Hectic

this is why analytics isn't always the best way to make decisions. in what world would someone take gaudette over matthews

This is a very interesting point, never heard that one before

Thanks for being respectful in your responses. I know it's an emotional time for everyone, and I know that my opinions can make people snap pretty easily. But I promise I come in peace, and I'm not doing anything to worsen the situation from an actions perspective. What is troubling for me though, is when we talk about returning to normal, there's a bit of an overarching belief that we WILL return to normal because of the vaccine. And to that I'll say these points: - Our goal is not to eradicate COVID. That will not happen. The flu vaccine exists, but there are still cases, and deaths, due to the flu. So when the COVID vaccine gets rolled out, and people still get COVID, are we always going to be scared of it? My thoughts are that yes, there will always be a level of fear. - Our perception of other people, public gatherings, events, etc will forever be changed. Everyone's life was impacted by this to such an extent that it's shaped our behaviour. I held the door open for someone at a bookstore the other day, and they didn't even walk through the door. The more we dig this hole, the more likely that our behaviour will continue to change to a point where, like I mentioned earlier, going to a Canucks game with 18000+ people not wearing masks becomes less likely of a possibility. When did we become so afraid of diseases, and dying, that we stopped living? And I feel the need to comment on your point about looking after the elderly. It's a tough spot to be in, no doubt. But I feel like if I was someone who was 90+, living in the time we're living in now, I would have a really hard time with restrictions. I mean the measures that are meant to protect elderly people, are isolating them in their homes, depriving them of enjoying experiences with friends/family, and there's no end in sight. There was a survey by the Seniors Advocate in BC that overwhelmingly showed that the majority of elderly people would much rather see friends/family and get COVID than be restricted/locked down. Why are these voices ignored, if they are the people we're trying to protect?

If this was smallpox, or polio, or measles, I'd be first in line to get the vaccine. 100%. But this is COVID. Media attention and the impact on our lives has thrown this way out of proportion. Half of all people who have died are over the age of 85. The average life expectancy in Canada is 82.5. Since when has the media ever announced the deaths due to any cause in a daily update? If people were to hear about the number of influenza cases/deaths daily I'm sure there would be a different perception of this as well. I mean how many people who never get the flu vaccine are all of a sudden the first people to advocate for the COVID vaccine? How did we get here? I'll express my vaccine-related concerns below (note that I get the flu vaccine every year.. I actually gave over 1500 of them in 2020 too!). I feel these are pretty valid, so please be respectful in your response for/against my case here: - I have anaphylactic food allergies. What's to say I don't get a reaction from this vaccine? I get the flu vaccine every year, but this is a different type of vaccine. And what's the risk/benefit for me here? Again, COVID isn't polio or smallpox. - Fastest vaccine to come to market, and liabilities waived for the manufacturers if something goes horribly wrong. - 95% effective? Well, this is based on 2 months of data. Also, this is based on people living in a quarantined world, not the world I plan to live in once this is all over. So in terms of efficacy, we can't say it's effective as initial reports - confounding variables. - Argument about long term COVID effects. Well the same goes for long term vaccine effects, no? Limited data both ways. Look, I want to get my life back to normal just like everyone else does. But what has happened is a complete disregard for critical thinking - opinions like mine are completely dismissed and taken as uneducated, or irrational, or just plain stupid. For clarity, I don't participate in any crazy anti-mask rallies, I wear a mask where it's required, and New Years is my favourite time of year to have a party and I'm doing a 1-1 date night with the lady. So actions speak louder than words - please consider this before a condescending or aggressive reply to this message. All in all, I'm just really choked about everything that's happened, and the reaction the public has had to it, because it is going to take forever for us to ever get back to a world where we can watch a Canucks game with a packed stadium, no masks, and people not being afraid to hug/high five random fans. I can see this never happening again in our generation! And that's just really, really sad.

Everyone is going to have their arguments for or against the vaccine, and we have to respect that. It's a new vaccine with limited data, and there's no arguing that. So let people decide for themselves if they want to get it or not. What we can't be OK with, however, is people comparing COVID to polio like you just did. I mean come on..

How in the world are we ever going to get back to normal life with this as a concern? I still have a hard time believing that we were never this scared of influenza, and I bet tons of people who never get the influenza vaccine would now be first in line to get the COVID vaccine. The fact that this has taken up so much of our attention has led people to a complete different sense of fear with regards to disease transmission. Some warranted, for sure, but concerns like being an asymptomatic carrier after receiving the vaccine? How are you even supposed to prove that? And for the record, no vaccine is 100% effective, especially for something as easily transmissible and susceptible to mutations as coronaviruses. These viruses have always existed - chances are the common cold you get every so often is caused by some strain of coronavirus. To get to this point though, I mean.. we will legitimately never get back to normal life then.

