This is Getting Harder to Ignore

[sonoman]

Well said Rob,  it sure puts this year in perspective.  Some damage may come if  the Canucks make it into the playoffs 

 

[Isam]

14 hours ago, Rob_Zepp said:

Disagree, not enough depth yet and you can’t win in April with .900 goaltending but you can see the strides.   

 

I am am sure they believe.   I plan on rooting for them.   My guess is 85 points seems attainable.

&^@# it rob. Going on 96 points and being a bubble team. I think we can sustain the pace until late january early febuary. I wouldnt be too surprised though if this team pulled off a festivus miracle.

[Isam]

11 hours ago, apollo said:

I really don't see how you assume we'll be missing the dance... 

 

This team has clearly demonstrated that they can and will compete in March and April. 

 

The only question now is, can we win a cup this year or not? We have lots of young budding stars on the team... If This group keeps on clicking, they'll dominate. 

 

Would love to knock out SJ and then have Karlsson realize he has to sign with us at a discount if he wants to be part of the only dynasty in the league. 

 

 

 

I think we will apollo, but just barely. Wouldnt be too surprised at all if this team guts it out and makes it. It does have a 94 nhl canucks feel to it.

[Rob_Zepp]

3 hours ago, Jimmy McGill said:

you're probably correct, BUT.... 

 

as you noted this has been happening with key personnel out with injuries. Getting Sutter, Beagle and Edler back probably bumps that .900 ga up into the .910's, and with that and the team new found ability to score anything can happen. 

 

 

That .910 SV % is key.    And, I may well be wrong.    I am wrong a lot.   Doesn't both me.   

[Rob_Zepp]

1 hour ago, City-in-state-of-emergency said:

While your in the future can you give me lotto #s before March... also can you find my dog it's not lost but the crapper always gets away somehow so I wanna future proof in case the bugger does. Thanks Future Man!

No problem but if I give you those numbers, it will dilute my share so I will have to decline.   

 

Your dog is having its way with the neighbours poodle.   

[Isam]

1 hour ago, Rob_Zepp said:

Uh, ok.    I was lucky to be in NA and sharing a number of wiggly drinks with people who are typically Canuck bashers but I noticed how much their tune has changed and it inspired me to simply write something from the box.   As someone who has posted here literally thousands of times making it clear how much a fan I am of the team I felt it was more than a supportive view and largely directed at people who have found it so easy to write off the Canucks.    What surprised me today was how that opinion was "ignored" and instead people feel someone having less confidence that this team will be as points successful as others may feel as somehow abhorrent.   Wow.

 

Canucks are a fun team to watch and were for a lot of last season too.   Green has brought a real change to this team.   This is getting harder to ignore.  Cheers.   

I agree rob. But we will have to wait until the halfway point to see where this team is at before making a thread like this. But i like the reminder that this team will not give up even in a losing situation. That bodes well for us.

[JM_]

12 minutes ago, Rob_Zepp said:

That .910 SV % is key.    And, I may well be wrong.    I am wrong a lot.   Doesn't both me.   

I have to think that having two very quality defensive C's like Beagle and Sutter give a goalie a better chance by that kind of % point. 

 

But I'm OK no matter what happens this year, you can see the next core group, what kind of character they have so to me its a sooner-than-later scenario for this team being competitive for a long string of good years. 

[Rob_Zepp]

28 minutes ago, Hutton Wink said:

I'd say the Canucks are doing that right now, with injuries to key players underlining that reality.

Yup, they are exceeding my own projections and proving me wrong for sure.   Agreed entirely.   

[Rob_Zepp]

1 minute ago, Isam said:

I agree rob. But we will have to wait until the halfway point to see where this team is at before making a thread like this. But i like the reminder that this team will not give up even in a losing situation. That bodes well for us.

Ya, it was early.   As I think I said elsewhere, I was with some other hockey types and something one of them (most are pretty "down" on the Canucks past few years) said and the term "getting harder to ignore" just stuck.   The fact they are doing this with some of their toughest road trips of the season already out of the way after this one is also reason to be more optimistic than I am.   

