HarbularyBattery

1 hour ago, Bob Long said:

 

I think you are on to something here. Foote must see a player he can coach into something more.

 

If he actually has top 4 ability it's a great deal.

i read somewhere that brett kulak is an (extremely) poor mans hughes, and desharnais fit like a glove with him on the 3rd pair

+ he did play alongside nurse, and nurse was better with desharnais than he was without

theres potential, cant wait for october

1 hour ago, Nucker67 said:

I  think the Canucks will sign Adam Boqvist, cheap. Maybe we see his potential with better coaching and on a good team. He is a mobile D, and it would be nice to have another option other than Hughes.  Maybe Adam learns something from Quinn.

 

Hughes - Hronek

Soucy - Myers

Forbort - Boqvist

Brisebois - Desharnais

Juulsen

 

I still think they might also trade Garland, Suter or Podkolzin to upgrade the 2nd line winger position.

I think theyre trying to see if they can turn desharnais into a top-4 defenseman

he did play some top-4 minutes in edmonton with mixed results

clearly hes got great defensive instincts, his pk ability is elite

Just now, Captain insano said:

Yeah demko needs to play a max of 2 games a week and no more than 2 over any 5 day stretches to keep him healthy imo, I think 47-50 games is the sweet spot 

+ we have to win a playoff series or 2 in 5 games so he can rest in the playoffs too

22 minutes ago, Salacious Crumb said:

Biggest question mark for me is Demko. He’s been a glass cannon the last couple of years and we only go as far as he carries the team.

yeah big question mark. all the more reason to have cap space in case the unthinkable happens and we need a tier 1 goalie, we wont be able to do it with dollar in dollar out demko on ltir, hes way undervalued at 5m. 

2 hours ago, VanOriginal said:

I disagree with the C, that is extremely low, especially if it's being based on not re-signing Zadorov. I like Zadorov, I liked his game in the playoffs but can he replicate that for a whole regular season? 'cause he wasn't that playoff player during the regular season. 

As you mentioned will the depth players hit lightening in bottle, I can ask the same about Z? Will he hit that bottle with the lightening that he found in the Playsoffs? Probability says no, as he had a career playoff year and would be difficult to replicate that performance in playoffs let alone for half of a regular season. 

The forwards brought in are all just as good if not better defensively than the the Forward group the team had last year. Big part of team defence also falls on the forwards and their willingness and ability to do their fair share. And the toughness lost from Z again will be covered by the forwards brought in as these forwards are more aggressive and assertive than the ones form last year. The big difference on D this year is the loss of speed and the first pass, but I think that can be addressed either by trade or team system.

I don't think that all of our players will have a similar year like last. Will Boes hit 40 again? Probably no but 30 sure. Will DJ produce the se of amour of goals/points? Again probably not but another one of the played brought in could as they have all produced consistently over the course of their careers. I can see Petey having more of an impact this year compared to last, especially if what he said was true that he was playing with a bum knee for the second half of the season. And I think a lot of people are sleeping on DeBrusk, I think he will have a career a year playing on this te just as JTM did once he came over from Tampa. 

 

 

Z got some serious puck luck with his goals too, bunch of those short side goals had no business going in

he skates the puck out pretty good, thats the main value he adds outside of the huge open ice hits. otherwise, in terms of puck battles, clearing the front of the net, making a first pass, etc. the new acquistions can do exactly what he did, but are also more elite penalty killers

5mx6 years would have been insanity. he was a 17 min/night defenseman for us. 

26 minutes ago, Sika21 said:

I think Desjarnais will become quite the asset at his AAV with a little coaching. Foote and Tochett will get his mean streak going. If Foote and Gonchar can work on his positioning, he’s gonna be a stud at that price. There’s a reason they targeted him, especially after a seven game series.

that, and consider what allvin said about changing the way they play

last season it was all about controlled defenseman-led zone exits

this coming season itll be about fast transitional play

fast transitional play means the defenseman doesnt have to be a great puck handler, he just has to make a good outlet pass to a forward

these were pretty smart acquisitions if thats the case

heinen, debrusk, sherwood all have speed and hands that can finish

forbort and desharnais arent great puck handlers but both can make a good first pass

juulsen makes a GREAT first pass considering his profile

forbort and desharnais have the size and strength to break up the oppositions cycle, win puck battles in the corner, and then itll just be about making a quick short pass to a forward picking up speed

im pretty excited

48 minutes ago, BC_Hawk said:

BUT he is a 2m project where his most likely landing spot we had some depth (3rd RHD). I like Forbort (3rd LHD)...not sold on Des with Juulsen, Friedman, etc ready to fill the spot.

thats a super easy contract to unload/spot to backfill if needed during the season though, im sure that was part of the calculus

if the project works out, giga upside

if it fails, give chicago a 3rd rounder and dump him and go get a replacement

my gut reaction to the desharnais signing was i hated it, ive come around to it though in the bigger context. we want them to take swings and try to find big value in cheap contracts, sometimes those gambles work out, sometimes they dont, but id rather them take the swing since its not a killer if they miss on one like this

35 minutes ago, DeNiro said:

I go back and forth on that.

