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RayCathode

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Everything posted by RayCathode

  1. Playing with Hughes, it was hard to tell just how good Juulsen was - playing with Hughes is like Pixie dust - it magically makes you look better than you are. Still, when playing with Hughes he was quite effective - decent size, decent skater, pretty physical, decent puck handler, didn't get caught out of position, knew his role - I'm not sure that a better player would be that much more effective with Hughes - so long as you can deliver the puck to Hughes your zone escapes will be 100 % easier. The other effect that Schenn brought to playing with Hughes was his role as guardian angel - he was very good (and probably still is) at pest control. I would not at all be averse to seeing Schenn back here again - especially with Hronek and Bear hurt on the right side. I really like Woo, and how much he improved with the great coaching support in Abby in the past season, but I think he needs a year of coming in as an injury replacement for short stays to get acclimatized to the NHL in a protected situation. Like Burroughs, Woo can also play either side. I'm not sure he's ready, yet, for a full time role. His confidence has been restored in the past season, and I'd like to see him retain it - not sure that throwing him to the wolves would help that. Watching Johansson in Abby at the end of last season, he looked pretty sound, but he too might need a couple of months of acclimatization. I like Burroughs, he is a guy that is all heart, he'll do anything to help you win, but I'm not sure that he is a full time NHLer... yet! But a seven or eight role would not be a bad thing. And, if you play against a team that likes to get rambunctious with the talent, he is the kind of guy that can help to keep them healthy - and being able to play either side helps in that utility role.
  2. OEL would be okay until he has to play defense. His offensive performance in Vancouver was okay, but then Hughes turned out to be the Number 1, that pushed OEL back to a defensive role to which he was singularly unsuitable. But in neither role was he worth anywhere near 7.2 mil a year. Just like many of Benning's free agent acquisitions (Myers, Eriksson, Ferland, etc. he was not even remotely worth his contract). By contrast, Hughes built himself up from primarily an offensive guy, to our best all round defenseman - a true Knight's Tale guy.
  3. I wonder if the Canucks have the patience to wait for a 3C to develop from within the organization, they seem to have moved to it all being about the here and now.
  4. Woo reminds me a lot of Bieksa. Took Bieksa some years in college followed by some time on the farm before he emerged.
  5. I think Karlsson's position is "F" in that he can play any forward position. He's also played PP and PK. Raty is more of a pure two-way C.
  6. I like the was Lekker shoots the puck, it is very reminiscent of Markus Naslund. Both hands are in front of his body, the left arm is stiff and provides a pivot for his right hand to pull back. It allows for a powerful shot and a quick release. A lot of guys really have to load up to shoot hard - see Boeser and Miller. Not Naslund, and not Lekker. It's very unfortunate that his year started with mono - it kills preparation for the season. Now that he's healthy, it's to be hoped that he can catch up on the training and physical development that he missed. It's great to see the beginnings of his promise.
  7. One of Hughes primary functions is evading the forecheck and transitioning to the attack. He is valuable to us, not just because he negotiates centre ice and the opposing end well, his greatest value is getting the damn puck out of our end. The best way to protect him when retrieving pucks is two-fold - forwards need to do a better job of screening forecheckers, and those who escape that kind of resistance to invoke mayhem on Hughes need to face the wrath of someone who can put the fear of God in them. Hughes is the guy who is going to transition the puck, not his partner. If that was his partner's skill, he too would be an 8 million dollar man, then what would be the purpose of Hughes?
  8. Me too. Along with Bains, Raty Sasson, and Woo. For Hoglander and Karlsson it will be an audition for main camp in the fall.
  9. Hirose's calmness under pressure is not something they can teach in the AHL, nor can they improve it. That same demeanor brought Tanev to the Canucks as a full time defensive specialist. Yes, his physical strength can be improved, but that can change a lot over a summer. His skating and thinking skills are already NHL ready.
  10. The main job of Hughes partner is to make him feel safe.
  11. His play of late has been great. One more kid to watch in the fall.
  12. Good for Max, he has looked good out there.
  13. Looks like the Canucks had their post-season party one night too early last night. Totally run out of the rink after the first period. Why in all that's holy is Di Giuseppe on the power play, he couldn't take a pass if he was allowed to crazy glue his entire body. Studnicka? Same thing. Throwing the puck to him is a total waste of time. If they don't have basic skills why are they in the NHL? No Kuzmenko on the PP, DiGiuseppe? Really? Garland, must have missed the party, what a game!
