CANUCKS BANTER By Andrew Chernoff June 25, 2016The Vancouver Canucks with their second pick of the 2016 NHL draft, chose right wing William Lockwood of the USA U-18 team, with the 64rth pick (3rd round) in the 2016 NHL draft.
BY MARCUS HONDRO http://www.digitaljournal.com
June 22, 2016
My suspicion is that it is frustrating for most fans of the Vancouver Canucks to hear GM Jim Benning repeat over and over again his mantra of making the team competitive now. Of putting the 2017 playoffs ahead of the franchise’s next decade, or more.
The reason being is that the knowledgeable Canuck fans know that a rebuild is needed in Vancouver, not a retool, as Benning and team president Trevor Linden seem bent on working toward. Fans know you can retool Vancouver with a top free agent winger, Boston’s Loui Eriksson or Kyle Okposo of the New York Islanders for example, but it won’t make the team a contender for the Stanley Cup. Not by a long shot.
Ditto for Andrew Ladd, Troy Brouwer or Milan Lucic. Now Steven Stamkos might get them into the playoffs but he’s not going to help this current team go far once there. There are too many holes to fill on the Canucks and it will take more than this off-season to fill them.
They’ll need the young players on their roster, players like Bo Horvat, Jake Virtanen, Nikita Tryamkin, Sven Baertschi, Ben Hutton and their pick from the 2016 NHL entry draft (likely Matthew Tkachuk or Pierre-Luc Dubois), all 23 or under, to gain another season, or two, playing together.
Datsyuk to Canucks?
So based upon that (correct!) assessment, it’s my belief that Canuck fans who read a recent piece on a site called The Canuck Way will be angry if the rumor floated there is true.
The writer, Janik Beichler, did not profess to inside information but brought up a tweet from TSNs Darren Dreger about the Detroit Red Wings looking to get a contract off their books. He took Dreger’s tweet — we’ll get to it in a moment — and speculated the Wings offered a deal to the Canucks that would see Vancouver get players and a 2nd round 2016 draft pick.
With Datsyuk retired from the NHL and heading to Russia, it leaves Detroit missing the speedy playmaker from their line-up — but not his salary cap hit. They don’t have to pay him any money but the year remaining on his contract will go against Detroit’s salary cap for the 2016-17 NHL season.
So in a manner of speaking next season the Wings will have $7.5 million less of a cap than everybody else — unless they find a team willing to take Datsyuk’s salary cap hit. According to Dreger, Detroit is willing to package forwards Tomas Jurco and Teemu Pulkkinen, along with a 2nd rounder, to induce a club to take on Datsyuk’s numbers.
Benning: no trade
It can’t be said if Benning was indeed offered this package, though Dreger claims a deal involving some or all of those pieces was offered. But (some might ‘incredibly’) Benning still insists they will not take on salary in such a manner, regardless of what comes back in return.
Surely the savvy Canuck fan is in pain thinking the team could get Jurco, Pulkkinen and a second-rounder for in essence nothing, and yet aren’t taking it. Yes, that $7.5 million would help grab Eriksson, Okposo or Stamkos (who surely is not looking to sign here) but it likely won’t help grab even a playoff spot.
Further, both Jurco, 23, and Pulkkinen, 24, are promising forwards. Jurco has 15 NHL goals while in his last AHL season, 2014-15, Pulikkinen played 46 games with Grand Rapids and was 34-27-61; he also added 14 goals in 16 AHL playoff games and another 5 goals that season in 31 NHL games (he saw limited action) for the Red Wings.
The Finn’s 61 points in 46 AHL games was an impressive accomplishment; in the top 65 scorers in the league that season, only two others played fewer than 60 games (one played 57, another 59) and both those players were far down the scoring list.
It is conceivable a player like Pulikkinen could rise to the occasion and become a top 6 NHL forward, maybe even the ‘next one’ as far as finding a line-mate for Henrik and Daniel Sedin. And while even a breakout 2016-17 season from Pulkkinen, or Jurco, wouldn’t get the Canucks far in the 2017 playoffs, it will boost their stock for years to come.
By the way, bizarre world in hockey now, no? A trade where you essentially give up nothing (not even actual money) and yet in return you get three players (one retired) and a draft pick. And yet it appears the Canucks GM wants no part of it!
Trades sure have changed in the NHL…though one thing that hasn’t changed is this: fans can get pretty frustrated, even angry, when their team makes a bad trade. Or, in this case, doesn’t make a good one.
