WeneedLumme

Well then we lose his rights TWO AND A HALF YEARS from now. If he so badly doesn't want to play for us that he is willing to postpone and shorten his career by maybe twenty percent.

You know that in Malhotra's second NHL season he played 27 games and scored ZERO points, right? And when Malhotra was Gaunce's age, in his 5th NHL season, he scored 10 points in 59 games. Manny was an excellent player, but he was pretty much a pure defensive player. Saying he had a LOT more skill than Gaunce based on production is not very realistic.

Or number 7 even. A player like Biega who is a competent bottom pairing defensemen and a pretty decent 4th line forward as we just saw, is the perfect depth guy. I'm sure that Willie or almost any other coach is totally happy to have someone like that available to slot in whenever injuries bite.

Yes absolutely agree. The owners insisted on cutting down the roster size some years ago to save money/increase profits. But with the salary cap, I don't see a slightly larger roster impacting profits significantly. A 25 man roster seems eminently sensible to me.

Because it's important for some posters to be as obnoxiously negative as possible about Canucks. And 18 year old kids, being only partly developed and still having many flaws, provide plenty of ammunition.

I think he's been consistently good when he's the number one goalie, but not so much when he's a backup just getting the occasional start.

I think his points will come, he has good smarts and skills. But even if they don't, I see him as another Malhotra. Useful even without a lot of points.

I think Willie said he's been cleared to play but doesn't have his strength back. I guess the mumps hit him especially hard.

No, and I doubt JB would really want him in the AHL playoffs after stepping up from the college schedule to a full NHL season. I think Stecher needs all the recuperation time he can get this summer.

Yes, same as Guance.

True. And if Jake is struggling when he's 24, I will have low expectations for his NHL career. But I think that Torres is his floor, and even that would be a useful asset. However, the current reports from Utica are pretty promising and he's still a long way from 24.

I don't think it's a myth. Power forwards are often big jocks with great tools but weak tool kits/hockey IQ. Their success at lower levels is frequently based on overpowering opponents rather than out thinking them. When they get to the professional levels and have to compete with players their own size, it's not surprising that it can take a while for them to figure things out.

Sutter's line looks much more like a checking line than Bo's does, and is a way better choice to use against a top line.

Unless he demonstrates in training camp that he is ready for the NHL. In which case burying him in Utica for half a year would be counterproductive.

Goldie's not playing on the tankers' flagship, team Oilers. He will be playing for either Willie or Green, both of whom are excellent at developing young players.

Yeah, I agree. While the extra muscle certainly helps in some areas, I think it has slowed him down/reduced his agility. Takes some time to adjust, but I think he is already adjusting. He's going to be just fine.

I think Baer is a very good comparable. If Goldie has a similar level of determination, I would say that he too will be a top six player.

If he continues to produce the way he has so far (ie: 10 goals per 60 minutes played Lol) I am pretty sure that his ice time will increase once he is more familiar with the systems and his teammates. But even then, in a third period like yesterday's, where the team has a lead but is being dominated, I don't see a young offensive player like him getting much ice time. From Willie or ANY coach.

For those of you who believe that Willie is damaging Goldie's confidence, consider this: his previous team owned his rights for three quarters of this season. They gave him a total of TWO NHL games, in which he scored zero points. He has been a Canuck for a few days now. Willie put him in the lineup as soon as he legally could, and rather than sticking him with scrubs on the fourth line, gave him good quality reliable linemates to both help and shelter him. And then he scored a goal which turned out to be the game winner. If this has left him feeling insecure or upset at the coach, he has a serious attitude problem. But I doubt very much if that is the case. I suspect that he is sitting on top of the world right now, and has no negative feelings at all about Willie.

Agree with most of this. But don't agree that Bo is being shorted on ice time for Henrik's benefit. Bo is now getting more ice time than Henrik does and has arguably better wingers. Bo is now our number one centre.

I don't think there is a chance in the world that Goldie's confidence is shaken right now. He played 6 minutes and scored a game winning goal. I bet he's just itching to get back on the ice to do it again.

Demko seems to play better when he is the man. Wasn't his hot streak earlier this year when he was temporarily the number one?

Considering that he hasn't practiced with the team and doesn't know the systems or his teammates, it's not surprising that he didn't have much ice time. The third period was mostly a defensive period, so I wouldn't really expect to see him out there. Could be that after his goal Willie decided to make sure that Goldie's first game as a Canuck left him feeling confident and hungry for more. The way Willie brought in Bo, Baer, Tram, Stecher, etc., doesn't seem to have harmed their development. I don't imagine he's damaging Goldie's either.

Could just mean that his hockey skills are better than his English skills. Like Tram. I am hoping that it means he is so good that he knows describing his game would sound arrogant, so he would prefer to let his play speak for itself. I am also hoping that's what we see tonight.

To some of the posters here that makes you a worn out dinosaur. You need to be traded for a draft pick.