Stecher's Role when Tanev returns

[JamesB]

Lots of comments have been made in various threads about what should happen to Stecher when Tanev comes back, but I thought I would sent up a poll and solicit specific opinions. Here is the case in favor of each option.

1. (First Pairing) Stecher and Edler have been surprisingly good together, both in preseason and since Stecher was called up. Tanev can link up with Hutton on the second pairing and probably help Hutton. And Guddy can move to the third pairing. That would give the Canucks three solid pairings. Playing big minutes with Edler can only help Stecher's progress. The kid is on a roll. Let's keep it going.

 

Let's face it, Hutton and Guddy have been kind of disappointing together -- not bad, but not as good as we hoped. The idea was that playing with Guddy would free up Hutton. But it has not worked out that way. Guddy is big, strong, tough, and physical. He skates well for a big man and plays well without the puck. But, he often struggles when under pressure in his own end and Hutton and Guddy often have a hard time getting the puck out of their own end cleanly. Playing with Tanev, who does a great job handling the puck in his own end and is generally even better in his own end than Guddy, should take some defensive pressure off Hutton and allow him to recapture his offensive game.

 

2. Play Stecher on second pairing with Hutton. The reason for this is similar to the reasoning for the first pairing option. The difference is that Edler and Tanev can take all the tough shutdown assignments if they play together, making life easier for both Stecher and Hutton on the second pairing. As Stecher and Hutton can both handle the puck well, skate well, and have good offensive instincts, playing together can allow them to make the most of their offensive talents. And they are both pretty good in their own end as well so they won't be a liability in their own end.

 

3. Third pairing. Put Tanev back with Edler and continue to play Hutton and Guddy together to continue to build their chemistry (we hope). Stecher then drops down to the third pairing to play with Sbisa or Tryamkin. Sbisa needs to play 13 more games to qualify as the veteran defenceman the Canucks need to supply for the expansion draft. So probably Sbisa continues to play until he reaches that threshold. But, either way, Stecher is a natural fit for either Sbisa or Tryamkin. Both those guys provide size and muscle and a "stay at home" mentality, allowing Stecher to be the puck mover. And the third pairing will get the easier minutes (and fewer minutes) allowing Stecher to focus more on his PP role and not get worn down.

 

4. 7th man. Everything is happening too fast. No problem with keeping Stecher as 7th man for a while to watch the game, practice, and absorb the NHL game. And, given the frequency of injuries, he will probably play most of the time anyway. No point is sending him back and forth to Utica all the time.

 

5. Back to Utica. Yes, Stecher has been one of the top 3 defenceman for the Canucks in pretty much every game he has played but, if he isn't going to play big minutes on the Canucks, he might as well continue to hone his craft in Utica. And sending him down avoids the need to expose Larsen or Biega to waivers. (Yes, that sounds feeble. I cannot actually think of any good reason to send Stecher back to Utica.)

 

And who goes when Tanev comes back? I am pretty sure that either Larsen or Biega (remember him) would clear waivers. And either of those guys would help Utica. I am not sure if Larsen would be willing to go, though. And Biega would probably help Utica more in any case as he was a leader on the team last year and likes playing there whereas Larsen has never spent time in Utica.

 

My vote is to keep Stecher on the first pairing. He is one of the few bright spots on the team this year. Let's make the most of it.

[Lancaster]

Stecher with Edler. 

Who knows how long Stecher can keep up this level of play, or maybe if he's the real deal.  Currently, he's filling the hole that Ehrhoff left... something Tanev can't do.

 

Tanev can stabilize any defensive pairing.... so maybe have him with Tryamkin?

[davydgoliath]

I would love to see Stecher on the first pairing with Edler as I believe Hutton would subsequently benefit greatly playing with Tanev. 

The only detriment would be if the coaching staff follows their trend of Sbisa love and puts him with Gudbranson on the third. 

Tryamkin and Gudbranson on the third all day long for me. 

[Green Building]

I thought he was getting traded for a sniper? 

