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kloubek

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Everything posted by kloubek

  1. I will be one to say I agree with you. We can let Marky walk and get nothing for him, or we can get something for Demko. People are acting like they have never seen a guy play 3 amazing games in a row before. Yes it shows he has skill, but do we REALLY think he transformed from a .905 save % guy to the best goalie in the NHL over the break? Not likely. We need a FAR larger sample size and that's if we ignore his prior stats. I hope for Demko he really does blossom next season but I am not yet convinced he can do this long-term. His stock is at an all-time high and I think he could get a decent return. But I don't think he will get both a removal of LE's contract plus both a 1st AND a top prospect. Other GMs also know the 3 game sample size is small so it is a big risk. I also laugh at the idea of signing him for 5m as suggested above. He has nowhere near proven himself long enough for that kind of commitment. I will also mention that thanks to Demko being an alternative, Marky doesn't have as much leverage on Jim - possibly leading to a shorter or lower contract? (There is, of course, only so much adjustment he would be willing to make before he decides to go elsewhere and get more) Finally, if we go with Demko who plays backup? Domingue? Jim would probably need to dip into the FA pool and add a 2 to 2.5m veteran goalie in case Demko falters or doesn't pan out as hoped. That isn't a lot of savings. Especially considering Demko will be RFA soon and will want a raise as a user below will mention. (I'm not clairvoyant. This paragraph was an edit) Jim has a big decision to make. Either choice could be the wrong one, depending on how the future plays out.
  2. The issue is 100% sample size. There is zero doubt Demko played amazing. He really did. But given his season stats, it is hard to know if his performance was an anomaly. 3 games is not even remotely close to a sample size you can rely on. If JB goes with Demko and it turns out he maintains a .905 average through the season and playoffs you can basically kiss cup aspirations goodbye. On the other hand, letting Marky walk would save us millions in cap (not full amount as we would still need a vet backup). He is also already getting up there, and I wonder how many more years he will be elite. I see the argument either way.
  3. I think before this series, it was obvious the Canucks needed Marky. Granted it was only 3 games, but man I am astounded how Demko did, and cool as a damn cucumber. If nothing else, it gives Marky less leverage in negotiations if it is deemed he is no longer in a must-sign position. At the same time, would it not make more sense to sign Marky then package Demko while his stock likely just rose? We need to try to move out cap. That's extremely difficult given the 3-year flat situation, but we gotta try. Only when that happens do we really know what kind of dollars we have available. In my mind, given these playoffs we need to improve on team size and strength. Ferland was supposed to help that but if he can't play then we need to find someone who can. Virtanen was brutally absent from these playoffs. If we can get a good return, it is time to move on and let another GM take over that project. Besides LE, he is the only one on the team that doesn't seem to "fit". Pearson is expendable if we can find a replacement in Podkolzin. His stock is at an all-time high and he comes at a very reasonable cap hit so I expect a good return there. Benning needs to find cap and move LE and Baer out. Both are still serviceable players so I am surprised it has been so hard. Add sweeteners. Whatever. Just get it done. Re-sign Tanev. Sign Toffoli if he is reasonable, but given his playoff performance I was left unimpressed. He may not even want to if we ship out Pearson. Re-sign Leivo if healthy. Consider signing Tryamkin for a year to see what he can do. If nothing else, he could be an absolute wrecking ball if he chooses to. Besides size overall, I feel we still need more scoring ability from the blueline. Hughes is a stud, but I was left unimpressed with the lack of scoring from virtually every other defenseman not named Tanev. (He actually improved, but that isn't his thing). Hopefully Rathbone can be that guy? Not sure OJ will or even could be. I would love Stecher to be signed for cheap if possible. He is really a 5th/6th kind of guy on a cup-winning team but I just love his attitude. Problem is we just don't have the room for him if we brought in another defenseman who can score. Sign Motte, Big Mac, and Gaudette. Sign Fanta as our 7th D. Trade Benn and one of Beagle or Sutter. Lots of tweaks to make. We can't expect our goalies to win us a playoff series.
  4. Makar is more of a powerful force and Hughes is more a finesse player. I think they are ultimately pretty equal in offensive skills (though they go about the job differently) and perhaps Hughes is smarter defensively. But when push comes to shove (literally) Hughes will always be undersized which will somewhat limit his overall abilities on both sides of the ice. Still super stoked to have Hughes. This team desperately needed a dynamic scoring defenseman and he delivers in spades.
