McCann: I was shocked, had great leaders in Sedin's, Vrbata, Hamhuis

[Sedin Brothers]

Well, at least we can denounced the "Vrbata was a cancer" corrundum.

 

http://vancouversun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/vancouver-canucks/flustered-mccann-now-motivated-to-make-an-impact-with-panthers

 

Quote

 

Even though the centre was moved to the wing late in his rookie NHL season and has physical and competitive challenges to bulk up and be better in the face-off circle — areas of his game he was working on Wednesday in Vancouver — he wasn’t expecting to be traded by the Canucks in a package that brought defenceman Erik Gudbranson here from the Florida Panthers.

 

McCann was about to head out for dinner with a friend after working out with the Canucks training staff when his cellphone rang. General manager Jim Benning was on the other end to reveal the new McCann Plan. The Stratford, Ont. native, who turns 20 Tuesday, was going to Florida along with second- and fourth-round picks in the upcoming draft for Gudbranson, 24, and a fifth-round selection next month.

It gives the Canucks a top-four defenceman with untapped potential and gives McCann added motivation.

“It totally caught me off guard and I wasn’t expecting it at all,” McCann said Thursday. “I’m still kind of flustered, I guess. He (Benning) told me it’s the business side of hockey and I understand that. I know they didn’t want to let me go, but they’re getting a good player in return. But it’s obviously tough. This was the team that drafted me.”

Then reality set in. McCann got knocked around like a piñata by bigger opposition centres, had 14- and 25-game scoreless streaks in which he was in and out of the starting roster. He needed to get stronger. He needed to be better than 34.7 per cent in the face-off circle and he needed to be tried at wing down the stretch.

“Obviously, it played a role in what happened, but I don’t know what triggered this,” added McCann. “It’s something I’ve got to deal with. I had the opportunity to stay here and train and felt like it was a good opportunity to prove that I wanted to be here and make the team next year and get better.

“But things like this happen and I understand it. Everything happens for a reason. If he (Benning) felt this was the way to go then it’s his team, and I guess I wasn’t the right fit here and I’m going to try to be one in Florida.”

With the Panthers, McCann is listed as a centre but would be playing behind Aleksander Barkov, 20, Vincent Trocheck, 22, and Nick Bjugstad, 23. He might be a better option on the left side behind Jonathan Huberdeau, 22, and Jussi Jokinen, 33.

McCann finished with nine goals and nine assists in 69 games and the off-season message was get stronger and better, because starting next season with the Utica Comets was a possibility. So was using McCann as a trade chip now or at the draft to bolster the back end.

If the Canucks land QMJHL centre/winger Pierre-Luc Dubois fifth overall on June 24, McCann would have been expendable. With Henrik Sedin, Brandon Sutter, Bo Horvat, Markus Granlund and possibly Linden Vey on a projected roster, he was probably looking at making an impact at wing, not centre. It might be the same story in Florida.

“He (McCann) continues to add to the group of forwards that we have,” new Panthers general manager Tom Rowe told the Miami Herald. “We wanted to get more depth on the forward lines. The fact we added two draft picks, we got two back that we lost at the trade deadline.”

If anything, the 6-foot, 180-pound McCann grew in his short time in Vancouver, especially in learning to be a consummate professional on and off the ice, a steep learning curve for most rookies.

“I feel like I can play at this level,” he stressed. “I had times where it was tough coming from junior and trying to score goals. But I grew mentally and had great leaders in Hank and Danny (Sedin), (Radim) Vrbata and (Dan) Hamhuis, who really showed me that it wasn’t just about scoring goals. It was more about your overall focus and how the team does.”

 

 

[higgyfan]

Kind of sad to see him go as I was really interested in watching him develop into a very good player.  He still seems kind of confused over the trade, but in the end, I think he will have a better chance in Fla. and play in the EC.

 

Really enjoyed watching him play and wish him the best of everything in the future.

 

Solong, buddy!

[Odd.]

It is what is, isn't it McCann?

 

Haha, goodluck to you with Florida. Hopefully you can sneak out to UFA in 7 years and come back??

 

This guy was nothing but a 19 year old who wanted to get better and didn't complain about anything. He's going to be a great top 6 player and hopefully his game complements the East, which it does.

[mpt]

Thought he had tonnes of potential, but to get quality you have to give up quality.  Let's just hope Gudbranson is quality.

[Patrick Kane]

2 minutes ago, mpt said:

Thought he had tonnes of potential, but to get quality you have to give up quality.  Let's just hope Gudbranson is quality.

