sockeye

Not me. I figured with our lineup and the improvements all the other teams made (in our division) in the off season, we would be 5th (could be 6th, with the way things are going). I figured Calgary would be 3rd behind Toronto and Montreal and I thought one of Winnipeg (Luc and Stasny are going to help the Jets) or Edmonton would be 4th. Markstrom's stellar play masked our defensive problems last year which were clearly evident with the shots against (even hitting over 45 a few nights). Those shots against numbers were too high and the team was on borrowed time (the winning was not sustainable with those shots against - which good/contender teams don't allow). Our chickens have come home to roost. Losing Tanev, Markstrom and Toffoli only exacerbated the problem. However, I am positive that with Podkolzin coming in, a high draft pick this year and clearing up cap space and good management, we could see some good times ahead in about 2 years. The question is, should Benning be the man to lead us to those good times?

I miss most of those 1040 radio personalities. After the game, I went to 1040 to listen to the Post-Game and it's not there. It's disappointing, especially how the cuts were made. I'm really going to miss Ferraro's and Rick Dhaliwal's clips. I'll miss Donnie and the Moj too. I wish the TSN 1040 sports staff all the best.

Did you ever see Baumer play or are you not old enough? I remember Baumer and he was a decent defenceman on the smaller side and he was known for having a good first pass out of the D zone. He was a bubble guy like so many that play the game but he had a fair share of NHL games. How about you? If Baumer was playing in the modern NHL, he would have been much more successful. He played during the era of the big brutish D man (and he was on the small side for that time) and players could clutch, hook and grab to their heart's content. He was a good skater and a good 6 or 7 D-man.

I guess we have a difference of opinion on whose rumours you want to believe. Sorry that I touched a nerve. I never claimed that Linden was the messiah but he was the face of the Canucks for years and he represented the team well. I doubt we'll ever hear the truth from Linden, Benning or Aquilini. So, yeah I'm speculating. The rumour I heard is that Benning (and Aquilini) and Linden wanted to go in different directions and Linden was supporting a rebuild when the Sedins retired; Benning wanted to continue his retool. One thing is for certain, Benning and Linden were not on the same page or Linden would still be President. I never heard any rumour that Linden wanted to trade futures for vets to go for another run (I heard the opposite and Benning was the one who wanted to go for another run - that hasn't worked out so well). I supported Benning for a long time but I'm sick and tired of this crap after being a fan for 50 effing years. Enough picks lost, enough prospects traded, enough cap space wasted. That's not how good teams are built. Anyway, I don't want to get into a back and forth banter. Thanks for the reply. Go Canucks!

I wouldn't give up Pearson for Bennett based on Bennett's play this year. I doubt Boston would give up their Jake for ours. We need some size and, losing Jake would hurt unless we get some size back (only a young player to fit with our core young guys).

Keep Green and bring in Futa. I will admit that Gallant is a good coach too and I wouldn't be disappointed if he was the coach; but i've always liked Green. Bring back Linden for President.

I agree. I've been waiting 50 years. I saw the close ones in 1982, 1994 and 2011. "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." ... According to Santayana's philosophy, history repeats. I'm tired of mistakes made. It's time to learn from our mistakes. Linden was right - we should've gone full rebuild. Within the next two years, we can still go full rebuild and keep our good young under 25 players plus Bo.

Yes, and the owners need to get out of the way. Rebuild and no more lost picks and expensive free agents (Linden was right).

Well, I give the boys credit because this was the best game they've played since the Winnipeg game. This was a good team effort and we were unlucky (Miller's crossbar, Andersen's save off Bailey) against a very good team (as are the Canadiens). The Leafs really picked it up in the third. I've said this before (before the season started), this is a very tough Division and I doubt, sorry fans, we make the playoffs. However, I will continue to watch as I have for 50 years and I keep hoping they prove me wrong. I'm a lifer. I've said this from the beginning of the season, I'll say it again, I doubt this team will make the playoffs this year. I'm already hoping for a high first round draft pick and hoping for next year. I've supported Benning but not this year and I think we need a change. Rebuild time (not retool). Keep Horvat, Petterson, Hoglander, Juolevi and Hughes. Again, I hope the boys prove me wrong and push for a playoff spot.

