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kloubek

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Everything posted by kloubek

  1. So effectively in this scenario, both Schenn and Dekeyser are extras to fill-in for injury or every here and there. While it's unknown if Rathbone will actually be capable of holding down a full-time role, I actually expected to see Rathbone and Schenn together if anything. Now that Poolman is healthy, I guess he has to be played. That actually throws a wrench into it all, since I'd personally rather seen Schenn than Poolman. But who knows - maybe Poolman will show better this season.
  2. Not really sure about this. Our LD has OEL and Hughes as the mainstays, and Rathbone or Dermott fighting for the 3rd LD spot. It seems almost as if he's being brought in for competition purposes, but no real intention to sign him unless it's at league minimum as depth. I would have thought that we'd more likely go after a RD, but with Pooilman apparently ready to play it isn't like we're likely to keep him out of the lineup. That leaves our right side with Schenn, Poolman, Myers, and then Dermott (who can play both sides) as backup.
  3. Moral. Well, I kind of lumped his faults to his brain. That includes his relative lack of hockey IQ, his immaturity, his inability to push himself to be the star he could be, and yes... his moral compass. I said it before and will say it again - it's a real shame. He had the potential of being a really solid player, and even if he never hit his ceiling he at least could have been a 3rd line mainstay if he chose to be.
  4. I always liked Bailey, and felt he just needed to put it all together. Wish him the very best - even if it's with the Oil.
  5. This needs to be a wakeup call for Jake. Either he commits himself to his craft, or moves on. I feel his lack of effort was a downer for the team, a frustration for the coach, and a waste of cap space for management and ownership... and the drama that followed him during his short career isn't ideal for anybody. Not guilty or otherwise, I'm just glad he's off the team. I really feel like a good group has been built here, and it doesn't need to be derailed by some wannabe with the maturity of a teenager and the mind of pebble.
  6. I can see where you're going here, but I think it's overpayment by the Rangers. While Garland would be a great acquisition (and more established) for the Rangers, Jurmo is a complete wildcard at the NHL level. Yet, all 3 Rangers you selected are (at least marginally) NHL-capable players with unknown ceilings. At minimum, I think we'd need to drop or possibly even flip around the 3rd and 5th to benefit the Rangers. Additionally, while I like the fact we restock our cupboards a little here, we aren't necessarily getting what we require. We take on two forwards - one of which (Chytil) would obviously be put in the lineup, which is effectively going to STILL force someone who is capable out of the lineup. Kratsov may or may not play in the bigs this season would be a great addition to our depth and future so I like that addition. As for Lundkvist, I don't believe he's what we need. He's offensive-minded, but we already have Hughes, OEL, and Rathbone (who management looks to wish to use as a permanent 3LD if possible). I'm all for bringing in a young defenseman who can grow with us, but feel we are better off with a RD that is defensively inclined more than offensively inclined.
  7. Absolutely could be. Or could be a bust. When playing, I don't think he's eclipsed the point-every-other-game mark. Clearly the Habs feel it's the former.
  8. I believe (though I'm a bit of a homer) that the Canucks will be a playoff team this coming season - even without a fully baked D. Nobody (important) has left, so at this point we're no worse off on our D than we were last year and if Rathbone can step up, potentially more dynamic. Both Graves and Severson would be available as UFAs if the Devils don't re-sign them. Severson is the only one between the two who shoots right, so I feel he should be our target if possible. Perhaps there is a way that if the Devils are not making the playoffs that the Canucks somehow clear a bit of cap and trade for him at the deadline so a relationship can be built before he becomes UFA. The following season should see the cap go up, Ferland is off the books, and we won't be paying for either Virtanen or Holtby any longer so I think we'll be in a better position at that time to afford a coveted stud D-man on the right side. I personally don't think our D is as dire as some make it out to be. Hughes is Hughes, and OEL is still a strong contributor. For all his faults, Myers isn't that bad despite being overpaid. Schenn may be aging but he still serves a role, and with Rathbone in that doesn't really leave a lot of room. I think this would be adequate, and entirely attainable: Hughes Severson OEL Myers Rathbone Schenn Dermott, Burroughs as backups. No, it isn't as good of a D as we had during our last cup run - but at worst it's average. Given our forward depth, that might be enough. What I DO like about these pairings is that each offensive guy on the left has a defense-first partner on the right. Although defensive, all three of the RD's in this scenario can still put up some points here and there so it isn't like they are going to kill the cycle game or transition like Guddy used to.
  9. I think in today's age of social media, everybody is an expert and wants to be heard. People have a keyboard persona they portray, often (I believe) in an effort to come across as more outspoken, opinionated and knowledgeable - as opposed to their meek, boring and dreary real lives. I feel this brings out the worst in people, and miss the days when the guys would gather round and simply rally to support the team more than anything. Individual players were rarely placed under such a microscope, and if they were, it was for truly glaring reasons. But whether this is true or not isn't particularly important, because this is where society is at and when you give people a taste of the drug, they keep coming back. The facts in this case: We are a noticeably better team with Miller than without, and how it all plays out remains to be seen. Let's just watch the game, and enjoy the fact this it the best forward depth we've had since the cup run. Or, possibly - ever.
