Ray_Cathode

Karlsson is gone. Theories? I don’t agree that it saves five mil for Aquaman - he would just have to pay it for a winger we don’t need instead. Better to eat JB’s mistake and get a better deal for the cap. Even if we have to bring back a three mil centre, it would pretty much clean up the worst of our cap problems. Now, what to do with Pearson? He was awful before he got hurt, and now he wants to come back - thus losing that LTIR. What can we do to fix that, do you figure?

They keep saying Myers for Lebanc - after ownership pays Myers 5 mil bonus. Since LeBanc is a 4.75 mil cap hit, we would save 1.25 mil on the cap and gain a 5’11 180 pound winger that we don’t need, who has never scored 20 goals in his career, who was -17 last year. Boil it down, and ownership is giving up 5 mil + 4.75 mil (we don’t need another winger) to gain 1.25 mil in cap space. On its face, it looks like a trade worthy of Benning. What am I missing here? Surely there is a better deal somewhere in the nhl after Myers bonus is paid. Maybe a 3 mil C worth rehabilitating?

Yep. Brisbois was one of those guys that brought moderate offence in junior, then went to school in the AHL. Now, he’s pretty good in a seven D role that can come in and play a five or six role- even play a limited four role over short stretches. He can still be exposed against strong/deep teams. And he showed pretty good at pk - always of value. And he moves the puck okay, his stick is not a foreign object only used for slashing and for use as a rudder in turns. He has continued to improve the puck handling skills he was decent at in junior. He is definitely worth the money we pay him.

That’s a general rule with some very significant exceptions. But yes… as a rule. It’s hard negotiating tight spaces with long sticks and long arms. One of our issues with our chaos giraffe.

I like your thinking here.

That’s a good question without, in my mind, a factual answer. I don’t think it is definitive for the Canucks - Woo’s development over the past season was very strong under the new coaches Can he continue to benefit? I don’t see physical deficiencies that will stop Woo - he appears to be a good enough skater and is very robust for his size. The big question, for me is, how does he process the game? It was quite a surprise to see Hirose, very slight for an NHL defender, perform so well in his brief appearance at the end of last year. His calm demeanour and processing of the game as extraordinary - albeit in a short stint. How well a player does after he has been scouted by the sharpest minds in hockey is quite another question that I believe accounts for the sophomore slump. Woo is untested in the NHL. Any speculation as to his NHL future on my part unlikely to enlighten anyone. So far, I was right about Juolevi, but my Rathbone projection is up in the atmosphere. I do wonder though, if the Canucks did not have Hughes, would Rathbone have had enough opportunity for us to find out definitively his limits. I was also very high on Rafferty, who was spectacular in the AHL until a concussion courtesy of an AHL multiple offender He appears now to be mired in the minors. Rafferty is now 28, and in 1921-22 he did not have a strong year, but last year rebounded to over fifty points - fourth highest among AHL D’s, miles behind Wolanin. Wolanin is also 28, and emerged this past season after years of mediocre play probably seriously affected by injury. Brisebois, by comparison, is a tadpole at just 26, but this year comported himself well in a limited NHL exposure. Maybe the conclusion to draw is to not be too impatient with defencemen. Or maybe the conclusion is that defencemen can be most affected by the coaching they receive, I was never impressed by Cull, but thought that development surged with the move to Abby and to Colliton. I don’t think it hurt having the Sedins in Abby, either. The time they took teaching individual skills may have filled in weaknesses that players had not previously been instructed in.

Woo did not play as a stay at home D in Abby: rather, he was aggressive in all three zones. His instinct is to pressure, at his best, that is how he plays. He reminds me of Chatfield in that regard, though I see Woo as more skilled and more powerful. He was the author of some spectacular hits.

Hockey (and lacrosse) are not games for the timid.

I think you are right. Still for LA he was a great guy to mentor their young D. But I think now that role is nearly over. Still, when healthy he's effective, but the older he gets the more often he is not even remotely close to 100% - he's just willing to play hurt a lot. He's not making a lot of dough compared to his big years, I think he just loves the game.