Yep. Rather than look at the standings (by points) in the league, I like to sort the teams by goal differential on NHL.com. I find that the goal differential is usually fairly close to the standings but the goal differential is probably a better indicator of where a team ranks in the league (hint: we don't rank very good). Winning percentage is also a good indicator and, again, we don't rank very good. Last year, we just squeaked into the playoffs - a lot of people forget that. Anyway, I always hope for the best - 50 years and counting.

Crazy topic. How do we delete a topic LOL?

Good post and I pretty much agree with everything you said. My biggest beef is that we didn't actually rebuild, we retooled on the fly instead of collecting more picks and prospects while our core was very young (I supported Linden's approach). I guess time will tell whether Benning can bail himself and the team out of this mess; there's still time (next year) but I think this year is going to be painful.

Fire the owner (which can't happen) and hire Linden as the GM. Linden was right when he wanted a rebuild and not a retool and this appeared to cause friction with the GM and owner. The retool was a failure and delayed our movement towards being a cup contender. I would like to see a new owner but I doubt this will happen. Retooling has cost us draft picks and added bad contracts. It's still not to late to rebuild because our best players are under 25. I would love to see the owner admit his mistakes (eat some humble pie) and hire Linden again; but I doubt our owner has the humility to do that.

Awesome. See, there's always a positive side to everything. And that's from someone who has seen the Canucks play since 1970.

That's good if they get the same contract because the money is decreasing every game.

Mike Futa did a good job drafting and building the LA Kings team.

Yeah. Hmm, I'd trade Boeser while his value is high. Not a fan. Too slow and just a one dimensional player. Nice kid though. Well, one positive thing about the way things are going, looking at the glass half full - next year's contracts for Hughes and Petterson are rapidly decreasing. (maybe not for Hughes though?)

I see what you are saying but, with our current roster, no coach is going to deliver. This team is not built to play a hard, gritty defensive game. Also, our team is not a fast team (we're quick but not fast) and we constantly get beat to the puck and we lose too many puck battles. This Canadian Division is tough with the exception of Ottawa. While everyone was singing the praises of the Canucks last year, not me. We were just lucky last season and we had a Vezina quality goalie. For the last couple of years, our shots against were atrocious but Marky kept us in the game. Now, our chickens have come home to roost. I still think Green is a good coach but I realize his job is in jeopardy with how this season is going. I agree that Gallant is a good coach too but I don't think he'd make a big difference in the win-loss column. Maybe we might lose by a few less goals but there's no way this team, as currently structured, is making the playoffs this year. We should have kept Toffoli, traded Boeser for a solid top 4 D or a skilled gritty forward, kept Tanev, Stecher and Leivo. I loved Marky but not for 6 years at 6 mill per year (given his age).

That would be OK as long as he doesn't mind losing.

Why would he want to coach this team as it is currently structured. This team is designed to run and gun and it will not be able to adapt to a defensive style ala the Coyotes or Minnesota. Unless you were a young rookie coach, I don't think you'd be too eager to coach this team. I would rather see a new GM (I defended Benning for a long time but not anymore). Linden was right. We should have gone full rebuild when we had the chance. The retool was a mistake. Let a new GM mold the team the way he wants and hire the coach he wants. I still believe in Petterson, Hughes and Horvat (and Hoglander) but I'm not sure about some of the other guys (but I like Pearson and Motte).

