Down by the River Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I'm always a benefit of the doubt kind of person. I've seen nothing but positives from Virtanen's attitude thus far, so I'm very hopeful regarding his development. For those crying about not picking Nylander.......99% of canucks fans wanted desperately to get away from the skilled, turn the other cheek kind of player. Virt was the right pick at the right time for this organization. Not sure about that. A lot of people wanted Nylander, especially after his performance at the combine. People love calling him soft because he has the face of a 5 year old. He was probably the most well-conditioned athlete at the combine though, with incredible leg strength. You are dead on with your last sentence though. Drafting Virtanen, who I'm thrilled to have, seemed more of a 'We're taking the player who will address our new philosophy' rather than 'We're taking the BPA'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Not sure about that. A lot of people wanted Nylander, especially after his performance at the combine. People love calling him soft because he has the face of a 5 year old. He was probably the most well-conditioned athlete at the combine though, with incredible leg strength. You are dead on with your last sentence though. Drafting Virtanen, who I'm thrilled to have, seemed more of a 'We're taking the player who will address our new philosophy' rather than 'We're taking the BPA'. That's a fair assessment I'd say. JB chose a physical specimen over skill, but he got Mccaan, who in my mind is a highly skilled played with a very high ceiling, who fills that skill pick. Win win for JB at that draft boy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rush17 Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 agree completely. Everything he needs to be successful is there, but the organizations needs to be in full control of his development as a player and as a person. Another year in Jr would send him backwards, in my opinion. I wouldn't be surprised if he got more then the 9 game look then get sent back down to Jr. after the new year. If the team thinks his development is important and he is just barely on the cusp of nhl level then its worth burning a year off his elc to get him that experience. Just means he signs a new contract a year sooner. I think he looks good though. McCann is looking really bright. very creative and speedy. McCann reminds me of a Naslund'esk skill type player. I've been saying that since we drafted him though. (He may not be exactly like nazzy but hes got the hockey iq and shot similar.) Hope he gets to meet him :D Probably a later experience when more young guys are on the team tho. :D Show them the mentor/leader of the Sedins. WIll put things in prospective and help make a lasting impression :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Down by the River Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 That's a fair assessment I'd say. JB chose a physical specimen over skill, but he got Mccaan, who in my mind is a highly skilled played with a very high ceiling, who fills that skill pick. Win win for JB at that draft boy. McCann is definitely a highly skilled player. I'd argue McCann has more tools in his toolbox than Virtanen, but Virtanen has two tools that might be more valuable than McCann's 10. I think McCann has exceeded expectations since the draft. At the time, he was a guy who was supposed to be a great two-way player who was difficult to play against. He's proving he is more than that. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shiftynifty Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Nylander: 2GP - 1G, 1A Virtanen: 1GP - 0G, 0A You know I'll be watching this all career long. So you can keep living in the past? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 McCann is definitely a highly skilled player. I'd argue McCann has more tools in his toolbox than Virtanen, but Virtanen has two tools that might be more valuable than McCann's 10. I think McCann has exceeded expectations since the draft. At the time, he was a guy who was supposed to be a great two-way player who was difficult to play against. He's proving he is more than that. agreed, he has far exceeded my expectations already. I like both picks, and I can certainly see why JB went with Virt at #6, as he wouldn't have made it to #7, let alone #24. Mccaan may end up being one of, if not THE, steal of the draft. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shiftynifty Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 agreed, he has far exceeded my expectations already. I like both picks, and I can certainly see why JB went with Virt at #6, as he wouldn't have made it to #7, let alone #24. Mccaan may end up being one of, if not THE, steal of the draft. Pastrnak is looking like the steal to be honest. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheHitman Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Virtanen looks like he's going to piss a lot of teams off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elvis15 Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I'm always a benefit of the doubt kind of person. I've seen nothing but positives from Virtanen's attitude thus far, so I'm very hopeful regarding his development. For those crying about not picking Nylander.......99% of canucks fans wanted desperately to get away from the skilled, turn the other cheek kind of player. Virt was the right pick at the right time for this organization. 77% of all stats are made up. Seriously, have you been on CDC before? Particularly this thread? We'll be very much missing the Sedin's and their elite skills when they retire, regardless of any turn the other cheek attitude. It's still very questionable whether we have that level of quality to replace them in our prospect pool. I agree that Virtanen more fits the philosophy Benning is taking us forward on, but it's arguable just how narrow we can keep that and ensure the next generation of Canucks succeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 77% of all stats are made up. Seriously, have you been on CDC before? Particularly this thread? We'll be very much missing the Sedin's and their elite skills when they retire, regardless of any turn the other cheek attitude. It's still very questionable whether we have that level of quality to replace them in our prospect pool. I agree that Virtanen more fits the philosophy Benning is taking us forward on, but it's arguable just