aGENT Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 The Hitmen games I watched last year did not look like they were being coached by someone with pro experience. From top to bottom they were system-less. If we want Jake to become better off the puck and better positionally, there is an argument to make that he won't get this playing in Calgary. They didn't seem to have much in the way of coherent system/structure. The biggest demerits to Virtanen are....? As for lines, if we're to keep yesterdays line together... Sedin, Sedin, Burrows Higgins, Sutter, Vrbata Baer, Horvat, Virtanen Prust, Cracknell, Dorsett Vey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigturk8 Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 As for lines, if we're to keep yesterdays line together... Sedin, Sedin, Burrows Higgins, Sutter, Vrbata Baer, Horvat, Virtanen Prust, Cracknell, Dorsett Vey Giving Hansen the ol' hook? It'll be really interesting if a trade goes down in the next couple of days/weeks. Benning has said repeatedly that he will make room if the kids show they can play. With Gaunce, Grenier, Kenins and Shinkaruk as call up potential, we have a ton of forward depth and a trade could definitely be made to accommodate a lineup such as yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 (edited) As for lines, if we're to keep yesterdays line together... Sedin, Sedin, Burrows Higgins, Sutter, Vrbata Baer, Horvat, Virtanen Prust, Cracknell, Dorsett Vey That's what I have in my head as well, but I think Vey will be between Prust and Dorsett. Despite the usualu uninformed crowing, he's quietly had a decent pre-season. I expect gaunce to be in Higgins spot until Higgy is back. crap, hansen.........what is JB going to do? He needs to move a winger, asap, imo Edited October 2, 2015 by stawns Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aGENT Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 (edited) Well crap...yeah I missed Hansen duh Prust sits I guess? Hansen play LW until Higgins is back? Regardless, I doubt that line stays together. It's a fun option if WD needs to mix up lines but I doubt it would be 'permanent'. I still say: Sedin, Sedin, Burrows Baer, Horvat/Sutter, Vrbata Dorsett, Sutter/Horvat, Hansen Prust, Cracknell/Vey, Virtanen When Higgins gets back Virtanen and Prust will likely have to swap in and out, then send Jake to the WJC and make a call from there. Edited October 2, 2015 by J.R. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McBackup Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Surprisingly classy of Oiler fans to cheer for him as he walked off the ice. Especially considering he scored. And obliterated McJesus in the young stars tourney. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crackers Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Surprisingly classy of Oiler fans to cheer for him as he walked off the ice. Especially considering he scored. And obliterated McJesus in the young stars tourney. It's interesting. After going on the Oilers forums, it seems like most fans there have a decent amount of respect for Virt because of that hit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry Goose Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 I think Jake's D is under rated in the D zone. I try to watch him closely and he is always in the right position depending on where the puck is. Stops and starts are good. Guy looks committed to being a good 2 way player and with great vets to learn from, I see his game really improving like Bo's has with NHL experience. Kid is so deft with the puck just like Perry is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wshdrvvn Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Very few places don't give respect to an injured player regardless of anything that happened in the past. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ForsbergTheGreat Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 (edited) That's what I have in my head as well, but I think Vey will be between Prust and Dorsett. Despite the usualu uninformed crowing, he's quietly had a decent pre-season. I expect gaunce to be in Higgins spot until Higgy is back. crap, hansen.........what is JB going to do? He needs to move a winger, asap, imo With Vbrata likely being moved around trade deadline, and Burrows gone in the next two years or sooner. It’s probably best to keep Hansen until there really is a suitable long term replacement. Vey can play RW, but I’d keep Hansen over Vey. The last thing we want is to move a player like Hansen to open up a spot for Virtanen only to have a hole in that same spot in 5 months later. With Burrows being able to comfortable switch to either wing. Move Higgins. Sedin, Sedin, Vrbata Baer, Horvat, Virtanen Burrows, Sutter, Hansen Prust, Cracknell, Dorsett Vey After Vbrata deal Sedin, Sedin, Burrows Baer, Horvat, Virtanen Gaunce, Sutter, Hansen Prust, Cracknell, Dorsett Vey Lineups change throughout the year but with our young "close to NHL ready" depth on the LW (gaunce, Kenins) I think that would make Higgins the most expendable piece to move. Edited October 2, 2015 by ForsbergTheGreat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nave Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 It's interesting. After going on the Oilers forums, it seems like most fans there have a decent amount of respect for Virt because of that hit. That's cause he's not a dirty hitter. He never lifts his feet or hits in the #s Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baumerman77 Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 (edited) With Vbrata likely being moved around trade deadline, and Burrows gone in the next two years or sooner. It’s probably best to keep Hansen until there really is a suitable long term replacement. Vey can play RW, but I’d keep Hansen over Vey. The last thing we want is to move a player like Hansen to open up a spot for Virtanen only to have a hole in that same spot in 5 months later. With Burrows being able to comfortable switch to either wing. Move Higgins. Sedin, Sedin, Vrbata Baer, Horvat, Virtanen Burrows, Sutter, Hansen Prust, Cracknell, Dorsett Vey After Vbrata deal Sedin, Sedin, Burrows Baer, Horvat, Virtanen Gaunce, Sutter, Hansen Prust, Cracknell, Dorsett Vey Lineups change throughout the year but with our young "close to NHL ready" depth on the LW (gaunce, Kenins) I