 

Kidding. A Gudbranson Tryamkin pairing sounds intimidating, but will the pairings work out that way? And what of Sbisa? It makes no sense to scratch him so does he become the traded odd man out?

 

I don't mind keeping Stecher with Edler for the time being as we see how his play evolves, or as teams evolve their strategy to account more for defending him. 

[khay]

Should keep Stecher with Edler as long as they are playing well together. 

 

Edler-Stecher

Hutton-Gudbranson

Tryamkin-Tanev

Sbisa

 

or

 

Edler-Stecher

Hutton-Tanev

Tryamkin-Gudbranson

Sbisa

 

 

 

[Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw]

7 minutes ago, Green Building said:

I thought he was getting traded for a sniper? 

 

Kidding. A Gudbranson Tryamkin pairing sounds intimidating, but will the pairings work out that way? And what of Sbisa? It makes no sense to scratch him so does he become the traded odd man out?

 

I don't mind keeping Stecher with Edler for the time being as we see how his play evolves, or as teams evolve their strategy to account more for defending him. 

Was super slow in the preseason and didn't work well.  A pairing like that cannot eat a lot of minutes and forces other d-men to take extra shifts.

[Fanuck]

When Tanev returns we trade Edler to Mtl for McCarron and keep Stecher in the lineup. 

[Sedintwinpowersactivate]

I had to think about this answer.  Stecher and Edler have been solid together.  He'll likely be sent down though.

 

I'd like to see:

 

Edler    Stecher

Hutton    Tanev

Tryamkin   Gudbranson

 

Sbisa

 

 

 

 

 

[Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw]

3 minutes ago, khay said:

Should keep Stecher with Edler as long as they are playing well together. 

 

Edler-Stecher

Hutton-Gudbranson

Tryamkin-Tanev

Sbisa

 

or

 

Edler-Stecher

Hutton-Tanev

Tryamkin-Gudbranson

Sbisa

 

Get real.  Sbisa is going to play on this team no matter what.  It's not what we think, but what the coach wants.  The man is going to play.

 

It'll probably look like this:

 

Edler-Stecher

Hutton-Tanev

Sbisa-Gudbranson

Tryamkin

 

[Green Building]

3 minutes ago, Bob.Loblaw said:

Was super slow in the preseason and didn't work well.  A pairing like that cannot eat a lot of minutes and forces other d-men to take extra shifts.

I'm not suggesting that pairing eats 30 minutes per night. I don't think Try can take that quite yet, but Tryamkin looks faster now than he did in preseason. Besides, if that pairing is iced it likely wouldn't be getting the majority of minutes anyways as Edler Stecher and Tanev Hutton would be getting more depending on the situation. 

 

 

 

 

[Green Building]

2 minutes ago, Bob.Loblaw said:

Edler-Stecher

Hutton-Tanev

Sbisa-Gudbranson

Tryamkin

Those are the most realistic pairings for now (until our next injury).  

[RetroCanuck]

Stetcher to Utica. This seasons a bust and we know he has the skill. Give other guys shots such as Pedan and Subban. Stetcher could use this year to bulk up a little more in Utica as well as work on his conditioning. Kids going to be great so lets let him develop properly and not try to force wins in a lost season.

[Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw]

 

4 minutes ago, Green Building said:

I'm not suggesting that pairing eats 30 minutes per night. I don't think Try can take that quite yet, but Tryamkin looks faster now than he did in preseason. Besides, if that pairing is iced it likely wouldn't be getting the majority of minutes anyways as Edler Stecher and Tanev Hutton would be getting more depending on the situation. 

 

As long as Stecher and Hutton spend their time trying to make offensive plays, I am okay with the other four d-men eating up minutes.

[khay]

9 minutes ago, Bob.Loblaw said:

Get real.  Sbisa is going to play on this team no matter what.  It's not what we think, but what the coach wants.  The man is going to play.

 

It'll probably look like this:

 

Edler-Stecher

Hutton-Tanev

Sbisa-Gudbranson

Tryamkin

 

 

The OP is asking us what "should happen", not what "will happen".

