Trust me, build from within... Youth Youth Youth

[CANUCKS4LIFE01]

I think the sedin era is going to be coming to a close in the next couple years they need to start building with young talent and have a good draft, this is a very strong draft class this year and maybe trade or sign one or two young players with potential or already an upcoming superstar to prepare for the end of the sedin era and start a new one..

[CALGARY!]

^^^ welcome to CDC, of course the Sedin era is coming to a close, they will likely retire after their current contracts. I think Van should grab the best Dman available with their first instead of the BPA grab the BDA. After that I think they should take a long look at giving some of the Comets and Junior guys a serious look with the big club.

[Seven pounds soft]

^^^ welcome to CDC, of course the Sedin era is coming to a close, they will likely retire after their current contracts. I think Van should grab the best Dman available with their first instead of the BPA grab the BDA. After that I think they should take a long look at giving some of the Comets and Junior guys a serious look with the big club.

^ makes the playoffs for the first time in 20 years

Instant hockey development expert

Edit: good post OP. I mostly agree.

[Hectic]

The way the Flames had Bennett in this series and the Bruins had Pastrnak in their lineup - 2 guys who weren't expected to be playing in the NHL this season - it makes me wonder what it would be like if we just threw in Shinkaruk, Virtanen, and McCann all into our lineup next year

[selkirkcraig]

That line up is horrible lol.. Sure it looks fine on paper, but we would get rekted on a constant basis more so than we have now..

You can't just insert a bunch of rookies that barely have any experience.

We need defense and will have to pony up to acquire someone with experience and veteran leadership..

I would prefer if we swapped an ageing Bieksa for someone like Mike Green, etc..

The price to acquire might be low if Washington is out of playoffs too..

Rookies who barely have any experience is the Calgary Flames in a nut shell, and we just got beat by them in 6 games. So putting in rookies isn't a bad idea. I like the OP's lineup, and it would make for an extremely exciting season. But as you said, I wouldn't mind a big UFA signing for the back end. We could use Green's offence.

not all rookies are of the same quality - the flames impressive stable of young talent came at the expense of some miserable seasons. if the canucks had SM/JG/SB, then it's safe to say they would be playing for our big team. i agree we should build from the draft out, but that takes time and a bit of luck; like finding a player like JG in the 4th round.

[Hectic]

^ man you broke my streak of being the last poster on all the threads haha

[Neversummer]

So when the Canucks got beat by Boston, the formula was big, mean, gritty.

Now we get beat by Calgary, the formula is youth, youth, youth.

What's tomorrow's flavour?

[Rush17]

So when the Canucks got beat by Boston, the formula was big, mean, gritty.

Now we get beat by Calgary, the formula is youth, youth, youth.

What's tomorrow's flavour?

To be fair Gillis was a tool. You don't just change your entire teams complextion because you lose game 7. Instead we should of went with adding more offensive, speed, and kept ernhoff. Youth is exactly what we need when we have so many guys 34+ on this team. Saying they are the same isn't fair at all.

[TOMapleLaughs]

Agreed Cody Franson and Mike Green will not do much but add to the collection of overpaid defensemen who aren't answers.

But throwing McCann into the lineup early is not an answer either.

By all means continue with the stop-gaps, but please, don't kill the future by trading for other team's expensive castoffs like that Kessel trade. That will only lead to extended suffering and a ghosting of the fanbase who is too smart to be tricked by something like that.

[DownUndaCanuck]

It's one thing to want a lot of kids playing, it's another to see them having success. I doubt Horvat and McCann would be able to play 82 games as our middle 6 centers and perform at a good enough level.

We need to wean the veterans off ice time slowly and kids onto it over a few seasons. Last season we had Vey, Horvat, Kassian and the first generation of kids get a good sniff, but next year we need more to take over from the vets.

Sedin - Sedin - Kassian (give the kid bigger responsibility, he's our future and he belongs with the twins)

X - Bonino - Vbrata

Kenins - Horvat - Hansen

Y - Matthias - Burrows

X = Baertschi or Vey

Y = Shinkaruk, Jensen, Dorsett or Gaunce

I'm sure we'll see Kenins out of the lineup quite a bit and this revolving door of Vey, Baertschi, Kenins and Dorsett, but I want to see Shinkaruk, Jensen and Gaunce get a chance. They're our own home-grown prospects, they're used to our organization and we need to give them a bigger chance.

