Prospects Thread 2012-13

[Uncle dans leg]

I'll concede they didn't play well at all for the last half and playoffs.
But, in all fairness, they still managed the best record while playing what has widely been described as uninspired play missing their leading scorer.
I do see what you're saying but surely you can recognize that the period we have been describing is not indicative of the quality of play they had typically demonstrated in the previous 3-4 year period. Kesler at 30%...Sedins going through the motions, the whole team seemed to be waiting for something more...games that mattered. When they did finally come they got steamrolled by a very good, overachieving eventual Stanley Cup Champ.
I'll give this group the benefit of the doubt. I think they have more to give and won't count them out just yet. They won me over as fan with that run. I gotta have a bit more faith.

[Aaronp18]

Curious RD, on our current roster (or better the one that was one game from the Cup title) who was considered a high end prospect 2-3 years after their draft year? Of those not acquired through trade or signing.

The Sedin sisters?
Elite third line centre Kesler?
Burrows?
Hansen?

Maybe, just maybe something can be said for development and patience?

[Southern_Canuck]

Sunday Dec 9

QMJHL

Cape Breton 3 Chicoutimi 0
Honzik 31 saves on 31 shots

Finally, a positive result for Honzik with the shutout!

OHL

Ottawa 2 Kitchener 1 (SO)
McEneny 0 points, even

S_C

[Blob Mckenzie]

Well according to this post of yours UDL, it seems to me that you have been living under a rock the last little while and are a little out of touch with the Canucks current level of play and general overall, 'what have they done for us lately'. Here is where they left off. The got knocked out in the first round of the last Stanley Cup Playoffs. They had the worst PP in the league over the last 35 games of the season. They can't score goals. They have replaced Salo with the mysterious one year flash in the pan, currently battling a lifelong sports hernia Jason Garrison. Kassian is a big mystery, we have no 3rd line centre, Luongo is not that desirable in the open market, Schneider is a mystery as a no. 1 goalie. Kesler's disappointing season. Kesler is our only legitimate 2nd line player. Edler is battling a chronic back condition that may be terminal. The Sedins, if no season, will be 33 at the beginning of next season. Our defense is thin, our forward depth is real thin after the first line, we have no support scoring from the 3rd and 4th lines. We have no high end prospects ready to make the jump in the near future and far future. I got news for you my friend, we are not a contender anymore. We are on the downside and we got more elite competition now from up and coming teams.

Yawn...... fart..... another brutal post. At least you have a couple clowns tagging along with you now that aren't cunning enough to think for themselves.

[RoyalDude]

Can you clowns just meet me in the middle and admit once and for all that Gillis inherited a damn good situation here in Vancouver from Nonis, and that his job has been relatively easy since then until now and that we now finally get to see just how good or bad a GM Gillis truly is now that he has to stand on his own two feet and no longer ride the coat-tails of previous managements players because previous managements players have run their course with this team and can no longer sustain their dominance of the league and that we now have to rely on Gillis keeping the ship right?

[Uncle dans leg]

I will concede that Gillis arrived just as another GMs drafted players were about to turn the corner. Yes this is true.
I won't , however, say any players that he has drafted are yet to be considered busts. It's far too early. Sauve is the closest thing to a bust to me but any of the following years drafted players are still too young.

His 2 trades with Forida were the worst moves by him in my opinion although we essentially traded cap space for Booth. I will wait and see with how Booth turns out at this point. I was quite impressed with his game right before Porter blew out his knee and I'll cut him a bit of slack until then. Ballard was a terrible trade although we really didn't give up all that much but it's still a bad deal any way you look at it.

Now in fairness, you have to concede something away from the uber-negative stance you generally take. Gillis has done some good while managing this team to being the contender that it has demonstrated to be over the past number of years....

Come on dude...tell the group how you really feel!

[Southern_Canuck]

Wow S-C that looks ominous. Removed from the roster ...not a good sign IMO. If indeed that is what has happened I guess at 21 his only other move is to join the Wolves. Interesting to see if the local media pick up on that and ask MG for info.

IF McNally was involved with the "academic dishonesty" (cheating!), I understand that Harvard has a number of options for consequences - from a one year suspension to lesser punishments... I don't think McNally would necessarily have to leave the program permanently.

Anyway, he may have nothing to do with the scandal.

I checked, and nothing was said about it in the pre-game commentary for tonight's match against Mass-Lowell - it seems because of the threat of lawsuits and trying to protect their image Harvard is keeping pretty quiet about the cheating scandal.

S_C

[dbr]

Can you clowns just meet me in the middle and admit once and for all that Gillis inherited a damn good situation here in Vancouver from Nonis, and that his job has been relatively easy since then until now and that we now finally get to see just how good or bad a GM Gillis truly is now that he has to stand on his own two feet and no longer ride the coat-tails of previous managements players because previous managements players have run their course with this team and can no longer sustain their dominance of the league and that we now have to rely on Gillis keeping the ship right?

