Hodgson Outlook

[Fred]

I'd go along with that assessment coco_canuck . And I think by now the canucks would be happy with that. The fans were either over hyped or management really believed this was the continuation of the heady days for the 'Nucks. Strange you mentioned Malhotra, because I could see the similarity, he also was over hyped when he was drafted and then dwindled away only becoming a go to player later in his career. But he did adapt and make the defensive side of his game a speciality and if Cody wants to enjoy success he has to excel in one area or more. I agree he has time but if he wants to avoid being type cast as a 3rd line player it's time to put up

As to my reference to Neeley, I was referring to Tom Watts stuborn assessment of Neeley which lead to his being traded....not to Neeley who every one liked....except Watt

[BladesofSteel]

Was he over-hyped though? WJC Gold medal and arguably tourny MVP after leading in scoring; OHL MVP, CHL MVP...

He got a tonne of play from the media while he was out with the back injury, but I don't think he was ever over-hyped.

The kid hit a speed bump in his development. What more is there to say?

If a great deal comes, then yes, you move him to improve the team. But if anyone is suggesting he should be shopped right now, give your head a shake.

Patience is a virtue.

[Fred]

Maybe over hyped is not the word but then what is the word to describe a player that has failed to show or replicate his junior achievement's. It's one thing to say "well he's not a great skater but he can split a defense open with a smart play" I just don't see any of the "but he can ............" where is it

I hope he comes in and blows doubters like me out of the water come the Sept. training camp. But I'm already starting to look at players who have shown they belong, such as a Tanev and I'm hoping we find some muscle that can play a regular shift ( assuming AV doesn't bench them after their first penalty LOL )

[coco_canuck]

It's one thing to say "well he's not a great skater but he can split a defense open with a smart play" I just don't see any of the "but he can ............" where is it

That's precisely it. Until I can see that "but," I'm not going to be convinced Cody will be a top player.

If a great deal comes, then yes, you move him to improve the team. But if anyone is suggesting he should be shopped right now, give your head a shake.

Great deals don't typically fall out of the sky.

I don't think anyone is suggesting we trade Cody for whatever we can get, we're looking to package him for something that makes the team significantly better.

It's not like anyone will just come knocking on Gillis' door and saying, I'll give you X solid player for Hodgson. Gillis has to gauge his value around the league and come up with a packages that are appealing to other GM's.

We all want the team to get that big forward up front and a dynamic D-man on the back-end, and we all know it has to come through a trade. Cody may still be considered the team's top prospect by other GM's, and he's the best bet we have to improve the team without losing a core player.

I don't think it's ridiculous to suggest Cody should be shopped.

[woodhog]

Cody may still be considered the team's top prospect by other GM's, and he's the best bet we have to improve the team without losing a core player.

Have you forgotten about Schneider? He's proven that he can play at a high level in the NHL (at least as a back-up).
I'd say, at this point, he's our top prospect and our best trade bait. Cody's proved nothing, at the NHL level, so far.

[Fred]

It's not like anyone will just come knocking on Gillis' door and saying, I'll give you X solid player for Hodgson. Gillis has to gauge his value around the league and come up with a packages that are appealing to other GM's.

here's the fly in the ointment, not only is MG assessing Hodgson every other team in the league has Pro scouts doing the same thing. Just as MG is rating other teams prospects the other teams are assessing ours. At some point it becomes clear to the other 29 GM's what the situation is with Hodgson, is he worth a pick or a trade, or do you stick with it and hope some one can bring the best from this kid. The appointment of theWolves coach is going to be crucial. It's clear Hodgson has no allie in AV. It's up to you Cody maybe the time for a trade is already passed ?

Schneider might well be a case of hanging onto, Luongo just failed the second of a three part test, he fails this play-offs and MG has to look past the man...enter Schneider IMO

[Topper]

It's one thing to say "well he's not a great skater but he can split a defense open with a smart play" I just don't see any of the "but he can ............" where is it

Very well said.

For those throwing out names such as the Sedins as players who could not skate, this is the critical point. Even while falling down, Dank cycled. It took a few years for them to be able to move the puck from the corner to the net, but let us not forget, Daniel potted 20 as a rookie.

Like wise I have been a fan of Hansen since his call up a in 07-08. There were flashes of very intelligent player.

I have yet to see any hint of flash from Cody at the NHL level. What I see are defenders swatting him about as he tries his nifty OHL stickwork.

[coco_canuck]

Have you forgotten about Schneider? He's proven that he can play at a high level in the NHL (at least as a back-up).
I'd say, at this point, he's our top prospect and our best trade bait. Cody's proved nothing, at the NHL level, so far.

Semantics.

I don't consider Schneider a prospect any longer. He's an NHL player.

Cody has yet to earn a NHL job.

Besides, I'd rather not trade Schneider until next summer unless Gillis finds a great deal.

