Boudrias

IMHO the Jets are the best combo of what you you are describing. Four lines with speed and size. I put them in the Final Four of CUP play. Mind you I said that 2 years ago so what do I know?

I think you hit all those with opportunity. Who we draft this summer has a chance but if a d-man not named Dahlin then likely not in. Camp could possibly be the hilight of the Canuck 2018-19 season! Not missing Penticton this year! Contrary to previous years I can see Benning culling vets in October if there is a strong camp.

I think your comments are bang on. Currently the only top pairing d-man on the Canucks is Edler IMHO. Yes, I consider Tanev a solid 2nd pairing. Stecher & Tryamkin might be 2nd pairing capable. MDZ, Hutton, and Guddy are bottom pairings. My take on Poiliot is that he likely doesn't make it. Joulevi might be 2nd pairing but I want to see more of him. Cannot comment on Utica d-men as I have not seen enough. Really excited about McEnney as I saw him in Penticton and was very impressed. Losing a season won't help him.

I understand your concern about physicality being usurped by smaller faster players. My take is that the season is clearly split between regular and playoff seasons. Less physical play during regular season plays to the appeal of more scoring and less injury. Management lessens the depreciation of their assets and owners benefit with more offensive hockey that sells tickets. The Playoff season is totally different. Winning is now. The prize is the CUP and all the economic spinoffs that represents. Physicality becomes a premium as it can often neutralize offence. Physicality becomes attractive in its own right. That's my take.

I see the Badger was a scratch last night.

Jake's ppg during his rookie season were soft point IMHO. Soft in the sense that he had some solid games where he recorded points. Inconsistent play that eventually saw him in Utica. Contrast that to this year where his ppg understates the offensive chances he is generating. I agree that he has turned the corner and next year should be a breakout year for him. Very encouraged by his season to date.

Fair enough comments. I move Tanev because he can be moved. He has value that brings a 1st Rd'er back ++. His contract is attractive. His injury history is a big red flag. I keep Edler because he is big and can play a heavy game. Combine that with Guddy and you have a pairing that can deter forwards. Edler's career timeline is in good standing with the prospects coming up. I can see him being resigned to 1 year deals as his career winds down.

If it wasn't for the Twin's performance on the PP I might fully agree with you and HW. What value does a strong PP end up giving players like Boeser, Stecher and even Horvat. The PP is a huge part of the NHL now and the Canuck PP has dominated many games. All that aside if the Twins are resigned it means there has to be room on the roster. Vanek is gone and honestly I do not think Gagner brings enough for him to stay. Sutter is grossly under rated IMO and Eriksson's contract is 'toxic' according to Luongo. Ignoring Eriksson's money he can still play a superior PK and does have puck skills. At what point do you start penciling Horvat-Baer-Granlund in as vets? IMO they are now and must be part of the future or they become deal worthy. Tough choices. Camp will be the first indicator of any push by prospects to make the opening roster.

No problem in any player starting his pro career in the AHL. With the injury history in Vancouver there will always be opportunity for callups if a player is doing very well there.

I agree with your take on the Oilers rushing their prospects. Then they topped that off with signing them for big money and long term. I watched the Oilers-NYR last night for a bit. Absolutely brutal effort from most of the Oilers. They loo like they have shut it down. I have been a critic of the Canucks carrying to many vets but always defer to Benning and Green as to the pace of bringing in prospects. Green showed in Utica how he could build teams and I am sure he can do it in Vancouver.

I would have felt a lot better if Edler had come over the top and cold cocked that NYR. At some point you have to stop talking the talk and actually take action. Granlund was a no show, How many shots has Boeser taken with no push back? The culture of turning the other cheek or grinning after every face wash has to change. There are too many young rookies coming in the next 3 years to have a rep around the NHL that you can take advantage without risk.

Many on here had Virtanen washed out last fall. IMHO his game started to gell a month ago. We are regularly seeing flashes of what he is capable of. I like that he is getting his shots off even if he does miss the net a lot. At some point that will come together for him as well. There is no one on the team with Jake's speed and it bodes very well for next fall.

Baer has shown that he is a legit 40 - 50 point top 6 winger. Barring injury that is. Like Tanev I do not like Baer's injury history. It is one of the reasons he will likely be moved at some point. For the development time and his ppg he has to bring back at least a 2nd Rd'er plus a prospect or a deal is not worth doing. There is no immediate pressure to move BAer.

Getting another 1st Rd'er would really move the rebuild forward. Still hoing that Benning can move Tanev for another 1st & 2nd.

Boeser has played top line TOI pretty much all year. Not many nights he isn't getting 'special' attention. I thought Stecher ran out of gas at the close last year. A year later and he is looking much stronger and playing a better game.

What I am seeing is a far closer checking on Boeser. A hit and a cross check in the last 12 games is no where close to what he is experiencing. Stick work is constant and lots of elbows.

Bang on! It will be a EP, management and coaching decision. Management thought it was OK for Joulevi to spend a year in Finland when I thought the Knights were the best option and Finland was the better decision. Nothing wrong with another year in the SHL if that is what is decided. EP is said to be 6' 2" and 165 pounds. Was that at the beginning of the year and did he put weight on during the season? IMHO he should be 175 pounds to play NHL at a minimum. At that weight they had better play him with Archibald and Virtanen for protection. Just look at how they are going after Boeser now.

Twins.

Give Baer the same PP TOI on the same Ozone starts and then talk about ppg comparisons.

Play the odds and put him with Gaunce. No one has worse luck than Gaunce.

Not sure on what basis you are picking your all-star players? Longevity, career stats, playoff success? I do agree with your point about conditioning. The players today are in tremendous shape and are coached much better as well. I will caveat that comment by reminding you of the '72 Summit series against the Russians. Canada took the series quite casually. The Russians were all trained by their military and were in peak shape. By the end Canada was playing with the Russians. Guy Lafleur. I was lucky enough to see Lafleur play as his career was winding down. How many packs a day? Guy at 38 dominated the game, at times, I went too. I know Johnny Bucyk and every summer he had 3 or 4 Bruins come to his lake cabin and they would kick back, fish and drink beer. No work outs but lots of bonding. Glen Sather was at the cabin one summer. No fat on him at that time. Hull was here one year and he was a specimen. No better skater than Mike Gartner and that was how long ago? The beauty of fandom is that these arguments can go on for hours.

TSN knows who to suck up to when ratings need a boost! Must be slow at the Toronto Sports Network.

I watched both and IMHO Orr was better. I don't base that on longevity. Orr played the game like none I have ever seen. Coffey skated faster but Orr had an acceleration that carried him pass defenders and a speed that allowed him to come back on the d-side. I never saw that from Lidstrom. There were 2 minute shifts where the puck would never leave Orr's stick. He could PK all by himself. Orr broke in at 18 years old and was a standout from the get go. His problem knee was injured in year 2 of his career and he had to adjust to that through his career. SInden never reigned him in enough and IMO ruined his longevity. Orr was old school and never questioned all the crap around him near enough. Stuck with Eagleson until he broke him. Nope, Orr will always be the #1 defenseman.

I see Goldobin getting more confident in the ozone and makes nice passes for his team mates. A little less certain on the d-side but fans have to admit that both Boeser and Horvat are struggling there as well.

How is he doing in the Hobey Baker voting?