[iinatcc]

So when the Canucks got beat by Boston, the formula was big, mean, gritty.

Now we get beat by Calgary, the formula is youth, youth, youth.

What's tomorrow's flavour?

Big Mean Gritty with Youth .... Virtanen, Gaunce, Kassian, and that big Russian D-Man :D

[deized_kanuck604]

I like the idea of higgins traded, what would people think of Edler being traded too... who would you see as a potential trade target if JB did trade him? or would you even want to trade him?

Elder out. Elite d-man in. Yep.

[Bo.Horvat53]

Let's not forget, Calgary's youth and speed was also too much for the Kings to handle all year. They went 1-4 against the Flames. Couple more wins for 3-2, and they would make the playoffs.

It's getting more and more obvious you need to be fast and skilled. This is why the Hawks are always good, every damn year.

[bluesman60]

You can get a blue chip Dman in the draft if you are picking top 6. otherwise it becomes sheer luck to draft a dman at 17-23 and have them step into the lineup. We are drafting at 23? so you are not going to get a Weber or Seth Jones there. A dman takes longer to develop than a forward so whomever you pick, they are years away from contributing.

Take the best player available or trade up to get a sure thing.

[iinatcc]

You can get a blue chip Dman in the draft if you are picking top 6. otherwise it becomes sheer luck to draft a dman at 17-23 and have them step into the lineup. We are drafting at 23? so you are not going to get a Weber or Seth Jones there. A dman takes longer to develop than a forward so whomever you pick, they are years away from contributing.

Take the best player available or trade up to get a sure thing.

Vancouver does not have a 2nd or 3rd round this year which is where you can find some quality D-Men down to develop. I am hoping maybe Benning can flip Higgins, Burrows, Bieksa, or Hamhuis for at least a 3rd or a late 2nd. Sure they have to waive their NTC but if it can happen to Garrison it can happen with anyone.

[stawns]

I know we all want to go out and get Cody Franson or Mike Green to help with our PP. Or go make a trade with EDM for Ryan Nugent-Hopkins or phone CLB asking what its gonna cost for our BC boy Ryan Johansen. Thats all easier said than done. You guys want Green? Ok well Benning is gonna have to pay 6+ million or 5+ million for Franson, then we all know we are gonna call him the biggest IDIOT on the planet paying that much.

When the truth is we aren't going to become instant contenders over night by signing one of them. Or trading for RNH or Johansen because we will be paying Horvat++ .

We need to build from within and give the guys we have a shot. If we need to trade core guys so be it.

We need to trade the guys that are dead weight and that could get us a pick or 2.

The key is to be patience with the young guys we are going to go through growing pains

All players gone from the line-up are traded I'm not gonna say to where and for how much because this is not a proposal.

My build from within lineup of 2015 ( BOLDED players are players with 82 or less NHL games under there belt)

Sedin-Sedin-Kassian

Baertschi-Horvat-Vrbata

Burrows-McCann-Hansen

Kenins-Richardson-Dorsett

Each player with 82 or Less games has a mentor on their line to help them out

Edler-Tanev

Hamhuis-Corrado

Pedan-Bieksa

Miller

Lack

why would you get rid of Sbisa......he was better than Tanev in that series and the only one, other than Hamhuis, who consistently [plays the body. Not to mention you're calling for youth and he's one of the youngest on the d corp

[VanFan_1974]

Where do we go from here? There are so many places to go.

We, the fans, need to be honest with our team. Our core has played very much like the Sharks since 2011. Lots of talent, lots of expectations but they have consistently and continually have shown a) lack of killer instinct b ) mental fortitude c) lack of results. The Flames just put an exclamation point on them. They have lost 14 out of their last 17 playoffs games dating back to 2011 SCF. Its hard pill to swallow, but facts are facts. Many of these games have been gut wrenching in a) not showing up b ) finding a way to choke (give it away). Add the fact that the core's age averages 32-34, realistically this core will not get "better". Our responsibility as fans is to recognize this and not have freak outs over unreasonable expectations. Why is this so important?