 

Yes having cap space at the deadline would be huge.

Issue being to be a buyer at the deadline you gotta be in the playoff hunt. Is that a good enough D to get us through 5 months of the regular season? I’m not so sure. One injury and that D gets real ugly real quick.

 

I think they’re gonna have to make a trade at some point in the next few months.

 

 

in that event i still think its better to wait and have cap space ready

who we need depends on who's injured, if anyone

if petey is injured for example, we need to go get a 30 goal scorer

if hughes is injured, we need a top pair puck mover

if soucy is injured, stay at home d-man

we can always make the move earlier but we'll know in the first 15 games or so if this group is good enough, and i imagine it will be

yeah we took a step down with zadorov/cole gone, but we've also taken a massive step up in our PK. that alone will help us win games

Just now, Jester13 said:

All while giving raises to Hronek, Petey, and Joshua. Impressive work by Allvin & Co.

yea this 

i think were conditioned to wait a massive overhaul because we've sucked so bad for so long

but if youve got a winning formula why throw it all a way? clearly the group they put together works, they just need to make incremental improvements to it, not complete revamp

Just now, spook007 said:

 

Same as don't try out too many 'projects', just because they may come around... we have a team, don't screw it up...

agreed, i think the only real "project" though is desharnais

everyone else is a proven commodity in the role we're expecting them to play

10 minutes ago, Warhippy said:

Calen Addison

Or

Adam Boqvist?

 

Gonchar/Foote can probably get something out of both.  Both RHD and both maligned in their roles.

 

Boqvist can still actually skate.  Is only 23 and could be one of those late bloomers.  He can move the puck but has played on absolutely garbage teams that expected the world from him.

 

Sticking him with someone that can capably watch the house while he roams could give him the freedom to do what he's good at.  Allowing him on the 2nd unit as an RHD option with good coaching and a quality group of defensively responsible forwards could allow him to develop in to what he's capable of.

 

Go

Get

Boqvist!

neither, save the cap space, accrue, and then swing for the fences and get a gamebreaker at the TDL

firmly in the camp of "do nothing else"

except maybe try to get rid of poolmans contract

then when we've accrued max cap space, get a gamebreaker at the TDL

Not a bad contract for him imo. 

He outperformed his contract in Florida

Best used as a not great #4, or a really good #5 i think

2 hours ago, The Duke said:

Just a snippet from Drance’s latest at the Athletic re: the bottom pairing D’s ability to move the puck.

 

“…that the club itself even privately acknowledges could require tweaking — in terms of systems approach, or potential additions on the trade market — as the season goes along if it doesn’t work as the club hopes.

 

“That’s something we talked about, do we need more puck movers on our team?” Allvin noted on Monday, “But I still feel that the additions here today are capable of playing simple and within the structure we have. We anticipate playing fast hockey and I think those guys are capable of delivering a first pass.””

 

theyre well positioned for this possibility. 

if we end up in trouble, forbort or desharnais are on cheap enough contracts that it should be easy to unload them. we'd be able to afford a 4.5 million dollar defenseman after moving out one of their cap hits. if we wait longer and can accrue some cap, maybe even someone at 5m cap hit. we could get a really good puck mover with that cap space. 

not worried at all and i like that they can either upgrade at forward or D depending on how this group fares in the season

10 minutes ago, DrJockitch said:

Pretty damn impressive resume.  Worked her way up from captain of her college team, 4 years pro, worked up from German league skills coach to AHL coach. Known for helping players really develop their skating. 
Looks like someone who worked their way up developing a strong reputation. 

yea shes hella qualified

good hire, nice job seattle

6 minutes ago, Attila Umbrus said:

YUCK 

 

This is honestly the perfect time for Hirose to shine.

 

Last year he was injured a lot. Hopefully he comes in healed and healthy and gets a full summer of training for him.

 

He needs to pack on some muscle. If he can add 10 lbs he could have a crack at the opening day lineup.

 

He has sublime skill, he’s our most affordable option for a puck moving defender.

