Jake Virtanen | #18 | RW

[TOMapleLaughs]

I disagree with that. At the time of the draft the canucks offensive output looked bleak being one of the lowest scoring teams in the league. This team desperately needed potential top 6 scorers and it was our biggest need. We also had no offensive studs waiting in the wings for when the sedins retired. I still think nylander or ehlers were the better pick and I hope virtanen proves me wrong, but he's got to start putting up points eventually. Nylander already had 32 points in 37 AHL games this year and looks like the stud he was projected to be. Virtanen right now still has people making excuses for his play. I'm praying virtanen pans out because to have the canucks highest pick since the sedins bust would just be so canucks luck for them.

At the end of the day it doesn't matter, since Benning the drafting guru selected Virtanen. Perhaps he thought as I do, in that expectations on those players are too damn high. They'll have to score a lot to make up for their defensive misgivings in the future and like it or not, they're not elite. If they were they would have made the NHL right away. Again, if we wanted a legit franchise level guy to build around, it would not have been one of those guys. It would have been McDavid. It looks like Benning has other plans, rather than relying on Ehlers or Nylander to somehow save the franchise. I hope they do well, collect a lot of regular season points on their respective teams, become Gaudreau-like stars, and earn big post-elc contracts asap.

The Canucks have bigger concerns imho if they want to win. Like the defense. Up front they're okay and the difference between Shinkaruk or McCann and those pseudo stars isn't enough to warrant the year-long panic that some Canucks bloggers have stirred up. "Benning is a drafting guru! Oh no he picked Virtanen! But Benning is a drafting guru!"

Edited June 5, 2015 by TOMapleLaughs

[FireGillis]

At the end of the day it doesn't matter, since Benning the drafting guru selected Virtanen. Perhaps he thought as I do, in that expectations on those players are too damn high. They'll have to score a lot to make up for their defensive misgivings in the future and like it or not, they're not elite. If they were they would have made the NHL right away. Again, if we wanted a legit franchise level guy to build around, it would not have been one of those guys. It would have been McDavid. It looks like Benning has other plans, rather than relying on Ehlers or Nylander to somehow save the franchise. I hope they do well, collect a lot of regular season points on their respective teams, become Gaudreau-like stars, and earn big post-elc contracts asap.

The Canucks have bigger concerns imho if they want to win. Like the defense. Up front they're okay and the difference between Shinkaruk or McCann and those pseudo stars isn't enough to warrant the year-long panic that some Canucks bloggers have stirred up. "Benning is a drafting guru! Oh no he picked Virtanen! But Benning is a drafting guru!"

I'm not sure why you use a strawhat man argument that if benning wanted a franchise guy he'd get mcdavid. That was never a realistic possibility. Neither were any of the players drafted ahead of virtanen since they were gone by the time we picked. The nylander, ehlers and virtanen comparison is fair since all 3 we had a shot at.

I'm glad to see you've already judged nylander and ehlers to be not elite or stars considering they haven't played 1 nhl game yet, while on the other hand you have already declared virtanen better and a star when he hasn't played 1 nhl game either. I've lost some faith in benning since the sbisa signing so am not as enthusiastic about his judging of talent skills as you are anymore. I bought the benning hype when he was hired, but some of that shine has come off after this season.

Like I said, I'm praying virtanen pans out because it would just hurt so much to have a pick that high bust on us and would just be typical canucks luck. Last year once we got eliminated from the playoffs was the first time I've ever cheered for tanking and it took a miracle for the canucks to move from 10th to 6th in the draft in the last 2 weeks. Took some losses by us and some miracle wins by bottom teams especially by carolina on the last day of the season to launch us into 6th. I was so happy that in a crappy year with torts, we at least achieved a consolation prize with a top pick. I did want nylander first, then ehlers and my heart sank when virtanen's name was called, so I'm hoping Virtanen proves me wrong and becomes a stud for us.