Owners. Aqua man pushed hard for the team to make moves to be competitive and make the playoffs. The great thing about making the playoffs is development for Horvat and Kennins and some of the younger D. However, it hurts us in finding FRANCHISE players at the draft. This makes Benning's job extremely difficult, that and the NTC (which I will talk about later). The dynamic between Owners and Fans needs to be one of understanding the process of building a contender and unfortunately, we need opportunities via the draft or trade to acquire these. Trading is almost out of the question at this time, as mentioned, our core is aging and literally falling in value by the day. We simply are not built to win now, that window has closed and I hope Benning meant what he said "This core deserves A chance", which just passed by. The big question, and we will find out this spring, will management be free from owners (where fans can be influential) to transition the core and have the patience to focus on development of prospects? Or will they insist keeping things together to try to make it back into the playoffs? If its the later, I fear we will tread in mediocrity for the foreseeable future.

On that dynamic, we need patience with this team while Benning gets an opportunity to transition the core and stack draft picks and prospects. This is going to be a huge challenge for him with all the NTC (Sedins-2018, Vrbata-2016, Higgins-2017, Burrows-2017, Hansen-2018, Eder-2019, Bieska-2016, Hamhuis-2016, Miller-2017). Lets be honest, Sedins are not going anywhere and should be transitioned towards second line duties as it becomes an option. Vrbata has a reasonable chance at being moved at the deadline next year for maximum return. Higgins and Burrows (because of age and roles), should be the main targets to try to move in the offseason, Burrows would obviously be very challenging to move. Bieksa should be moved at the trade deadline while Hammer retained/extended (you need some veteran D - I would prefer Tanev, Edler, Hammer). I don't mind Hansen, young, energetic and cap hit isn't all that bad. Certainly not hurting us. Could we do better, I'm sure there are arguments out there such as moving him out and going with Dorsett and Kennins. Realistically this is the hardest part for Benning to navigate. He needs to move at least 2 forwards and 1 D from this core. Repeat in spring of 2016. Realistically, this part is a 2 year project and he is going to have to sweet talk some nuns for their panties to pull it off. I certainly don't envy his position on this front, but moving a NTC and a willingness to focus on development might make the difference for another aging NTC Vet (a-la-kesler) to move on. IMO, the hardest will be getting the first to move.

Prospects. First, you can already see what Benning has done last year, getting those tweeners to fill that gap so that we have at least some compete in us (Vey, Bonino, Dorsett, Clandenning...etc) for the upcoming leaner years. The Gap generation - where our cupboard is the barest. Arguably, we can hope for some real upside from Vey as a "rookie" this year, but so far he fits in the tweener role. Baertschi (lets call him Sven cause that name is just ridiculous), also would potentially fit in this role. In my opinion, I think Kassian and Virtanen are wild cards next year. We have already seen this year rumours that Benning was entertaining offers on Kassian...man if he could only be consistent. Suffice to say, Benning has filled the roster with young players that will have to compete for a spot on the team (which he will need to open up with moving some of the core out). Virtanen, may not really fit into this "prospect" category, as he hasn't played any games in the NHL but I wanted to put him in here because I think Virtanen/Kassian fortunes are somewhat link in what Benning does with the roster in this area. The rest of the prospects such as Schinkaruk, Gaunce, Jensen, McCann and I'll mention Virtanen again (note that they are all forwards), will need to prove they belong on the team. Nobody here has a crystal ball, we all just have to cross our fingers and hope that they ALL super impress in training camp

Goaltending. There are two options in front of Benning, well three if do nothing is acceptable to you and in my opinion it isn't - we are retooling not stacking for a "deep" run. So, keep Miller or keep Lack for the long haul. Moving Miller means longer time for us to groom Demko with Lack, moving Lack means less time. Moving Miller would be difficult (Cap and he was a recent signed UFA) and moving Lack would mean more of a return, and easier to move. If one of them gets moved, it will also make room for Markstrom. In reality, our goal should be to a focus on grooming Demko properly. My money is on Lack being moved in the offseason for best return possible to stack the prospect pool or part of a trade package for one of our needs. We still have some other goalie prospects and we could go out and get another vet goallie in 3 years for another gap filler if needed. In my opinion, Lack is better to us by transforming him into other assets as oppose to playing back up and help sneak us into another one and out + a 20ish draft pick.