[Isam]

1 minute ago, Rob_Zepp said:

Ya, it was early.   As I think I said elsewhere, I was with some other hockey types and something one of them (most are pretty "down" on the Canucks past few years) said and the term "getting harder to ignore" just stuck.   The fact they are doing this with some of their toughest road trips of the season already out of the way after this one is also reason to be more optimistic than I am.   

You are right that the injuries and stuff could be unsustainable, but this this team has suprised us with alot of character, particularly from a guy you defended against me from in guddy. Him, along with the rest of the gang feel that they can make it. Lol

[Rob_Zepp]

4 minutes ago, Isam said:

You are right that the injuries and stuff could be unsustainable, but this this team has suprised us with alot of character, particularly from a guy you defended against me from in guddy. Him, along with the rest of the gang feel that they can make it. Lol

I am an unabashed fan of Guddy and supported him as a Canuck since he joined......often been a lonely road that one for sure...lol.   

[Isam]

2 minutes ago, Rob_Zepp said:

I am an unabashed fan of Guddy and supported him as a Canuck since he joined......often been a lonely road that one for sure...lol.   

Just wish the dude would shoot more. He has got a great shot.

[Rob_Zepp]

9 minutes ago, Isam said:

Just wish the dude would shoot more. He has got a great shot.

Agreed.   He has a rocket actually.   

[oldnews]

5 hours ago, riffraff said:

Are we going to outscore the opp every night though?

 

these high scoring games are new around here.  Last night, while fun, I doubt is a sustainable method of success.  I love it. Don’t get me wrong.

 

maybe it’s just me but I felt the refs were atrocious last night for both teams.  It kind of became part Boston part Canucks and part kozari on the entertainment docket.... I felt it contributed greatly to the score considering Boston’s at home pp percentage and the number of pps the Canucks seem to be getting.

 

early on in the game I attributed a call maybe two to the Canucks pressing the play and initiating the contact.  But in the latter stages of the season and the playoffs we know the calls will stop, the games will be close and our dline and goalie will really see the test.

I don't know about outscoring teams every night - but the reality is that league-wide scoring, or at least efficiency of scoring has risen significantly early this year, with less than half the number of goaltenders over .900 as last season - and it's early / a small sample - so I'm not prepared to make an assumption that the Canucks goaltending will be responsible for / will be the principal reason for them missing the playoffs.   I think both Markstrom and Nilsson are probably better than they generally get credit for - and I wouldn't read too much into Markstrom's sv%, particularly when he is 7-3-1 - and that sv % was inflated severely in a couple games, where otherwise he has been pretty solid and (like Nilsson) also responsible for keeping them in the majority of games, with the team being outshot in many of them.

 

I agree that Kozari is an awful ref - and that the rulebook changes as the season progresses - but I'm not sure less powerplays will further expose the goaltending or blueline - I think that goals generally get harder to come by as the season progresses - and additionally, I believe the team has a very high end 'bottom 6' forwards and depth - Sutter, Beagle, Granlund, Virtanen, Motte, Schaller, Roussel, Gaunce, Archie (Eriksson, Gaudette) - to my mind that's an incredibly deep and effective group of defensive forwards - and that should continue to play a role in helping the blueline and the goaltending - as well as produce more opportunity for the young skilled forwards.   Looking at how they've sustained their performances with depleted lineups affirms imo the decision to add an extra veteran shutdown forward or two (beyond the no-brainer that Beagle was/is imo).     I think with any health they could be even more difficult to play against - and I see it as a unit game so I'm not surprised the young blueline (or goaltending) has looked and performed better this season - I think that the combination of injuries, less speed and defensive grit in the lineup (something the Sedins did not bring), less depth and less experience last year probably made them look worse than they otherwise were.

[Isam]

16 minutes ago, Rob_Zepp said:

I am an unabashed fan of Guddy and supported him as a Canuck since he joined......often been a lonely road that one for sure...lol.   

Him and hutty have been a great pair this. They eliminated alot of shots down low this year.

[Gaudette Celly]

5 hours ago, riffraff said:

Are we going to outscore the opp every night though?

Works for the #shanaplan!

 

Difference is, we have two A-grade defenceman prospects on the way and a number of others that are promising, whereas the Leafs have maybe one.  We also have the capspace to make a splash with a high-end UFA whereas the Leafs have painted themselves into a cap corner by blowing spending it all on forwards.