  14. Pro scouting depends entirely on the instructions they are given. For instance, "Find an undervalued right shot defenceman in his early to mid twenties." "Find a forward who can improve team speed and the penalty kill." And pro-scouting feeds back Hronek and Mikheyev. If you tell them to go get you a worn out, over priced D that will strangle the franchise for the next eight years, then they will come back with some bum from Arizona and an overpriced small forward. I find it interesting that three of these players have long term injuries and that we have a history of this over the past few years Baertschi, Ferland, Dermott, Poolman, and now Hronek and Mikheyev. Is that a reflection on our pro scouting? It depends s lot on how Hronek and Mikheyev turn out. If these players fall into the tradition of the above, we have a problem.
  15. The thing about tanking is that you actually have to tank. That means you have to trade everybody of value in order to maximize your chances on the rebuild. Tanking means trading players that you would normally keep in order to accumulate high draft picks and likely prospects in the right age range. The efficiency of this process can be validated by reference to new teams being established such as Las Vegas and Seattle - they essentially are stripped down starting versions starting out with a bunch of non-optimal assets that are the discards of other teams and picks they have accumulated for not selecting players that other teams want to keep. The quick rise of these teams validates process of tanking to rebuild - these teams start with no stars but rapidly accumulate picks. The amazing thing is how quickly they transition into contenders. Teams "take their foot off the gas" at the management level: they trade anyone of value, i.e. tank. Players still fight for jobs, coaches still try to win because it remains in their self-interest to do so. Some ownerships prefer a steady revenue stream, but want some playoff games, so they strive for permanent mediocrity. History tells us how well that strategy works - especially in Vancouver. For instance, a team that want a rebuild would take a Kuzmenko and ask, "Is he part of our final team concept?" If no, turn him into assets. They would keep turning aging assets into chances until they had enough chances work out to build a team young enough and with a strong enough core to turn into a contender. The process requires constant revaluation to determine when they are in a position to contend.
  16. Right, Gary, but some teams sure traded away everybody that could play.
  17. Ugly game, but sometimes you have to win ugly. I think my tank has flipped a couple of treads. done a turret toss, and she's pretty much a burnt out husk. The gunners gunned and the roll players rolled. Our goalie had a sheet of plywood nailed to his butt, Hughes didn't look like he was feeling it and still had a couple of helpers. The PK killed and the PP thrilled, just another night in Canuckville.
  18. I was having a great day, then I saw this terrifying image of Loui the Lump...
  19. Another shot for Rathbone: a clean slate with a new coach. Should we need another D in an emergency call up, Jett Woo is playing great, though a right shot, he doesn't care which side of the ice he knocks people down on.
  20. I see Rathbone is out of the lineup: hurt? ill? Benched? on the way to Canucks? Van is kind of short on left D at the moment.
  21. Woo looked good his first year with Rathbone, then injuries and promotion for Rathbone split them up and Woo looked lost for a while. Bur he has recovered his game this year - he is not huge, but 6'0 200 is big enough to play a rambunctious game - see Kevin Bieksa's career.
  22. Boeser's conditioning failed Boeser, nothing to do with system. Boeser's already marginal skating has suffered from being too heavy... in my opinion. He came in in his first year at 195, His is listed now at 208, but earlier in the season looked heavier. Looks like he has trimmed up a bit of late and is moving better, but he needs an off-season dedicated to fitness.
  23. Sure loved Abby's game tonight, they sure don't give the other team much. I thought the whole defence was strong, but Womanin, Juulson and Woo stood out. Of the forwards, Hoglander and Karlsson s, and still keep his stick free..tood out, Rayt was generating lots of play, but no finish. He has to learn how to penetrate that area nearer the net - got to get right down in his skates and keep turning his hip into the checker to keep his stick free. I liked Bains to night, too, agressive and smart - takes it to the limit and lets you take the unnecessary penalty. Like the coaching on this team, everybody seems pretty clear on what his job is and how he supposed to do it. Great game, Abby.
  24. The're not worth 6 mil a year of cap space. Roussel spent most of his time taking stupid penalties. The guys you want on your fourth line are guys like Motte (before his raise) guys basically taking league minimum, guys you develop on your farm team to fit perfectly into your defensive structure.
  25. Pettersson’s five points tonight have him tied for tenth in the league with Crosby in points per game. What a performance!
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