudette, and Juiolevi break their ceilings and become elite stars, we get stuck in the middle.

You can say that about any draft pick.  What is an 18 year old's ceiling?  Boeser, Gaudette and Julovei are dominating their competition.  Maybe they never make the NHL, but how you can say definitively that they have average or low ceilings is a head scratcher.

[Bruce Boudreau]

You gotta have a good vision and 5 YEAR plan.

 

This team is going nowhere fast instead of ripping the band aids off in the form of Burrows and Hansen they continue to wallow o mediocrity they are going down and getting worse the next 3 years before they can start building the roster with the Sedins and Burrows and 99% of that 2011cup team are finally gone and the Bo Horvat Canucks era is ushered in as he is named Captain.

[Nathancanuck]

8 minutes ago, oldnews said:

I'd agree with you for the most part.

 

Where I'd differ would be his grade for 2015-16.  I don't care about the season's results - the M.A.S.H. unit made the season a write off in any event.

 

But the reason I'd grade him very highly there is that from draft to draft that could turn out to be one of the most important years (+ 1 day so to speak) in the history of the franchise.

Sutter, Granlund, Gudbranson, Boeser, Juolevi, Gaudette and some other wildcard draft picks - that turned the transition from a lonely Bo Horvat to a realistic emergent core.

Add Tryamkin, Demko, Stecher on either side and the team sandwiched their best year with some other key pieces.

I'd have to give him an A for that seasons work.  The other thing I'd disagree with is turning over the coaching position - imo WD gets a great deal out of his roster.

I totally agree with you and it's a nice point about the future of the franchise you made here! 

 

But I am convinced we need a new coach though.. While you're right, point wise he is doing

a good job with the roster he has but Willie lacks good decisions in game like ice time, timeout

as well as strange decisions in the lineup and the inability to recognize when something doesn't

work anymore. I don't exactly know how Willie is doing this "good" but I am convinced he's not 

a good coach.

[CaptainLinden16]

2 minutes ago, LaBamba said:

Virtanen = bust (F-)

McCann = Gudbranson = 3rd pairing Dman. (F-) 

I love Juolevi but we sure missed on who was taken after. By the time Juolevi has a comparable impact as Tkachuk. Tkachuk will have 100goals . (C)

 

LE (F-)

 

Passing picks around like a hookers STD.  (F-)

 

blabbering about Subban and Stamkos like a blundering idiot (F)

 

3rd round drafting and up (because he doesn't have 2nds ever)  (A++)

 

Boeser  (A+)

 

Farm team/ lack of prospects in WJC (F-)

 

Spending to cap vs what is on the ice (F-)

 

Sacrificing assets for the future to become slightly better in a nothing  era that nobody will remember or care about instead of using his A++ drafting skills in the later rounds. (F-)

 

His fixation on "eye test" players. *see Gudbranson or what I like to call him "Handsome Aaron Rome" (F-)

 

His stubbornness and unwillingness to look further than like 5 games ahead. "I don't know if we are sellers"?!!? (F-)

 

his readiness at the trade deadline (F-)

 

 

 

 

That's a lot of F-...

 

so you dont like Baertschi, Granlund or Sutter?

 

i think handsome Aaron Rome will improve if not partnered with Hutton who has been a hot mess defensively all year.

 

i get you don't approve, but I think you are being a bit harsh even for your poop colored glasses.

[Bruce Boudreau]

I never wanted Loui Ericsson in the first place guy is soft plays with no emotion. Go back to the thread when he signed last year I took flak for saying he was overrated had a career year in his contract year and now would lose motivation.

 

Hopefully once the Sedins are gone in 2-3 years it will be easy to persuade him to waive his no trade and dump him when he is surrounded by 20 something's like Boeser,Horvat, Gaudette,Virtanen etc.

