[GDT] Vancouver Canucks @ Nashville Predaturds | Tuesday Dec 19 at 5PM PST (8pm EST) Music City , The "hey, look at us go" edition

[JayDangles]

35 minutes ago, John.Tallhouse said:

The kid just doesn’t attack pucks hard enough that’s the problem. I was all for Kuzie being promoted back to the top line, but if we’re truly trying to build a culture and a team that’s tough to play against maybe we should be teaching some hard lessons and keeping everyone accountable. 

Exactly. Also, Kuzy doesn't ever lay the body. Ever. I know hitting isn't part of everyone's game, but its a normal way to separate players from pucks or gain an advantage. Look at Petey, heck look at Brock this year using the body. For Kuz to never finish a check i bet is a major frustration for Tocc. I haven't looked up the stats, but I'm sure they would support this.

[The Aquaman]

6 hours ago, tas said:

are you one of the bros who drives his huge truck around town with the "I $" stickers on the back?

LOL, no no.

[Rip The Mesh]

Too  presumptuous, almost arrogant.  Boys in white with blue trim are gonna bring yah down to earth...

 

[Elias Pettersson]

2 hours ago, HorvatToBaertschi said:

39 goal scorer for an older 6/7 dman you can acquire on waivers. I'd throw up. 

Since when did Zub become a 6/7 Dman?  He plays on Ottawa’s 2nd pairing and plays over 20 minutes a night. He’s literally one of the best defensive dmen in the entire NHL. You’ve obviously never watched him play. If Allvin offers Kuzmenko for Zub it’s Ottawa that hangs up the phone. 

[Mackcanuck]

https://www.nhltraderumors.me/2023/12/more-trouble-for-kuzmenko-in-vancouver.html

 

In his last two games, at Minnesota and Chicago, Kuzmenko's stat sheet has been nothing but zeros. No shots, no hits, no goals, no assists, no... well, you get the point. This, from last year's rookie sensation, with 39 goals and 74 points. He's currently at 6 goals and 17 points through 29 games this season.  

Canucks beat writer Thomas Drance of The Athletic notes that Vancouver has been outshot 64-36 with Kuzmenko on the ice at 5-on-5. Yikes.

Edited December 19, 2023 by Mackcanuck

[John.Tallhouse]

9 minutes ago, HKSR said:

Then trade him.  He's not a young player.  This is who he is.  

I think they ultimately believe in the player. Not ideal to bench him and expect a change but I don’t think they’re ready to give up on him 

[HKSR]

Just now, John.Tallhouse said:

I think they ultimately believe in the player. Not ideal to bench him and expect a change but I don’t think they’re ready to give up on him 

Hope they decide on him soon.  Either way, benching him or scratching him doesn't do anyone any good.

[Goose]

47 minutes ago, Conscience said:

Kuz has been fine latey even scored a couple goals, hasn't made any glaring or costly mistakes, what exactly does tocc expect him to do when hes playing with Aman?

 

How about pressure? 4th line need’s to play hard and tire out opponents. Kuz is easy to play against. Further that line gets benched because Kuz cant play important mins at the end of games.  

 

Hes not a fit in the bottom 6, period. 

[Elias Pettersson]

1 minute ago, Mackcanuck said:

https://www.nhltraderumors.me/2023/12/more-trouble-for-kuzmenko-in-vancouver.html

 

In his last two games, at Minnesota and Chicago, Kuzmenko's stat sheet has been nothing but zeros. No shots, no hits, no goals, no assists, no... well, you get the point. This, from last year's rookie sensation, with 39 goals and 74 points. He's currently at 6 goals and 17 points through 29 games this season.  

Canucks beat writer Thomas Drance of The Athletic notes that Vancouver has been outshot 64-36 with Kuzmenko on the ice at 5-on-5. Yikes.

Kuzmenko plays on the 4th line with a bunch of plugs. What do people expect?  Also, what are the stats for the two plugs he plays with?  I’m assuming they are also on the ice when the other team scores? 

[Mackcanuck]

1 minute ago, Elias Pettersson said:

Kuzmenko plays on the 4th line with a bunch of plugs. What do people expect?  Also, what are the stats for the two plugs he plays with?  I’m assuming they are also on the ice when the other team scores? 

He is on the 4th line for a reason

[Nucker67]

8 minutes ago, JayDangles said:

Exactly. Also, Kuzy doesn't ever lay the body. Ever. I know hitting isn't part of everyone's game, but its a normal way to separate players from pucks or gain an advantage. Look at Petey, heck look at Brock this year using the body. For Kuz to never finish a check i bet is a major frustration for Tocc. I haven't looked up the stats, but I'm sure they would support this.

 

What's odd to me is that Kuzmenko can take a Miller slap shot to the chin and be back next game, all smiles, nothing broken. And yet, he shies away from bodychecks and playing with grit.  Meanwhile, Petey is bodychecking anyone he can and the much smaller Garland plays like a Tasmanian Devil. 

[Goose]

2 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

Kuzmenko plays on the 4th line with a bunch of plugs. What do people expect?  Also, what are the stats for the two plugs he plays with?  I’m assuming they are also on the ice when the other team scores? 

 

Its called chemistry.  Before you start calling players plugs maybe think things through first.  Figure it out

Edited December 19, 2023 by Tofu_Bud
Figure it out

[Elias Pettersson]

1 minute ago, Tofu_Bud said:

 

How about pressure? 4th line need’s to play hard and tire out opponents. Kuz is easy to play against. Further that line gets benched because Kuz cant play important mins at the end of games.  

 

Hes not a fit in the bottom 6, period. 

Do coaches get Kucherov, Panarin and Kaprizov playing pressure hockey?  Do they play hard and tire out opponents or do the coaches allow them to play their game, which is attacking the net and scoring goals?  
 

