(Proposal) standing pat

[DrChill]

Canucks

This is how I see canucks next year barring a trade. Honestly not a bad looking lineup, not amazing.

Oh ya, buy out booth!

Sedin Sedin Jensen/Burrows

Horvat/Kassian Kesler Jensen/Burrows

Higgins Matthias Kassian/Horvat

Dalpe Richardson Hansen

Sestito/ Schroeder

I see the rest of your youth getting a year in Utica

I believe trading Schroeder too a eastern team would be to his benefit. I don't see him as a long term option for the canucks nothing against him, but Gaunce is a better option in bottom six in my mind. Matthias makes him really expendable.

A trade for another pick that hasn't produced like Connelly in TBay.

Schroeder and 4th for Connelly

I see all decent UFA to be over paid for way too long term contracts.

The defence.

Who can play with Edler ??

Edler ????

Hamhuis Tanev

Garrison Bieksa

Maybe an idea. Would be reuniting hammer and Bieksa, which gets Tanev to be the steady partner for Edler.

Edler Tanev

Hamhuis Bieksa

Garrison ????

This spot with Garrison in my mind should be filled with a right handed Dman. Garrison is better on the left.

Personally I would like it to be filled by Corrado. Have Stanton as the 7th. I know some think Stanton should get the spot but honestly he doesn't fit with group of the big 4 and getting Edler, Hamhuis, and Garrison all on the left.

That leaves Weber as a 8th Dman, which Torts doesn't like but could go in Dalpe spot on left wing 4th line. Or trade for picks?

What do you think?

[c00kies]

Edler and Hansen need to be traded. Sestito needs to be an extra and not a regular.

Jensen will start with the team.

Burrows-Henrik-Jensen

Daniel-Kesler-Kassian*

Higgins-Horvat-Matthias*

Santorelli*-Richardson-Archibald

Hamhuis-Bieksa

Garrison-Tanev*

Stanton*-???

Corrado

Lack
Markstrom

• We could add a big name UFA forward like Callahan to add to our top 6, which would knock Kassian (or whomever) to the 3rd line.
• Could sign a depth forward, or/and re-sign Santo.
• Could get a UFA d-man to fill the bottom pairing, as well as re-sign our own d-men.
• Could sign a veteran goalie to split games with Lack.

*= needs to be re-signed.

[Alex Burrows 14]

I really really like it. Sign a veteran goalie to split time with lack for a year or two. Brodeur! Or halak. And were set

[Zoolander]

Jensen needs to stick with the team, and I'd like Edler and his -29 traded.

Shinkaruk and Horvat would be nice to see as well as Virtanen or whoever we draft.

Side note: If we drafted Fleury I think he could play almost instantly. Phenominal skater who's 210lbs and plays a solid Tanev/Hamhuis-like 2-way game

[fanfor42]

OP you've taken the current lineup, added Horvat and removed Booth. This is supposed to be an improved team? Or are you saying that they won't be any better but you are ok with that?

[Phil_314]

OP you've taken the current lineup, added Horvat and removed Booth. This is supposed to be an improved team? Or are you saying that they won't be any better but you are ok with that?

Honestly the foundation here is still able to compete if not win most nights. The whole "tear down the barn" plan often leads to more harm than good. Why do we even need a fire-sale anyways?

Burr - Hank - Jensen (This chemistry could really mean the forming of a new top line)

The second line's most likely a mixture of Kes, Kass/ Hansen and Higgins/Danny/Shink. If they can gel I think they can still win and transition into another era if all goes well. If Kes gets dealt though, they better get a young Top-6 center back otherwise this team won't be in a good place going forward (unless of course Horvat or Matthias are ready for the Top 6 in the long run). In short, why burn everything and start over if, by adding some pieces, they can get it done in short order?

[DrChill]

OP you've taken the current lineup, added Horvat and removed Booth. This is supposed to be an improved team? Or are you saying that they won't be any better but you are ok with that?

I think all would agree most canucks have had bad years.