 

[Sbriggs]

5 minutes ago, LaBamba said:

Virtanen = bust (F-)

McCann = Gudbranson = 3rd pairing Dman. (F-) 

I love Juolevi but we sure missed on who was taken after. By the time Juolevi has a comparable impact as Tkachuk. Tkachuk will have 100goals . (C)

 

LE (F-)

 

Passing picks around like a hookers STD.  (F-)

 

blabbering about Subban and Stamkos like a blundering idiot (F)

 

3rd round drafting and up (because he doesn't have 2nds ever)  (A++)

 

Boeser  (A+)

 

Farm team/ lack of prospects in WJC (F-)

 

Spending to cap vs what is on the ice (F-)

 

Sacrificing assets for the future to become slightly better in a nothing  era that nobody will remember or care about instead of using his A++ drafting skills in the later rounds. (F-)

 

His fixation on "eye test" players. *see Gudbranson or what I like to call him "Handsome Aaron Rome" (F-)

 

His stubbornness and unwillingness to look further than like 5 games ahead. "I don't know if we are sellers"?!!? (F-)

 

his readiness at the trade deadline (F-)

 

 

 

 

You must be a glass half empty guy. Horrible assessment on multiple levels. Guddy is still young just had a bad year with the injury as well, way to early to judge Juolevi over Tkachuck, my bet is Juolevi will be a first pairing Dman which is better the what Tkachuck will ever be. Gave a way a few 2nds but we got Sven for one of them and Im happy with that especially any time you can win a trade with Calgary and we've won twice. Sbisa has turned out to be a great piece of the Kesler trade and well worth his contract everyone, Im betting you as well, thought was a bad deal all around. I feel like your looking for bad things to say about Benning and forget all the positive things he has done. No GM is perfect and I think with what Benning has had to deal with I am giving him an -A, just waiting for him to improve our top 6 and were on the road to Lord Stanely

[CaptainLinden16]

7 minutes ago, Nathancanuck said:

I totally agree with you and it's a nice point about the future of the franchise you made here! 

 

But I am convinced we need a new coach though.. While you're right, point wise he is doing

a good job with the roster he has but Willie lacks good decisions in game like ice time, timeout

as well as strange decisions in the lineup and the inability to recognize when something doesn't

work anymore. I don't exactly know how Willie is doing this "good" but I am convinced he's not 

a good coach.

Willie is not a tactician,but he has built chemistry up and down the lineup.  The players also play hard more often then the teams they play against.  That is all coaching, so even if Megna on the powerplay is a head scratcher, the team is better overall.

 

Everyone complains about Bo's deployment, but he has become an Allstar under Willie.  I know it's tempting to say despite Willie, but i don't think you are thinking objectively if you do that.

 

i think his physical nervous twitches, and him being from the middle of nowhere hurt him more than his actual coaching skill.

[Nathancanuck]

20 minutes ago, IBatch said:

All good points.  You can and Lack to your list...The amount of wtf comments exploded over that one...But now it doesn't look so bad.

Benning needs two really good drafts to turn this team around especially our first picks and even our seconds.  Normally teams shoot for one roster player per draft...He's done fine or even very good on that front considering Boesser is considered a shoe in and nothing glaring suggests Juolevi won't make it..But we need stars too.    Brisbois might make it too 

... Which would be incredible...But we need stars.   I hope we get some retribution this draft and move way up.  

I still hate this trade personally.. I would have liked to go with Lack as #1.. I was so pissed! But I am not stupid and

know this was a fair deal value wise and we needed to get rid of a goalie.. After we traded Luongo, Eddie was the

best we had at that time and we had the Eddie Eddie chants which was the best thing you can get after Luuuuuing.

Now we have Miller time.. but you can't chant it

 

15 minutes ago, Sbriggs said:

Kassian never handled anyone physically when he was here, that was another part of letting him go was he wasn't a physical presence on the ice as much as he needed to be.

He was not a hitter... but he messed with everyone who looked at him the wrong way. He had good fights

[LaBamba]

6 minutes ago, CaptainLinden16 said:

That's a lot of F-...

 

so you dont like Baertschi, Granlund or Sutter?

