October 5, 2011
Canucks’ Season #41 - Our Predictions and Preferences

On the eve of the Canucks’ forty first NHL season, it will be nearly impossible to top the performance of the 40th anniversary edition.  That team put up not only the greatest regular season performance in franchise history, but arguably one of the best regular seasons of any team anywhere. 

Don’t believe us?  Well, it’s been a very long time since a team led the league in points, goals scored and fewest goals allowed.  Try the New York Islanders’ dynasty of the early 1980’s.  And combine that with special team play that was easily the envy of the league, another Sedin scoring title, a best defensive forward award for Ryan Kesler, and executive of the year honours for Mike Gillis and it’s hard to imagine building on that regular season success.

But really, will the faithful care?  At this point, regular season winning has become old hat.  Nothing but a Stanley Cup win will suffice.  And nor should it.  Windows of opportunity to win it all are not ever present.  Opportunity is knocking. And in that regard, what are the Canucks’ chances this year?

Our previous post highlighted the possible issues that prevented this team from winning it all last season.  And in our opinion, nothing has been done to address those issues.  Yet.  But there is plenty of time.

Given the Canucks lack of real competition in their own division, another division title is all but assured and with it will bring at least a third overall conference seeding.  We think that’s a given.

Other things we expect to happen this season:

  • The Sedins will have another remarkable season.  Consider for a moment that Henrik won a scoring title despite missing his brother for a good portion of the season two seasons ago.  And consider that Daniel won the title last season despite missing Alex Burrows from their line for the opening ten games of the season (after which it took him another ten games to notch his second goal of the season).  A healthy first unit to start the season could easily catapult the Sedins to the top of the charts once again.
  • Keith Ballard will not find his form.  Again.  At least, not in this environment.  He may play capably with limited minutes, but don’t expect him to play to a level commensurate with his $4 million plus price tag.  Whether Mike Gillis will have the gumption to do anything about it remains to be seen.
  • Cody Hodgson will play capably, but will not set the world on fire.  That is, don’t pick him in your hockey pool.
  • Chris Tanev will continue his steady play and while not having the offensive upside, his cool head will earn him valuable minutes.
  • Sami Salo will be injured by Christmas Halloween Thanksgiving.

And, more importantly, things we’d like to see happen this season: 

  • Given Roberto Luongo’s late playoff meltdown and admitted exhaustion by the end of it all (not to mention his iffy big game reputation), we’d like to see Cory Schneider pick up more of the regular season starts this season - getting between 30 and 40 starts himself.  Come playoff time, the starting position shouldn’t be simply handed to Luongo, but awarded to whichever goalie is playing the best at the time.
  • Here at Critically Canuck, we’ve never held Coach Vigneault in the highest of esteem.  He’s an adequate bench boss, but, in our opinion, might very well be all that is holding this team back from a Stanley Cup.  Now into the second year of his three year contract extension, his leash should be short.  And yanked repeatedly.
  • The Canucks seem determined to start this season with the same revolving door mentality they adopted last season with respect to the fourth line.  Chemistry on that unit is as important as on any other.  We’d like to see that situation stabilized sooner rather than later.
  • While everyone likes to talk about stockpiling defensive depth for another long playoff run, we’d like to see more emphasis placed on finding a physical top six forward to take some of the toll off of Ryan Kesler and Alex Burrows, who seem to consistently wear out over the course of an extended post season.  And we know that’s easier said than done.  We’d just like to know that someone is actually trying.  And when Marco Sturm moves in when Raffi Torres moves out, we are left to wonder if anyone is…

So there you have it.  We predict another successful regular season is seemingly in store, but without some attention to our wish list, we’re not planning that parade route yet…

5:45pm
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(Notes: 3)
  
Filed under: Alain Vigneault Alex Burrows Chris Tanev Cody Hodgson Cory Schneider Daniel Sedin Henrik Sedin Keith Ballard Marco Sturm Raffi Torres Roberto Luongo Ryan Kesler Sami Salo Sami Salo Vancouver Canucks 
July 8, 2011
Canuck Comings and Goings

There has been plenty going on in Canuckland since our last post, but somehow life has gotten in the way of our valued commentary.  Here is a recap:

Out’s:

Jeff Tambellini - After starting the season on an incredibly high note, he regressed completely and by playoff time was a healthy scratch.  Clearly, on a team of this calibre, his opportunities to play will be limited to third or fourth line duty which is not a good match for his skill set.

