MoneypuckOverlord Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 at number 6 Ritchie will be a wise choice, reason being, 6'3 229 pound wingers who can generate offense provide a physical presence, physical play, and a howister of a wrist shot don't come very often. We can easily on any given year, name 12-15 5'11 -6'1 tall 160-180 pound players from Europe or Canada, that have speed, skill and offense, mean while you probably won't be able to name a 6'3 229 offensive winger for another few years. So the smartest move for Jim Benning? Is too draft the 6'3 229 pound winger, now, while we have the chance, and while we have the option to do it, because a 6'3 229 pound offensive winger with toughness does not come by very often, especially one that is ranked his high. There will be plenty of 5'11, 6'0 sub 200 lb wingers or center mans, so thats the reason why I rather draft Ritchie. sure there might be 6'2 220 winger down the road, but based on feedback on Ritchie by fellow OHLers, is that he is a very very very strong player, that have good acceleration for someone who is 229 lbs, and have one of the deadliest wrist shots in the draft. So yes, the obvious is Ritchie. Do you really want a 5'11 European Winger? Like be honest, 5'11 offensive wingers their are plenty of this type of crap. Heck we might be able to pull of a Josh Ho Sang who is more skilled then Ehlers in the second round. Why waste the opportunity to draft a 6'3 229 pound offensive winger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoneypuckOverlord Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 You changed your mind because a player got a shoulder injury before the draft? Jeez it's not like whoever we pick is supposed to make the team right out of camp. their are some crazies here who are expecting that prospect to hopefully help out with the team asap. This is Canucks.com for ya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BanTSN Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 his concussion clearly has not affected his performance so unless his concussion haunts him 10 years later, I really don't see how that is a concernHow about concussions plus shoulder then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Absent Canuck Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 One of the many things Virtanen had going for him was his lack of serious injury. I still love the guy, but it does raise questions as to whether he will be ever be 100%. It unfortunately dropsbis draft stock and makes him unlikely to go at six. I know you disagree but I never had Virtanen being drafted at #6. Ritchie Nylander and Elhlers are better prospects. The injury will hurt him to the extent of the physical limitations he has at the combine. The interviews should still be the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plum Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 at number 6 Ritchie will be a wise choice, reason being, 6'3 229 pound wingers who can generate offense provide a physical presence, physical play, and a howister of a wrist shot don't come very often. We can easily on any given year, name 12-15 5'11 -6'1 tall 160-180 pound players from Europe or Canada, that have speed, skill and offense, mean while you probably won't be able to name a 6'3 229 offensive winger for another few years. So the smartest move for Jim Benning? Is too draft the 6'3 229 pound winger, now, while we have the chance, and while we have the option to do it, because a 6'3 229 pound offensive winger with toughness does not come by very often, especially one that is ranked his high. There will be plenty of 5'11, 6'0 sub 200 lb wingers or center mans, so thats the reason why I rather draft Ritchie. sure there might be 6'2 220 winger down the road, but based on feedback on Ritchie by fellow OHLers, is that he is a very very very strong player, that have good acceleration for someone who is 229 lbs, and have one of the deadliest wrist shots in the draft. So yes, the obvious is Ritchie. Do you really want a 5'11 European Winger? Like be honest, 5'11 offensive wingers their are plenty of this type of crap. Heck we might be able to pull of a Josh Ho Sang who is more skilled then Ehlers in the second round. Why waste the opportunity to draft a 6'3 229 pound offensive winger.Ritchie gets points, other players who play like him don't which can be a difference maker for ranking but when you reach pro points in junior don't matter, it's a fresh start. There is many 6'1-6'4 210+ pounds who can skate better than Ritchie and become a physical presence who is imtimidating. I don't see Ritchie with a mean streak, he can't play pissed off, he doesn't have the A+ in any of his attributes. Overall he is a good player, he won't be a game breaker or a guy who can win a game alone. Size means nothing in a junior draft, small fiesty kids who were just 5'10 but played big can grow into about 6'1-6'4 because their growth spurt is late. It can happen and then those players who were once "undersized" can become machines. 