 

Rooting for him! I may even pick him as my dark horse next year…maybe…lol

Allvin hinted that the system was going to change

Instead of everyone regrouping in the neutral zone and having a defenseman skate it up, its going to be super quick transition as soon as we get possession back, one outlet pass to a forward to create an odd man rush

fast, transitional play, and itll make it a lot harder for teams to clog up the netural zone and stifle our entries

forbort/desharnais/myers can make a quick, short outlet pass. i think thats why they focused on adding fast, forechecking goal scorers.

but yeah i do think we're gonna need a decent puck mover at some point, just to have the option of mixing up the zone exits

43 minutes ago, BC_Hawk said:

I would think a Trade for a Top 4 LHD will occur between now and Xmas. I say LHD as that should be cheaper than RHD, and we seem to have a few promising RHD is the system.

 

Desharnais is NOT a top 4 Dman, and the ripple effect of not having that #2 LHD  is felt through the lineup. You trade for one, and all of a sudden Soucy can move back to the 3rd pair with Des and Myers can play up. If the the player they nab is a better skill player than Zad (maybe not as physical though), we are probably better off with Forbort, Des, and Juulsen being able to splice in.

 

 

Agreed, i think they're waiting to see if this offence is going to be good enough, and if the D can solve its issues by committee, and will fix whichever problem is worse around christmas/tdl

LMAO

of course.

of course.

Of fucking course.

6 hours ago, bh90 said:

Only market that would stomach these guys is Edmonton

Terrible character, 0 morals, all around garbage human being?

Welcome to Edmonton. You're home. 

5 hours ago, DownUndaCanuck said:

2.2M for a 17 goal scoring PKer is a steal in today's NHL and you know he's going to end up playing most of the year on our top line and drop 20+. I always liked him, thought he scored big goals and had good wheels so happy with the pickup.

 

You can tell management wanted us to flesh out our wingers this off-season. I would have stuck to our guns of good center and defensive depth over wingers but here we are.

Its going to be an impressive 4 line attack

7 minutes ago, Bob Long said:

 

just checking the stats pages, I think VD got the short end of the stick playing with Nurse. VD's numbers away from Nurse are much better, particularly shots for and against.

 

https://www.naturalstattrick.com/linestats.php?fromseason=20232024&thruseason=20232024&stype=3&sit=5v5&score=all&rate=n&team=EDM&vteam=ALL&view=wowy&loc=B&gpfilt=none&fd=2024-04-20&td=2024-06-24&tgp=2000&strict=incl&p1=0&p2=8479576&p3=8477498&p4=0&p5=0

 

 

Im coming around to this signing bigly

Theres a lot to like. Yes there were a couple of truly egregious turnovers and he was kinda easy for canucks forwards to take advantage of in the corners but we all know what happens when youre saddled with a useless D partner, and Nurse was HORRIBLE. 

Beyond that, the limited NHL experience he has gives him a way higher ceiling. Edmonton fans say he grew leaps and bounds just from one season to the next. Give him a proper structure and some coaching and I think he'll be a pleasant surprise

big question is whether hes got enough puck handling skills to not hurt us in the top 2 pairs, or if offense is going to die on his stick, which would relegate him to the third pair

8 minutes ago, bh90 said:

it's quite remarkable

 

there' still $243M in cap space available league wide, and no notable free agents left on the market.

 

There's still some notable RFA's to re-up but, won't even put a dent in the overall money still available.

 

You bet the NHLPA/Agents won't be to happy about this.

 

here's what stands out to me though

• Why did Buffalo buy-out Skinner? Just to have cap-space?
• Why did Detroit dump Walman?
• Why did Ottawa dump Joseph?
• Chicago is hillarious, they're almost capped out and full of players being overpaid... why not maintain that cap flexibility?
• Maybe Calgary can actually trade Huber-doodle with retention?

 

Wow. Brutal.

I think this outcome was kinda inevitable though, that was a MONSTER cap increase and not exactly a loaded UFA pool

In all this is going to translate to the contract values next year going up a LOT

54 minutes ago, HKSR said:

Give props to Émilie Castonguay... I firmly believe she's the mastermind behind the dancing of the cap, present and future.

That Miller deal is looking insane

8m/year for a 90+ point 1C?

jesus. 

1 minute ago, bertuzzi44fan said:

So I guess the team is hoping someone decent gets ejected during camp so they can grab?

Dream move would be if they can unload the Poolman contract

And then just accrue a lot of cap space all year long

We'll be positioned to grab a gamebreaker rental at the TDL