Jake Virtanen | #18 | RW

[N4ZZY]

4 minutes ago, BoKnows said:

What 17-19 year old doesn't want to party with their teammate?

The problem is, Jake's not 17-19 years old now, and we're still waiting for him to mature and get his act together. 

 

Does he want to be a professional hockey player in the best league in the world, or not? 

 

[Ballisticsports.]

On 8/17/2020 at 1:36 PM, Provost said:

I didn't see that... but there have been the other comments made by players during this that maybe make it clear they don't particularly see him as a guy they want to go to war with.  Bo yelling at him in practice... a few players basically saying he is dumb and has to make smarter decisions when they are on the ice practicing and Jake is at the clubs partying.

I can't imagine how annoyed I would be to be a fringe player scrabbling to give everything you have and watch a guy with all the tools just not have the brain to figure it out.

I mean Motte has been a wrecking ball out there getting beat on mercilessly by the other team's best players.  Oscar freaking Fantenberg is doing his best Willie Mitchell impersonation by taking it to the opposing forwards physically.  Just imagine the respect they are gaining in the room from that play even though they are just not physically built for that style of game.

If he isn't able to score, you should at least notice Virtanen on the ice making the Blues players miserable.

As Benning and Green keep mentioning... we want guys here who love playing and we can win with.  It seems like Jake is just not that guy.  He has finished 5 NHL seasons, he should be at his prime and we shouldn't be talking about eventual upside still.

Jake reminds me of the guy in the office who is the bosses or owners son, He just won't put in the effort that the others will

I thought he might excel, many were saying he is what we need in the playoffs

In this town at least, he will always be what he is now most likely

He is a decent player, but he has played himself off of the team and will be passed by eager more determined players (Covid , hurting development, may help him)?

 

I wonder how the league and players will handle prospects, if the NHL starts and their leagues do not ?

Think they would allow a team to carry a certain amount of prospects and let them play and not have to expose a veteran or Virtanen ?

[BoKnows]

6 minutes ago, N4ZZY said:

The problem is, Jake's not 17-19 years old now, and we're still waiting for him to mature and get his act together. 

 

Does he want to be a professional hockey player in the best league in the world, or not? 

 

This is back when he was that age.

[EternalCanuckFan]

For all of the negativity Jake has received, I personally think the issue that might ultimately chase him out of Vancouver will be his contract negotiations this offseason. 

 

Jake's QO should be fine for the Canucks but given the fact he has arbitration rights, I doubt he would settle for his QO.  If Jake in fact goes to arbitration

 

For all our griping, Jake has improved each season and he legitimately had a good season.  He was on pace for a 20G 20A season which, while not earth shattering, is respectable.  I'm sure many of us didn't think he would even get there.  Assuming Jake can further build on that, he could still be a 40-50 point middle-6 forward who has blazing speed and can play a physical game.

 

The ultimate problem for Jake, as it has been for years now, is that he does not bring that game consistently and that is incredibly frustrating for everyone who wants him to succeed.  He seemed to find a rhythm for stretches of last season but has not been able to get going so far in the playoffs.  I think it would be acceptable fine for Jake to become a Malhotra type elite defensive forward instead of a scorer if he could do that consistently.  If Jake's content with playing at an elite level in a bottom 6 role for the rest of his career (at bottom 6 $) and if the Canucks are fine with that too, then maybe there's a future for him here.  As a fan, it would be disappointing not to see Jake achieve his offensive potential, but if he can be a solid bottom 6 player for the team, then that's not bad.  If that's not true for either of them, then it might be best for the Canucks to recover assets for Jake and for Jake to try to find his game elsewhere.

[Gurn]

1 hour ago, N4ZZY said:

The problem is, Jake's not 17-19 years old now, and we're still waiting for him to mature and get his act together. 

 

Does he want to be a professional hockey player in the best league in the world, or not? 

 

He already is a player in the best league in the world, and will continue to be; whether it is as a Canuck or some other org. is the question.

 

 

 

 

 

[rekker]

1 hour ago, gurn said:

He already is a player in the best league in the world, and will continue to be; whether it is as a Canuck or some other org. is the question.

 

 

 

 

 

Kind of. Jake is a player on this team right now because TT is injured. Otherwise Jake is probably in the press box. Maybe he should tune into a Flames game. Sam Bennett is currently providing his team with a great playoff performance. Jake is out of shape and MIA.

[Nucker 67]

Does Jake make another NHL team if he's traded? (other than DET or OTT) Or does he toil in their minor system? His work ethic stinks. I'm not sure other teams would babysit Jake like Green has done for years.

[Gurn]

First round pick, big and fast, good shot.

Yes he plays elsewhere, just as the Canucks took chances on other teams underperforming high picks, so will they.

Jake will play for at least another 2-3 years, and would have to get worse to be bounced out even then.

[Me_]

Not too many people like Virtanen ha?

[Me_]

1 hour ago, gurn said:

First round pick, big and fast, good shot.

Yes he plays elsewhere, just as the Canucks took chances on other teams underperforming high picks, so will they.

Jake will play for at least another 2-3 years, and would have to get worse to be bounced out even then.

OTT

Eriksson

Virtanen

+?

 

VAN

1st ‘20 (OTT’s choice)

[freshhprince95]

1 hour ago, Me_ said:

OTT

Eriksson

Virtanen

+?

 

VAN

1st ‘20 (OTT’s choice)

Literally 0% chance Ott gives a 1st round pick (even their 20+ pick) if Eriksson is a part of the deal. 

[TNucks1]

3 hours ago, Me_ said:

Not too many people like Virtanen ha?

ima fan, but his play these playoffs have been really underwhelming, i thought he'd kick it up a notch, with hits ect.