Source: Op-Ed: Vancouver Canucks please trade for contract and get youth, pick
CANUCKS BANTER By Andrew Chernoff June 21, 2016VANCOUVER, B.C., — The Vancouver Canucks 2016.17 regular season and pre-season schedules were released today.
The Canucks open the regular season with consecutive home games against division rival Calgary on Saturday, October 15th, followed by the Carolina Hurricanes on October 16th.
The Canucks schedule has 29 games against Pacific Division teams, 21 games against remaining Western Conference opponents and 32 games against Eastern Conference clubs.
The busiest night of the week is Saturday with 19 games; Tuesday and Thursday 17 games each.
DATES TO BE AWARE OF
SCHEDULE
SCHEDULE TIDBITS
PRE-SEASON ACTION
The Canucks will play seven pre-season games, all against Pacific Division rivals.
They will play four games at home against:
The Canucks play three games on the road in:
Source: http://canucks.nhl.com/
JUNE 18, 2016
For the first time this century, the Vancouver Canucks own a top-five pick at the NHL Draft.
Though general manager Jim Benning has been fielding calls and listening to offers on the pick, the club is comfortable at five and seems to be excited about adding a new top prospect to the pipeline.
Barring a Godfather offer – the sort that one ‘can’t refuse’ – the club isn’t eager to move down.
“We’ve got the fifth pick and we really like the players available at five,” Benning told Sportsnet this week. “We think it’s going to be a first line player as a forward or a first pair player as a defenceman.
“There are two forwards we really like and a defenceman, or a couple defencemen, who we really like and we’re getting one of those players,” Benning continued, while emphasizing that he didn’t expect to be able to move up in the draft order.
Assuming the Canucks use the fifth overall pick, the club will have some intriguing options. And there are a number of players they’re considering.
“There’s still some uncertainty as to who is going to be there and not, so we go through different scenarios,” said Canucks director of amateur scouting Judd Brackett.
“We’ve identified five or six different players that we’d be thrilled to get. We think they’re going to be fundamental, cornerstone pieces of our franchise going forward.”
Who are some of the players that could be available the Canucks are strongly considering? Here are four top contenders.
Matthew Tkachuk
The American-born power forward won the Memorial Cup with the London Knights this past season and scored the championship-winning overtime goal.
Tkachuk has the raw offensive instincts and the sort of physical strength and speed that generally appeals to NHL teams at the top of the draft.
He also managed a whopping 107 points in 57 games in the OHL regular season, before scoring better than a goal per game in the OHL playoffs in his draft season.
If any questions linger about Tkachuk’s suitability as a bluechip prospect – and talking to people in the industry, it seems most of those questions were answered by his playoff performance – it relates to his having spent the season with top-end linemates, including Christian Dvorak and top Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Mitch Marner.
The Canucks, it seems, aren’t concerned by the possibility that Tkachuk’s offensive totals were inflated by the players he skated with.
“We’ve watched him now for three years, he played on a good line (this year), the year before he played on a good line with the US Development Program,” Benning told Sportsnet. “In each instance, part of that line being good was because of him…
“I know he played on a good line this year, but the last three years he’s been on good lines, and a big part of those lines’ success has been his play.”
Pierre-Luc Dubois
The Canucks heavily scouted Dubois over the course of this season, with Benning even making a special trip to watch Dubois’ Cape Breton Screaming Eagles play live in the playoffs.
Dubois won’t turn 18 until draft day and he led all first-time draft eligible players in the QMJHL in scoring by a decent margin. He has a rare combination of size, speed and offensive skills and projects as the sort of two-way piece that can stick at centre in the NHL.
Just how rare is Dubois’ combination of size, speed and skill? You have to go back a decade – to Jakub Voracek in 2006 – to find a QMJHL prospect whose performance in their draft eligible season closely compares with Dubois’ height, relative youth and production.
Though there’s always a chance the Canucks might pass on Tkachuk or Dubois, at least one of whom will surely still be on the board by the time they pick, the smart money is on the club selecting whichever one of these two is left over.
Logan Brown
If there’s one forward who might change that calculus, it’s 6-foot-6 Logan Brown of the Windsor Spitfires.
The American-born son of former Canucks defenceman Jeff Brown, Logan is blessed with a massive frame and a solid offensive toolkit.
