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Should Kassian be on the 2nd line with Bonino?


Oliewud

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That line needs to get it going and Kassian has the skill to do it...Should he be promoted?

I think Burrows would be better suited in his original role as a 3rd line checker, ESPECIALLY alongside matthias they could be the best 3rd line in the league.

Thoughts?

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Yeah, I'd give it a try. Kassian needs to make the jump to the second line at some point and Bonino is here to stay so, why not give it a shot and see if those two can develop some chemistry together.

I agree that Burrows is now better deployed as a third line checker. But at the same time, he is not as good as Hansen at this point (Hansen being 5 years younger) so I disagree that Burrows should play on the third line. More like

Matthias-Richardson-Hansen

Dorsette-Horvat-Burrows

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IMO if Hansen is out for a few games

Sedins Vrbata - primary scoring line

Matthias Bonino Kassian - pwf/ply-snp/pwf-ply (board control, passer sniper, net presence grit and passer

Higgins Richardson Burrows - twf/twf/twf (grind grind grind!)

Dorsett Horvat Vey tgh/twf-ply/dng-ply (energy line with youth and scoring prowness)

Elder Tanev

Stanton Bieksa

Sbisa Weber

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If he can play at his best, game in and game out. He's a little too inconsistent right now.

I agree with you on Burr. His top 6 days are over IMO

The problem is that the Canucks cannot put a legitimate second line on the ice right now. Bonino is okay at the 2C postion -- not great but a legitimate 2C. Higgins' natural level would be 3LW. He is marginal at best at the 2LW position. And the same goes for Burrows. Obviously he did well with the Sedins but without them he has never been more than a good 2-way third liner.

And Kassian has not earned top 6 slot. Neither has Vey or Hansen or Matthias or anyone else. Too bad the Canucks did not re-sign Santorelli.

I agree that the best shot for having a legitmate second line is for Kassian to develop. I would probably move Burrows to 2LW and drop Higgins to the 4th line, move Dorsett back to 4RW, move Hansen to 3RW and drop Vey to 13th man IF Kassian can earn the 2RW position. But he needs to earn it by playing well at 3RW on a CONSISTENT basis first.

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He just frustrates me watching him with his seemingly lack of effort. I realize he's still "a kid" at 23 but he really needs to bring that physicality he's more than capable of, game after game. He's had such bright flashes of brilliance... It's hard for me to understand why this can't be consistent.

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No. He hasn't earned it. His numbers aren't better than Burrows or Higgins. Glad the coaches aren't trying to rush his development the way the fans want. He isn't now and might never be a top 6 guy. Right now he is an extremely inconsistent bottom 6 player who has potential and has shown flashes of being better.

Let's not force him into a situation where he "must" produce. He is best suited for third line duty where he can develop his 200ft game.

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Here's a few quick facts for ya.

He's a 23 year old 6 foot 4 inch 220(ish) pound playmaking winger with size, skill and speed that can complete a pass like a Sedin.

He has only played 1 full season in the league.

For his ice time he is less than .2ppg shy of the same development arch Bertuzzi had playing 2nd line minutes in his first 5 years (full seasons I might add) in the league while jumping in to Vancouver alongside Markus Naslund if you include his time in New York

In their life in vancouver the twins have been paired with the following and more for regular shifts. Klatt, King, Carter, Burrows, Hansen, Sestito, Vrbata, Kesler and more

Kassian has done nothing but what is asked of him and is currently developing under a coach that can develop players int heir prime after being lost in the shuffle of angry at youth coaches Lindey Ruff, AV and the only coach pre WD to play him regularly Tortorella.

His stats indicate he is a solid 3rd line player trending toward a much much better player as he develops.

People are clamouring for a trade of this kid right now and if you look around other teams' fans are seriously starting to pay attention. Visit other teams' sites and they are salivating at the thought of throwing us their version of Raymond Ballard and a 3rd at us for him. Once Kassian is gone we have Sestito and Dorsett as deterrents on this team. A team people still mope and whine about being too soft.

Kassian is developing as he should but people want to trade him for...Torey Krug or Erickson. What the hell for I don't know because then all we'll hear is how we need a large 6 foot 4 playmaking winger with speed and skill for the next decade.

Should we try him with Bonino? Sure, it couldn't hurt to try. I think we should slot him directly next to the twins myself as Vrbata and Burrows aren't getting it done with them lately and if Sestito and Hansen can get top line minutes with them over the last season it's damned criminal Kassian cannot even draw 2nd line PP time yet people want to shuffle him off for less than scraps because "hes not a PPG player right now"

I don't want him to be the next Neely or Bertuzzi. I want him to be our first Kassian and yes he deserves 2nd and 1st line time soon. If for no other reason than to shake the lines up a bit and try something new. But as it stands when he comes back healthy he is exactly fine where he is learning that 200 foot game, showing he can be a consistent player and scaring the top 2 lines of other teams with size speed and skill.

My 2 cents only

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No. He hasn't earned it. His numbers aren't better than Burrows or Higgins. Glad the coaches aren't trying to rush his development the way the fans want. He isn't now and might never be a top 6 guy. Right now he is an extremely inconsistent bottom 6 player who has potential and has shown flashes of being better.

Let's not force him into a situation where he "must" produce. He is best suited for third line duty where he can develop his 200ft game.

Sometimes, being in the situation where you "must" produce actually pushes a player to break his current limits to a new level.

At the beginning of the season, I said the same thing you did but with Burrows now clearly ill-suited to the scoring role, someone needs to take over. I can't think of anyone other than Kassian in the current lineup to take that 2RW position now.

Sorry to sound impatient and I might be wrong, but I think it's time that we put some responsibilities on his shoulders, let him go through tough patches where he doesn't deliver, gets criticized, learn from it, improve, and repeat. I think we've sheltered him long enough already and he's mature enough to handle adversities.

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Too many 3rd liners on this team,if only Jensen panned out earlier this season to give a sniper to Bonino..I don't think trading for a second line winger would work because it would cost a lot.Plus I don't think we're making a big push playoff wise as things are.

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Too many 3rd liners on this team,if only Jensen panned out earlier this season to give a sniper to Bonino..I don't think trading for a second line winger would work because it would cost a lot.Plus I don't think we're making a big push playoff wise as things are.

They are only third liners because of their skill set or because the coach hasn't played them in the top 6 yet

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