Tanner Glass - It was hard to dislike this guy; he gave you everything he had.  The trouble was that wasn’t much - an NHL effort from a guy with borderline AHL skills.  Always a favourite of coach Alain Vigneault, who will be the new teacher’s pet?

Rick Rypien - Have the Canucks ever pampered a player so much who played so little?  At any rate, the love affair is over.  When healthy (physically or mentally, take your pick), he provided speed and incredible toughness, but dependability should count for a whole lot and it seems it finally has.

Raffi Torres - It’s hard to imagine that the Canucks could have expected more of Torres.  Say what you will about his bowling ball antics, he was about the only Canuck that consistently intimidated the opposition.  Apparently, the Canucks were only prepared to do another one year deal with him.  How many more auditions must the guy give?

Christian Ehrhoff - Everyone did the right thing here.  The Canucks offered him fair money in relation to how their defense is currently configured.  And Ehrhoff has found himself on a good young team with $40 million in his pocket.  We’ll miss his power play skills, but not his purse swinging.

Alexandre Bolduc - One of a lengthy cast of characters who played portions of the season on the fourth line, the wonky shouldered francophone provided size but little else.

Guillaume Desbiens - See Alexandre Bolduc, replace “wonky shouldered” with “wonky handed”. 

In’s:

Marco Sturm - For the money, he is a reasonable gamble.  He has the skill set to play on the top two lines, but does nothing to address the ever present issue of size and grit.

Andrew Ebbett - The Canucks become his sixth NHL team in his very brief career.  This move is a head scratcher.  Not only does this acquisition move Cody Hodgson to sixth on the depth chart at centre ice (at least in terms of NHL experience), Ebbett is a tiny skill player.

Mark Mancari - From the Buffalo system, he provides size and a shot.  Along with Ebbett, likely to spend the year on the farm team.

Steven Pinizzotto - An agitating winger who at age 27 has yet to play his first NHL game, the advance press is that he provides a Brad Marchand like pestiness though we say don’t believe the hype.

Alexander Sulzer - A German defender who has played roughly a full season at the NHL level, Sulzer is being added to provide depth to the defense.

Matt Climie - A goaltending prospect from the Coyotes system, we’ll bet that he never plays an NHL game with the Canucks.

After these moves, the Canucks’ talent and toughness have been depleted and with little left in the over priced free agent market, any improvements will have to occur via trade.

10:31am
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(Notes: 8)
  
Filed under: Vancouver Canucks Jeff Tambellini Tanner Glass Rick Rypien Raffi Torres Christian Ehrhoff Alexandre Bolduc Guillaume Desbiens Marco Sturm Andrew Ebbett Mark Mancari Steven Pinizzotto Alexander Sulzer Matt Climie 
June 19, 2011
Canucks’ Nine Men Out {Poll Question}

With the Canucks’ longest season ever finally over, the off season will seem incredibly brief.  And for Mike Gillis and staff, there is literally no time to pause; they must get down to business now.  On July 1, nine of the Canucks will become unrestricted free agents, meaning they are able to sign with any other team.  You would think that given this season’s success, the team will want to retain a good number of them.

So for a moment, pretend you are Mike Gills; throwing aside any salary cap considerations, who would you retain?  You may make more than one selection.

7:12pm
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(Notes: 2)
  
Filed under: Vancouver Canucks Rick Rypien Tanner Glass Kevin Bieksa Andrew Alberts Christian Ehrhoff Jeff Tambellini Sami Salo Raffi Torres Chris Higgins 
April 23, 2011
Game 6 Preparations

And no, we are not talking about an order of Depends adult size diapers for the lucky 20 who get to defend the honour of this frantic city heading into the next possible elimination game against the hated Hawks.