Why are we trying to convert a pure goal scorer into a checking winger?  Even Pavel Bure didn’t know where the defensive zone was. 

[AatuD2]

10 minutes ago, JayDangles said:

Exactly. Also, Kuzy doesn't ever lay the body. Ever. I know hitting isn't part of everyone's game, but its a normal way to separate players from pucks or gain an advantage. Look at Petey, heck look at Brock this year using the body. For Kuz to never finish a check i bet is a major frustration for Tocc. I haven't looked up the stats, but I'm sure they would support this.

 

 

My eye test matches your analysis, no need for stats. 

 

 

Kuzy is too buddy buddy out there with the opposition. 

 

He would be a wonderful player on a bottom feeder or a middling team that needs to attract more fans. I just don't see him as having the necessary grit for a 7 game playoff series. 

 

Anyways I don't want to give him up for peanuts. He will most likely score 30 goals next year somewhere else. 

[Elias Pettersson]

2 minutes ago, Mackcanuck said:

He is on the 4th line for a reason

Only a plug who doesn’t know how to score plays on the 4th line. So there is no reason for Kuzmenko to be on that line. 

[Goal_thecup]

1 hour ago, Amebushi said:

I don’t disagree really. The record speaks for itself. One of the major talking points this year has been management and coaching being on the same page. I’m not seeing that in this one singular part of the discussion. I am NOT on the fire Toch train…just on the don’t waste an asset portion. Keep winning and I guess it doesn’t matter but if you aren’t going to play a guy as good as Kuz, let’s give him a shot somewhere else. 

And if Kuzmenko comes back equipped to play a defensively sound game while keeping his good offense?  Everybody wins.

Last game he showed that he had been listening and was trying but he also had a number of lapses, and that's not acceptable.

 

He has to keep working, harder than ever, to learn what the coaches want him to do, and to do it, and do it consistently, all game, every game.

That way, he will get back in the lineup, and can earn his way up.  The team wants him back, but they want him to play an all-pro game.

[John.Tallhouse]

7 minutes ago, HKSR said:

Hope they decide on him soon.  Either way, benching him or scratching him doesn't do anyone any good.

The only thing it does do is set a precedent. If we end up moving on from Kuzie the new players coming in should understand what we expect of them. Only positive lol 

[Mackcanuck]

2 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

Only a plug who doesn’t know how to score plays on the 4th line. So there is no reason for Kuzmenko to be on that line. 

 

So who comes out of the top 2 lines for Kuz then

 

Mikheyev-Pettersson-Suter

 

Hoglander-Miller-Boeser

 

Joshua-Blueger-Garland

 

Di Giuseppe-Aman-Lafferty

[Elias Pettersson]

6 minutes ago, Tofu_Bud said:

 

It’s ll called chemistry.  Before you start calling players plugs maybe think things through first.  Figure it out

I’ll call a player whatever I want. Plugs are on the 4th line. 

[Rip The Mesh]

5 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

Kuzmenko plays on the 4th line with a bunch of plugs. What do people expect?  Also, what are the stats for the two plugs he plays with?  I’m assuming they are also on the ice when the other team scores? 

I'm assuming Alvin has had words with Rick about the situation. It's not out of the realm of possibility. Could be a trade coming, just wondering how devaluing Kuz

by sitting him makes any sense. Maybe the coach simply wants to make him work his ass off to climb back up?  Even that doesn't really make much sense ?

[John.Tallhouse]

2 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

I’ll call a player whatever I want. Plugs are on the 4th line. 

Just googled plug:

 

[The Aquaman]

Look at the size difference guys, and remember our trucks are raised pretty big. 
 

797 Haul Truck, it costs 7,000,000 per unit. We have 81 of them. Have 40 more coming, conversion to Autonomous, it drives it self, MineStar. 
 

All that bitumen, one of those loads is between 120,000-150,000. And they run 24/7, 365 days.  
 

Canada has the cleanest Oil, and oceans of oil. Saskatchewan is untapped.

 

Edited December 19, 2023 by The Aquaman

[Elias Pettersson]

47 minutes ago, Googlie said:

 

Backcheck, forecheck, hustle, win board battles, chase down pucks etc.

 

But Russian-bred wingers rarely backeck .. in the system they learned, the Pivot is the 3rd defenceman (think Larianov, Federov, Yashin,  Malkin) -- wingers control the boards, accept the outlet pass and are off to the races (think Bure, Mogilny, Ovechkin, Goldobin)

 

IMO Tocchet needs to think outside the box and find ways to capitalize on Kuzzy's creativity rather than trying to turn him into Tanner Pearson 

THIS. 100% correct. People are saying Kuzmenko doesn’t hit. Artemi Panarin has one hit this year. Kuzmenko has two. Is Panarin playing on the 4th line because he doesn’t hit?  
 

Kuzmenko scored 39 goals last year in his very first year in the NHL. Panarin has never even scored 39 goals in one season in his entire NHL career. But let’s turn Kuzmenko into a 4th line plug because Rick Tocchet hockey. 

[Dr. Crossbar]

Kuzmenko isn't getting special treatment. He can't play unaccountable hockey while the rest of the team is being held accountable.

[-dlc-]

14 minutes ago, Nucker67 said:

 

What's odd to me is that Kuzmenko can take a Miller slap shot to the chin and be back next game, all smiles, nothing broken. And yet, he shies away from bodychecks and playing with grit.  Meanwhile, Petey is bodychecking anyone he can and the much smaller Garland plays like a Tasmanian Devil. 

Thing is, a slapshot happens in a split second and being hit in the chin isn't expected.

 

Going in to lay the body comes with some knowledge that it can be punishing and with some pushback. So maybe some reservation with that.