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bigbadcanucks

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Everything posted by bigbadcanucks

  1. This is sort of where I lost respect for Kane...strolls into Vancouver, plays a game, rents a limo for some post game rompin', and this was the best he can do? Even I could get girls like these...and I'm old and out of shape. Gotta like that Kokanee beer...takes me back to my early/mid 20s when I was trolling the deep waters of the Victoria night club scene back in the early 90s.
  2. With Dorsett, you know what you're going to get night in and night out. Virtanen could very well be that guy in a season or two, but for now, it's still just potential. With that in mind, I'd rather have Dorsett in the lineup than Virtanen (though Virtanen still qualifies as a relatively new and shiny piece in the toy box that I'm still curious to see play in the NHL). Wouldn't you say that even though there are the Sedins and Eriksson as senior citizens on the team that Dorsett brings a valuable element to the game that doesn't exist with the aforementioned Swedes? Anyways, I'm a Dorsett fan, so I'm biased in his favor...I'll take three Derek Dorsett's on my fourth line anytime. DD is, IMHO, the gutsiest player the Canucks have had since Rick Rypien.
  3. Edit: hit quote button instead of edit button. Brain fart.
  4. If Jake turns out to be a heavier Jannik Hansen, then I'll gladly take that. Hansen has great wheels...so if Virtanen can match Hansen's speed, that will be fantastic. As many of the experts (Travis Green in particular) have stated, Virtanen doesn't have to be producing offensively to make a difference in a game. As you say, he has the potential to effect the game in several other ways. Good thing with most hockey players is that certain skill sets never really diminish...it's just a matter of figuring out how to take those skills and make it work at the NHL level. Hopefully Virtanen is ready to show that the talent and skill he displayed in juniors can be fully utilized/exploited at the pro level.
  5. If you look at their history, they have a lot in common... (1) Both with similar offensive stats as juniors (weighted a little higher for Torres since there was more offensive production at the junior level during the years he played in the OHL -- late 1998-2001) (2) Similar size -- 6'-ish and over 205 lbs; both with a combination of size and skill at the junior level (3) Torres taken 5th in his draft class; Virtanen 6th in his (so they were rated similarly in their respective draft years) (4) Torres spent parts of three seasons in the AHL before he became a permanent NHL player -- Jake parts of two, with some time in the AHL this coming season (projection) Torres went onto having what I thought was a respectable NHL career for a player that more was expected of at the time of his draft. If Virtanen can deliver 15 to 20 goals a season, while driving opposing players crazy with big hits and gritty two way play, with a perennial cap hit of $2.5M to $3.0M, then IMO, he will be well worth the draft pick, especially if players like Pettersen and Boeser turn into elite, top six players that they are projected to be. If it turns out that Virtanen is the second coming of Cam Neely, then Benning hit a home run. If it's Raffi Torres, then it's a double down the line. Lots of World Series' have been won with a batting order that produced singles and doubles.
  6. I grew up going to Joey Cyr's Super Summer Hockey Camps with Brett Hull as a kid in Winnipeg (he was a year older than me, so I never played with him or against him, but at summer camp, we skated on the ice together going through the same drills). You should have seen him when he was 10 to 12 years old. With the amount of baby fat on him, calling him "pudgy" was an understatement...being the Golden Jets' son gave him a sense of entitlement and he didn't try all that hard. But, even as a 12 year old, he was able to put the puck in the top corner from his own goal line 9 times out of 10. In spite of all his so-called shortcomings, you knew there was something special about him. Brett was a fat, obnoxious, entitled, hockey millionaire's son, but he had a terrible home life (Bobby Hull was a wife beater with Brett's mother -- this is a fact, so much so as a kid, that I remember being at the rink where Bobby was laughed at for campaigning to remove violence from hockey but condoned it in the home)...and it wasn't until Brett was well into hockey career that he reconciled with Bobby. True story. Keep forgetting that this is a Virtanen thread...like those who say he's only 20, I think it only makes sense to give the kid a break and be patient with him. I've said in this thread and others that my expectation for Virtanen is for him to be as good as Raffi Torres. Torres was an effective player who was able to change the dynamics of the game. It will be too bad that Benning used a sixth overall on Virtanen when other skilled players were available, but if he turns out to be another Raffi Torres, I don't think it will constitute a wasted pick.
