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Boudrias

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Everything posted by Boudrias

  1. As much as I might be disappointed in the draft position as a fan I will adjust. I certainly hope my tanker strategy is done. Next year should be the beginning of some serious prospect development. I have been impressed with Allvin and if he did not tank then I have to assume he has deals in the works which will yield prospects and maybe even some picks. Replacing the 2nd rdr would be nice.
  2. A little late for that. Both Detroit and Washington are now drafting below us. A win on Thursday will drop St. Louis below as well. I bet the fan bases in those cities are REALLY disappointed in their losing over the past 10 games or so. Bottom line is Van management could have forecasted this result over 1 1/2 months ago. They could have tanked on the tough games and still finished strong against the weaker schedule the team is closing out on. Poor strategy IMO. Not much to do now. I hope Allvin has some deals on the cooker than increases draft picks instead?
  3. ANA had the crap kicked out of them the other night by the Oilers. They have some nice young talent and I hope they mount a decent game. If RT limits TOI and experiments with some combos a loss is possible. Upset he is putting Demko back in.
  4. He played another solid game against LA. He has 2 games left and a pre-season next fall to establish himself. I am wondering if a 3LD on a rotation is a base for him. We don't know where OEL fits if he does. Because of the CAP the Canucks might want to continue playing him if he can recover his game. Whether at 2 or 3 LD might be the question. Hirose is so cheap that his cost is an advantage. Can he put on 5 - 7 pounds this summer?
  5. It is a fine line trying to rebuild a team and disappointing fans and ownership. It is more than assessing players and forecasting their potential it is also balancing that against a timeline and marshalling the resources to achieve success. IMHO the classic example is JT Miller. I won't restart the 'debate'. JT is a quality player who has several key attributes that support a winning team. The decision management had to make was whether his productive phase can last into playoff contention. Does he provide more value by trading him for a net gain to the org. It appears their decision was he can. In some ways JT was an easier decision because he produced a history of success. That does not exist for a Jack Rathbone or any number of prospects in the system. They have to be assessed and decisions made. Our management could do everything right and still fail to achieve a CUP. I don't think that is the mediocrity you are talking about. That happens when the same management and fan expectations are not met and yet attitudes don't change. Yes I wanted a #5 pick because that was a realistic expectation about a month ago. That pick gave a better opportunity of moving higher in the lottery but at a minimum an opportunity to draft a foundation player. Will the 11 Tocchet wins go down in the annals of Canuck folklore? I highly doubt it. Will they assauge the hockey sensitivities of the exisiting core? Will the fans fondly reflect on this record in even a weeks time? Meanwhile all the other teams which pretty meaningfully tanked will look forward to their positioning. For some reason Vancouver feels it necessary to apologize. I don't get it. Montreal, one of the more blatant tankers, will accelerate their rebuild and the hockey world will congratulate them for their cleverness. It was like Louongo's contract when Van got penalized on CAP and eastern teams like Philly walked.
  6. Fans loved Schenn for his hitting and willingness to step in for team mates. He topped that off with some offence. Your concerns about speed is well taken. I rather the Canucks invest Schenn's TOI in younger prospects who will be on the team when they contend for a Cup 2 years from now.
  7. Hirose has looked pretty good to date. I'll watch him again today with much interest. Really like the idea of him with Hronek. As an aside I will watch his old partner Jake Livingstone today as well. He is a Creston boy so I cannot write him off.
  8. Sadly my hopes for a serious tank have failed. Many fans dwell on short term success. We likely draft at #10 or #11 and will probably get a good player. What I wanted was a serious core asset that could join the core that leads us to Cup contention. That would have been #5 or higher. Hopefully we stay in the lottery and climb a few spots. It is raining, my Canucks are winning when they should be doing that in October, it's depressing. What rum do you suggest Alf? I might have to take up drinking.
  9. Perhaps what got Bo's goat more than anything was that the org had to make a decision who the core was going forward and it didn't include him. That would be hard to take after 9 years. Endless post game interviews answering the same questions about why they lost. No matter what happened he should have taken the high road. It must be a hard realization that this year is likely the NYI only Cup bid during his career considering the term he signed for. Meanwhile the team that dealt him has been one of the best in the NHL since the trade. He probably realizes the Canucks will have multiple playoff runs with the core that is here now. Fans often scoff at the concept of asset management. Moving players who are popular with fans is hard. Realizing the team doesn't value you as much as you think must be devastating. It reminds me of when the Habs made Jean Beliveau captain instead of Boom Boom Geoffrion. Bernie was so upset he retired. I am reluctant to dump on Bo Horvat as I don't know all that he dealt with before the trade. The back and forth could have been pretty brutal. He always seemed to be a character guy. It might be a one time event. It isn't like the traded players get an exit interview or pressor.