After two knock-out losses, clearly something is broken, so here are some suggested fixes:

  • Start Cory Schneider in net.  And while it will not happen (Coach Vigneault tabbed Luongo as his starter within minutes of Thursday’s disaster), it seems like a win-win for all concerned.  His teammates have clearly thrown Roberto under the bus.  Starting Schneider would be a signal from the coaching staff that such mutiny will not be tolerated any longer.  If he manages a win, all is forgiven and we can move onto the next round with Lou rightfully retaining his spot at the front of the bus.  If he loses, the franchise icon (and his beleaguered mates) get one last shot at redemption at home in Game 7 with Alain Vigneault having seemingly exhausted all of his options. 
  • Send Raffi Torres to the press box.  Remember the first two games of this series when everyone was marveling at the Canucks’ depth and the Hawks lack of it?  When Torres was serving the final two games of his suspension?  Yes, we won those games.  Torres is the proverbial red cape to the Hawks’ rampaging bulls.  Every time he does something, it gives them just a little bit extra.  We don’t need that. 
  • Get Cody Hodgson more ice.  The sheltered one, likely tiring of the kid glove treatment he’s been getting from team brass all season, was the Canucks’ most dangerous forward last game with limited minutes.  And while that might not say much, it’s clear that he’s not been here long enough to be conditioned to pant pooping every time the going gets tough.
  • Ryan Kesler and Alex Burrows are missing in action so why not put them back together.  At worst, only one line is neutralized this way.  At best, they can yap at each other to the point of turning their collective games around.
  • There is precious little good playoff history for us to celebrate in Vancouver.  But some of the best of it happened against these damn Hawks.  Forget about analyzing video from the two nightmarish losses.  How about cuing up footage from the famed ‘82 series against Chicago?  Ron Delorme’s pummeling of Grant Mulvey.  Roger Neilson and the white towels.  Jim Nill’s overtime winner.  Heroic net-minding from King Richard.  That team couldn’t carry this team’s collective jock-straps talent wise, but they cared about each other.

And while we don’t expect many (if any) of these things to happen, the simple fact that they don’t might tell you all you need to know about those running the show.

Enjoy Game 6 where we can only hope that this Easter Sunday won”t be remembered as another massacre at the madhouse on Madison.

9:54am
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(Notes: 2)
  
Filed under: Vancouver Canucks Chicago Black Hawks Cory Schneider Roberto Luongo Alain Vigneault Raffi Torres Cody Hodgson Ryan Kesler Alex Burrows Roger Neilson Ron Delorme Jim Nill Richard Brodeur 
April 18, 2011
Hawks Now Whiners, Canucks Are Winners

The trouble with winning a Cup early in a team’s evolution is the assumption that things should always go your way.  This sense of entitlement seems to be running rampant in the Windy City these days.

For Jonathan Toews, the young and celebrated leader of the Hawks, all this losing to the Canucks is clearly too much.  The frustrated captain has taken every opportunity to disparage the Canucks publicly, refusing to acknowledge that this year’s version just might be better than the year before. 

And with the controversial hit by Raffi Torres on Brent Seabrook yesterday, the yappy Hawks have even more to simmer over.  According to esteemed coach Joel Quenneville, the hit was brutal and deserving of a major penalty, one that the Hawks would have scored 4 times on (really, do they even have 4 power play goals all series?). 

And, of course, the now bitchy Toews was lamenting the play and Torres’ reputation for attempting to hurt opposing players - an interesting conclusion since Torres’ equally controversial season ending suspension was the first of his career.

The hit was certainly a blindside one.  And depending on the video replay angle, Torres may have led with his shoulder.  But he did not leave his feet.  He did not hit a player that had vulnerably exposed himself.  He did not appear to target the head.  Nor did he direct the player dangerously towards the boards.  In short, Seabrook was run over like he was playing chicken with a freight train.

Look, we will say this, predicting how the overlords at the NHL head office will rule on disciplinary matters is a shot in the dark.  But to argue that the Hawks are being victimized here is outlandish.  They faced a Vancouver squad in the first two games of the series who were without Torres on a suspension that seemed heavy to most observers.  And yesterday, they were unable to beat the Canucks again despite spending an inordinate amount of time on the power play.

Canuck fans have a deserved hate on for the Hawks after two successive playoff oustings, but this recent classless display by the leadership of the so called Stanley Cup champs gives us all extra incentive to wish for the brooms to come out tomorrow night.

Sweep, sweep.