Next year I hope they do better, and insert youth, like Jensen is now doing and getting our offense going.

Just trying to be realistic. Tear it all down isn't likely.

I would trade Edler, but his value is low, and his skill set would then be missing.

[slappipappi]

 

I really really like it. Sign a veteran goalie to split time with lack for a year or two. Brodeur! Or halak. And were set

 

You do understand that you would then lose Markstrom on waivers?

[Alex Burrows 14]

  

You do understand that you would then lose Markstrom on waivers?

But we wouldn't. Don't put him on waivers.

[DrChill]

 

 

You do understand that you would then lose Markstrom on waivers?

Why would you lose him to waivers? Is he waiver eligible? Even so you could start him in Utica and not bring him up or down. No waivers

[elvis15]

You do understand that you would then lose Markstrom on waivers?

But we wouldn't. Don't put him on waivers.

Why would you lose him to waivers? Is he waiver eligible? Even so you could start him in Utica and not bring him up or down. No waivers

He's waiver eligible next year and every eligible player has to clear waivers at the start of the year if they are sent down to the AHL. You can't just start them in the AHL, or else we would have done that with Grabner and Schroeder, Chicago would have done that with Stanton and Carolina would have done that with Dalpe.

Markstrom is eligible because he's played 3 years already and becomes eligible in his 4th year. He'd also have become eligible if he'd played 20 more games.

http://capgeek.com/waiver-calculator/?player_id=1771&NHL_games=52&pro_games_radio=1&Calculate=

[Alex Burrows 14]

He's waiver eligible next year and every eligible player has to clear waivers at the start of the year if they are sent down to the AHL. You can't just start them in the AHL, or else there wouldn't be players like Grabner and Dalpe traded when the risk of them being lost on waivers is too great.

Ok, so? We don't send him to the minors then. We have 3 goalies

[elvis15]

Uh, no. We won't likely be keeping 3 goalies. Please, tell me a team that's had success doing that over a full season.

Some teams are forced into it short term until they're comfortable making a decision on sending someone down or trading them, but I highly doubt we decide to keep Lack, Markstrom and another backup all year.

[hockeyguy1234]

I think all would agree most canucks have had bad years.

Next year I hope they do better, and insert youth, like Jensen is now doing and getting our offense going.

Just trying to be realistic. Tear it all down isn't likely.

I would trade Edler, but his value is low, and his skill set would then be missing.

I blame this on Tortorella. He needs to go or we'll have another similiar result next year. His style completely killed our offense and broke down our star players.

[slappipappi]

Honestly the foundation here is still able to compete if not win most nights. The whole "tear down the barn" plan often leads to more harm than good. Why do we even need a fire-sale anyways?

Is that you Daryl Sutter?

When your core is aging and regressing, your team is getting worse.

You keep patching up a crumbling house over an unstable foundation, and your house will eventually collapse.

And then your are stating over with quite a bit less than you could have.

[SID.IS.SID.ME.IS.ME]

I think there might actually be something to the idea of "standing pat" for the most part, at least for 2014-15. We've already gone through some significant changes.

Lu (and his contract) are gone. There's a young tandem in net. We finally have a big, rugged, 3rd line centre with upside in Matthias.

If Kesler hasn't given up on this team, and given the rumoured weak returns we've been hearing, then you try to re-tool the roster with him staying.

I think this season has opened the door to some new thinking around how the Sedins are used.

And there might be something to the idea of splitting-up the twins, at 5v5, and reuniting on the PP.

This allows the Canucks to give Kesler his top-six, playmaking winger. That winger being Daniel Sedin.

Give Horvat every chance to make the team. Same goes for all the top prospects.

I've seen some version of these forward lines going around the boards lately:

Burrows-Henrik-Jensen

Daniel-Kesler-Kassian

Higgins-Horvat-Santorelli

Matthias-Richardson-Hansen

Basically, a 1A/1B and 3A/3B system that rolls four lines.

Those would be the opening night lines. Shinkaruk, Gaunce, Fox, et cetera would all be options for call-ups later in the year or for injury relief.

