stawns Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 I think Sutter caused a setback in Gaunce's development when he cut Gaunce from Team Canada and said he would never be more than a bottom 6 center in the NHL. It seemed to dampen his confidence and slow his development. (Never liked those damn Sutters - even when we had one.) Gauncer is a leader and a dominant player when the chips are down and Team Canada would have found him to be a very useful and reliable player. Green has brought Gaunce back from this interference, now he is an integral part of the Comets and delivering splendid play and clutch goals. His defense is outstanding, his skating is much improved, he is covering a lot of ice with his size and reach. He leads by example, and that is set with a calm, thoughtful persona off the ice and a steely determination on the ice. He cares about the team, his teammates, and everybody reaching their goals (e.g. Tryamkin and the Grouse Grind). Gaunce is ready, imo, and going to get a chance to start on the 4th line once the dust settles after training camp. I can see him establishing himself and then moving up the roster as he proves his worth. I think you're giving Sutter way too much credit and gaunce not enough. While I'm sure he was disappointed, he was as consistent as ever after being cut. Not surprisingly his game actually translated better to the pro game than to JR and he was a very very good Jr. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedintwinpowersactivate Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 I'm excited about our club's young depth at forward. We may be lacking high end talent, but we should be able to roll 4 dangerous lines for years to come. Now lets see us draft some defensemen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amish Rake Fighter Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 Lol cute....if only every single prospect became the players they are supposed to be...the cup is ours! Detroit regularly ices a team with 10-12 draft picks at forward positions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gstank29 Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 Lol cute....if only every single prospect became the players they are supposed to be...the cup is ours! Well most of them are in the AHL which isn't that far from the NHL so there's that. If they were in Junior i would be more skeptical but they are producing in the AHL so..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aGENT Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 I think Sutter caused a setback in Gaunce's development when he cut Gaunce from Team Canada and said he would never be more than a bottom 6 center in the NHL. In fairness he's likely going to be a VERY good 3rd line LW who can occasional fill in on the 2nd in his prime. Sutter wasn't necessarily wrong and there's nothing wrong with the player he's likely to become. I think he's going to be like a Higgins/Malholtra hybrid and that's going to be a pretty damn good player. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goal:thecup Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 I understand what you (J.R. and stawns) are saying.Sutter could have handled it better though and I still believe there is no love for anything Canuck in the Sutter family.IMO, he should have put that bias aside when managing a national team.Gaunce would have helped that team.Regardless of all that speculation, Gaunce is really showing his character and skills in this Calder Cup run and Green can count on him.This same reliability may convince WD that, along with his size, speed, and strength, Gaunce can hold down a spot on the big club this year.This is the first year that I am convinced the youth is going to force its way onto the team.Baertschi, Clendening for sure because of their waver status and Gaunce, Grenier, and even Virtanen because of their "proven" readiness.Markstrom too; Lack and Markstrom are forcing a difficult decision for the goalie position.JB can afford to let Matthias and Richardson walk, not waste money on overpaid free agents, trade assets that management decides are not going to be with the Canucks going forward, and honour the vets who have earned their NTCs as we ease them down the roster and re-evaluate their place on the team as their contracts expire.The only real hole I see in the plan is (of course) on D. I really believe JB has to make some tough decisions and part with some quality assets to get help on D from the top down while we draft and develop defense prospects.Some of the AHL "regulars" have played exceptionally well under Green and may be worthy of a longer look too but there isn't anybody in the system that we can identify as a bona fide top 1-2 defenseman in the near future.I really want to see what our new management decides, who goes, and who we get back; we already know JB can evaluate juniors and draft well, now I want to see how he does getting rid of players.Gaunce, and others, are giving management a real opportunity to go with more youth, not sign FAs, and save that money for legitimate top-end talent acquired through trades.We cannot afford to wait for our own D prospects to develop and we cannot afford to trade for recent draft picks like Ekblad; we may however, be able to put a package together for a proven player who would be better than all our current defensemen. