Smashian Kassian Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 I don't think London will be a Memorial Cup contender this year. they were better last year than they are this season & they got embarrassed in the tournament last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smashian Kassian Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Just to play devil's advocate a bit, it might also be that Horvat has been given more minutes in the games where WD has felt he's played well and has cut back on minutes when the coach has seen things he didn't like in Bo's game. It could be a "chicken or the egg" kinda deal and, as much as I like Horvat, I'm slightly inclined to give Willie the benefit of the doubt here. Ultimately, I really believe that the coach will give minutes to the guys he feels are playing their best hockey and who give the team a better chance to win on any given night. When Horvat is one of those players, more so than other options in the lineup, I believe Desjardins will give him the minutes he deserves, and vice versa. As much as I've wanted Bo to play more than he's averaged thus far, I haven't seen anything yet that really suggests the coach isn't giving him a fair shake. For that reason, I think we're almost guaranteed to see the pattern continue. Bo will play well when he plays higher minutes. But possibly more because the coach will give him greater opportunities when he's playing a strong game. And maybe not as much because the quality of his game depends on him getting a certain amount of ice time (although that can be a factor--which is why I mentioned that I was playing devil's advocate with this post). I don't think Bo has played bad in any of the games, I think the difference is that he's just getting a regular shift, and is able to actually try to go out there and do things, rather than just going out for 5 minutes & trying to play it safe & not get scored on in his limited ice time. I think that can happen in the games. But the thing is, now we have this debate, well is it that Horvat isn't playing well in the games he's not getting ice time, or is it that he's not given the icetime to make an impact? Which is exactly why I've been saying all along that Horvat needs to play a regular shift so we can find out once & for all, if we don't know what we have how can we properly evaluate? Like I said before, Horvat's best games are when he's played 9 minutes or more (a regular 4th line shift), its not like he needs to be gifted a top 6 spot, just a regular 4th line shift would be a good role for him currently. Some think Willie will increase his icetime after his game against ANA, and we will see, I'm certainly hopeful but I'm pessimistic, because you would think Horvat would have got the same chance after the LA game, or that he would have gotten more minutes against Arizona. I really like Willie, but if there is one thing (and this is really the only thing I can think of, aside from undeservedly placing Hansen on the 1st line maybe) that I haven't liked that he's done it this situation with Horvat. I'm not sure really what to do, I know that he's ready to play here & contribute but I am doubtful he will be given the chance to contribute, which leads me to think perhaps going back to Junior is the better route, I'm just hoping he plays a regular shift from here on out, then the proper decision should be more clear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Canucks_fo_life Posted November 23, 2014 Popular Post Share Posted November 23, 2014 Monkey off the shoulder - congrats on the 1st of many! Haha how do you guys like my celebration at 16 seconds? :D 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salmonberries Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 I actually believe Bo has been rewarded by Desjardins with more ice when he's played better, not the reverse. Interesting chicken and egg scenario, I know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salmonberries Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 I don't think London will be a Memorial Cup contender this year. they were better last year than they are this season & they got embarrassed in the tournament last year. They're stacked with 19 year old first and second round NHL draft choices. I wouldn't rule out a long OHL post season Memorial Cup run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Boudreau Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Benning wants Horvat to stay. Another good performance tomorrow against the Black hawks will put this topic to bed. I think now he stays the whole year in his 4th line center role which is he better suited to than Vey who needs to be with offensive skill players to be at this best. Sedin-Sedin-Vrbata Higgins-Bonino-Vey Burrows-Richardson-Hansen Matthias-Horvat-Kassian Dorsett healthy scratch to preserve his energy because he plays such a kamikaze style of game and will run into more injuries over the course of the season if he is not sat every couple of games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
two drink minimum Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Haha how do you guys like my celebration at 16 seconds? :DYour hats on backwards Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
73 Percent Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Haha how do you guys like my celebration at 16 seconds? :D you've put on some weight... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Dasein Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Haha how do you guys like my celebration at 16 seconds? :D Loving the enthusiasm! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canuckledraggin Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 (edited) I don't think Bo's play had a lot to do with his ice time until recently. WD has been forced to shorten his bench in a bunch of tight games this year, especially with the top 6 playing very well to start the season. You can see the trust level going up and having Hansen on his line makes for a more balanced 4 line team. Edited November 23, 2014 by canuckledraggin 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smashian Kassian Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 (edited) They're stacked with 19 year old first and second round NHL draft choices. I wouldn't rule out a long OHL post season Memorial Cup run. Marner is a year older, but they lost alot of good players, Gemel Smith, Josh Andersson, Chris Tierney, up front, and then most of their defense core, I think Mermis & Zadorov are really he only returning ones that played important roles for the Mem Cup team. And also they have 2 new goalies. Edited November 23, 2014 by Smashian Kassian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Dasein Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 I think Bo just forced his way on the team with the last game and he has 3 more to cement that in Willie's mind.' Unless tanking is the object.... ??? So no Bo = tank ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plum Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 ??? So no Bo = tank ? Yeah, we're talking about Gretzky here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tre Mac Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 Another great game lining up against his idol. I don't even know why it's even a discussion keeping him up here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Karlsson Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 I think Bo just forced his way on the team with the last game and he has 3 more to cement that in Willie's mind.' Unless tanking is the object.... We know what's up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derp... Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 So this guy is pretty good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zachfetch Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 3 assists tonight...send him to junior!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyhee Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 The "4th" line looked dangerous all night. Horvat won 80% of his faceoffs and had 3 assists to go with the goal from last game. After Benning saying he'd like him to make it, can you imagine the fury if they tried to send him down now? I'm normally in favour of seasoning young players in jr/minors, but his faceoffs are strong, his defence is good, his offensive instincts seem to have reappeared, if he hasn't made it then explaining it would be next to impossible. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
73 Percent Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 15 quality minutes tonight. Everything is checking out now. If this keeps up (to a lesser extent) then keeping him is the right move. For the record keeps up doesn't mean 15 mins a night and 3 assists. It means consistently more than 8 mins of ice time and offensive zone possession. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DownUndaCanuck Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 1 goal and 3 assists in 8 games. He took a while to warm to the NHL, but now I think he's here to stay. In his first what, 5 games, he was scoreless and only around 50-60% in the faceoff dot. In the last 3 games he's scored 4 points and has been a monster at faceoffs around 70%. Not going to lie, I didn't expect him to stay this season but he has been one of the Canucks best centers so far. We're a much better team with him in the lineup, a MUCH better possession and faceoff team, and now we've got a 3rd line that can do some damage. Dorsett really got Horvat going, and he's gotten Hansen playing well too as a result. Credit to Dorsett for clicking Horvat's game into gear but now I think we're seeing what this kid can do. He does the little things defensively very well which, against a team that just blew up Edmonton for 7 goals, is pretty impressive. Horvat should be our 3C right now, leaving Matthias and Richardson for 4th line duties because they've both struggled at faceoffs and defensively, whereas Horvat has played a very impressive 200 foot game so far. It'll be tough to see who sits out when Burrows returns, but right now I think it'll be Kassian. When healthy: Sedin - Sedin - Vbrata Higgins - Bonino - Burrows Dorsett - Horvat - Hansen Richardson - Matthias - Vey That 3rd line is absolute money right now and shouldn't be broken up 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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