  7. Laurie Boschman = good, solid Christian man. You would have never known that based on the way he played hockey. Boschman may be one of the dirtiest hockey players I have ever seen play the game...a roster with Boschman, Paul McDermid, Shawn Cronin, Gord Donnelly and Bryan Marchment is what I remember. Throw in the Swedish Goon (Thomas Steen), and you had a team that was ready to take the game into the alley.
  8. For what it's worth, I was a kid living in Winnipeg and a big fan of the Jets in the 1980s who was fortunate enough to have parents that had season tickets since 1977 at the old Winnipeg Arena (I got to watch Bobby Hull, Anders Hedberg, Ulf Nillson, Kent Nillson, Lars-Erik Sjoeberg beat the Soviet National Team on a frigid day in January 1978 as a 12 year old kid). I remember Perry Berezan very well because, if you recall, everyone following their favorite team was witness to intense 7-8 intra-division games, and I got my fill of the Canucks, Oilers, Flames and Kings as they battled my beloved Jets in the Smythe Division. Berezan had great wheels/hands, was from a solid NCAA program where he played for legendary coach Gino Gasparini, and came into the NHL with a ton of promise. Then injuries struck and that was pretty much it for his hockey career. In no way, would I hope for that sort of fate for Brock Boeser. Here's hoping that Boeser has a long, healthy and productive career for the Canucks. BTW, since living in Vancouver from 1989 to 1997 and returning in 2005 and being here since, I'm a diehard Canucks fan. I can't even identify with the current version of the Jets (Atlanta Thrashers to me) nor the Arizona Coyotes.
  9. At this point in time, if Virtanen = Raffi Torres, I'll be ecstatic.
  10. Gonna go out on a limb and say Edler has been playing injured (aside from his usual back problems) the second half of the season. No one can be as bad as Edler has been down the stretch if they were healthy.
  11. With the limited amount of time I've seen Boucher play, he strikes as being a little too one-dimensional. IMO, he's the type of player that if he's not scoring 20+ goals, he's hurting the team.
  12. You are right...I stand corrected. Thanks for clarification.
  13. Technically, there are five slots open for contracts between now and July 1, 2017. Juolevi and Brisebois are on sliding scale, so their contract doesn't count against the 47. Benning can go on a signing binge between now and July 1, 2017 (depending which of the UFAs and RFAs he re-signs or intend on re-signing).
  14. I would agree...seems to me Tryamkin doesn't need much to be waken up, but like most big/strong guys, he seems to have a long fuse (not to imply he doesn't initiate contact/physical play). Anytime a bear is poked (especially by an a$$-clown like Ferklund), it's a welcomed sight. And I love the way he stands up for his teammates. Even a little bear doesn't like to be woken up before their time...my 110 pound wife is nasty, growly, and angry when I wake her up anytime before 7:00AM.
  15. Tryamkin reminds me of Alex Edler from 2007 to 2011...I just hope that Tryamkin can stay healthy and develop into the player that we had hoped Edler would develop into. Still makes rookie gaffs, but Tryamkin is looking smoother, faster, and meaner with every passing game (I think hurting Richardson sort of took some starch out of his physical game for short while). Can't wait to see how Tryamkin, Stecher and Juolevi develop over the next few seasons...hoping for a deep and versatile back-end for years to come with those three along with a healthy Gudbranson, an older Tanev and a steadier Sbisa. One can hope.
  16. "Elite potential"? First time I've heard Shinkaruk being described as having elite potential, though I guess there was some wishful thinking when Gillis drafted him 24th overall. A late first rounder in the bantam draft (albeit his broken leg probably had a little something-something to do with this) and a late NHL first rounder hardly qualifies Shink as having elite potential. I'm going bet that he's going to be a long shot to have a lasting NHL career, let alone realize his elite potential.
  17. Great commentary...but I see what you're doing here, JR, you sneaky bugger you...you're doing an impersonation of Alflives. You do a better Alf than Alf (though you gotta admit, Alf is pretty entertaining at times).
  18. College UFA...apparently one of the most sought-after UFAs coming out of college. Would be great if Canucks could sign him and Stecher once UND's season is over.
  19. Is being/getting excited about a C level prospect putting up 8 points in 13 games in the ECHL the new standard for optimism? If so, I'm in.
  20. I think you're gonna have to arm wrestle Prab Rai for those three finger gloves.
  21. The Adult Safe Hockey League awaits you, my furry buddy.
  22. Let me pose this question to you...if you were guaranteed $2.5 schmil no matter where you played, would you retire? For $2.5M, I'd suck up my pride and play in Kalamazoo if that's what the Canucks asked of me.
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