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Everything posted by Solinar
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I'm high on Boldy myself, but if Boldy is taken, and we walk away with Caufield, I wouldn't be disappointed. Zegras and Soderstrom would be okay with me as well, depending on who's left on the board. Hell, I wanted Glass and was floored when we took Pettersson, but wasn't disappointed either. Last year I thought we were going to take Dobson, but I didn't count on Zadina and Hughes being there in the mix for where we were picking. Bet Detroit was laughing as they walked up to the podium, even more so when they took Veleno. Same with NYI getting Dobson and Wahlstrom. I think we'll be pleasantly surprised with the player we get in that range, and with the proper development, there could be a star there.
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We need skill. We need people with elite hockey iq, and great skating. We don't necessarily have to go with the big player, but we need players, whatever their size, that exhibit skills, hockey sense, ability to read the play, but importantly, tenacity. The ability to play thru the pressure, when it gets tight. To adapt when the other team is trying to stifle yours. For years, we've had, off and on, the talent in some areas, but we've never had a team that was deep enough to roll thru when the other team shuts down your top line. To that end, I wouldn't necessarily rule out a guy that is the best player available, due to his size. That just makes it so you have to concentrate on being able to put said player, if you choose him, in a position to succeed. You identify the player as 1 of 3 on a front line unit, and build the rest of the line to balance it out. Same thing on the back end. If you choose player x, do you have player y or z to make that player the best possible player they can be? Do you have to change styles, do you have to do something different in the way you approach the game. That falls on management and good team building.
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Brian Burke on changing the Draft Lottery Format
Solinar replied to Generational.EP40's topic in General Hockey Discussion
When this was introduced, it was not only to punish a team like Edmonton and Buffalo, who purposely put their teams into play for first by being beyond terrible, but to give teams that were bubble playoff teams a chance at selecting a player that would help propel them into the playoffs and out of lottery contention, and to that end, it has worked. You look at Winnipeg, got Laine, haven't been in lotto contention since. Dallas got their pick, and that pick was a major part of them making the playoffs this year. We might find ourselves next year just outside the playoffs, but close, like Montreal was. I'd hope that we'd be able to pick up that top pick and become a contender in the same situation. -
The more I hear, the more I start to wonder about Utica. We haven't had a lot of success coming out of the small club, and you can cite a variety of reasons. To begin with, there as a lack of high end talent because of years of drafting low. Then we started drafting high, but high end prospects graduated to the club directly instead of via the farm team, much the same way Edmonton has done. We call guys up, and it isn't like they light the world on fire, and immediately go back down when our own questionable players come back from injury. The organisation needs to take a good long look at our player development model, and fix a situation so that we can start a true pipeline of players coming in to supplement the team for years to come. And it certainly doesn't bode well when we take our better prospects and trade them out for sideways project players. That being said, I think it is a problem that can be dealt with easily. You have to commit some time and money into your AHL development model, bring in more supplemental skills coaches, and be more focused in drafting beyond rounds 1 and 2, so that you are gaining guys to work in your system that'll compliment each other. If you have skilled wingers, you better have some skilled centres to play with. If you have an offensive defense, gain some guys who can support them defensively while they create. Sniper needs a guy to feed him a shot, and a physical guy to go to the net. You need the right mix to bring out full potential, and hopefully then you'll end up with a system where the players not only work together, but work to even out the warts in their game, and excel in the areas that made them intriguing to draft in the first place.
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I have to agree with you Nuxfanabroad. I haven't watched or supported the big 3 in almost as long, other than Superbowl, but that's to eat wings and watch commercials with my friends and family. Hockey fan till the day I die, or I finally get tired of the blind zebras that always seem to call things against our team. As for the topic of the thread, I agree that this will be the last year where missing the playoffs is definitely in the cards, tho I'm still holding out hope that we're close. There is something special about our team, and if we can get Juolevi, Hughes, Woo into the fold and have them all pan out, we're going to make some noise!
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(Discussion) Sign Duchene 7yrs/49m, yay or nay?
Solinar replied to billabong's topic in Proposals and Armchair GM'ing
He will probably go to San Jose, the NHL's home from troubled youth, and recover from his foibles in Colorado and Ottawa -
Hughes has stated he's comfortable playing both sides, but his natural tendency would be towards the LHD position. And we aren't exactly weak on the right side with our prospect pool either, so I wouldn't be surprised to see a Hughes Juolevi Hutton Left side in the future. Our right side should definitely have Stecher and Woo in the future if everything pans out, and it will be interesting to see who survives the longest, Gudbranson or Tanev within the organisation.