 

i think handsome Aaron Rome will improve if not partnered with Hutton who has been a hot mess defensively all year.

 

i get you don't approve, but I think you are being a bit harsh even for your poop colored glasses.

what proof do you have? Everything I said has actually happened. You think HAR will play better without Hutton?! Where is the proof?! 

 

As as soon as you have some actual evidence get back to me. 

[Art Vandelay]

Only thing JB has done I didn't like at the time AND after was the Forsling trade. Besides from that JB has done good in my books. Some bad stuff only looks bad in hindsight. 

 

 

@Nathancanuck

We traded 3rds (2014 for 2015) with Anaheim in the Kesler trade if you want to add that. That pick got us Dorsett. 

 

 

 

[Sbriggs]

Just now, Nathancanuck said:

I still hate this trade personally.. I would have liked to go with Lack as #1.. I was so pissed! But I am not stupid and

know this was a fair deal value wise and we needed to get rid of a goalie.. After we traded Luongo, Eddie was the

best we had at that time and we had the Eddie Eddie chants which was the best thing you can get after Luuuuuing.

Now we have Miller time.. but you can't chant it

 

He was not a hitter... but he messed with everyone who looked at him the wrong way. He had good fights

Not the same Kassian I watched, he was soft and didn't stand up for his teammates including the Sedins. Maybe he won a fight or 2 but thats not the kind of player we wanted when we traded for Kassin.

[Toyotasfan]

I think Virtanen is going to be a real project that will sudenly flip a switch when he turns 22-24 and be the player he was supposed to be. History of power forwards development seems to point that way. After seeing his performance at the Canucks charity event last year I get the feeling he could go drink for drink with Shane O'Brien . He is going to take longer than Horvat to grow up. Kassien is pretty similar, than there's always guys like Bertuzzi and Neely. When Virtanen becomes an AHL star it won't be long til he moves to that level in the NHL if we're willing to wait. Otherwise he gets shipped away for nothing and we regret it.

[Roger Neilsons Towel]

40 minutes ago, ajhockey said:

JB has legitimately surprised me and proven time and time again he knows better than I. 

 

His drafting is quite solid, though that was somewhat expected.

 

But I've been proven wrong on three separate occasions regarding my snap judgements of his decisions. 

 

1) Benning trades a 2nd for Baertschi. This was a risky move in my mind for a guy I figured was already a bust. I was wrong here.

2) Benning signs Sbisa for $3.6M per. At the time, this deal was insane, but Sbisa improved greatly in his first year of that deal and has continued to improve this year to the point where he's now worth his contract. Maybe Benning saw potential where I didn't?

3) Trading Shinkaruk for Granlund. I thought this was a massive loss, but Granlund has proven that he's more than a player destined to be a struggling 3rd liner and has shown potential as a middle six player.

 

Not to mention the signing of Stecher, which was a big one.

 

Where I previously doubted, I now have some faith with Benning.

 

 

^This was me too 100%. Well said. 

[Sbriggs]

12 minutes ago, CaptainLinden16 said:

That's a lot of F-...

 

so you dont like Baertschi, Granlund or Sutter?

 

i think handsome Aaron Rome will improve if not partnered with Hutton who has been a hot mess defensively all year.

 

i get you don't approve, but I think you are being a bit harsh even for your poop colored glasses.

abit harsh you think? He's a bummer all the way.

[Bruce Boudreau]

3 minutes ago, Art Vandelay said:

Only thing JB has done I didn't like at the time AND after was the Forsling trade. Besides from that JB has done good in my books. Some bad stuff only looks bad in hindsight. 

 

 

@Nathancanuck

We traded 3rds (2014 for 2015) with Anaheim in the Kesler trade if you want to add that. That pick got us Dorsett. 

 

 

 

Dorsett is a bad waste of cap space for veteran leadership and stuff. 

 

Won't hold my breathe though cap space means jack when you acquire the wrong plauers like fancy Loui.