  5. While we hung into these playoffs far longer than anyone expected, I am disappointed we were unable to play a solid offensive game tonight, and most games in the series. Demko was godlike but he can't do it all. If we want a repeat performance or better next year (if it happens) we are going to have to find a way to establish our forecheck and a cycle 5 on 5. Maybe add a little toughness if we can't get Tryamkin and Ferland playing. Still, proud of our team and excited for the future.
  6. Did any of us honestly expect better? I said on here that I expected this team to turn some heads in the playoffs, and I predicted the *possibility* of beating the Blues but I didn't at all expect us to beat Vegas. As a side note, I live in enemy territory in Calgary and have seen even the strongest anti-Canucks fans changing their tune. General consensus is that the team is no longer the team they love to hate now that our "difficult" players are gone - such as Bieksa, Kesler, and Burrows. In addition, I see a lot of people finally admitting the Canucks are a good team (better than the Flames if nothing else) and that JB has done a great job with the rebuild. Finally, the effort this team has been putting in has not gone unnoticed by other fans and has seemed to generate a respect we haven't had for some time. Now, do I really care what other fans think? Not really. But if you can turn around many of the fans on opposing teams that says a lot about our team, imo.
  7. I disagree with the panel (was is Kelly?) who said they need to stick with the goalie who they picked as their #1. I figure they should and will go with Fleury. Time for the boys to lay it all out there. This is the most important game in a decade.
  8. I feel like the Knights are frustrated and imploding a bit. Guess that's what happens when a backup goalie has 1 ga in 2 games against you.... I really don't know if Demko can repeat this kind of performance tomorrow. He looked dead tired.
  9. Demko is a bloody wall. I am so happy for this kid. One thing I've seen is how calm he is and how easy he makes it look. He stays in position well and doesn't overreact. What a phenomenal performance these playoffs for a backup, no less.
  10. I agree. I understand why they do it, but it's absolutely predictable they will. Proud of our boys tonight. Hanging in there when once again the Knights have been the better team.
  11. Oops... completely forgot about Domingue. False alarm. Sorry folks.
  12. So Dipietro is unfit to play and we got some dude from Kalamazoo backing up Demko. Watch the Knights run Demmer now, trying to get him out of the game.
  13. I feel this will be an incredibly difficult game. I also feel we can win it as long as we establish a forecheck and manage to gain entry into their zone. Go Canucks!
  14. I would actually agree about taking Jake out in favour of big Mac. Given Jake's obvious skills, it is downright silly how ineffective he has been these playoffs. With Ferland out this was Jake's opportunity to be our tough guy who levels the opposition. Or get in the dirty areas and pot a few goals. Or both. But instead... pretty much only visible due to the way posession tends to halt when he touches the puck. I say we package Jake to improve our d. He has had so many opportunities, but squanders them every time.
  15. It takes a big man to make a thread calling himself out. Your apology is accepted. To be fair, the first couple of years were dicey, and first impressions are hard to change. Many people lambasted Jim for questionable moves for vets - and we are still paying for the LE mistake. But his moves served a purpose. Initially that was from ownership, wanting to keep the team a contender after the window had closed. I didn't feel that direction was the right one but abstained from forming an opinion of Jim's abilities because I knew his hands were tied. When I did get on Jim's train is early into phase 2 which was to foster a stable, professional culture leading to the Sedins' retirement. Brought in vets to serve that purpose and to support our young guys who he knew would be coming soon. And while that was being formed, he restocked the prospect pool big time, from literally being 100% empty to one of the most talented young teams. Our drafting has been excellent and as our talent pool grew I knew we were well on our way. Now he is going to have to try to tweak the team while maintaining the cap. Of course he needs to take care of expiring contracts first. We are almost there, but I think we still need more toughness and size for the heavy teams (perhaps Ferland and Tryamkin will be good to go?) and a better defense - preferably with a bit more scoring ability. That will be a tall order, all things considered. I believe our forward group is pretty darn good already and with reinforcements coming and more experience it will be one of the best in the league as it is.
  16. I agree pretty much with your entire post. In game 5 in general they didn't seem as cocky and obviously not in the 3rd, but their usual demeanor in this series is not taking our team seriously. The Canucks are for real and I expect they realize that now and we'll see their full effort in game 6. No, they couldn't step it up in the 3rd but typically, they have the firepower to do so. I also agree we have not seen the best of our team in this series. Our bottom 6 hasn't done much. To be fair, the Vegas D structure is tough to beat even for our top guys. 3rd and 4th liners are in tough for good scoring chances. We CAN beat this team. We will need a full effort from everyone to do it. But I still don't think Vegas is too worried quite yet. If we win game 6, then I could see potential panic set in. But even then, they are largely vet players with a vet coach so maybe that's wishful thinking.