5'11 Europeans, I've heard plenty of those, Pavel Datsyuk, Daniel Alfredsson, Henrik Zetterberg come to mind. There's plenty of this "crap" who are also NHL superstars and future hall of famers. Ritchie is just a different player in the draft, top PWFs that get drafted in the 1st round usually don't become superstars because the ones later in the draft can be just as good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smashian Kassian Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 at number 6 Ritchie will be a wise choice, reason being, 6'3 229 pound wingers who can generate offense provide a physical presence, physical play, and a howister of a wrist shot don't come very often. We can easily on any given year, name 12-15 5'11 -6'1 tall 160-180 pound players from Europe or Canada, that have speed, skill and offense, mean while you probably won't be able to name a 6'3 229 offensive winger for another few years. So the smartest move for Jim Benning? Is too draft the 6'3 229 pound winger, now, while we have the chance, and while we have the option to do it, because a 6'3 229 pound offensive winger with toughness does not come by very often, especially one that is ranked his high. There will be plenty of 5'11, 6'0 sub 200 lb wingers or center mans, so thats the reason why I rather draft Ritchie. sure there might be 6'2 220 winger down the road, but based on feedback on Ritchie by fellow OHLers, is that he is a very very very strong player, that have good acceleration for someone who is 229 lbs, and have one of the deadliest wrist shots in the draft. So yes, the obvious is Ritchie. Do you really want a 5'11 European Winger? Like be honest, 5'11 offensive wingers their are plenty of this type of crap. Heck we might be able to pull of a Josh Ho Sang who is more skilled then Ehlers in the second round. Why waste the opportunity to draft a 6'3 229 pound offensive winger. 2009: - Evander Kane - Magnus Paajarvi - Zack Kassian - Chris Kreider - Carter Ashton - Jordan Caron - Karl Klingberg - Alex Chassion - Zach Budish - Marcus Foligno 2010: - Nino Niedderitter - Austin Watson - Charlie Coyle - Kevin Hayes - Quinton Howden - Ludvig Rensfedlt - Tom Kuhnhackl - Justin Florek - Yassin Cisse - Mark Stone 2011: - Gabe Landeskog - Tyler Biggs - Nicklas Jensen - Dimitrij Jaskin - Brett Ritchie - Alex Grenier - Marek Tvrdon - Brian Ferlin - Yaroslav Kosov - Petr Placek 2012: - Tom Wilson - Henrik Sammuelsson - Stefan Matteau - Danill Zharkov 2013: - Valeri Nichuskin - Anthony Mantha - Mike McCarron - Kerby Rychel 2014: - Brendan Perlini - Micheal Dal Colle - Nikita Scherbak - Alex Tuch I will say, not all of these guys (mainly the ones in the earlier lists) are as good as Ritchie IMO. But to say its rare to get a big offensive winger is not true, they come along every year. And while many/most of these guys aren't as good as Ritchie, this is just my counter to you coming up with a horrible list of comparisons for Ehlers as skilled players that come along every year, when alot of them aren't on his level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkstar Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 6th, Tanev, Gaunce, 2nd Is almost impossible to pass up if Buffalo really wants to go for McDavid next year. Buffalo passes on that trade. No need for Tanev or Gaunce in their system. Reinhart is much more important going forward. They aren't trading that pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Absent Canuck Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 And while many/most of these guys aren't as good as Ritchie, this is just my counter to you coming up with a horrible list of comparisons for Ehlers as skilled players that come along every year, when alot of them aren't on his level. How many 5ft 11 (yes they insist on milking his 17 year old height until the combine) 165 to 176 pound guys at age 17 score 49 goals and 104 points in their first and only year in the CHL ? He forgot to add that into his analysis. Oops. We argued this whole thing out 30 pages ago and here they are again arguing the exact same asked -and -answered questions again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Absent Canuck Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Buffalo passes on that trade. No need for Tanev or Gaunce in their system. Reinhart is much more important going forward. They aren't trading that pick. I understand the organizational needs but Tanev + Ehlers /Nylander / Ritchie > Reinhart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thad Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 The thing that I like about Ritchie is he's not just a size bull that drives the net against midget defenders for all his points like a lot of the lower ranked power forwards seem to. He's a smarter player than that. He finds the hot spots, gets to the right areas at the right times and gets an outstanding shot off very quickly. That's what seperates him from the rest and ranks him so high. That's also why I have him ahead of Virtanen. Jake has some unreal skating skills and an unbelievable shot but the points tend to come from being a one man show. I think it will be a lot easier to develop a guy like Ritchie, he's already got the frame/reach to go in and battle an nhl defender. Add to that, he's got the hockey sense to be an all around player. You get him working on his first few strides and packing on muscle for the next couple years and you could have a real star on your hands. As I've stated before if they pick someone else I'm cool with it.... but I can't help but think if every one of the top ten become all stars, I want the one who's an absolute bull and will drop the gloves if someone even looks at our next Henrik. Him and Kassian in the top six for years to come would be unreal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOMapleLaughs Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Virtanen was the best player in the U17 for Canada despite having a shoulder ailment. Thinking his injury is a total non-factor. If indeed they were considering him, the Canucks shouldn't change their minds because of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Absent Canuck Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Virtanen was the best player in the U17 for Canada despite having a shoulder ailment. Thinking his injury is a total non-factor. If indeed they were considering him, the Canucks shouldn't change their minds because of it. Dont worry . They wont. They werent going to pick him anyways. He isnt the BPA at #6. Ritchie is a bigger version of Virtanen and