9:38pm
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(Notes: 10)
  
Filed under: Vancouver Canucks Chicago Black Hawks Raffi Torres Brent Seabrook Jonathan Toews Joel Quenneville 
April 7, 2011
Torres Gets Two and Two

You’ve got to hand it to the NHL.  In a league that has typically based it’s discipline policy on precedent, it seems that in the wake of a never ending run of head injuries, they’ve decided to throw history away and break new ground.

And until some more systemic changes are implemented from the big leagues down to the grass roots to address the risks of play in the “new NHL”, we’ll have to embrace the tough love being handed down despite how confounding it must be to the players.

You see there was a time when you had to come close to killing someone to even be considered for a suspension that would include playoff games.  Indeed, today’s suspension of Canucks’ winger Raffi Torres for the final two regular season games and the first two playoff games amounts to a suspension of roughly 10 regular season games in the established currency.

And this punishment seems extraordinary given the play and Torres’ clean record.  Remember the last time the Canucks were involved in a situation where a prone player with his head down and body outstretched in pursuit of a loose puck met with the accidental on purpose elbow of an opposing player?  Yes, we’re referring to Steve Moore on Markus Naslund - a very similar play that didn’t even draw a minor penalty let alone a multi-game suspension. 

In the end, the veteran Torres was doing what he must do - finish his checks.  And the victim, rookie Jordan Eberle was doing exactly what he shouldn’t, pursue a loose puck with his head down.  

So it follows that you have to feel for Torres and the Canucks.  In a mean nothing game on a mean nothing play, they have lost arguably their most reliable grinder when it matters most - their depleted third line now down to simply Jannik Hansen.  And while there will be the usual cries of conspiracy from the frantic faithful, what we’re seeing is the swinging pendulum of NHL justice.  As they say, timing is everything…

4:37pm
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(Notes: 6)
  
Filed under: Raffi Torres Markus Naslund Steve Moore Vancouver Canucks 
January 14, 2011
Make Room for Sami?

The Canucks recently sent a copy of their 40th anniversary magazine to season ticket holders.  In it, they featured quotes from all active players on their recollection of their first NHL game.  Sami Salo’s?  “I remember that first shift I got a stick in my face and it cut me open.  That was my welcome to the NHL.”  No Sami, it was more than that.  It’s called foreshadowing.

Yes, by far, the biggest story in Canuckville these days is what to do about the pending return of Sami Salo.  With the injury prone and aged defenseman seemingly about to commence a comeback from his latest affliction, the team is faced with some serious roster juggling to accommodate his big salary.

One could make the argument that they should simply trade Salo.  After all, he’s old, roughly six games away from another career threatening injury and in the final year of his contract.  And he’s returning to a squad that is doing quite fine without him, thank you very much.  The trouble with that idea is that they’d still be faced with making room for him on the active roster BEFORE they could trade him so would still need to jettison someone else, possibly messing up the chemistry of a first place club in the process.  In other words, trade him or not, they will still have cap issues that require addressing.

While he’s been out of the line-up, Canuck brass have continued to flog his status as their number one defender, which given he’s not under contract for next season seems to smack more of potential trade bait promotion than an honest appraisal.  One thing is for sure, no matter what happens it is doubtful he’ll be signing another contract here.   

If there is one thing we’ve learned in the last few post season meltdowns, it’s that you can never have enough NHL caliber defensemen on your roster.  Combining that with the very obvious notion that the Canucks’ time to take a run at the Cup is now, it seems that retaining Salo and his well rounded game along with the rest of the existing defense should be job number one.

In the ideal world, they would defer on re-activating Salo until playoff time.  This means, from a salary cap perspective, they get him for free this season - he can rejoin the team without having to impact the current roster at all.  Of course, the overlords at the NHL head office would find this more than simple coincidence given the fact he’s been skating for a few weeks now.  And given their tendency to throw around serious penalties for supposed collective bargaining agreement violations (see New Jersey Devils), this is a risky route and an envelope not worth pushing unless they can rightly prove that his return to 100% health happened at this most fortuitous time.

So back to the topic at hand, who gets moved to make room for Sami?  The speculation is they would need to clear roughly $2 million in cap space to accommodate his return.  At this point in time the obvious culprits to support this move would be a combination of Raffi Torres and Andrew Alberts (since both are unrestricted free agents like Salo at the end of this season) or Mikael Samuelsson (who, on a team without a doghouse this season, is the only one whose play has come close to drawing the ire of the coaching staff).