think that would make Higgins the most expendable piece to move. I would expect Prust to also get moved on deadline over Higgins. He's contract will be expiring plus there will be pressure coming up from Gaunce, Shinkaruk, and Kennis on the LW. Edited October 2, 2015 by baumerman77 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nave Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 I think Jake's D is under rated in the D zone. I try to watch him closely and he is always in the right position depending on where the puck is. Stops and starts are good. Guy looks committed to being a good 2 way player and with great vets to learn from, I see his game really improving like Bo's has with NHL experience. Kid is so deft with the puck just like Perry is He kind of floats, but only a bit. You can see that his head is on a swivel to see if there's someone uncovered on the rush. It's kind of jarring to see such a fast guy slow down that much, but he can explode and throw a check out of nowhere; if anything, it's nice he saves his energy. When they shoot he almost always goes to the front of the net to block a shot off a potential rebound. He's raw, but man, he has some tantalizing skills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ForsbergTheGreat Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 I would expect Prust to also get moved on deadline over Higgins. He's contract will be expiring plus there will be pressure coming up from Gaunce, Shinkaruk, and Kennis on the LW. Yeah I’m not sure what the plan is for Prust next year. I also wouldn’t be surprise to see one of the young LW you mentioned sent as part of a bigger package in the Hamhuis or Vbrata deals. Even if we do move Prust and Higgins, there still isn’t enough room for all those three to make it, especially if they put McCann on the LW next year. The real question is, we expect Hammer and Vbrata to be moved since they are expiring UFA’s. But what are we looking for in return? Draft picks? More prospects? Higher end prospects? In order to get some of those quality pieces we may have to be adding in some of our prospects on top of the rental UFA’s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dekey Pete Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 I notice the Nylander supporters are silent now. 4gp, 2pts, -1. Virtanen sporting a strong 5gp, 4pts, +/- even, and more hits than Nylander will see in his entire career. Also Jake with more shots and a higher shooting %. I know you can't conclude who's a better pick on a few preseason games, but Jake was getting flamed when Nylander got off to an early start over him 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeremyCuddles Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Jake seemingly found chemistry with Bo and Baertschi. I really want to see another game with this line. Jake seems like he's having trouble finding a line he gels with. If we struck gold with this line we'd be smart to exploit it or at least see if they can play this good together consistently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baumerman77 Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Yeah I’m not sure what the plan is for Prust next year. I also wouldn’t be surprise to see one of the young LW you mentioned sent as part of a bigger package in the Hamhuis or Vbrata deals. Even if we do move Prust and Higgins, there still isn’t enough room for all those three to make it, especially if they put McCann on the LW next year. The real question is, we expect Hammer and Vbrata to be moved since they are expiring UFA’s. But what are we looking for in return? Draft picks? More prospects? Higher end prospects? In order to get some of those quality pieces we may have to be adding in some of our prospects on top of the rental UFA’s. Ya. I would say Vrbata, Hamhuis, and Prust will all be moved for picks and maybe some prospects. I just hope they don't wait until deadline; I'd rather move them at least a few weeks before. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 (edited) Yeah Im not sure what the plan is for Prust next year. I also wouldnt be surprise to see one of the young LW you mentioned sent as part of a bigger package in the Hamhuis or Vbrata deals. Even if we do move Prust and Higgins, there still isnt enough room for all those three to make it, especially if they put McCann on the LW next year. The real question is, we expect Hammer and Vbrata to be moved since they are expiring UFAs. But what are we looking for in return? Draft picks? More prospects? Higher end prospects? In order to get some of those quality pieces we may have to be adding in some of our prospects on top of the rental UFAs. I think prust is an asset used to add picks in the draft. If he had two years left on his deal, that trade never happens. He'll be moved by the deadline, imo. I don't, personally, think Hamhuis gets moved. He's got some good years left and I'm sure he's enjoying be close to home. On top of that, there's clearly a relationship between tge Canucks and PG Cougars......he's a big part of that, obviously. I think he re-signs for 4 years. Edited October 2, 2015 by stawns Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aGENT Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 On top of that, there's clearly a relationship between tge Canucks and PG Cougars......he's a big part of that, obviously. I think he re-signs for 4 years. I'd LOVE it if they pull an Arizona and move him out at the deadline for assets, give him a chance at a cup and re-sign him in July. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaudette Celly Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Sedin, Sedin, BurrowsHiggins, Sutter, Vrbata Baer, Horvat, Virtanen Prust, Cracknell, Dorsett You just can't let go... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canuckledraggin Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Horvat said after the game: "I hope this line is together for a long time." What Bo wants, Bo gets. I hope these guys can have another good performance and take the decision out of coaching/ management's hands. Nothing could be better for Virtanen's development than if Bo could tuck him under his wing and show him the ropes. It sounds funny with them being less than a couple years apart, but Bo already has that level of leadership. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now