  17. Honestly, I doubt they are. If it wasn't for Demmer's heroics we would have lost, and they aren't likely to be too down on this game after dominating for the first 2 periods. Now we may be relying on similar performances from Demko to win the next 2 games - including a back to back where we don't have the luxury of another #1 goalie to shoulder the load like LV does. I think Vegas is sitting in a pretty good position right now and that likely isn't lost on them either.
  18. I have never been a fan of the Myers signing. As has been said, we had to pay more than he was worth to land him. But he does eat up minutes and takes the pressure off Edler and Tanev which I think has helped both. Elder doesn't seem as stretched and Tanev is clearly benefitting. I just wish Myers was more physical. I never expected him to be a big point getter, but in such important games like now I really wish he laid some guys out. IMO we still need a hitting, physical D-man, with limited roster spots available.
  19. Demko won that game for us. We played a good third but we were getting rocked the first two. I'll take the win regardless. Team showed a lot of determination to keep pushing and I would be proud of them either result. We really need more from our bottom 6.
  20. Me too, but I don't realistically believe we have a chance to win 3 straight. With that said, not many felt we could get past the Blues and we did, so this team has already surprised many and we might be wrong again. Vegas simply has a great team and many have picked them to win the cup. Considering this is the first year we are a playoff team, the fact we could hang with them for a couple games says a lot in itself. I would also like to point out again how heavy the teams we have played have been. We are tired. I can't help wonder if we might have a bit more energy if we played a Calgary or Edmonton before this point instead. Regardless, I too feel this run has given our young team a lot of understanding about what it takes to win it all. You better believe our stars like Petey and Hughes are going to benefit. And for the fans - well, despite the weird times during covid, I know I am pretty stoked to have seen meaningful hockey again.
  21. Well yeah Reeves is acting like an ass. That's what he is there for. Hit, and disrupt the opposition. To be fair, I believe he is doing a decent job of it.
  22. This team has proven that when we are rolling, we can beat the best. The talent is there. I think we just need a few tweaks. 1- Size and grit. It is a real shame Ferland couldn't play - he was the closest thing to our version of Reeves. Virtanen is our next best thing but as usual, he isnt playing like he can. Missing Myers didn't help. Our boys have done what they can and have worked hard, but we just don't intimidate and our hits don't sting enough. If we can get Ferland healthy, add Pods, and get Tryamkin on a bottom pairing I think that will make a significant difference. We don't have to be the biggest and baddest... we just need to be able to keep up, and I feel that would do it. 2- Time and experience. We are a young team. That means some of our core guys are not anywhere near peak as it comes to body size, strength, skills, and playoff experience. Petey is going to be unstoppable in a couple of years and Quinn will gain some much needed strength as well. Hopefully this experience helps steer Brock in the right direction too. Considering only a few of our players actually have playoff experience, I am pretty proud of what they have achieved these playoffs so far. 3- This isn't a tweak as much as it is a statement that bodes well for the future. Especially in light of point #1, we had the hardest physical competition in the league, imo. We started with the Wild, who may be a rather average team but they do play hard and wear you down. After beating them, we faced the Champs who are also a big, strong team. I think the fact we beat them says a lot. But in doing so, they wore us down further. Now we are up against a similar team in the Knights. It has been a really difficult road already against some extremely physically challenging competition. The guys are rightfully tired. I think if in between these 3 teams we got a less physical team like Edmonton or Calgary we would be fresher right now and I think that would reflect in our results. It isn't an excuse, as you never know who you will face next, but it HAS been a tough go. I'm proud of this team and even if Vegas wins the series I feel we took a serious step this season. Which experts picked us to be here at this point? Not many.
  23. Well that does suck. I'm gonna be camping if it resumes Saturday. Oh well. I think the NHL and its players had to do this. The optics of being asked by HDA to join other leagues to stand up to racism but not doing so would be very poor. The fact they finalized it so late is bad enough. It makes it look like they had no intention of postponing until last minute. As others have said, I think the rest helps us more than it helps Vegas. Hopefully Myers is back for game 3.
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