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaudette Celly Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 Could happen from an asset management point of view also, since Grenier has to go through waivers whereas Kenins and Gaunce don't. Gives us time to see whether Grenier can cut it on the big club with the other two waiting in the wings if he can't. Good situation. Pretty sure that Grenier is at the same status as fellow 2011 draftee Jensen -- one more season of being exempt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 I understand what you (J.R. and stawns) are saying. Sutter could have handled it better though and I still believe there is no love for anything Canuck in the Sutter family. IMO, he should have put that bias aside when managing a national team. Gaunce would have helped that team. Regardless of all that speculation, Gaunce is really showing his character and skills in this Calder Cup run and Green can count on him. This same reliability may convince WD that, along with his size, speed, and strength, Gaunce can hold down a spot on the big club this year. This is the first year that I am convinced the youth is going to force its way onto the team. Baertschi, Clendening for sure because of their waver status and Gaunce, Grenier, and even Virtanen because of their "proven" readiness. Markstrom too; Lack and Markstrom are forcing a difficult decision for the goalie position. JB can afford to let Matthias and Richardson walk, not waste money on overpaid free agents, trade assets that management decides are not going to be with the Canucks going forward, and honour the vets who have earned their NTCs as we ease them down the roster and re-evaluate their place on the team as their contracts expire. The only real hole I see in the plan is (of course) on D. I really believe JB has to make some tough decisions and part with some quality assets to get help on D from the top down while we draft and develop defense prospects. Some of the AHL "regulars" have played exceptionally well under Green and may be worthy of a longer look too but there isn't anybody in the system that we can identify as a bona fide top 1-2 defenseman in the near future. I really want to see what our new management decides, who goes, and who we get back; we already know JB can evaluate juniors and draft well, now I want to see how he does getting rid of players. Gaunce, and others, are giving management a real opportunity to go with more youth, not sign FAs, and save that money for legitimate top-end talent acquired through trades. We cannot afford to wait for our own D prospects to develop and we cannot afford to trade for recent draft picks like Ekblad; we may however, be able to put a package together for a proven player who would be better than all our current defensemen. If JB can move out some salary, Mike Green is the best option for the team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaudette Celly Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 JB can afford to let Matthias and Richardson walk, not waste money on overpaid free agents, trade assets that management decides are not going to be with the Canucks going forward, and honour the vets who have earned their NTCs as we ease them down the roster and re-evaluate their place on the team as their contracts expire. Yes I agree -- there should no longer be any need for FA signings at forward as Benning has done very well to fill gaps and now there are sufficient youth ready that spots need to be opened for them. The only real hole I see in the plan is (of course) on D. I really believe JB has to make some tough decisions and part with some quality assets to get help on D from the top down while we draft and develop defense prospects. Some of the AHL "regulars" have played exceptionally well under Green and may be worthy of a longer look too but there isn't anybody in the system that we can identify as a bona fide top 1-2 defenseman in the near future... We cannot afford to wait for our own D prospects to develop and we cannot afford to trade for recent draft picks like Ekblad; we may however, be able to put a package together for a proven player who would be better than all our current defensemen. Pretty obvious to all that the D is what needs to be addressed. Linden's first words after the question of improvement was asked was, "You do that through trades". None of our D prospects currently project to be top-2 players, and we almost certainly won't get one out of this draft that will step right in. Therefore, I think it's a good chance that Benning picks one up in trade this summer, packaging Lack with other assets as he's said he prefers to trade that way rather than 1-for-1. We should see a young top-4 coming in return. Plan's looking good. Will be very interesting to see what he pulls off to fix the back end now that he's got the forward situation on track. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crabcakes Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 If you call Brad Richardson a FA signing, I think that would make the Canucks a better team on the ice and in the locker room. However, it's contingent on cap space. You're right though, they don't need to do anything up front. Although, I think Higgins is gone. The back end is where the work needs to be done. I think that top end talent is going to have to come via the draft but in the meantime Benning has said that he wants a puck mover and a physical presence would help too. Hamhuis is marketable. Bieksa could open up some cap space but might not yield much in return. When asked who could step up next year other than the obvious 3 who will need to clear waivers, Benning likes Grenier first, then Ganuce and possibly Virtanen, Shinkaruk and others. Their success would be much more likely if Richardson is not resigned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knucklehd Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 I think youll see Horvat at 3C and cassels fighting for the 4C spot...if Rrichardson isnt signed. If he is, then its down to utica for Cassels. For Gaunce, I don't see him fighting for a C spot, they've been grooming him for wing, and I don't think they would give a spot to Gaunce and Virtanen. So I feel you'll see those two fight it out for a winger spot on the fourth