  10. My initial reaction was the same as yours. Listening to the full tape it didn't sound good. " for free" ? what was that all about?
  11. Jeez Higgy where does that leave Scotty Bowman in your assessment of coaches? Scotty regularly did the exact same thing. RT has to walk a fine line between asserting his coaching concepts or having the players do what they think is best. I think only one person can steer the ship.
  12. Tocchet, drafted in the 6th round, played on 6 NHL teams, assistant coach and coach in 4 organizations. He seems like a pretty intelligent guy so my hope is that he has learned a lot during his career and can help the Canucks. People can mature and change over time.
  13. Enough said. My impression is that RT's success goes beyond his efforts to include Gonchar and Foote. Abby coaching has also provided RT with a steady flow of competent replacements. Group improvement. That said I find Tocchet's straight forward approach pretty refreshing.
  14. A lot of good points. As far as the Tank goes I would have been happy with Hughes and Petey at 18-20 TOI. Rotating some of the vets out as prospects got icetime. Some of that has happened. Like you I am no expert on team building. I have to trust that management sees value in their approach. Since Boeser and Garland are likely on the bloc I can see why they were played if it increases their value. Like all coaches I am sure that RT realizes he has a shelf life. He cannot allow a status quo to reassert itself. Perhaps that is the fear and why a Tank is not going full bore. The players who are still with the team next September will have a different message to new team mates than they did last fall. Fans shouldn't be over optimistic but should be encouraged and excited for next fall.
  15. I'll admit to being shocked with the Horvat trade. In retrospect maybe I shouldn't have. Trading Bo was management's clear break from the culture that preexisted their tenure. Bo played thru a rough patch of Canuck history. He inherited the captaincy at a young age with all the pressure Vancouver media and fans could place on him. The stress must have been terrible as the losing years mounted up. I want to believe his comment was about his career in Vancouver not producing more than 2 playoff runs. A negative perspective might be that Bo had become the dressing room politician. One image for the fans and another for team mates. I don't want to believe that but the team seems more unified since the trade.
  16. If Bear is playing top 4 next year it will be a management fail. I question whether he is even a 3rd pairing on a contending team. Hoping that the improved depth pushes him down or out.
  17. Tochett wants more out of Kuz on the d-side which any player will likely understand. That doesn't mean it is easy for him and changing will take time and work. The Tank. I find it laughable about the tank/non-tank debate on here. Strange that Montreal, Washington, Philly, ANA, SJS etc all are obviously tanking with little comment. Apparently their players aren't as sensitive to losses as they play the season out as Vancouver players? HNIC crew were busy chirping about how Montreal will be a playoff team next year. One of the strongest drafts in years and the Canucks are playing their way out of stronger draft position. As in past years many fans are over estimating the potential of what player potential is. Obviously better than it was but still a ways to go.
  18. Post TDL my biggest disappointment was not seeing more of Hronek. Canucks still need another top 4 d-man with the assumption that Meyers is gone. He has played better lately and his size is a benefit but not top 4. Bear is not top 4. Hoping for a couple of trades this summer and a good draft pick. Fall will be very interesting. Like to go to Penticton this year.
  19. Typical cheap media BS. Bo was asked about playing in the post season and his comment was better than Vancouver where he saw what? 2 post seasons? I highly doubt he was dissing Vancouver.
  20. I was impressed by Hirose playing in OT. Says a lot about what the coaches think of him. Tocchet said as much post game. He is logging PP & PK time. These games will get him a long look next fall.
  21. While there is a way to go in the Vancouver d-zone fans cannot watch the team today and not recognize the improvements. Their ability to break up ice is regular stuff now. Yes, Hughes got caught by the Flames but that was kinda lucky. The regular high risk plays aren't really happening anymore. Credit to Tocchet but also Foote and Gonchar. That is a group of coaches that have done it all.
  22. I will cheer for Stech as I would like him to get another contract. Watched two Flames games and he was better than OK. Zadorov has a cannon.
  23. Canucks are going to restore their reputation by beating the Flames tonight? Seriously? If the Canucks ice a comparable team with the same TOI as they did against the Hawks, and win the game then I tip my hat. Otherwise I want a L. regardless the real team building will start next September. In the interim Patrick Allvin has the summer to draft a 1st rdr and hopefully do some trades. I am hoping he can recover the 2nd rdr from the Hronek trade. Top that with Tocchet's commitment to watch summer training routines. I can just imagine what the exit interviews will be like this year. Love to be a fly on the wall.
  24. Absolutely right. A week from now the game today won't rank high in the annuals of Canuck folklore. On the other hand a successful draft stands to help the team for a long time. Dare to dream that Canucks end up at #8 and move up in the lottery. It happened in the Joulevi draft where the Canucks fell from #3 to #5. Time for some reverse karma.
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