I would be shocked if there were fans in the seats before January 2022, even with masks. Full stadium, no masks or distancing, earliest September 2023 in my opinion. Within my original prediction of 3-5 years since the beginning of COVID

I've read some of your previous posts, and just wanted to say that your hockey insight is top notch. Your post about the bottom 6 not producing points because of their deployment.. I thought you were Travis Green!! Awesome analysis, people like you are the reason I lurk these forums, awesome unbiased and unfiltered thoughts on the game

this is awful. i can see why canucks fans have a bad reputation around the league, -1 to you. come on, guy made a huge impact on the team over the past few years

hahahaha

agreed

I agree with this projection of Gaudette

haha well played. me too

Hearing this from someone who is in the "vulnerable" population, in addition to your family, is important for everyone. It's unfortunate this has gotten to a point where it doesn't seem as if there is any end in sight with regards to going back to life the way it was previously. A few points I thought to address to you as I'm curious to get people within this group's take on the state of what's going on: - When you mention that you've self isolated for over 3 months, is this currently still happening? The reason I'm asking this, if you are still isolating, is to understand at what point you'll feel comfortable with no longer isolating. - Given age/health condition/etc, your family would be classified as the population that we are trying to protect with all these measures. Do you ever get a sense that these measures are actually more harmful than beneficial in the long run? It's quite likely that for at least the next 2 years that being able to have large family gatherings, hugging family members you haven't seen for awhile, and traveling internationally are things that won't be able to happen. Perhaps even 5+ years. The mental health/psychological implications of these measures, in my opinion, will outweigh any physiological impact from this disease when we look back on it. - When you refer to brats/people engaging in social interactions that would be deemed irresponsible and inappropriate, one thing I wanted to point out was that even without these interactions, COVID would never be eradicated/eliminated - ie. there would always be the existence of the virus and the risk of transmission. I don't want to draw direct comparisons to influenza, but every year during the flu season there is the existence of this virus and the risk of transmission (and the complications that go along with it, which can be quite traumatic for immunocompromised people as well). My point here is that if you think that the goal is complete eradication, that this is not a realistic end-game, even when a vaccine is introduced. - And finally, just as a final follow up, what would you say your take is on how this will all end? Will we be wearing masks indefinitely in grocery stores? Will we not be able to watch an NHL game with a full arena and without masks for the next 5+ years? Is there a point where you and your family will look at each other and say "we're over it" because life's too short (I mean for everyone, not because of your health history)? Overall, 6 months after the start of the pandemic, I'm at a point where I really don't know what the end-game is here, and that this is how life will be for at least the next 5+ years. It's concerning to me because the economical and psychological impact is already bigger than the health implications, and this will continue to destroy our society now and in the long term. Would love to get your take and thoughts on all this given your representation of the demographic we are all trying to protect. For reference, I'm a healthy 30 something male.

Agreed 100%. Don't think he's actually that fast

I actually think it happens more than a couple times a game haha - glad you brought this up though, it's an interesting point and one I've always wondered as well. Maybe there's an element of forcing the other team into making a mistake vs making a mistake yourself, or maybe there's no science behind this at all and we're overthinking it

This makes a lot of sense, but I feel there has to be a reason why this doesn't happen. Perhaps: - Dumping the puck in on a tired defense pairing would make it harder for them to break out of the zone against a forecheck with fresh forwards. - Feeling confident in your ability to counter against a team's breakout can help potentially create odd man rushes. I do agree with you in that maintaining possession makes a lot of sense. But I feel that there's gotta be something that prevents this from being the norm

just trying to make it onto page 53 edit: just missed it

Robert Long hahaha what a beauty user name and photo

Agree!! Was hoping someone would have a replay here. I was 100% thinking the same thing, he defs got hit into the goalie but I want to see a replay to confirm

hahahahaha

Virtanen should come in for Gaudette

Virtanen should be playing where Ferland was. We need to let go of this mindset of 2015 Ferland, and go with Jake in that 3RW spot to drive offense, plus he's better suited to move up and down the lineup than Ferland since he played with the team all season

This stuff honestly is so disheartening.. why is the media putting the players through this stuff especially before a huge opportunity for the Canucks to get some playoff exposure? This could be huge for the growth of all our young players. These media clowns must not actually be fans of the team.. because this is just so unnecessary

hahahaha