[J-23]

1 minute ago, TNucks1 said:

ima fan, but his play these playoffs have been really underwhelming, i thought he'd kick it up a notch, with hits ect.

Same, this the Virtanen I expected Playoff time.

 

 

 

On paper, he seems like he would be a beast in Playoff hockey. Even if he is not scoring, or putting up points a Sam Bennett role would be nice.

[Rabid Rooster]

The main problem with Jake imo is that the coach is just as immature as he is. It can’t help his game if he’s constantly benched or playing 5 min or less. Benched if he makes one mistake, he’s gun shy. Hence very little hitting due to taking a penalty and a diss from the coach. Would Green ever whisper in his ear that “he wanted Virt to replace the “skating dead”  Eriksson and do us and yourself  proud”. Not in this lifetime.

[FaninMex]

I have been a fan and still believe that he does not hurt the team being in the line up. I have also been thinking about why JV has not stepped up a bit more.

 

1. He is thinking about not getting out of position. He has be told over and over by Green that D is first. He has been benched over and over for leaving his position so I think he is over thinking the game right now.

2. I was remembering when he had that hit on a SJ player. Cannot remember the result (Ejected, suspended?) However, the next time we played SJ Joe Thorton did that blind hit on him which injured him. He seems to have been much more quiet since then. Maybe that got in his head. That kind of retribution is coming if he goes all out.

 

This is my opinion and nothing more.

[coho8888]

33 minutes ago, Rabid Rooster said:

The main problem with Jake imo is that the coach is just as immature as he is. It can’t help his game if he’s constantly benched or playing 5 min or less. Benched if he makes one mistake, he’s gun shy. Hence very little hitting due to taking a penalty and a diss from the coach. Would Green ever whisper in his ear that “he wanted Virt to replace the “skating dead”  Eriksson and do us and yourself  proud”. Not in this lifetime.

Really? So how do you explain how Horvat, Petey and Huggy have done with our Immature coach?  

[Law of Goalies]

22 minutes ago, FaninMex said:

I have been a fan and still believe that he does not hurt the team being in the line up. I have also been thinking about why JV has not stepped up a bit more.

 

1. He is thinking about not getting out of position. He has be told over and over by Green that D is first. He has been benched over and over for leaving his position so I think he is over thinking the game right now.

2. I was remembering when he had that hit on a SJ player. Cannot remember the result (Ejected, suspended?) However, the next time we played SJ Joe Thorton did that blind hit on him which injured him. He seems to have been much more quiet since then. Maybe that got in his head. That kind of retribution is coming if he goes all out.

 

This is my opinion and nothing more.

I think people here who aren't super negative towards Jake and actually sees his game and pays attention to him, notices this. I also agree with you on this. He is double clutching or over thinking on everything. Look at the highlights above, you don't see a single stutter step in his game and he is just playing it naturally. I think it frustrates him sometimes when some players making glaring mistakes but still gets the next shift while he is stapled to the bench. As what a poster said above, Green should just tell him and be a wrecking ball again and don't worry too much as Jake as the ability to out skate his mistake. I think last game's reverse hit on a Blues player get me a little glimpse of his physicality when he did this to Kornwall a couple of seasons ago.

[N4ZZY]

8 hours ago, EternalCanuckFan said:

For all of the negativity Jake has received, I personally think the issue that might ultimately chase him out of Vancouver will be his contract negotiations this offseason. 

 

Jake's QO should be fine for the Canucks but given the fact he has arbitration rights, I doubt he would settle for his QO.  If Jake in fact goes to arbitration

 

For all our griping, Jake has improved each season and he legitimately had a good season.  He was on pace for a 20G 20A season which, while not earth shattering, is respectable.  I'm sure many of us didn't think he would even get there.  Assuming Jake can further build on that, he could still be a 40-50 point middle-6 forward who has blazing speed and can play a physical game.

 

The ultimate problem for Jake, as it has been for years now, is that he does not bring that game consistently and that is incredibly frustrating for everyone who wants him to succeed.  He seemed to find a rhythm for stretches of last season but has not been able to get going so far in the playoffs.  I think it would be acceptable fine for Jake to become a Malhotra type elite defensive forward instead of a scorer if he could do that consistently.  If Jake's content with playing at an elite level in a bottom 6 role for the rest of his career (at bottom 6 $) and if the Canucks are fine with that too, then maybe there's a future for him here.  As a fan, it would be disappointing not to see Jake achieve his offensive potential, but if he can be a solid bottom 6 player for the team, then that's not bad.  If that's not true for either of them, then it might be best for the Canucks to recover assets for Jake and for Jake to try to find his game elsewhere.

I think Jake can still contribute to the team in a middle six role. If the dollars and term make sense to both him and the organization, then I say keep him in that role. develop him there. It's hard to find good middle six players with offense. He does need to improve on his defense. 

 

[N4ZZY]

6 hours ago, NUCKER67 said:

Does Jake make another NHL team if he's traded? (other than DET or OTT) Or does he toil in their minor system? His work ethic stinks. I'm not sure other teams would babysit Jake like Green has done for years.

that's a legit point. I'm not sure other coaches would have the patience to deal with him either as Green has for years. 

 

[kloubek]

1 hour ago, N4ZZY said:

that's a legit point. I'm not sure other coaches would have the patience to deal with him either as Green has for years. 

 

Probably not, but if he stays, Green will have to put up with him for longer and he has GOTTA be near the end of his rope. A new coach and a realization that he needs to commit himself better to the craft if he wants to stay in the league might give him the kick in the pants needed to do so.