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[PGT] Avalanche @ Canucks


-Vintage Canuck-

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The salaries aren't comparable. But just an example.

 

Boone Jenner: 30 goals last year, 35 games, 6 goals 5 assists, age 23.

Loui Eriksson:  30 goals last year, 38 games, 8 goals, 10 assists, age 31.

 

Eriksson when he was traded to Boston started out with 37 points, 47 in year two, and 63 in year 3. 

Maybe he just takes a while to figure out the tendencies of his team-mates/system. 

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56 minutes ago, pluralsight said:

Chaput = this year's Linden Vey? 

Not quite, he doesn't get the "undersized" hate that Vey used to get. But he does get a lot of undeserved dislike.  He's a farmer who didn't cost us anything and is very good at face offs.  He's big and mobile and maybe the rest of his game will catch up.  He was never a big scorer in JR, but he is terrific for his deployment with the Canucks!

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This game wasn't an amazing game, but the Canucks were solid and did what they had to come away with the win. 

 

The Offense:

 

In a game where the Avs were hitting everything that moved, the offense was surprisingly good. All four lines looked dangerous at different points, and the powerplay was buzzing. Sedins were able to get the cycle going, the Bo-Baer-Rodin line was able to run-and-gun, and Granlund-Sutter-Eriksson were great in transition. Fourth line had a very nice offensive zone shift. Defense were getting involved in the play and this team has become quite adept at keeping the puck in the zone. 

 

Rodin needs more time to get into the flow of things. While he didn't seem to wow anyone on these boards, I thought he played a smart game. His offensive instincts are obviously there. He had a shifty move and nice feed to set up a wide open Edler point shot, and was good along the boards. While he wasn't overly physical, he let his linemates get into the board battles and then came away with puck with some good stickwork. As he rounds into form I can see him being quite good.

 

Horvat is now 21pts in the 26 games since and Baer is 20pts in 23 games (he missed 3 games). 

 

Really? I knew they'd been on a tear but that is much better than I thought. And they're getting better! I'd like to see Horvat introduce a couple new moves into his bag of tricks (he's becoming predictable) but that'll come in time.

 

The Defense:

 

The defense has been great the last few games. Edler & Tanev are studs, and Stecher, Tryamkin and Sbisa have been phenomenal in their roles. Sbisa is having himself an amazing season, and I think we'll be sad to let him go in the expansion draft. Hutton has been average but he had a good offensive read on the assist to Horvat, and I think he'll figure it out. Not much else to say about the defense because they did their job effectively.

 

The Goaltending:

 

Solid goaltending throughout this win streak. Nothing to complain about.

 

The Coaching:

 

I've never hated Willie the way many on these boards have. Then again, I haven't really hated this entire regime at all. I've always felt Benning's moves have been solid and underrated and it's nice to see they are paying off. I'm excited to have Boeser & Juolevi eventually make it through the AHL and end up on the roster. I'm still holding out hope for Virtanen, as it seems Green has a plan to get him into shape, and Demko will be better as the season progresses for the Comets.

 

Back to Willie. His line combos, say what you will, have worked. The Baer-Bo-Burrows/Rodin line has been great, and the Granlund-Sutter-Eriksson line has also been quietly producing while being rock solid defensively. Megna isn't the ideal right-winger for the Sedins, but you don't have many options when the other two lines are playing too well and can't be broken up. Megna seems to understand their cycle fairly well and he's been serviceable. The return of Hansen in a few weeks will let everything fall into place.

 

I don't know much credit Willie deserves for the emergence of the young guys, but under his eye they have become exactly what we've been hoping of them. That's why I'm willing to see what he does with Rodin. I understand getting Rodin in the lineup is difficult without an injury (like tonight), and I think he's still a ways away from being able to contribute nightly. When Burrows is back, the middle two lines are set, meaning the only jobs open are the first line RW spot and fourth line spots. Rodin is nowhere near ready to hop onto the first line, and he can't play a fourth line role. So I'd preach patience with him and see how he can pick up his game as the season progresses.

 

Manny Malhotra also deserves a mention for the amazing job he's done turning this team around in the faceoff circle. The Canucks seem to be the better face-off team in the majority of their games and that's a huge step to success. 

 

Final Note:

 

With a healthy roster, there are going to be some tough decisions to make. I'd like to see:

 

Sedin-Sedin-Hansen

Baertschi-Horvat-Eriksson/Burrows

Granlund-Sutter-Rodin/Eriksson

Burrows/Gaunce-Chaput-Skille/Megna

 

I know that breaking up Burrows and Bo/Baer doesn't seem like a great idea, but I'm banking on the idea that Burrows isn't necessary for those two to continue their point-getting ways. Burrows was definitely the key to getting them to this point, but at some point they will need to do it consistently without him. Eriksson should theoretically be a good fit on that line, with his offensive instincts, defensive prowess and ability to forecheck. Rodin could be sheltered defensively by Granlund and Sutter, and Burrows would improve an already decent 4th line.

 

 

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1 hour ago, 2009cupchamps said:

Rodin was Invisible and deserves to be sat next game when Burrows is back. Very little compete out there from him. I'm like everyone and hopes his offensive game can translate to the NHL. So far in his 2 games have been very unimpressive. 

"but we need patience!" i don't buy what everyones selling from this guy

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26 minutes ago, canuckleheads fan said:

Not quite, he doesn't get the "undersized" hate that Vey used to get. But he does get a lot of undeserved dislike.  He's a farmer who didn't cost us anything and is very good at face offs.  He's big and mobile and maybe the rest of his game will catch up.  He was never a big scorer in JR, but he is terrific for his deployment with the Canucks!

Apparently he is a winner...Memorial Cup champ and Calder Cup champ...all he needs now is the Stanley Cup.

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1 minute ago, Twilight Sparkle said:

"but we need patience!" i don't buy what everyones selling from this guy

 

While I agree Burrows should be in the lineup over Rodin, I think Rodin was decent for his second game. Everyone else is in mid-season form, while he still has a lot of catching up to do. 

 

He was okay tonight. He didn't have many chances but he made a nice pass to set up Edler for a shot right down the middle, and he got the puck out of board battles often. He was decent at some of the little things, which bodes well for his play later in the season. 

 

Eriksson is being similarly undervalued by most of the fans here - he's not scoring a ton but he's streaky and could put up points in bunches, and he's been outstanding defensively. His forechecking has also been great. His pass at the end of the game was unfortunate but it was an intended breakout pass and I'll chalk that up to a brain cramp.

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1 hour ago, oldnews said:

What a difference Tanev and Edler make.

 

jk.

 

Sbisa continues to be a bloody beast.  Lead the team in ice time again tonight, just under 22 minutes.  What a story he's become.

 

Has he turned the corner finally? If he keeps up this play and solidifies a top 4 position on D, the contract actually looks great. 

Tryamkin, Stecher, Juolevi are keepers. 

Edler has a NTC 

That leaves Tanev, Hutton, Sbisa, and Gudbranson. 

That's 8 really good d-men capable of playing in the top 4 role. 

I wonder who will be the odd man out. 

 

 

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2 minutes ago, Steen said:

The more I think about it, that Miller milestone is so impressive.  Out of all the goalies in NHL history, he is just the 21st to get 350 wins.  

He would have gotten a lot more if he wasn't stuck in BUF for so long and now in VAN. 

 

He's been a great goalie for a very long time. 

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