Edited June 5, 2015 by FireGillis

[JiffyPB]

Once his shot accuracy is normal again he should dominate.

[Down by the River]

I've always thought that Nylander was the better player than Virtanen. However, as soon as Virtanen was drafted, I stopped worrying about Nylander. Others, however, are the type who see Benning's selection of Virtanen over Nylander as if it were an afront to their own intelligence. Now we get DownUndaCanuck making the same argument he's been making for about a year now. We get it, Nylander is the more talented player. Mentioning this once a month isn't impressing anyone.

Of course, on the other side of things, you have the 'but but but Nylander looks like a girl so he must not be strong'. All you have to do is look at last year's combine testing to know that this statement is ridiculous.

Edited June 5, 2015 by Down by the River

[TOMapleLaughs]

I'm not sure why you use a strawhat man argument that if benning wanted a franchise guy he'd get mcdavid. That was never a realistic possibility. Neither were any of the players drafted ahead of virtanen since they were gone by the time we picked. The nylander, ehlers and virtanen comparison is fair since all 3 we had a shot at.

I'm glad to see you've already judged nylander and ehlers to be not elite or stars considering they haven't played 1 nhl game yet, while on the other hand you have already declared virtanen better and a star when he hasn't played 1 nhl game either. I've lost some faith in benning since the sbisa signing so am not as enthusiastic about his judging of talent skills as you are anymore. I bought the benning hype when he was hired, but some of that shine has come off after this season.

Because those guys aren't franchise level players, the concern about not getting them has been overstated by many. If they do however still become the best players on TO and Winnipeg, then good for them.

CDC and Canucks bloggers are strange. I continuously get told to be excited about our prospects, but then also get told they aren't good enough. I also get told that Benning's plan is sound, be patient, etc., but he has already failed by selecting Virtanen, who he likes very much.

Well, I'm just going to ignore all that crap as usual. Virtanen seems more like a guy we needed here. He's not as redundant here and presents some much-needed pushback combined with obvious speed and skill. These are the types of players than have kicked our asses in the playoffs over the years.

I think one easy way to quantify NHL transferability is by watching their speed combined with how many times a prospect falls down. Nylander falls down while under pressure fairly easily, but not as much as Ehlers, who seems to fall down on purpose often to draw calls. Meanwhile, Virtanen virtually never falls down. Take it for what it's worth.

Edited June 5, 2015 by TOMapleLaughs

[aGENT]

I've always thought that Nylander was the better player than Virtanen. However, as soon as Virtanen was drafted, I stopped worrying about Nylander. Others, however, are the type who see Benning's selection of Virtanen over Nylander as if it were an afront to their own intelligence. Now we get DownUndaCanuck making the same argument he's been making for about a year now. We get it, Nylander is the more talented player. Mentioning this once a month isn't impressing anyone.

Of course, on the other side of things, you have the 'but but but Nylander looks like a girl so he must not be strong'. All you have to do is look at last year's combine testing to know that this statement is ridiculous.

If we're going to get silly here...

The funny thing is, they'd probably both be rated pretty darn close overall in EA Sports NHL game but for entirely different reasons

Nylander has more offensive skill/vision. Virtanen has better size, speed skill and shot. They're both good players for different reasons and I for one am not worried at all about Virt's "bad" season.

[Down by the River]

If we're going to get silly here...

The funny thing is, they'd probably both be rated pretty darn close overall in EA Sports NHL game but for entirely different reasons

Nylander has more offensive skill/vision. Virtanen has better size, speed skill and shot. They're both good players for different reasons and I for one am not worried at all about Virt's "bad" season.

With the ridiculousness in which the Hitmen attempt to play hockey, I'd consider Virtanen's season a success.

[aGENT]

With the ridiculousness in which the Hitmen attempt to play hockey, I'd consider Virtanen's season a success.