As for the D, you keep all the main pieces:

Edler, Hamhuis, Bieksa, Garrison, Tanev, Stanton, Weber

And the young, dynamic duo of Lack/Markstrom in the net.

I've run the numbers on a 23 man roster with these players (including reasonably generous extensions) and, after a compliance buyout for David Booth, you still have somewhere in the $5-7 million range left over under the salary cap.

Here's where it gets interesting.

Do the Canucks trust that they'll get value out of their young forwards and also see rebound seasons from the twins and Burrows? Do we really need to spend money on a UFA forward for the top-six?

When do we start expecting (and planning for) our prospect pool to finally yield a top-six impact forward? Maybe the time is now.

Personally, I'd like to see what happens with a youth infusion (beginning with Jensen and Kassian as full-time top-six players and also by seeing call-ups throughout the season based on who's scoring in Utica) plus clearing Booth's dead weight (salary and lineup spot) from the roster.

Do the Canucks instead take a run at a smooth skating offensive defenseman with good hands?

I've been giving a lot of thought lately to the idea of stealing Matt Niskanen away from Pittsburgh. Given the Pens' cap situation, they really can't afford to spend much more than a $4 million AAV on an extension (assuming they also keep Orpik).

And before Niskanen's breakout season (and Letang's health/injury issues), Niskanen wasn't really in their longterm plans. If was a question of when, and not if, he would be moving on.

Maybe that's still the case, with the Pens hoping Letang stays healthy in 2014-15, looking to bring Maata into a full role, and hoping to re-sign Brooks Orpik (which will cost them). Sure, they'd love to keep Niskanen as insurance but they probably can't afford him anymore.

Should the Canucks take a gamble with a high bid on Niskanen (if he tests free agency)?

He's an intriguing player. He's having a breakout season right now and some Pens fans (many who are wary of losing him) will try to downplay the recent success and scoring. However, many of these same people will also quietly admit that Niskanen's jump in production has been quietly brewing for a couple seasons and that he's just seized the opportunities afforded to him this season (due to D injuries and increased role/icetime).

This season, Niskanen is on pace for nearly 50 points and close to a +40.

For those less familiar with Niskanen's game, here are a couple of the scouting reports (from the usual places):

Niskanen is a player who is blessed with great hands and tremendous offensive abilities. He has great poise and patience with the puck and has been that he can also be quite creative with it. Niskanen is an agile skater. He combines smoothness with a good burst speed and transitions remarkably well. He moves with the puck very well and can make some beautiful tape-to-tape passes. He has a very good shot with a quick release and has no trouble getting pucks to the net. Niskanen is a very smart player with good hockey sense. One area where he has noticeably matured has been in his sense of knowing when to join the play. In his sophomore season Niskanen made great progress in his positional play, paying greater attention to his defensive responsibilities.

Is an incredible athlete and superb skater. Owns a lot of offensive ability, including a good point shot, but is also capable of playing in all game situations.

And added bonus is that this season has seen Niskanen gain recognition as a strong leader and a valued voice in the dressing room. A recent article out of Pittsburgh (can't find it right now) talked about how nearly all the young players on the Pens actually look to Niskanen (ahead of the other vets and leaders in that room) as their "role model" and have expressed gratitude for him helping them stay level headed in adjusting to the NHL and feeling comfortable playing at that level.

Not a bad type to have around during a re-tool.

It's also worth noting that Niskanen and his agent have been expecting him to be traded for the past couple of years and while he's still happy playing in Pittsburgh, he's also been prepared and ready for a change for a good while now.

This is a guy who's coming into his prime and is ready to make a big impact.

And if there's a team in this league that needs a guy with Niskanen's talent and upside, it's the Vancouver Canucks.

Niskanen is 6'0", 210lbs, 27 years old, RH shot. He's an amazing natural athlete and has excellent habits when it comes to fitness, conditioning, and offseason preparation. He oozes offensive ability but has also tightened up his defensive play (a former weakness). Can play in all situations but would thrive in an offensive role. Skates very well, handles the puck with ease, has good vision and passing skills, creative with the puck, doesn't rush the play or get too anxious, has both a quick release and a heavy shot, gets pucks through and on net, and has strong offensive instincts.