  10. Sorry, I just don't see what you guys do in Dermott. What does he actually DO out there? He doesn't get many points, which is ok if he's a defensive stud - but he really isn't. His giveaways are one of the worst on the team (especially given his limited toi) and he blocks the least of all our d-men. Schenn has lots of giveaways too, but at least he uses his size and hits. Despute his relative size, Dermott rarely uses it. I don't think he's "bad", but I don't see futire top 4 material in this kid... despite his general poise. He's certainly not a guy for us to rely on if we expect to contend.
  11. Not at all. We'd be selling low on him. He just needs to figure it out. I'm not sure who it makes sense to jettison - they are all useful players. Besides perhaps Dickinson, who will hopefully have a better year and currently holds no value.
  12. It's a lot to pay, and term is a little longer than what we know to be ideal, but this is the kind of agreement required to keep talent. Compared to other contracts like Gaudreau and Huberdeau, this looks like a solid deal.
  13. If I recall correctly, I said I thought we might regret giving him up. I suppose he's still young and has time to put it together, but so far I was incorrect with my assessment.
  14. As it sits, we already have too many forwards. If we did somehow move Dickinson and Miller got traded, we would need to fill that spot an in a pinch perhaps this could be a decent choice. I would expect Gagner to be able to muster up a reasonable amount of points alongside whoever we put down to the 3rd line, but he's not exactly a prototypical 3rd line center. But, as Curmudgeon stated, forward depth is not where we need to be focused right now.
  15. Yeah, I've thought about the impact the war might have on these guys. It could be a distraction for them, a distraction for the rest of the team (depending on their perspectives and ability to remain professional and not political) and, as you state, an ability to play at all depending on their VISA status. From the perspective of the team, it's a good thing Podz is well liked, as he kinda sets the stage for the newcomers.
  16. As I'm quite pro-Hogs, I am hopeful he plays well enough in camp and preseason they will have no choice but to keep him up. There's also nothing saying a trade isn't coming before the season starts, which would open up a spot - though I expect expect Joshua will be playing on the 4th.
  17. Oh geez... completely forgot about Fiala. Carry on....
  18. 2 goals and an assist, and a goal prior game. Not sure what level this competition really is, but that bodes well. It'll be hilarious to hear the announcers.... Pettersson to Pettersson. Back to Pettersson.... and.... Pettersson scores!!!!
  19. Indeed. But I watched Woo here in Calgary while he played for the hitmen. I have to say, I saw nothing standout in his game. He was decent (against WHL competition), but after watching him for a few games, it seemed to me he was pretty average in most respects and had no standout skills I could see. So while everyone was gushing over how good a defenseman he was going to be, I remained quiet. At least with a guy like Rathbone you can see some standout skills which will all buy guarantee him an eventual NHL job if he can get his defensive play together. If Woo EVER makes it to the NHL, 3rd pairing is his absolute ceiling imo. As for LA, I may be wrong but I feel they still have a little ways to go before they are likely to make the playoffs. They have some good young players (especially on D), but they need to generate more scoring before they can play with the big boys into the post-season, imo. I believe we are going to see a separation in the Pacific with Calgary, Edmonton and the Canucks clearly in the top tier with 105-115 points, LA with maybe a half dozen points less, then Anaheim about 6-10 points lower than that, with San Jose and Seattle pulling up the rear.
  20. Nor I. He may not stand out as a speedster, but he is always involved so he has enough speed to get to where he needs to be if nothing else. Maybe the fact he reads the play so well and has such a motor that he's a couple strides to the destination before anyone else even starts moving. That's the only thing I can think of that could explain why perhaps he's not as quick as we think he is.
  21. Not keen on this, for a couple of reasons. Pearson has turned out to be a good player for us. He's not terribly consistent, but at least he plays a heavier game along the boards than many other of our players. I understand we have an abundance of forwards, but if we are going to move any of them out I would rather us do so for an appropriate defenseman rather than another forward. In addition to that, the potential line of Lazar, Joshua, and Lockwood appears somewhat baked already. Lazar and Joshua ware both recently acquired with the expectation to play full-time. Lockwood may still be a bit of a question mark, but I think management has some confidence in his play, and it's always better to try to develop a young guy like that than bring in an aging 4th line player. Now, I know there is a cap savings here which was probably the main driver for the proposal, and certainly we could use some extra space. But in order for the trade to not obviously hurt us, we'd certainly need a sweetener back.
  22. How is Kuzmenko defensively? That could be one hell of a 2-way, dependable line that can also put up points if he's good at that too.
  23. Yup. I just think our fans might be disappointed. It doesn't mean he won't be a strong contributor - I have no doubt he will be, but I just don't think he will put up the lofty numbers people are hoping for. His strengths may somewhat lie elsewhere.
  24. I hear you on this. I'm generally skeptical myself, and always have been. When people were going gaga over the guys you mentioned (Gaudette and Juolevi also come to mind), I remained pretty stoic. Podz is on a different level though. He does everything the right way. He has one hell of a motor. You can see that fire in this game, in his eyes on camera, and in his mature approach to becoming better. He actually has a similar skillset to Virtanen, but isn't looking for a free ride to Millionaireville and is prepared to work hard to get where he wants to be. Unfortunately I just don't see that elite-level talent in him, and I hope I'm wrong. His game is so full of intangibles that I think it will help drive his ice time, but ultimately I think a lack of true top-end skill will keep him from being the prolific player we are all hoping for. My hopeful projected ceiling: High-end 2nd liner with a strong 2-way game. Kind of like Horvat. 60-65 points a season. My *realistic* expectations are pretty much in line with what you stated as far as Higgins/Pearson in their prime. Maybe around 50 points a season or so.
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