Magic 8-Ball

Loved the nice breakout pass from Hutton that lead to the Hansen goal. I honestly didn't even need to be told it was Hutton that passed that beauty. As I watched it happen, I figured it had to be him cause there isn't another player on the roster that passes like that. HF is a joke, but I certainly didn't see this coming from Hutton either. Christmas come early.

The turn around speed/acceleration to create that breakaway... Oh man... I know it's just Penticton, but I'm excited. I want to see Jake have another crack at dominating junior, but at the same time, his speed and physicality may be more appreciated in the Canucks bottom 6. I can hypothesize all day and night over which would be better for his development, but can I say with any real certainty? This is why we went out and got Benning though.. I hope he has the answer, cause this kid's potential is too much to waste.

Is it possible A-B is good enough this year that he won't need to be traded for us to be happy? =p I'm not talking Mem cup, but maybe a 'will his team into the playoffs' kind of situation? Win a round? That would say a lot if he's the engine.

At the rate they're going through prospects, I'm sure the topic will shift back to Boeser soon via process of elimination. Edit: Woops, thought that was more recent. My bad.

Yeah, I think a few of those guys are more likely than not to score 40 - 60 in the NHL, but that's far from certain. It's our D that really has limited upside, Imo. People are speaking like Hutton, Subban, and Briesbois are near locks to be top 4... Not so. Overall though, I agree. The hope is that somewhere along the line, we snag a true number 1 center and number 1 D-man.. But that's what everybody wants. It's going to come down to scouting/luck, but if we can get that, you have to feel very good about the character group we have who can play 200 ft when they're augmented by those two true number 1s. As for Virtanen himself, it's been said before and I'll say it again: He may not reach his offensive billing, (and if he does, watch out) but even then, his physical play and shot is too good to not be 2nd/3rd liner that can produce at a pretty good rate. When it's a small guy getting 40 points on the 3rd line, it's one thing. When it's a big heavy hitter who can dominate a forecheck and establish physical play netting those 40 points, you're a lot better off. No pick is safe, but Jake is pretty close, Imo. I have no issue with where he was selected. He's our prospect now, so all we can do is hope-- I'm not going to kill myself over whether or not Ehlers or Nylander or whoever does better by comparison.

So I'm confused. Is this the Monahan, MacKinnon, or Horvat thread? =p It is the summer though... I guess some meandering is bound to happen with the lack of news.

Just like that Seguin guy, eh? Or that Hamilton..

Hopefully come next year, we won't have to imagine. I'm in what seems to be the minority of people who wants Lucic here next year, so long as the contract isn't nuts. I think he could add a lot even away from his play on the ice. I would be more than happy seeing Lucic mentor Virt.

Friesen? It has seemed to me that he isn't getting much of a look. Even if they have been using Vey as a winger, you gotta think they'd try him there before Friesen, don't you? And for that matter, there's Cassels and McCann to look at. I hope McCann goes back to juniors in a lot of ways, and I don't think Cassels is ready, but still, it's not out of the question to see McCann as the next Bo. Even if you discount that, Prust can play in the middle, making a spot for Kenins anyway. Am I missing something where Friesen has been shown as a viable option?

If you're afraid the way he plays (ie: his "skating in straight lines") will be easily shut down by NHL dmen, how will him going back to junior help? So he can continue to exploit the poorer dmen of the CHL and cement bad habits? I think he should probably go back to junior too, just not for that reason. But if WD sees Jake play in a way that he likes and wants to utilize through the year, I'm okay with him making the team. Hope he goes to WJC though.

That sounds great and all, but at 225 his speed will have to take a step back from "blazing". At any rate, seeing as how many of his hits seem to defy physics NOW, I'm just very interested to see how he turns out, however it may be. 225 and surprisingly fast? Awesome. 205-210, losing fat and adding muscle, with the speed he has now? Wicked.