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baumerman77

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Everything posted by baumerman77

  1. It is very impressive how solid Virtanen is on his skates. Whenever someone trys to hit him they normally bounce off him. Even at the end of plays when someone intiates shoulder contact they normal get the worse end of it. A couple of solid offseasons to gain more muscle and Virtanen could be a physical force in the NHL.
  2. Agreed. We should dump Miller for whatever we can get even if its a late draft pick. Next year actually allow Markstrom to go through the entire year as a backup without the threat of being sent down and work with him over whatever confidence issues he might have at the NHL level.
  3. Too bad. I hope he gets an WC invite.
  4. I think management will ask first if he is a 100% healthy. And if he is they'll say the choice is his but that they want him to go there. I think it would be great for him to go down there on a deep run getting a ton of minutes.
  5. Time for Bo to go on a playoff run with the Comets.
  6. I doubt he plays for the Canucks but it is very likely that he will play for the Comets.
  7. It is also important to keep in mind that Virtanen was only a few weeks away from being in this years draft. He's one of the youngest 2014 draftees and he is coming off shoulder surgery. I too am disappointed by his season, but he I think the adversity could be good for his development largely because it should ensure he has another much need season in junior.
  8. Am I the only one who wants the Hitmen to lose so that Virtanen can play some AHL games?
  9. I've seen a handful of Hitmen games live this year and this is a fairly accurate observation in my opinion. Often times Virtanen will comeback like a center for the D-zone breakout, instead of streaking up the boards like a center is suppose to. I think this is because they lack a strong second line center. I think we will see Virtanen take off next year in junior when he gets first line minutes with a first line center.
  10. I agree a very disappointing season. I wasn't expecting his goals per game to be at the same level of his draft year but I expected much higher point production. This isn't to say he was the wrong pick. We all know that he started the season hurt, his deployment could have been mismanaged, he is very young, etc. I would like to see him go to Utica for a few games at the end of the Hitmen season. I think there is very little downside to giving him one more year of junior to develop. He could gain confidence and hone in his offensive skills, he could take on a leadership role on the Hitmen and at the WJC, he could work on his defence and his discipline. I know everyone wants the Canucks propsects to develop fast but Virtanen should take the slow route at least for now.
  11. If the draft was held one year later (thus the 2014 draft class would be drafted this spring) does everyone think that Virtanen still gets picked 6th by the Canucks? I doubt it, but hope it works out. (Full disclosure, I was/am a big Virtanen fan. Going into the draft last year he was the guy I wanted the Canucks to draft. However, I am a bigger fan of pushing the draft back one year).
  12. I'll be going to a couple of the Hitmen v Ice games. I'm hoping Kootenay wins the series so that Virtanen can go to the Comets for the rest of the year.
  13. There is so little down side with him playing another year in junior and a significant upside to it. I hope he plays another year of junior no need to rush prospects.
  14. This could end up being a good trade or a very bad trade. He has top 6 skill that's for sure. He needs to increase his physicality, but he is very good. The major risk component comes this summer. His contract is up and he is an RFA. He asked Burke to be traded because he doesn't want to play in the AHL anymore. The question becomes how much does he demand? Not only in cap hit but I would assume he wants a one way deal. If he doesn't get it, he could easily walk and go play in Europe. That is the risk. I'm starting to think he either told the flames that or the flames believe that is what he may do. Think about it, why would the flames give up a 22 year old 13th overall pick for what will likely be a 45+ overall pick? It could end up very bad if he decides to walk this summer and we lose our 2nd rounder for nothing. I am not saying that will happen, but from my point of view that's the risk.