 

What will happen maybe you are right but what should happen is that Tryamkin should play over Sbisa.

 

In fact, I think with Tryamkin out, WD will feel the void left by Tryamkin (rather large one) and I bet that we will probably go on another losing streak and WD will be forced to put Tryamkin back. So I think Sbisa will lose his spot to Tryamkin sooner or later, once Tanev is back.

 

[RetroCanuck]

Also think of it this way. We have two assets in Sbisa and Larsen. Right now they aren't worth much but if they keep playing, put up some points and look decent then they might be worth something at the deadline when we can bring in Tryamkin and Stetcher to play full time. Right now they're worth very little but in a month who knows. Plus teams might be looking for a defensemen to expose in the draft lottery and we could sell them one or the other.

[Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw]

8 minutes ago, khay said:

 

The OP is asking us what "should happen", not what "will happen".

 

What will happen maybe you are right but what should happen is that Tryamkin should play over Sbisa.

 

In fact, I think with Tryamkin out, WD will feel the void left by Tryamkin (rather large one) and I bet that we will probably go on another losing streak and WD will be forced to put Tryamkin back. So I think Sbisa will lose his spot to Tryamkin sooner or later, once Tanev is back.

 

We can speculate on where Stecher should play, or where Tryamkin should play.  But Luca Sbisa will be a permanent fixture on the blueline as long as he is healthy.  So it's a debate on who should play with Sbisa.

[Nex is my ex]

Edler-Stecher
Guddy-Tanev
Tryamkin-Hutton

[cripplereh]

If  our D is healthy i say send him back to Utica to continue development

 

Only keep him if he can play

[stonecoldstevebernier]

Edler-Stecher
Hutton-Gudbranson
Sbisa-Tanev

Keep Stecher on the first unit PP, where he's been the most effective. I'd love to see Tryamkin still in but don't see Sbisa being scratched by WD, so you put Tanev with him to minimize his blunders. Alternatively, you could do Hutton-Tanev and Sbisa-Gudbranson, since that second pairing struggled noticeably on the road trip - Hutton especially has not had a great start to the season. But I think since they won't be relied upon as much once Tanev returns they can still be a serviceable pair, and Sbisa-Gudbranson doesn't make me feel any safer.

I don't see how Larsen can draw into the lineup for Stecher at any point moving forward... I think unless injuries strike again, his days of being a regular are done. I wouldn't be shocked if WD scratched Stecher as a one-off here and there but even he's admitted how much he loves Stecher's play.

[khay]

19 minutes ago, Bob.Loblaw said:

We can speculate on where Stecher should play, or where Tryamkin should play.  But Luca Sbisa will be a permanent fixture on the blueline as long as he is healthy.  So it's a debate on who should play with Sbisa.

Sure. So Tanev and Sbisa in, means no Tryamkin or no Stecher... so the possibilities are:

 

Edler-Tanev

Hutton-Gudbranson

Sbisa-Tryamkin

 

Edler-Tanev is OK defensively but weak offensively.

 

or

 

Edler-Tanev

Hutton-Gudbranson

Sbisa-Stecher

 

Edler-Tanev is OK defensively but weak offensively. And Sbisa-Stecher might be a disaster since Sbisa is average at best defenceman and Stecher is a rookie. As much as Edler is benefitting from Stecher, Stecher is benefitting from playing with Edler.

 

or

 

Edler-Stecher

Hutton-Gudbranson

Sbisa-Tanev

 

I like this. Tanev strengthens the third pairing and we are not giving up on the offensive potential brought on by Edler-Stecher pairing.

 

or

 

Edler-Stecher

Hutton-Tanev

Sbisa-Gudbranson

 

Has the potential to be very slow and hence, a total disaster. Sbisa has bad footspeed and he is even less mobile than Tryamkin. If Tryamkin-Gud was bad in the preseason, then Sbisa-Gud has a chance to be even worse. So no.