Of course, either of these moves fly in the face of maintaining what little playoff experience the current roster possesses. 

Perhaps something more significant may have to happen.  Keith Ballard, despite a boatload of excuses for his mediocre play this year, doesn’t appear to have the physical nor mental tools to make you think he’ll ever be worth the money we’ve committed to him.  Perhaps now is the time to cut bait on this recent acquisition?

There is also the curious case of Christian Ehrhoff.  As the Canucks’ best offensive defenseman, he is without a contract for next year.  And if there is not the appetite nor the cap space to retain him, then possibly he gets dealt for some bottom 6 forward depth and salary cap relief?

If you believe what Salo and Mike Gillis are saying lately, Sami will not make his return soon, but simply “sometime in 2011”.  Perhaps, we will see the best of all worlds.  A Sami Salo return come mid-April with playoff success to follow…

12:02pm
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(Notes: 5)
  
Filed under: Vancouver Canucks Sami Salo Mike Gillis Raffi Torres Andrew Alberts Mikael Samuelsson Keith Ballard Christian Ehrhoff 
November 3, 2010
Game 11 - Torrid Torres

For those that have been following us here for awhile, you’ll remember that our favourite off-season move was the signing of Raffi Torres.  And while it’s certainly way too soon to say we told you so, Raffi has been giving us a good taste of what he can deliver.  His reputation is one of a player who runs hot and cold; so much so that last season despite scoring 19 regular season goals, he was benched for the final 2 playoff games by the scoring challenged Sabres.

Right now, Torres along with smooth skating face-off winning Manny Maholtra and the tenacious grinding of Jannick Hansen comprise the Canucks’ most consistent line - exactly what team management had hoped for from their overhauled third line.

In the end, Torres deserved his first goal for his all out effort to swat at a loose puck, was in the right place at the right time to deflect his second and got lucky on the third.  But as they say, throw the puck at the net and good things will happen.

His play helped rescue 2 points from what should have been an easy victory after an opening period 3-0 lead.  But the Canucks again got a little sloppy in their own end to make things interesting.  We’d love to dissect that a little further, but will save that for a night when we’ve actually pissed away some points.

The Canucks, who had deserved a better fate in their earlier road games (they were really only badly outplayed in the Minnesota debacle) now have their first road win so the pundits will have to find something else to chew on.  Like Cory Schneider getting the start tomorrow night in Colorado.

9:58pm
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(Notes: 3)
  
Filed under: vancouver canucks raffi torres manny maholtra jannick hansen cory schneider 
August 25, 2010
Raffi Torres, the Final Piece of the Puzzle?

Word is that the Canucks have inked gritty winger Raffi Torres to a one year one million dollar deal.  At CC, like most, we have commented on the need for just this type of player.  Torres is tough, can score and has some decent playoff experience.  In theory, he could slot in on any of the Canucks’ top 3 lines.  Though at this price and this term, there must be baggage.  Despite scoring 19 goals last season in just 74 games between stops in Columbus and Buffalo, he was scratched twice by coach Lindy Ruff during last year’s playoffs - a perplexing move given Torres’ renowned grit and character.

At any rate, he seems to be just the kind of player that coach Alain Vigneault loves, and, at worst, will seemingly replace the lost 3rd line grit of lead footed Steve Bernier.  This move has the potential to work out in similar fashion to the Anson Carter pick up a few years back - a player, seemingly down on his luck, but with a decent track record, at a bargain price.  Indeed, with Alex Burrows on the shelf until at least November, Torres could remarkably find himself alongside the twins and perhaps that was motivation enough for him to accept a one year deal for what amounts to chump change.  Unlike the $2.5 million per season commitment to Manny Maholtra for 3 years, there seems to be little down side with this move.

The Canucks, who were already over the salary cap limit for the coming season, are likely not done dealing.  However, with both Burrows and Sami Salo sidelined, we may not see any more significant player moves until they return from injury.

With that, we’re long overdue for another poll question.  Mike Gillis has been a busy boy this off-season.  He’s upgraded his defense without sacrificing his offense and has been able to add some size and grit to his collection of forwards.  Has he done enough?  We ask you, dear reader.

10:41am
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(Notes: 5)
  
Filed under: vancouver canucks raffi torres mike gillis anson carter