  15. Amazing hands and a fast skater. Here's to hoping he's big enough to make it in the NHL.
  16. I never said the need for youth was irrational. I think our core is old too. My concern is how we go about bringing in the youth. There are many good reasons why a prospect should not make the jump to the NHL even though they are good enough here are a few of those arguments: 1. Add size/strength: Some players who have great offensive and defensive skill that would allow them to play in the NHL so that they can be more effective in using that skill in the NHL. 2. Injuries: Tied into point 1 if a player is recovering from an injury why risk re-injurying in the NHL, where the play is faster and the hits are harder. 3. Confidence: These players are use to being one of the best players on the ice. It is hard to predict how they would respond to taking a lower role in the NHL. Our own Kassian is a good example. He constantly talks (before his recent success) about needing to score. He still thinks of himself as a scorer, he is having trouble accepting that he may need to be a different player in the NHL. Shinkaruk seems to be down on himself this year for his point total. In many interviews he contends that he is a scorer (which I agree) and that he needs to score more. It's a big adjustment from junior to the pros (even the AHL). No need to ruin a players confidence. 4. Maturity: Similar to the point on confidence, it is difficult to know how a 19 year old (or an 18 year old) will respond to playing in the NHL from a maturity stand point. Higher levels of responsibility away from the ice may be overwhelming and translate negatively onto the ice. People only need to think back to when they were 18 or 19. Conversely, playing and being a leader in junior can allow prospects to mature positively and learn how to deal with responsibility. 5. Salary Cap/ Contract: I don't think anyone hear would argue that Virtanen at age 20, 21, 22 will be better than Virtanen age 19,20,21. If he stays in junior an extra year we get more bang for our buck. Moreover, this causes a ripple effect as his next bridge contract will come when he is entering his prime which will once again give us more bang for our buck. Furthermore, he will be an RFA for an extra year. Lastly, I don't think anyone here sees us as major contenders for the next few years (especially not next year) why not time his contract to match when the team becomes competitive again? A good example would be Sam Reinhart. He was definitely good enough to make buffalo and to make them a better team. By sending him back to junior: they didn't have to burn a year of his contract when their team was horrible; it allowed them to tank even better; and it helped Reinhart grow as a player skill wise and leader through his WHL team and WJC. Of course there are also reasons for bring a prospect in earlier. One that is significant is to appease fans. Horvat is making the Canucks money through ticket sales and jersey sales etc. Don't get me wrong I love to see exciting prospects play, but to say that there is no good reasons for not playing a prospect that is good enough to play in the NHL is just for a lack of trying. Virtanen's big hit last night:
  17. I mean that the fanbase desires an injection of young talent. Popular opinion, at least from my vantage point, is that the fans largely think the core is past their prime and a new wave of talent has to play a bigger role moving forward for the team to be successful. I'm not saying that a prospect will make the team solely to placate the fanbase, but that it is a factor and that it could be a deciding factor next year with Virtanen. I strongly disagree with the idea that just because a prospect is good enough to play in the NHL they should.
  18. I really hope they take their time with Virtanen. I don't want him to lose the power forward element of his game. There is no way he will be able to put his inside shoulder down and drive to the net on a consistent basis in the NHL over the next couple years. I hope he goes back to junior next year and start the following season in the AHL. Although I doubt that will happen. Benning seems to want to appease the fanbase by bringing in younger talent.
  19. He's probably facing worse competition now that he isn't on the top line.
  20. 1. Go back and re-read what I actually wrote. I think you read meaning into it that wasn't there. 2. Shooting percentage is higher in junior and that does not take away from what I said. His first two seasons (71 games) he shot at .27 Goals Per Game and then he went up to .63GPG and then this year he went back to .42GPG. In essence, you are saying that he has been much more unlucky the seasons before and this current season. All I am saying is that he very likely had a high shooting percentage in his draft year. That is much more likely than his draft year being his "average" and the 71 games before last year and the 36 games this year being well below average. It is basic probable distribution. In fact, if his shooting percentage has been very consistent over his junior career, that is a much worse sign for him as a prospect because that means a huge decline this year from last. I can see that you are new here (and welcome it is a great place) but reading comprehension seems to be the biggest factor in misunderstandings. It is always in one's best interest to thoroughly read a post before criticizing it.
  21. If you read what I wrote I said "likely". And it was likely a combination of a high shooting percentage last year and a low shooting percentage this year. I am not sure you fully understood what I said because you are misrepresenting my post. Think about it he scored about 35 even strength goals last year. If he was at 15% shooting percentage that means he would have averaged 3.7 even strength shots per game. That is highly unlikely considering he was not on the top line. If he shot at 20% which is very high (unsustainable) he would have averaged 2.5 even strength shots per game a figure much more likely to be true. Once again it's probability if you look at all three seasons of his junior seasons it seems reasonable that a high (unsustainable) shooting percentage led to his 35 even strength goal output. That's not necessarily a bad thing. I like Virtanen, I was one of his biggest advocates leading up to the draft last year on CDC. I also live in Calgary and have seen him numerous times live and I really like what I see.
  22. I don't know, just speculating. But it seems to make the most sense. For some reason the WHL has horrible stats. The Q has shot stats, they probably aren't very reliable but better than nothing.
  23. It is a mistake to think that Virtanen's goal scoring last year was his "normal" production and that this year it is down. Last year he was likely riding an unsustainable high shooting percentage (he got lucky to a certain extent). However, he could be experience an abnormally low shooting percentage this year (one would hope). It is likely a combination of both. Similar to Horvat's goal scoring this year (his first 44 games). He's shooting percentage is very likely to regress down from 18.2%. Even with an increase in ice time it is unlikely that Horvat will score 8 goals in his next 44 games.
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