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And as for Edmonton, I think Lowe should be gone, if only to remove a voice that is good at deflecting away from the things that need to happen in that organisation. They need to hire a better player development staff, go with some continuity on coaching, and learn how to sell high on extraneous forwards with skill to address organisational needs. They get caught up in the game of having too many of this, and not enough of that, but unwilling to divest themselves of players they should really cut bait with. Nuge or Draisatl should have been sold to upgrade the team, regardless of how well they play at 'one' position. This is a team that needs a talent on the wing to play with McDavid, needs 2 more high end defensemen, and at this point...should consider an upgrade in goal, but I'd say more importantly, upgrade in goaltending coach. Ranford would look great back there if they could pry him out of where he is now, or Sean Burke.
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People look to drafting, and if you aren't pulling guys from rounds beyond the first, they blame the scouts. Sometimes that's true, but sometimes that's awfully misleading. Drafting is just part of the process when you're dealing with prospects, but a big percentage has to go to player development. You need structure, continuity, and proper support at all levels when you're guiding a bunch of teenagers into one of the toughest leagues in pro sports. From nutrition, to mental preparation, to the physical grind of living the gym life, to skills coaches to expand and upgrade deficiencies in players games and grow areas that are already strong. You look at how much has changed in our organisation who finally under Gillis got an AHL team of our own with our own staff and development crew, and how much they've grown over the past few years. We are FINALLY starting to see dividends from something that we began almost a decade ago. Sometimes its the easy button to get a guy at the top end of the draft. They are naturally above their peers in all categories and you just plug and play them into the line up and try to support them from there up. The real tell of how well an organisation is doing, is looking at the ones that produce no matter what. Detroit used to be the jewel in the crown of the story of player development. Now I'd have to argue Tampa and San Jose are. But Vancouver is also on its way up, and due to some savvy moves in the AHL, to some good choices in the draft (which is basically scratch lotto tickets). By next years draft time, and another class graduating to the AHL, we should be happy with our team for a good long time.
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Juolevi is set on a slow burn, and is being acclimated to the role he's going to have to play in a savvy way. Think of the numbers he's putting up, the logjam at his position in the NHL, and the numbers game. He should be able to come onto the team next year, and fill a spot automatically in the vacuum created by Edler's and Del Zotto's exit. We'll have Hughes, Juolevi, and Hutton on the left side, with Tanev, Stecher, and Gudbranson on the right, with Chatfield and Woo being groomed to fill out spots vacated in time on the right side. Sautner and Brisebois are being groomed to fill out the bottom L spot on the line for injuries. And to contract status, the d-men will all be staggered contractually along with our forward prospects to give us maximum flexibility as veterans are coming off of the books on the big club. It may be frustrating, but we aren't these players away on the big team to competing for the Stanley Cup this year. Our window is 2-3 years out at this point and we will need all of these guys to achieve/over-achieve to make the goal of winning the cup.
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Ryan O'reilly is an upgrade for a good St. Louis squad, and they didn't have to give up anything terrible roster wise to get him. The futures are the futures, but the prospect pool stays in place, and has some hot names in it as well. Sure hope Buffalo can draft out of the top 10, because if they can't, they lost this trade.
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Then you look at Marner, who almost uses the checks he receives to pinwheel off and keep on going. He isn't out there trying to avoid it, but use the hits to keep the play going.
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And I'm more than willing for some other team to get handcuffed with that contract, I just don't really believe that the Canucks need that possible anchor hanging around our necks when we already have an Eriksson I give him 2.5, 2.75, 3.00, 3.00 with million dollar bonus in each year for performance. Give me 20 pts to go along with all of that intangibility! You want 2nd pairing money, show me and its yours.
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Hmm, if I had to choose between Manson and Gudbranson, I'm not sure Gudbranson would get a thought.....I'm okay with what he brings to the table, but I'm not okay paying a 3rd pairing guy with injury issues that kind of money when he brings about 10 pts a season to the table and doesn't bring more toughness than Biega most nights. We'd have to be banking on the fact that we haven't seen the best that he can be, that he's going to grow measurably as a defenseman under our watch. I'm not sure if I'd be willing to lock into that kind of bet at this point.
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With watching Gadjovich at juniors, in Penticton, and now on the world stage, I just can't help but be impressed with his hockey sense, his grit, and toughness on the puck during puck battles. If I could give him Virtanen's wheels, he'd most assuredly already be on the big club, and a definite force. Have to admire the guy for knowing his role, and doing it well. Can't wait to see him develop into a top 6 forward, and think he'd definitely compliment Petterson.
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Just got back home from the young stars Tournament in Penticton, and have to say, really enjoyed the Canucks squad this year. Lind, Gadjovich, Chatfield, Juolevi, and Carcone really impressed. Chatfield and Carcone looked like men on a mission, Lind and Gadjovich make me hopeful for the future, and Juolevi reminds me a lot of Tanev but with more offensive sensibilities. Calm, cool, collected. Gadjovich's play was impressive, as he was everything that was advertised, and could really see him being our power forward if he can improve his skating. His hockey sense, ability to handle the play in the corners, and nose for the net are impressive to say the least. If he can do for his skating something similar to Horvat, we are going to be scary.