The fact that people are 'hoping' for Gudbranson to be quality after giving up a bluechip prospect and a 2nd.... Yikes

[Positive Canuck]

2 minutes ago, mpt said:

Thought he had tonnes of potential, but to get quality you have to give up quality.  Let's just hope Gudbranson is quality.

don't be surprised if Gudbranson isn't your favourite Canuck by xmas.

[mpt]

Just now, Patrick Kane said:

The fact that people are 'hoping' for Gudbranson to be quality after giving up a former 1st rounder and a 2nd.... Yikes

I can't comment on how good he is, since I don't watch any Florida Panthers games except for when they play Vancouver.  So I'm hoping he's quality and I'll reserve judgement until I can see him play.

[Oliewud]

1 minute ago, Positive Canuck said:

don't be surprised if Gudbranson isn't your favourite Canuck by xmas.

I encourage you to watch the Isles-Panthers series on youtube. Full Games. Gudbranson is going to be a hell of a player for us.

[mpt]

1 minute ago, Positive Canuck said:

don't be surprised if Gudbranson isn't your favourite Canuck by xmas.

I don't expect him to be my favourite so I won't be surprised

[mpt]

1 minute ago, Oliewud said:

I encourage you to watch the Isles-Panthers series on youtube. Full Games. Gudbranson is going to be a hell of a player for us.

Any player can show up for 1 series, can he be consistent over an entire season?   I'm looking forward to seeing him play

[CHYCHRUN]

So, a 1st (McCann) plus a 2nd (33rd) plus a early 4th...

For

A late 5th and big tough body checking character guy,....

Doesn't float your boat?

 

Me neither

 

[butters]

7 minutes ago, Patrick Kane said:

The fact that people are 'hoping' for Gudbranson to be quality after giving up a bluechip prospect and a 2nd.... Yikes

why do opinions of fans scare you?

[73 Percent]

1 minute ago, CHYCHRUN said:

So, a 1st (McCann) plus a 2nd (33rd) plus a early 4th...

For

A late 5th and big tough body checking character guy,....

Doesn't float your boat?

 

Me neither

 

Funny how your username is the next gudbranson...

[Positive Canuck]

6 minutes ago, Oliewud said:

I encourage you to watch the Isles-Panthers series on youtube. Full Games. Gudbranson is going to be a hell of a player for us.

Same clowns cried when Mason Raymond and Eddy Lack were traded.

 

Guddy will be a beast for us.

[BI3KSA-]

It's always sad when we lose players/prospects that we've already gotten attached to. He seemed to like it here and had a genuine drive to become a NHLer. I wish him luck and I'll follow his career. 

[Twilight Sparkle]

1 minute ago, mpt said:

Any player can show up for 1 series, can he be consistent over an entire season?   I'm looking forward to seeing him play

yes, he can, and has helped made that florida defense as good as it was. i guess you could call him a "foundational player"

[luckylager]

3 minutes ago, CHYCHRUN said:

So, a 1st (McCann) plus a 2nd (33rd) plus a early 4th...

For

A late 5th and big tough body checking character guy,....

Doesn't float your boat?

 

Me neither

 

It's time you got over it, Chych. 

 

Everyone knows you're pissed, in fact when I read the title I was thinking: "I bet that Chychrun dude is still pissed" and I'm right. Thanks, I was wrong all day about everything (according to my wife), so thanks! 

[mpt]

8 minutes ago, Gooseberries said:

Funny how your username is the next gudbranson...

Chychrun is a lot more offensive than Gudbranson, especially when you compare 2nd year numbers in the CHL.  He could turn out to be Gudbranson but then again he put up better numbers than Ekblad in his 2nd year in Junior

[Cramarossa]

Poor kid was blindsided. He must have really taken some of those lessons to heart though because he's handled this media blitz so far with grace and maturity (this in spite of some "cocky/bad attitude" rumors I've heard about him). I can appreciate that he's had nothing but nice things to say about the Canucks organization. I'll be sure to keep following his career in Florida.

[mpt]

2 minutes ago, ThrustyPrusty89 said:

Poor kid was blindsided. He must have really taken some of those lessons to heart though because he's handled this media blitz so far with grace and maturity (this in spite of some "cocky/bad attitude" rumors I've heard about him). I can appreciate that he's had nothing but nice things to say about the Canucks organization. I'll be sure to keep following his career in Florida.

I heard those same rumours