When you look at the context of the season (coming off major shoulder injury, usage in Calgary, etc, etc) and consider his age it was really not a bad season at all. At worst he simply played "well" or "ok".

Oh no!! Our young for his draft year, 1st round pick coming off a major shoulder injury only played well with somewhat questionable usage!!!

[Oliewud]

Hey, so, how many points did Bo Horvat have in the AHL? Want to remind me? I think I've forgotten...

And how many points did he put up in the NHL? I think I've forgotten that too...

Linden Vey = 48 pts in 43 games last year lol

bob mckenzie had virtanen at #7 in his pre draft rankings in june...i have no problems with this pick.

[Boudrias]

With his Calder Cup run done it will be tough for Virtanen to go back to the WHL this fall. Would like to be a fly on the wall when Green, WD, Benning and Linden sit done and discuss his progress.

[N4ZZY]

i've always heard people on these boards say things like we need good canadian kids on our team. they're tougher, and better than european players. i just don't buy that. europeans are as good, if not better sometimes, than their canadian counterparts.

jake virtanen is going to be a good player. whether that means he plays a solid game in the bottom six, or he'll be an effective top six player. who knows at this point. he's a prospect like many other drafted players in his draft year. nylander for sure, i think, is ahead in terms of development. he'll be producing soon enough at the NHL level with the Leafs. and good for him, and good for Toronto. they need some good prospects in their line up producing - and this only means that we, well, hear more about toronto in the media :/

virtanen, imo, is a greater risk than nylander is. and is riskier in terms of his game translating into the NHL. but we'll see. We can only hope that jake turns into the top six player that management, and fans alike, are hoping for. if he doesn't. he'll be one of the greater busts this organization has drafted in a long time, which would be unfortunate.

no rush for jake to make the team. i'd rather have him develop properly and steadily, than rush him, and put enormous amounts of pressure on the kid, and then have him fail because of the huge expectations.

let's hope that he pans out. and cheer the kid on! he needs all the support he can get. and yeah, nylander is a good player. excellent if he's producing 35 points in 42 AHL games (pretty good production for an 18 yo). but they are two different types of players. let's see what jake can do in the AHL with more time on the top six, as opposed to the bottom six time he's been getting from Green.

[Hairy Kneel]

I think Jake needs to stay in Utica and develop his OFFENSIVE game..hear that Green? We ALWAYS have coaches going for D training when obviously Jake has that already,but it's the creativeness we need to develop...do coaches even do that anymore?

[people please]

I think Jake needs to stay in Utica and develop his OFFENSIVE game..hear that Green? We ALWAYS have coaches going for D training when obviously Jake has that already,but it's the creativeness we need to develop...do coaches even do that anymore?

Is that something you could learn?

[desiboynux4lifee*******]

in the off-season Jake needs to do what Sidney did when he was a kid. That's pratice his shot day and night because for him to be a first line stud he needs to work on his shot accuracy.

Yes the tools are their for a first line stud, but he needs to work on his weaknesses.

Edited June 5, 2015 by desiboynux4lifee*******

[stexx]

A good team needs BALANCE, thinking of Virtanen VS Nylander is far too close-minded. At the time of the draft this team needed a replacement for Henrik Sedin. They needed top-end skill, they needed someone who could play center and they needed him NHL-ready in about 3 seasons. Instead Benning drafted Virtanen, another Kassian/Horvat/Shinkaruk-type, gritty scoring winger. Granted Benning rectified this by going out and getting McCann, then Baertschi to bring some skill and center depth in, but drafting Nylander would have acheived the same goal. Overall, Benning understands the concept of a balanced prospect pool and team, now it's time for the rest of CDC to do so.

sorry to cherrypick your post, but i think you hit the nail on the head with this statement.

Good teams need balance is probably the best argument for why the canucks took virtanen over nylander. They probably felt he was so unique in his skillset there wasnt another player like him in the draft that you could get at a lesser level and hope to develop. Skilled centres are littered through the draft obviously not to Nylanders level but the petan's beauvillier's and johnson's are available outside of the top10 on a consistent basis and then you hope to develop that.