Everybody in pro hockey gets checked, and big boys play rough. If you are going to respond and you are a smaller guy, you have to be as savage as Marchand - but then you have to produce like Marchand. Until Hoglander can produce like Marchand, he has to suck it up. In addition trips and hooks are not appropriate responses to being roughed up, they are just stupid penalties. I watched all of the Abby games - I live there. Garland is a good model for Hoglander. Garland draws way more penalties than he takes - he is a sneaky little bugger and bides his time to take his revenge. If you take a marginal hit in pro hockey, refs just won't call them all - just doesn't happen. What they look for and call is retaliation because endless retaliation makes the game entirely unplayable. Some teams, like the Flyers of old entirely depended on the fact that refs just won't call all of the mayhem that you initiate, so did guys like Pronger or Dale Hunter. They committed so much mayhem that to call it all would make the game unwatchable, and the NHL is about 'entertainment' not hockey according to the rule book. Guys like Stan Smyl got so many penalties not because they made bad hits, but because they caused so much retaliation, often refs would penalize him just to keep the game under control. The NHL is a business and is far more concerned about getting games in in a tiemly manner for keeping broadcasters happy and for teams and refs making plane flights. Hoglander has a lot of potential, but to get to use it he has to stay on the ice. If Pettersson does some retaliation, the refs will overlook quite a bit of it because they know his is taking a lot of crap, but Hoglander? Who cares. If he becomes a star, then thy'll care. It's a business and fans come to see the start. If the stars are hurt all the time, the fans stay away. It is a business. On the other hand, if Hoglander hit like Smyl (they are about the same size and build, (and both are/were in great condition), and if Hoglander (like Smyl) could draw more penalties than he takes and thus be a great value to the team over and above his scoring. Though many owners love the game, the league overall is about money. Cynical, I know, but when even a franchise like Ottawa is worth the better part of a billion, it's not just for fun.

Yes, Hogs is an energizer bunny, a very good skater and much stronger than his size would suggest. If he was taking penalties for initiating contact on the forecheck it would be entirely forgivable, but that is not the case - they are almost all lazy penalties: tripping, hooking, slashing and the like virtually all in the offensive zone.

Hoglander was no more targeted by other teams than anybody else on Abby. He just took offence anytime somebody took the puck off him, or pushed him around. Far too many lazy fouls: tripping, hooking, slashing and the like - especially in the offensive zone. Garland, too is a small guy, but he sucks it up and gets the other team to take the penalty.

I deal in reality, not dreams. Colorado has a team rich in puck movers on D. We do not. Two out of our three D units struggled to move the puck out of our zone. That’s why we spend so much damn time in our zone and are constantly chasing the play and Hughes is pushed to unrealistic minutes. Spreading out the puck movers enables us to spend less time in our zone and also grants Hughes some measure of physical protection. Maybe you have noticed how much time Makar spends injured.

I'm not sure that Quinn would be helped by being paired with another puck mover. I can't think of a circumstance where I'd want anyone he would be paired with moving the puck/ The beauty of Qinn is that you can pair him with a number fiver six defenceman (so long as he can play defence) and it will work out for the best. That;s why it worked with Schenn and with Juulsen. Quinn's partner just has to suppress his ego and do play a supporting role. Put him with another great puck mover and you won't have enough pucks on the ice.

Yes, he is energetic and competitive, his problem is that when he gets outworked for a puck or takes a bump, he just can't help himself from retaliating. and taking way too many stupid penalties. I doubt Tocchet will have any time for him till he gets that under control. If you can't trust a guy from taking stupid penalties, why put him on the ice?

I don’t think Edler was the best defenceman this franchise has ever had. That would be Paul Reinhart, who in his prime was only exceeded by Bourque and Coffey. As an overall D, I’d take Ohlund over Edler, too… and Jovanovski wasn’t bad either. Ohlund was better defensively and tough as nails - as Iginla would attest.

They are great for having lots of as future trade bait.

Maybe we should see if OEL can play, first. He sure couldn’t last year. He was a total liability.

Especially with Bains, who also adds that dimension.

Alriksson would look great on a line with Garland and Dries, especially with Hughes and Rathbone on D. He’d look like a mountain rising out of a field of molehills.

I think Tocchet will disagree. Any of the Abbotsford crew make the lineup?

Apparently Montreal is showing theirs live.

We got to see Raty and Sasson in the AHL playoffs. Sasson was the more impressive - granted a limited set.

Gotta see a lot more before I conclude that, but I sure like the look of our guy.

No love for Kudryavtsev or Sasson?