how narrow we can keep that and ensure the next generation of Canucks succeed. for sure a mix is the right formula, but JB needed a top line, physical force with that first pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOMapleLaughs Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Whatever 'philosophy' we are to use with regards to winning in the future, it's certainly going to require more than the efforts of one player, let lone a non-elite prospect such as what was available to us in the '14 draft. People assuming that Nylander, Ritchie, Ehlers, or Virtanen is a player you can label 'franchise' and build a winning team around all need to give their heads a shake. I hope Benning's philosophy takes us in a direction where we are indeed are relying on a collection of legit star players instead of laying the blame of failure down on the feet of one prospect due to flawed overexpectations. However at this point, as it's been sooo long, I'm thinking the 2014 draft debate is perpetual for just the reason to debate and nothing more. I hope TO's great white hope does well and so does Winnipeg's and Anaheim's. Considering the rise of Johnny Fraudreau, I'd say that anything's possible these days. All these players are irrelevant to the task we have at hand however. Cheers. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaudette Celly Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Nylander: 2GP - 1G, 1A Virtanen: 1GP - 0G, 0A You know I'll be watching this all career long. Typically butthurt wanes over time, but if you choose to cling to it and pout away your days that is up to you. Happy statsheet-watching, as that's admittedly all you do anyway. That's a fair assessment I'd say. JB chose a physical specimen over skill, but he got Mccaan, who in my mind is a highly skilled played with a very high ceiling, who fills that skill pick. Win win for JB at that draft boy. I would not be surprised if in a few years we consider McCann to be a better overall pick for us than Nylander or Ehlers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spotted Zebra Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 If we had a crystal ball and knew that Lucic would more than likely end up as a Canuck, does that change who we would have taken at 6? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piggy Bank Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 The dude came into my work today with Shinky! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elvis15 Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 (edited) ... I would not be surprised if in a few years we consider McCann to be a better overall pick for us than Nylander or Ehlers. That's easy to say, in fact, just as easy as me saying I wouldn't be surprised if Nylander ended up better than both McCann and Virtanen's NHL contributions combined in a few years. Predicting which prospect will be better before they've even played an NHL game is a bit of a crap shoot. for sure a mix is the right formula, but JB needed a top line, physical force with that first pick. Kind of like how we needed a top line, highly skilled center? We have a number of holes that need filling. Edited September 23, 2015 by elvis15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 That's easy to say, in fact, just as easy as me saying I wouldn't be surprised if Nylander ended up better than both McCann and Virtanen's NHL contributions combined in a few years. Predicting which prospect will be better before they've even played an NHL game is a bit of a crap shoot. Kind of like how we needed a top line, highly skilled center? We have a number of holes that need filling. I see Mccaan filling that role. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
desiboynux4lifee******* Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 (edited) Look in the AHL playoffs he didn't muster anything but a few hits. Whereas, Larkin was all over the place. Oh yes in the WHL playoffs he got suspended for a dumb hit and now in the pre-season more of the same. Okay, when we drafted this guy, he was suppose to be a guy who puts his head down and snipes the puck, I have yet to see that shot! Infact after the injury to his shoulder does he even have it anymore? Honestly were is his shot? Also, is it our coaching staff who puts our prospects on leashes, for gods sake let them play and show us what they can do and get rid of the boring system. I rather have them playing with a bit more edge and cheating a bit to create chances, instead they played the world's most boring game last nite. A tight checker, how'd that work out for you Willie? Use the prospects talents, and design plays for Virtanen's speed; otherwise he is useless. Is it the coaching staff, is it he is nervous, is it he is 3-4 years away. Edited September 24, 2015 by desiboynux4lifee******* 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
73 Percent Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 (edited) Look in the AHL playoffs he didn't muster anything but a few hits. Whereas, Larkin was all over the place. Oh yes in the WHL playoffs he got suspended for a dumb hit and now in the pre-season more of the same. Okay, when we drafted this guy, he was suppose to be a guy who puts his head down and snipes the puck, I have yet to see that shot! Infact after the injury to his shoulder does he even have it anymore? Honestly were is his shot? Also, is it our coaching staff who puts our prospects on leashes, for gods sake let them play and show us what they can do and get rid of the boring system. I rather have them playing with a bit more edge and cheating a bit to create chances, instead they played the world's most boring game last nite. A tight checker, how'd that work out for you Willie? Use the prospects talents, and design plays for Virtanen's speed; otherwise he is useless. Is it the coaching staff, is it he is nervous, is it he is 3-4 years away. I wonder if we can force the hitmen to release him. Edited September 24, 2015 by Gooseberries Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thejazz97 Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 I wonder I'd we can force the hitmen to release him. The Aquilinis could probably just buy the Hitmen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
73 Percent Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 The Aquilinis could probably just buy the Hitmen.let's start a go fund me page. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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