Drafting. Lets hope Benning can continue a strong showing on this front, because he isn't in a position of strength when picking. In my opinion, the focus should be on a puck moving D with a potential of being a true #1 or at the least a #2. These playoffs showed this teams D is simply atrocious, I really don't need to go there if you have watched the games. If you haven't, video doesn't lie. I think Benning has to dangle draft picks and players (no grade A prospects - Horvat, McCann, Virtanen) to move up and acquire Hanifin - pro. 3rd overall (Yes, it would cost, but thats what we need and I would bow to Benning if he could pull it off, go ahead and overpay as long as our A prospects are not touched) or to a lesser extent Kylington -proj. 7th overall or Warenski- pro. 10th overall. I would defer to Benning's talents over my own inept evaluations, but none the less, these three guys are what we seek. Now the question is, can we trade for a pick that will get us that D. The hope of course as well, is that Benning is able to create magic in the later rounds with his picks to add real good (ode to our GM & coach) young players.

Next Year's Roster (remember, this is to retool and see what we have and what we need long term, not to get into the playoffs)

Forwards:

Sedins - Burrows (trade unlikely, but should if can)

Vrbata-Horvat (because he earned it) - Sven/Vey/Kassian (?? can he earn it, this slot could be a project all year)

Hansen-Bonino- Sven/Vey/Kassian

Dorsett-Richardson (re-sign, 1-2 years)- Kennins

out: Higgins, Matthias. By trade deadline (Vrbata, Burrows, or both for maximum return)

pushing: Virtanen, Schinkaruk, McCann, Jensen, Gaunce, + UFA/trades???

Notes: PK and 1st PP, stay relatively intact, so not a complete tear down but meaningful transition none the less. As an aside, this team really misses D. Weise.

Defence:

Edler-Tanev

Hammer-Bieksa (traded at deadline, either or both)

Sbisa-?? Carrado/Webber/Clandenning/Stanton

Pushing: seriously, no one really.

Notes: Yes the D is a mess and depending on training camp, UFA's, trades and draft. This is the primary focus of really big renovation. Hanifin would look real nice in there though, one can dream. Trading Bieska and/or Hammer at the deadline will really depend on value coming back and what we were able to draft/UFA.

Goaltending:

Miller

Markstrom

Out: Lack

Pushing: Cannata, Eriksson, Demko

That roster isn't stellar but it puts the fire to the feet of some youngsters, show me what you got so I know if we should keep you or ship you. Again, this proposed roster is coming from a the goal of understanding our assets, developing them and separating the wheat from the chaff. Serious retool/rebuild.

And I agree with Deb, our team will be ok. But I disagree with Deb, this isn't about puck luck, this is about a time for change. Its painful, I know but the reality is the core had A chance, time to move on. We didn't lose to the Flames because of bounces. You don't loose game 6 when you are up 3-0, champions just don't do that.

I am a season ticket holder, will always bleed blue & green since 1974, I want to see a championship before I die and I think the key is to find ourselves a Norris caliber D or two, more heart (killer instinct and willingness to sacrifice everything each and every night, especially playoffs). The Flames just confirmed this core are pretenders and it was exposed by LA in 2012. Sadly, time to move on.

Go! Canucks, Go!

[5nothincanucksohno]

I could see McCann playing a similar role to what Horvat was this year. I could work well, same style of player. It is a young guys league, the problems arise when you rush the wrong players or put them is a position with too much responsibility right away (need time to learn where they aren't the focal point).

Bonino will be on next years team but probably on the "third line"

[Honky Cat]

The way the Flames had Bennett in this series and the Bruins had Pastrnak in their lineup - 2 guys who weren't expected to be playing in the NHL this season - it makes me wonder what it would be like if we just threw in Shinkaruk, Virtanen, and McCann all into our lineup next year

It was obvious with Bennett that the Flames had a special player ....He played in the Canucks last game of the 2013-14 season,and was impressive then..Although he's slight,he's a fearless player and has a great skill set..Picked 4th overall,I doubt he'll see the the AHL,he will step right in.

We will have to wait until training camp to see where Shink,McCann and Jake stand in the scheme of things....I'm as interested as the next guy to see how they match up..You just have to make sure you don't screw it up and ruin their confidence by putting them in a position they're not ready to take on (Sven B is a good example of how a rookie has not been developed properly).

[CroSen]

Lack is 27 years old, I still think he is young enough to be considered part of our "youth movement," as youth isn't always defined by a number.