[stawns]

1 hour ago, Hutton Wink said:

I'd say the Canucks are doing that right now, with injuries to key players underlining that reality.

I agree, saying they don't have the depth is kind of flying in the face of the evidence that is right in front of our eyes. 

[oldnews]

1 hour ago, Rob_Zepp said:

We can agree to disagree.   There is not enough:

• Goaltending depth
• Defense depth
• Center ice depth
• Scoring winger depth
• Realistic fan depth

In the CAP era, very few teams have lots of depth but if you look at Utica where they have a young team too, you can see a Canuck organization that as early as next season but most certainly in two seasons from now that will be pretty solid assuming players at each of those positions seeing nice development trends.    As far as the fan depth - that is a crapshoot.

you're merely begging the question.

 

1 hour ago, Rob_Zepp said:

 

PS - that doctor's visit you keep ignoring will come back to bite you.   Spoiler alert.   

 

spoiler alert - try having a grownup conversation.

[stawns]

15 minutes ago, oldnews said:

I don't know about outscoring teams every night - but the reality is that league-wide scoring, or at least efficiency of scoring has risen significantly early this year, with less than half the number of goaltenders over .900 as last season - and it's early / a small sample - so I'm not prepared to make an assumption that the Canucks goaltending will be responsible for / will be the principal reason for them missing the playoffs.   I think both Markstrom and Nilsson are probably better than they generally get credit for - and I wouldn't read too much into Markstrom's sv%, particularly when he is 7-3-1 - and that sv % was inflated severely in a couple games, where otherwise he has been pretty solid and (like Nilsson) also responsible for keeping them in the majority of games, with the team being outshot in many of them.

 

I agree that Kozari is an awful ref - and that the rulebook changes as the season progresses - but I'm not sure less powerplays will further expose the goaltending or blueline - I think that goals generally get harder to come by as the season progresses - and additionally, I believe the team has a very high end 'bottom 6' forwards and depth - Sutter, Beagle, Granlund, Virtanen, Motte, Schaller, Roussel, Gaunce, Archie (Eriksson, Gaudette) - to my mind that's an incredibly deep and effective group of defensive forwards - and that should continue to play a role in helping the blueline and the goaltending - as well as produce more opportunity for the young skilled forwards.   Looking at how they've sustained their performances with depleted lineups affirms imo the decision to add an extra veteran shutdown forward or two (beyond the no-brainer that Beagle was/is imo).     I think with any health they could be even more difficult to play against - and I see it as a unit game so I'm not surprised the young blueline (or goaltending) has looked and performed better this season - I think that the combination of injuries, less speed and defensive grit in the lineup (something the Sedins did not bring), less depth and less experience last year probably made them look worse than they otherwise were.

The biggest thing for me is their ability to play a variety of styles and still outplay their opponents.  When they've played teams that play a tight, defensive style, they've been able to tighten up their games as well.  When they've managed to put up a cpl early goals and the other team is forced to open up the game, to try and get back in it, the Canucks have feasted on them.

 

I really don't see the way they are playing as an anomaly.  I think this is the way they've been built and the way that Benning wants Green to coach.

[oldnews]

5 minutes ago, stawns said:

The biggest thing for me is their ability to play a variety of styles and still outplay their opponents.  When they've played teams that play a tight, defensive style, they've been able to tighten up their games as well.  When they've managed to put up a cpl early goals and the other team is forced to open up the game, to try and get back in it, the Canucks have feasted on them.

 

I really don't see the way they are playing as an anomaly.  I think this is the way they've been built and the way that Benning wants Green to coach.

Yes exactly - they're a well-balanced team - with tight systems - that works hard - and they take advantage of what is given them, without getting off their game. They've also been able to turn it up when they've surrendered frequent leads, and climb back into those games.

My belief is that their offense is largely driven by their play without the puck - they've been outstanding this season defensively - and that limits opposition possession. 

At the same time they have enough talent to counterpunch and produce with those opportunities.    There simply have been very few instances of sustained pressure against this team this year - they have generally managed to break up any momentum with waves of effective shutdown hockey - something I can never get too much of.