line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesB Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 I think Sutter caused a setback in Gaunce's development when he cut Gaunce from Team Canada and said he would never be more than a bottom 6 center in the NHL. It seemed to dampen his confidence and slow his development. (Never liked those damn Sutters - even when we had one.) Gauncer is a leader and a dominant player when the chips are down and Team Canada would have found him to be a very useful and reliable player. Green has brought Gaunce back from this interference, now he is an integral part of the Comets and delivering splendid play and clutch goals. His defense is outstanding, his skating is much improved, he is covering a lot of ice with his size and reach. He leads by example, and that is set with a calm, thoughtful persona off the ice and a steely determination on the ice. He cares about the team, his teammates, and everybody reaching their goals (e.g. Tryamkin and the Grouse Grind). Gaunce is ready, imo, and going to get a chance to start on the 4th line once the dust settles after training camp. I can see him establishing himself and then moving up the roster as he proves his worth. While I do not like Sutter and think he was a jerk to make that statement to the press, he might not be far off. Gaunce is better on the wing than at center and his ceiling might well be 3LW. That said, the expected value for a low first round pick is only as a marginal NHL player. Here is the data from Scott Cullen's number crunching for a #26 pick: No. 26 Average Rating: 4.10Best: Zigmund Palffy, Martin Havlat, David Perron, Cory Schneider.Worst: Nicolas Perreault, Kevin Grimes, Martin Vagner.Ranked 7 or better: 20.0%Ranked 5 or worse: 55.0%At least 100 NHL games (or extremely likely): 60.0% The average ranking for the #26 pick is between 4 and 5. A ranking of 4 mean "fringe NHL player" -- a guy who goes up and down between the NHL and AHL and spends a lot his NHL time in the press box. A ranking of 5 mean NHL regular (i.e. 4th line player). If Gaunce can become a good 3LW that is a good outcome, well above average for a #26 pick. Based on his development this year that is where I would project him in 2 or 3 years. Next year he will probably be back in Utica but has a shot at 4LW. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crabcakes Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 I think we see a dog fight in camp for 4th line wing between Kenins, Gaunce and Grenier......Dorsett can play either wing. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canucklehead44 Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 (edited) I can see him being a third line player calibre player who brings size, defensive awareness, and faceoff ability to a 2nd line. Vey for example has the offensive ability to be a second line centre, maybe not next season but the season after. However, he is lacking in faceoff ability, size, and defensive awareness. A player like Gaunce on the wing could complement these deficiencies, and with a go to pure goal scorer on the other line could be a decent line. Gaunce would never drive a scoring line, but he might have enough skill to keep up. Edited June 4, 2015 by canucklehead44 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asian player Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 Elite 3rd liner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WHL rocks Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 I see Gaunce as a solid 4th liner with spot duty on the 3rd after cpl of seasons. He will never be a top 6 forward in the NHL and Sutter was right when he said that. Gaunce will get some NHL ice next year but via call up later in the year. Expect Grenier to make the team ahead of G man. Don't expect Cassels to make the big club next year, perhaps the year after next he'll get a call up but CDC needs to be patient in regards to Cole. Cassels will need 2.5 - 3 seasons of development before being a full time Canucks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stawns Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 I see Gaunce as a solid 4th liner with spot duty on the 3rd after cpl of seasons. He will never be a top 6 forward in the NHL and Sutter was right when he said that. Gaunce will get some NHL ice next year but via call up later in the year. Expect Grenier to make the team ahead of G man. Don't expect Cassels to make the big club next year, perhaps the year after next he'll get a call up but CDC needs to be patient in regards to Cole. Cassels will need 2.5 - 3 seasons of development before being a full time Canucks. What makes you say that, out of curiosity? Seems to me he's showing some pretty solid offensive skills in his rookie season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boudrias Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 What makes you say that, out of curiosity? Seems to me he's showing some pretty solid offensive skills in his rookie season. Guance can produce points but his defense probably gets him a chance at the NHL level. Add his more physical play and he looks good. Rookie AHL season was solid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maniwaki Canuck Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 ^^ Very much agree. He gets position and uses his size well, and is generally a smart player. All that can translate into offense too, especially if his skating continues to improve. Will be a very useful player for us, and pretty soon, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dekey Pete Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 Gaunce doesn't get enough credit. Solid rookie season by him, won't be surprised to see him get a chance with the NHL club next year. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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