Coconuts

Yeah, you're right about that, if it didn't matter to me I wouldn't care so much about it. I wouldn't fret, worry, ect. It's normal for things to be scary, at least to some degree. The old cliche is nothing grows in a comfort zone, but most people don't really enjoy being uncomfortable. And you're not wrong, I'm a much more well rounded person because of the education I've undertaken and while I don't think I was a shitty person beforehand, I wouldn't want undo that growth.

That's what I keep trying to remember, success or failure isn't necessarily dictated by whether I play the role of social worker or not. There will be lots of doors. Thanks for normalizing the doubt and uncertainty though, it is normal, but our feelings don't always line up with reality. Yeaaaaah, it's def not going to be easy. I can see why it has such a reputation for burnout. I've always wanted a strong separation between work and personal life, boundaries are going to be very important. Self-care too.

I agree with this part, but I'd argue the context of MacKinnon. MacKinnon took a while to get going, but he also stepped into the league at 18. It's true that MacKinnon didn't break 100 til 2022-23, but he's been on pace for 100+ since 17-18. 17-18 saw him put up 97 in 74, 18-19 was 99 in 82, 19-20 was 93 in 69, 20-21 was 65 in 48, 21-22 was 88 in 65, and last season was finally 111 in 71. Makar wasn't really a factor til 19-20, Nate had put up almost back to back 100 point seasons prior to him being a factor. Toews wasn't an Av at all til 20-21. Nate's most consistent top tier running mates have been Rantanen and Landeskog, but he also blew tf up in his own right. MacKinnon and Rantanen elevate each other, they both make players around them better. If anything it's disappointing that the closest thing Pettersson's had to that thus far is his playing with Miller, which isn't to disparage Miller, it just speaks more to the talent levels of the Canucks teams he came up on. A frequent gripe when it comes to Pettersson is that we've never been able to find him his staple running mate, management probably thought they might when Kuzmenko blew up but it didn't pan out beyond the one season. Maybe Lekkerimaki will step in, blow us all away, and be that guy.

Emotion and hockey is a weird thing, once upon a time I used to take the results of a Canuck game very personally and it'd affect my day or evening. Some folks feel an intimate parasocial connection to the Canucks, but I found it wasn't actually any good for me. I found I actually enjoyed the Canucks more when I detached and began paying more attention to the rest of the league, because then I could just enjoy engaging with the sport without so much of the personal investment. Some folks would rather ride that emotional roller-coaster. I think most fanbases, including those of teams who've recently won cups, often feel things aren't going their way. Just ask Pens fans how things have gone since they last won, or Blues fans, or Caps fans, or even Bolts fans who are starting to experience some of their inevitable drop-off. The Avs are a bit different, if anything they've maintained momentum, but I guarantee you they gripe about things as well. Vegas is a bit of an anomaly in that they've been a darling from the get-go, but they won't be able to weasel away from the lows forever. Bruce doesn't get enough credit imo, it was telling that neither Pettersson or Hughes PK'd much til he gave them a shot. A lot of players had a lot of individual success with him at the helm, and even things going sideways towards the end lead us to where we are now. If this team wins a cup sooner than later more than likely his impact will have played a part. Hard to say, but if anything cap realities make the balancing act of trying to go for it while building for the future even more important. Even this trade deadline didn't really see a flurry of top picks being moved, the same could be said of last year's deadline. Teams are more reluctant to mortgage the future now because being a playoff regular is so important imo, being able to draft, develop, and integrate your own talent is key to maintaining a window under the constraints of the cap. Even Toronto opted to keep their 1st for once. The Knights have been balls to the wall since entering the league, they're an anomaly. The Avs pushed their chips in and got a cup out of it, they've got one of the weaker prospect pools in the league because of it, but more than likely they won't fall off sooner than later given how they're built. Edmonton is desperately trying to win a cup before the McDavid and Draisaitl extensions make it harder to do. But by and large I think teams are growing more pragmatic regarding mortgaging their futures to try and go deep.

Yeaaaah, I see getting wound up over the refs as being futile. They're a wildcard element every team around the league has to deal with to varying degrees. I've read enough takes from other fans around the league to know it's not just Canucks fans who feel they often get the short end of the stick. And like you said, there's nothing the team can really do about it short of trying to be more disciplined and working to effectively play their game. We started to see more of it after the Green firing, I know last season didn't go how they'd have liked but I do think Bruce was the breath of fresh air they needed when he was hired. Organizational resets take time, he was part of that transition period and he was an importance piece of it imo. It looked like the players were actually having fun again under Bruce, which isn't nothing. Making the playoffs that initial time is the first step to becoming a playoff regular, but doing it regularly going forward is the second step. Gotta be in the mix regularly to have a good chance at actually breaking through, we'll see if they can do that.

