Vinny in Vancouver

It feels eerily like the same situation here - disgruntled, young, skilled, potential 1C player who has shown flashes of being great. Maybe Montreal bites again?

Didn't Drouin do it as well?

I think Winnipeg will ask for Nick Suzuki in return for PLD. Not sure what Montreal will say to that.

Since his last name rhymes with Demko, maybe "Menko"... On one end of the ice, you get Demko'ed and on the other end, you get Menko'ed.

Is Jon Cooper one of the more underrated coaches in the league? I understand that he has a star-studded team, but he also seems to manage to make these little adjustments in every game that get his team to perform better.

Loved him during the World Juniors. My impression of him then: high hockey IQ, plays better with good linemates, very high compete level, great leadership - teammates seem to love playing with him, plus skills everywhere (imho) but not necessarily great at any one thing, plays both ends of the ice well. Since then, I haven't seen him much of him.

Brayden Point was the same height and lighter when he was drafted. Very similar offensive production. Similar game. He has the speed and skill that JR said he wants.

If we pass on Savoie, I'm going to be very disappointed.

I think we're drafting a Russian.

The old Oilers would have been out in the 1st round, imho. I also think the Oilers adjusted to Calgary after the first game, and Sutter, who just won Coach of the Year, was badly out-maneuvered by Woodcroft. Sure, the Flames had lost Tanev, but apparently, Nurse was playing with a nurse injury. And as we can see so far in the finals, the Avalanche are not just "an actual NHL team" - even without Kadri and Girard, they have been doing so well. So I give some credit where I think credit is due in this case. But as far as them being actual Cup contenders, imho, it won't happen until they shore up their D, get a real goaltender and get McDavid to actually play a 2-way game.

It sounds like I'm in the minority here, but I thought he did a great job during the playoffs as I honestly didn't think they'd go that far. He also sounded knowledgeable in the admittedly few times I heard him speak. Now, does that warrant a 3-year deal? I guess we'll see how much his annual salary is...

If you ask for PLD in the Jets forum, they will ask for Petey or Hughes back which is obviously a big 'no' for us. They think PLD is a cornerstone for their franchise.

In NJ, won't Horvat play 3C for them? Jack Hughes and Hischier are probably already entrenched as 1C and 2C. The 2nd overall pick seems like a high price to pay for a 3C.

It's probably true that Cale Makar knows the alleged perpetrators, but since Cale wasn't part of it, it can get tricky for him if the person he heard it from denies saying what Makar said he heard: Makar: "X told me that he and the others did it." X: "I didn't say that at all."

Hockey Canada says no government funds used in lawsuit settlement: https://www.tsn.ca/hockey-canada-says-no-government-funds-used-in-lawsuit-settlement-1.1812882 So I guess a sponsor forked over the money or a rich hockey player?

That's what I think so as well. Who was the last player who happily relinquished his C to a teammate?

I really like Bo as a player - especially Bubble Bo. If every one is as dedicated to maximizing his talent as Bo is, we would be a perennial playoff team. But if there really is a country club atmosphere and if the reported locker room issues are true, doesn't that speak negatively of how good a captain is? If he's struggling to influence the locker room, should the Canucks find someone else who can do that job? A few Canucks have already said that Bo is very quiet in the locker room. On the other hand, Quinn Hughes has said that JT Miller is the emotional leader of the locker room - should JT be the Captain instead? Would Bo accept that?

One thing I want all of the Canucks' players to do all the time that these 2 teams do well is: back check.

Umm, the concerns came from Byram's own father: https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/report-avalanches-byram-told-father-cant-play-feel-like/ .

But, wouldn't he be an analytics darling? Surely, his hockey IQ is very high?

Man, I hate these media spreading all of these negative Canucks news. First, they don't support us when we get to the Finals. Now, they just pile it on after a tough season when the Canucks almost miraculously make the playoffs. It's almost like they want to snuff out all the positivity with the Vancouver franchise.

So I checked the all-knowing Internet to see what a "country club atmosphere" means, and what I found is that a country club atmosphere is an environment with reduced workloads and low expectations. Basically, we have a bunch of slackers. Imho, that's usually on coaching, but since the coach has been replaced, it's now on the players especially the team captain. I just know how JR can keep Bo and call the atmosphere a country club atmosphere at the same time...

FTFY. Tank hard for Be-dard???

Apparently, Nurse was playing through a torn hip flexor. Ouch. https://www.cbssports.com/fantasy/hockey/news/oilers-darnell-nurse-played-through-hip-injury/