Among first-time draft-eligible skaters in the OHL, only Tkachuk, Alex DeBrincat and Alex Nylander manufactured a higher points per game rate. And none of those other players are 6-foot-6.
Brown stands out to the Canucks for a variety of reasons, all of which make sense. After all he’s a natural centre, he’s massive and he’s shown enormous improvement over the past 10 months.
“Over the course of last season, out of all the players in this draft, from the start of the season to the way he played in Grand Forks (at the U18 tournament), there was a huge jump in his progression,” Benning said of Brown.
“A 6-foot-6 guy who protects the puck and handles the puck like he can and make plays, that’s an attractive package. To say he’s a dark horse, I don’t know about that. He’s really improved, but he’s always been a skilled, talented player.”
Olli Juolevi
The Canucks are high on several defencemen in this draft – they’re believed to like Jake Bean, Jakob Chychrun and Charlie McAvoy in particular.
London Knights blueliner Juolevi has emerged as the consensus ‘best defenceman available’ and Benning has praised the Finn’s game in recent months, so we’ll use him as our example of what the Canucks would do if they decide to take a defenceman.
Before the floor fell out from under the Canucks in mid-February, the club seemed to be telegraphing their desire to select a defenceman in the first round.
Now that they’re picking in the top-five though, they can’t afford to consider positional need.
“When you’re at five, you have to look for best overall ability,” Brackett said.
“If it happens to coincide with a depth need or an organizational need that’s the cherry on top, but when you’re picking this high you just take the best available. You can’t be influenced by positional need at this point.”
Also consider that in May Benning said he wasn’t convinced that a true No. 1 defenceman existed in this draft class and it seems likely the club will use the fifth-overall pick on a forward.
That said, Benning did seem to moderate those comments in an extended discussion with Sportsnet this week.
“I think there’s a couple of defencemen that have a chance to grow into (a No. 1) in this year’s draft, and I think there’s some defencemen that have some special skills that will transform to the way that the game is being played now,” Benning said.
If the Canucks opt to hold the fifth-overall pick, expect them to take a forward. If they find a trading partner and move back in the first-round though, expect them to select a defenceman.
“In the course of the top 15 picks, there are five or six defencemen that we really like, who we think can be top-four defencemen in the NHL,” Benning said.
Source: NHL Draft Decisions: Vancouver Canucks – Sportsnet.ca
Thursday, 06.16.2016
Vancouver, B.C. – Vancouver Canucks President of Hockey Operations Trevor Linden announced today that the club has entered into an affiliation agreement with the Alaska Aces of the ECHL. Under this arrangement, the Canucks will designate players within their development system for assignment with the Aces during the 2016.17 season.
“We are pleased to enter into a new development partnership with the Aces,” said Canucks President of Hockey Operations Trevor Linden. “The community of Anchorage has a rich history of developing players that have had success at the National Hockey League level. We’re excited to continue this tradition with the Aces and provide our prospects with an excellent environment for growth.”
The Aces, based in Anchorage, were 2005.06, 2010.11, and 2013.14 Kelly Cup Champions.
“As an organization we are extremely excited about this opportunity. We as a group feel that having Vancouver, the closest NHL team in proximity to Alaska, will give our fan base another team to cheer for,” said Aces Head Coach and President of Hockey Operations Rob Murray. “The parity in the ECHL has gotten stronger over the past few years and we felt it imperative to find an affiliation to help with not only recruiting but providing depth to the Aces. We will also be working closely with Vancouver’s AHL affiliate in Utica throughout the 2016.17 season.”
The Anchorage Aces originally played in the Pacific Southwest Hockey League from 1989 through 1999 before joining the West Coast Hockey League from 1995 to 2003. The team joined the ECHL to start the 2003.04 season and were renamed the Alaska Aces after the league switch. The Aces were previously affiliated with the St. Louis Blues from 2005 to 2012, the Calgary Flames during the 2013.14 season, and both the St. Louis Blues and Minnesota Wild during the 2014.15 season. Alaska currently competes in the ECHL’s West Division, which also includes Colorado, Idaho, Rapid City and Utah.
The Canucks have had previous ECHL affiliation agreements with the Columbus Chill (1992 to 1994), South Carolina Stingrays (1994.95), Columbia Inferno (2001 to 2006), Victoria Salmon Kings (2006 to 2011), and Kalamazoo Wings (2012 to 2015).
Source: Canucks enter ECHL agreement with Aces – Vancouver Canucks – News
Andrew Phillip Chernoff 