Sound like a good fit?

Of course, there's some risk. He's never produced numbers before (at the NHL level) like he has this season. And as a UFA, he'll need to get paid like a potential 50-point D by the team who wants to buy his services. But like I've said many times, the Canucks are desperate for a slick skating, offensively creative puck-moving D with some soft hands and good puck handling. As far as free agency goes, I don't see better candidates available in the 2014 UFA crop.

I would imagine that $5 million AAV (with longer term) or $6 million AAV (on a short term "show me you're worth it" deal) could get it done. I don't see the Pens going higher than $4-4.5 million (and they hope to keep him under $4 million). If the Canucks can get the rest of their house in order (and lock down 22-23 players while leaving another $6 million left to play with), then maybe they should get in early on free agency and spend big dollars one one key addition.

I've been thinking for a while that one good puckmoving D (of the strong skating puck-rushing variety) could fix several of the main problems we've seen with this team's stagnating powerplay and overall struggle to score goals (in any game situation).

Sorry to hijack the thread but what do people think about this idea?

"Stand pat and add Matt."

Kind of has a nice ring to it.

[DrChill]

Won't lie loving burrows sedin Jensen line.

This really makes me feel next year second line should be

D Sedin Kesler ??????

Daniel is that playmaking winger for kesler that he has needed.

Sedin sedin kesler Jensen dmen on the PP

The question is who is the 3rd guy on that 2nd line. I would liketo see Kassian but the more I watch the less likely if torts is coach that will happen.

Barring a UFA signing that could be a young gun

Shinkaruk

Horvat

Or

Higgins/Hansen who both should be on 3rd with Matthias .

[elvis15]

...

Burrows-Henrik-Jensen

Daniel-Kesler-Kassian

Higgins-Horvat-Santorelli

Matthias-Richardson-Hansen

Basically, a 1A/1B and 3A/3B system that rolls four lines.

...

"Stand pat and add Matt."

Kind of has a nice ring to it.

Those lines are excellent from a depth perspective, the only question will be how does the top end perform. I'm not entirely sure Santorelli's back, but would provide a little upgrade as a top 6 replacement over Hansen - but then is he a better 3rd line wing than Hansen is? This all assumes the coach runs them more evenly time-wise as well.

But Niskanen is a good defenceman for sure. Even if he had slumped the previous season and the season in which he was traded (after some pretty good production previously) I have no idea how Dallas trades him and Neal and only gets Goligoski back from the Pens.

He'd be a good addition based on his skill set, but I'm not sure we could afford him in UFA. Could be an interesting off season though.

[DrChill]

Those lines are excellent from a depth perspective, the only question will be how does the top end perform. I'm not entirely sure Santorelli's back, but would provide a little upgrade as a top 6 replacement over Hansen - but then is he a better 3rd line wing than Hansen is? This all assumes the coach runs them more evenly time-wise as well.

But Niskanen is a good defenceman for sure. Even if he had slumped the previous season and the season in which he was traded (after some pretty good production previously) I have no idea how Dallas trades him and Neal and only gets Goligoski back from the Pens.

He'd be a good addition based on his skill set, but I'm not sure we could afford him in UFA. Could be an interesting off season though.

[MadOgre]

I just read somewhere the other day that both Daniel and Henrik were center's growing up, somewhere on canucks page.

Why not ? Booth - Daniel - Kesler

Burrows Henrick Jensen

Booth Daniel Kesler

Higgins Matthias Kassian

Horvat Richardson Santorelli

Sestito Lain Shinkaruk

Trade Hansen, Edler, Weber/Carrado for First rounder/s and or big Knock down everything in sight and don't take any crap D man

I'm not sure about the D man proposal, but I'm pretty sure we need an upgrade on our defence somehow, were not even close to what we had in 2010-11