Can you really blame them for taking the most dynamic player in the draft who if he hits his ceiling has the potential to dominate in every facet of the game. Granted his chances of reaching that potential are a lot lower than Nylanders but you cant blame them for swinging for the fences.

Edited June 5, 2015 by stexx

[Gaudette Celly]

Exactly. Granted he is still very young and far away from the NHL...

Thanks, that was sufficient to render the remainder of your essay skippable.

[uselessstats]

i've always heard people on these boards say things like we need good canadian kids on our team. they're tougher, and better than european players. i just don't buy that. europeans are as good, if not better sometimes, than their canadian counterparts.

jake virtanen is going to be a good player. whether that means he plays a solid game in the bottom six, or he'll be an effective top six player. who knows at this point. he's a prospect like many other drafted players in his draft year. nylander for sure, i think, is ahead in terms of development. he'll be producing soon enough at the NHL level with the Leafs. and good for him, and good for Toronto. they need some good prospects in their line up producing - and this only means that we, well, hear more about toronto in the media :/

virtanen, imo, is a greater risk than nylander is. and is riskier in terms of his game translating into the NHL. but we'll see. We can only hope that jake turns into the top six player that management, and fans alike, are hoping for. if he doesn't. he'll be one of the greater busts this organization has drafted in a long time, which would be unfortunate.

no rush for jake to make the team. i'd rather have him develop properly and steadily, than rush him, and put enormous amounts of pressure on the kid, and then have him fail because of the huge expectations.

let's hope that he pans out. and cheer the kid on! he needs all the support he can get. and yeah, nylander is a good player. excellent if he's producing 35 points in 42 AHL games (pretty good production for an 18 yo). but they are two different types of players. let's see what jake can do in the AHL with more time on the top six, as opposed to the bottom six time he's been getting from Green.

Nylander also had just 3 assists in 5 playoff games against Grand Rapids. Playoffs are a lot tighter than regular season and quality of opponents goes up. Jake is trying to make the jump from jr to pro in the third round of the playoffs - that is a steep learning curve. And by all accounts he has done well, earning more and more ice time as he goes. He has been creating chances with his speed and strength and law of averages suggests the production will follow eventually. I honestly don't understand the distress being shown by some posters here. Jake's AHL stint has been a total positive from my perspective. He's 18 and playing well in the late playoffs at the second highest league in the world. How is this a problem?

[Erik Karlsson]

If he gets his accuracy back during the off season, he's on the team for sure next season.

The canucks will have him working with their skills coach and that's going to help him a lot.

I just don't see him returning to jr after his time in the Calder cup, that would just be a step back.

Having him in the lineup is also going to take a lot of pressure off Kassian having to be the physical force every night. Kassian's back can't handle doing that every game and it will also allow him to focus on his offense.

Kassian may be inconsistent, but it would be dumb to move him imo. Having him and Jake in the lineup at the same time is going to cause a lot of headaches for the opposition.

[jdatb]

Lol at all the sensitive Virtanen lovers in here. Anyone with a brain knows his last season didn't live up to expectations.

[Chicken.]

Nylander also had just 3 assists in 5 playoff games against Grand Rapids. Playoffs are a lot tighter than regular season and quality of opponents goes up. Jake is trying to make the jump from jr to pro in the third round of the playoffs - that is a steep learning curve. And by all accounts he has done well, earning more and more ice time as he goes. He has been creating chances with his speed and strength and law of averages suggests the production will follow eventually. I honestly don't understand the distress being shown by some posters here. Jake's AHL stint has been a total positive from my perspective. He's 18 and playing well in the late playoffs at the second highest league in the world. How is this a problem?

My thoughts exactly... I'm on the Virtantrain full speed ahead