I'd like to think so too, Tochett hasn't been unwilling to call a spade a spade thus far and I have a hard time seeing him encouraging the players to let up. Doesn't really seem to jive with his approach, given his lack of head coaching success thus far he likely knows better than to sit on his laurels. A game isn't won until it's won. Growing pains will likely continue to happen, it'll be interesting to see how things go come playoff time. That being said, one also can't put too much emphasis on a single regular season game. They've got a stretch of lower tier opponents coming up, this game will only really stand out in retrospect if they flub it between now and playing Dallas imo.

Maybe, it's hard to say. Sometimes things just go sideways. But yeah, maybe actually clinching will help ease some sort of mental pressure. It's a good question, how much is on the players and how much is on the coaching staff. But to my previous point, this is also Tocchet's first full season as a head coach since 20-21 and it's not as if he's ever coached a team with expectations this high before. Hell, his only playoff appearance was with a Coyotes squad that finished 5th in the Pacific (and potentially only because it was a Covid shortened season). More than likely it's growing pains for both the head coach and some of the players on the roster who haven't tasted a whole lot of team success.

I've thought that, yeah And I'm not really sure, it depends on who's hiring for what tbh, that's my stock answer when folks ask what I want to do And you're not wrong, it being a generalist degree is part of why I chose to go this route in the first place, there is a lot you can do with it

Part of it is that the more I learn about social work, the more heavy and significant it all seems, at the end of the day it's about individuals, groups, and their lives and that's not insignificant or something to take lightly I'm hoping that my fourth year practicum, and my work experience between now and then, will help ease some of my doubts I've spoken to people who are convinced I could be excellent in this field, and that it's a natural fit, but I suppose on some level I'm not sure I believe that myself On some level I'm also scared of having put so much into something and not being able to do it effectively, but most folks want to perform their roles effectively one way or another

Ain't the end of the world, shit happens. We'll go around in circles on social media discussing hockey and it won't change a thing, thankfully what will amount to actual change is the players calling a spade a spade and committing to improving upon things. Every NHL fanbase complains about the refs and sometimes thinks they're out to get them. And hell, maybe sometimes they are, but top teams find ways to work through adversity at the end of the day. Every championship team does. We let a game slip away against a team that's been a powerhouse for at least a few years now, one that won a cup, and got a point out of it. Credit to the Avs, they found a way to win. I've said it for a while, we're a franchise that's either been a bottom feeder or mediocre for a long stretch, jumping from that to being a top team without growing pains was never realistic, we're still experiencing growing pains. But that's something that comes with growth and development. We'll make the playoffs, in my eyes that'll make the season a success regardless of what happens come playoff times, largely in part because we've struggled to simply make the dance for years. Regardless of how things go it'll be a stepping stone season so long as we continue to make the playoffs regularly going forward. We've been writing and reading this over and over for years, seems easier to say than do. Can't afford to let up, if that means trying to score ten goals a night try and score ten goals a night.

I won't graduate til sometime next year but I'm honestly not looking forward to it, because that's when school ends and work life begins I'm not passionate about social work, but I've never been passionate about jobs or working in general, there's never been anything that's jumped out as something I avidly want to do At this point I question whether I want to do social work at all, or whether graduating will mean I'm actually qualified to do so, or whether I'll just end up using my schooling to open other doors The doubts and uncertainly are bothersome, it's taken years of my life and a good amount of money to get to this point and I'm not even sure I want what I've signed up for anymore, I'll learn about this or that and think "well, learning about this just makes me not want to do it" It's been an ongoing thing I've mentioned to profs and classmates, I don't know what I want and I'm not sure whether I believe I can be effective at the role I've been pursuing either I've little interest in participating within the economic rat race but that's the world we live in, I have to make money

At least the players know it's on them, knowing that is the first step to correcting things. It's a tough loss, but it's better to get a kick in the pants now than it would be come playoff time. They still have time to tighten things up before then, that's a positive.

5-3 Nucks Pettersson

Roughly half the Avs wins this season are comebacks apparently, they thrive on roaring back

They've been decisive, gotta give em that

Interesting that they wanted him in his draft year, didn't realize they'd coveted him so long https://www.nhl.com/flames/news/flames-sign-hunter-brzustewicz

Yup, the playoffs aren't going to be squeaky clean either. Folks can fuss about reffing, embellishment, ect, but the teams who go deep find ways to overcome. Maybe poor calls wouldn't matter so much if we actually killed the penalties, as of today our PK is tied for 19th and we're tied for 16th in penalty minutes. Blaming the refs won't console anyone come playoff time if our special teams paired with our middle of the rode discipline lose us games.

That's the best one can ask for tbh Can't fix anything but their own mistakes, they can't work on anyone's game but their own

Points are points

Avs are a top team, a would be contender who's recently won it all, they found a way to pull it out But we also let it slip away, you learn from it and move on I expect they'll be better next game Nucks are still learning to be a top team

Blame the Avs, blame the refs, blame themselves They had it and they let it slip away, that's growing pains for ya

Growing pains, Avs showed why they're still a top team But they got a point