During the off season, I suggested to friends and some CDCers here that we should do whatever we can to retain Toffoli and even trade Boeser for a top D or top forward prospect (not an older player). Most people disagreed with me. I like Boeser but, last season, I wasn't overly-enamoured with his play (i.e. his skating and two way play), however, in the few games Toffoli played for us, I could see this guy is an all-round hockey player (sniper, penalty killer and power play guy) who plays strong, wins puck battles and is a good two-way player. I would've preferred we keep both Boeser (a good sniper) and Toffoli but the owners had a budget that wouldn't allow that (unfortunately). Benning made a good trade in acquiring Toffoli but we wasted a good prospect (Tyler Madden) and a 2nd round pick when the owners didn't re-sign Toffoli. Seeing Toffoli's play with the Canadiens, this really sucks now. Anyway, my prediction that the Canucks are not strong enough to make the playoffs this season holds. Markstrom's and Demko;s play helped conceal some structural problems the Canucks had last year (if a team is giving up 40 to 45 shots a game, the team has problems and, ultimately, will not succeed). The team was lucky to go as far as they did in the playoffs. We don't have the personnel to be a contender (not yet. but we're getting there). However, I don't disagree with Benning not signing aging Markstrom and Tanev to long term contracts (they were great Canucks). All this stuff about a coaching change doesn't make sense to me. Green has taken this team farther than he should have with the team we have. The team just isn't good enough and a new coach isn't going to come in with a magic wand and make us a strong team (we don't quite have all the horses we need and our core players are very young). It baffles me how the Canucks fans think this team is better than it actually is. I'm not surprised at all at how we're doing but I don't like to see us lose in the fashion we have lately (too many goals against). The players really need to look in the mirror and quit taking penalties in the O zone, focus more and quit turning over the puck (as they have several times per game against the Canadiens). One positive thing is how we're getting more shots on goal and we're not allowing as many against compared to most of last year. Montreal and Toronto will easily lead the Division. I see Winnipeg and Calgary battling for 3rd and 4th spot; with Edmonton (McDavid and Draisaitl leading the way) on their heels. I think Dubois is going to improve Winnipeg and they will be better than when they had Laine because I think Dubois is a better all-round player. I really wish I could be more positive about this year's edition and I hope they prove me wrong. If I'm right, I hope they take the next step next year. We have a strong core but we're missing a few pieces. After following Canucks from their very first year, it is tiring but I always hold out hope that, someday, I will see them raise the Stanley Cup. Here's hoping for the next game.

How can this loss be Green's fault? Last game he's a great coach and now he can't adjust ..... The team played like crap against a very good team (a Stanley Cup contender - in my mind). The Canadiens have added a bunch of players who are going to push that team to the next level. We're not there yet as I said from the beginning of the season. Maybe next year but probably in two years. At the beginning of the season, I predicted that we would not make the playoffs and I'm not changing my prediction. The team isn't quite good enough and I hope I'm wrong because I'm a long time Canucks fan. The Winnipeg game was, by far, their best game of the season. I was hoping we'd build on that. Tonight, the coach didn't turn over the puck umteen dozen times. Sheesh. This loss is solely on the players and especially the 649 line. We had a Vezina goalie contender last year and this year we have above average goaltending but we'll need more than that to make the playoffs in this tough Canadian division. Beagle, Motte and MacEwan looked pretty good but the rest of the team played poorly. Virtanen looked OK and at least he had a few hits. I think this road trip will give us a really good idea of where we rank in the Division. The Canadiens and the Leafs are at another level and I don't think any of the other Canadian teams will catch them. Regardless, I will cheer my Canucks on as always.

Best game of the year for the Canucks! Very good all round game and good defensive game. I like Hoglander more and more - good hustle. I liked all the D and Chatfield is settling in. Great coaching too for all the Green haters

Nope. When Sutter is healthy, he is a very good player because he also contributes on the penalty kill too and he is very versatile (he can play centre, wing and up & down your lineup). He has had some tough times with the Canucks with his injury history but he is flying right now. Great game Sutter!

Ottawa had a bad game but they don't suck. They have the core for a very good team in a few years. However, they are very young and it will take some time. If they weren't in the Canadian Division, I'm sure they would get more wins. This Canadian Division is tight. I'm sure Wednesday will be a much tighter game.