What is this, a negotiation? Gee, I never realized that rather than posting complete nonsense all over the place you were simply maintaining a bargaining position. That's great spin, Dude.

But yeah, I will agree that Mike Gillis arrived in a pretty good situation here, I didn't think Dave Nonis' team was that far off when he was fired but in retrospect it's pretty clear that for a couple of years running he was unable to take the next steps that Mike Gillis did.

[Fred]

Dude he has made some bad choices. For quite a while I thought and in fact still think the Pro Scouts need changing. He hasn't addressed that and end up signing players like Ballard, Sturm to mention just a couple. The amateur scouts IMO considering where we pick are not as bad. They're the same scouts who selected Schneider, Kesler and found players like Tanev as FA plus late picks like Corrado, Bieska etc. Do they hit a home run every year ... no. Lets keep in mind the over all success for 1st rounders is 60% and if you concede that most of the top 10 as a rule make it the bottom 20 in the first round works out around only 40% making it. The second round and below is on average 15% success rate. Every one points to Detroit but my oh my have they had a lot of clunkers. They did get some good late picks but to be honest late picks are more about luck ie you pass over them yourself numerous time with bad selection then suddenly like a rabbit out a hat produce a quality player that my friend is luck.

However, you may go on about the loss in the first round last year but if you look at it carefully. From late seasons teams understood that Kesler was hiding a serious injury ... enough to make him not worth bothering about they fixated on the Sedins and Chicago not content with that did a number on Daniel. So we went into the play-offs with less than one productive line, the out come was inevitable.

Here's where your argument in part falls apart. The Vcr team has become a strong franchise and one to be reckoned with. A top 10 in terms of success in the league, and that my friend only started after MG arrived ! so fairs fair, if you want to be taken seriously you have to give credit when it's due. The sky is not falling, the teams OK despite the warts that you kind of over emphasise.

If any thing MG IMO opinion is better now than when he arrived. A tad overly academic and against the grain trying to out think every one rather than accept proven philosophies such as yes size does count.

The coaching has been great IMO and has covered over a lot of the warts. I don't know if Vcr and AV was the first team to go with the location of the play when changing lines rather than matching lines but he sure does it well and enjoys success with it. But it did depend a lot on MG picking up Malhotra

[Fred]

More on McNally

http://www.hockeysfuture.com/articles/8 ... et-to-nhl/

not looking good

http://www.westerncollegehockeyblog.com ... -to-report

suspended

[Southern_Canuck]

Monday Dec 10

NCAA

Mass-Lowell 5 Harvard 0
McNally did not play

It looks like McNally's options are limited to taking a year off, but retaining his eligibility to return to Harvard for Fall 2013 semester - or turning pro to perhaps play in Europe or in the ECHL/AHL.

Given his prep school background, and the fact that one of the reasons he was available in the 4th round in 2010 was his desire to play a full scholarship and get a degree... who knows what he will do?

The part I find funny is 125 students in Gov 1310 had the same punctuation error on their final exam - an extra space after a comma.

S_C

[dbr]

It would be pretty weird for the NCAA to preserve a players eligibility if he went to Europe, there is no real amateur hockey for a player of McNally's age there.. is there?

Anyway, as he is a promising prospect perhaps the Canucks can lure him out of the NCAA with a promise to help him cheat his way to a degree later on in life.

Too bad it happened this year though, a project player like McNally would be in tough to stick in the AHL with all the talent floating around at this point. Maybe it really would be best for the kid to sit the year and continue to put bulk on his frame so he can put together another good season at the college level before thinking about turning pro.

[Southern_Canuck]

It would be pretty weird for the NCAA to preserve a players eligibility if he went to Europe, there is no real amateur hockey for a player of McNally's age there.. is there?

Oooops, I didn't mean to imply any amateur opportunities in Europe - I have edited my post.

I think what is most likely to happen is some time wasted on a legal challenge to the university's ruling, and then the suspension will be reduced or upheld...

Anyway, most likely McNally is back to Harvard next fall - unfortunately impairing a year of deve;lopment at a high level of hockey.

S_C

[dbr]

Hmm. According to Farhan Devji (link) McNally has withdrawn from Harvard and is considering his options for reinstatement there - which I assume means sitting for the year as you said.

I guess all we can hope for is that he hits the gym hard while he is out, and that the Canucks can find a way for him to stay on track without violating his status as an amateur athlete.

I have to wonder at this point whether this affects McNally's commitment to stay at Harvard for a full four years - he will probably not be able to complete a degree in the two years he'd have remaining after this one, so staying around for the sake of that would be pretty pointless in and of itself.

[Aaronp18]

Couldn't he play like BCHL (or the equivalent) for the remainder of the year? Or is he too old?

There's gotta be somewhere the guy can play. I don't think anyone wants him to sit the rest of the year without playing hockey.