has a higher hockey IQ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOMapleLaughs Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Disagree. The Canucks may consider him because he's ranked 6th in CSS, has superior skating, shooting and the intangibles package that Linden was starting to refer to in his initial talks. Ritchie's superior hockey IQ, a myth, led to just 3 more points scored this season. And his superior power forward ability led to just 3 fights, and Virtanen fought more. One major factor is age. Virtanen's upside is higher because he's quite a bit younger. Leading team Canada with a shoulder injury? Not bad. Wonder what he would've done if he was 100%. Likely he'd be in the top-5. Ritchie's a bit overweight. Ehlers massively underweight. Virtanen at where you'd like players to be. Since he's just as fast as Ehlers with A-rated skating, at 40lbs more, wow, yes please. He also has a cannon of a shot. He can score in all sorts of ways and pushes defenders over instead of getting physically dominated. He's definitely worthy of consideration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baumerman77 Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Virtanen's stock won't rise or fall because of his injury. The real issue is that he can't compete in the draft combine which in itself allows prospects' stocks to rise or fall. This is a routine surgery which many players have and they all fully recover. If it was a risky/complicated surgery he would wait until he was drafted and let his new NHL team find and pay for the best doctors in the world to perform the surgery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sroutley Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 would like to see some trades that get us the oilers pick and Anaheim pick then hopefully get Reinhart, Nylander and then Virtanen that would be a great draft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JiffyPB Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 The "low hockey IQ" argument is dumb IMO. Bo Horvat didn't exactly ooze playmaking talent (he also said he patterns his game after Mike Richards, a playmaker, yet had 33 goals to 28 assists) when he was drafted either which is something you want out of a centerman unless you are Roenick or Stamkos. It isn't uncommon for players in their draft years to focus on scoring goals to get themselves noticed. Virtanen is a good passer, the only problem is he passes when he wants to pass and his 26 assists don't mean he "lacks hockey IQ." Mike Bossy disproportionately scored goals in both juniors and early in his career and he clearly didn't have low hockey IQ. I'm pretty sure any team that drafts him will discuss the fact he needs to utilize his teammates better and I'm sure he will do this if he wants to make the team. You can teach him to do that, but you sure as hell ain't teaching any player to have that deadly combination of game-breaking speed and an elite shot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baumerman77 Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Listening to Benning today, I think it is fair to say we won't be drafting Nylander or Ehlers. He continually emphasized physicality and strength. I think it is fair to say he will draft either Virtanen or Ritchie (unless one of the top 5 drop). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ForsbergTheGreat Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Listening to Benning today, I think it is fair to say we won't be drafting Nylander or Ehlers. He continually emphasized physicality and strength. I think it is fair to say he will draft either Virtanen or Ritchie (unless one of the top 5 drop). Yep, that's what I go out of it too. Calgary has it decided to four players They are guaranteed to get one of those four. Draisaitl, Reinhart, Ekblad, & Bennett It’s been said in the draft to select the BPA, but this year it’s too close to determine what player is actually better. So since players are that close in skill I can see many teams selecting to their team needs. Both Bennett and Reinhart can play wing but down the stretch Bennett was playing wing. I can see Reinhart slipping somewhat because of this. EDM will likely pick him up at third. Buffalo Hodgson Grigorenko Girgenson Florida Huberdeau Bjudstad Barkov Trade depending, top five likely go in the order of: FLA –Ekblad BUF – Bennett EDM – Reinhart CGY – Draisaitl NYI – Dal Colle Islanders have decided to keep their pick this year so I think it’s safe to say they are picking one of the top 5, Likely Dal colle is the guy who’s available. It will really come down to what the Oilers decide to do. There’s a lot of talk that they like what Ritchie can bring to their top 6 as they are currently lacking size. If Reinhart or Ekblad are available I think they take them, if they are gone I can see them either trading down, or selecting Ritchie 3rd overall. Canucks either draft Richtie or Virtanen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOMapleLaughs Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Does anyone hear crickets? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warhippy Posted May 23, 2014 Share Posted May 23, 2014 Virtanen was the best player in the U17 for Canada despite having a shoulder ailment. Thinking his injury is a total non-factor. If indeed they were considering him, the Canucks shouldn't change their minds because of it. At 17 years an 6 months old, a shoulder injury is NOT something I qorry about unless he has a similar injury later on. Jeez...at 17 years old I had a knee injury 2 broken arms a fractured wrist and a shattered jaw and I healed super quick. Now at 32 I get drunk I need 3 days to recover Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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