Who knows how Luongo will feel about playing here after next season. A lot could happen and right now he's public enemy number 1 in may fans' and media's eyes. If he has another tough finish to next season, maybe he feels it's time to part ways. I'd like to keep Schneids as insurance.

However, right now Schneids has a big role with this team and I hope he has an even bigger one next year. I'd like to see him get 27-30 starts next year and I'd like for him to get at least one game every round in the playoffs. When both are playing this team is much stronger. It gives Luongo a mental and physical break, and it also pushes him to be better when he has a capable back-up like Corey.

[coco_canuck]

It's clear Hodgson has no allie in AV. It's up to you Cody maybe the time for a trade is already passed ?

I'm not sure if AV is anti-Cody. AV has made young players earn their way into bigger roles before. Burrows, Hansen, Raymond, Edler, and even Kesler.

If Cody plays well enough to earn a spot, he'll get it IMO.

As far as his trade value is concerned, you could well be right, his value could be limited to other picks and prospects. If that's the case, then there's no sense trading him now. Those types of deals make sense at the draft and if the team is convinced he's not going to be a player here.

We don't know what his value is around the league and what options Gillis has, but if he can be packaged for a difference maker, then you do it.

[Todd Bersnoozi]

Yeah, I would like to see CoHo start the year with the Moose too. The Nucks are strong enuff that we don't need to rush him and he needs to play a lot of minutes. His stats last year with the Moose was very sub-par, make him the top centre with the Wolves and see if he can dominate/put up some numbers. With the nucks being pretty deep @ centre ice, I wouldn't mind giving him a look on the wing too, that would make him more versitile and maybe give him a chance to play in the NHL sooner. I agree with Topper about Cody's skating. It does looks a bit awkward. He has this weird crouch that makes him look kind of small. Cody is the same size as MayRay, but MayRay looks like average NHL size while Coho looks on the small side. As someone said, the Sedins were not great skaters when they joined the NHL and skating is still not their strong points. Hopefully Cody can work on this a bit and compensate with smarts and anticipation.

I was surprised AV played CoHo on the 4th line as much as he did during the playoffs. Even though CoHo didn't play a lot of minutes, he played most of the games until Manny came back. I honestly thot Bolduc would of been a better fit on the 4th line during the playoffs, but AV saw it differently. Hopefully this means AV sees something in this kid that he thinks can help his team.

Prospects are a bit of a funny thing. Last year this time, it was safe to say CoHo and Schroeder were ahead of Grabner in the depth chart, potential and young asset trade value. One year later, Grabner blows those 2 away. Grabner is a 30+ rookie goal scorer and calder finalist, while Coho and Schroeder each had unspectacular AHL seasons. I think one of the reasons that helped Grabner explode onto the scene like he did last year was that we never rushed him. He played like 2.5 years with the Moose before he was even given a sniff in the NHL. Same thing with C.Schneids, he played 3 seasons with the Moose before we really gave him a chance. I think we should do the same with Cody along with Schroeder, just let them play a lot of minutes with the Wolves to increase their experience, confidence, knowledge of the game and skillz. They're still young guys, let them get stronger physically and just let them develop naturally as hockey players and young men.

Just looking at the players we have with the Wolves, I'm thinking an Archiblad-Coho-Schroeder line might be very interesting. All three guys have different assets: size in Archibald, playmaking in Coho and speed in Schroeder; all three have shown they have good finish in junior/college, put it all together and it might make for a dominant line. Kind of reminds me of the WCE express: Bert (size), BMo(speed/playming), Nasi (sniper).

I agree with Kirk that Cody needs a full season in the AHL at this point. He's simply not ready for the NHL yet.

I see him developing into a solid NHL #2 playmaking centre eventually.

[Rokker]

It's clear Hodgson has no allie in AV. It's up to you Cody maybe the time for a trade is already passed ?

I'm not sure if AV is anti-Cody. AV has made young players earn their way into bigger roles before. Burrows, Hansen, Raymond, Edler, and even Kesler.

If Cody plays well enough to earn a spot, he'll get it IMO.

As far as his trade value is concerned, you could well be right, his value could be limited to other picks and prospects. If that's the case, then there's no sense trading him now. Those types of deals make sense at the draft and if the team is convinced he's not going to be a player here.

We don't know what his value is around the league and what options Gillis has, but if he can be packaged for a difference maker, then you do it.

I would have to agree that Hodgson's trade value right now would not be worth a move at this time.

[ClamRussel]

One thing that should be pointed out about the Sedins is yes they did ok as rookies for sure but keep in mind they were handed their icetime on a silver platter. They did not earn it. This is especially true in their sophomore season. The bottom line is they were given a chance, given HEAPS of icetime including 2nd unit PP right from the get-go...and were allowed to make mistakes & play through them w/o fear of being scratched every other game and after a single mistake. In the end patience paid off and there was a very strong return. HUGE difference between how Hodgson has been handled so far. Hopefully that will change and he'll be given an opportunity however I somehow doubt it from what AV has shown thus far.

[Arachnid]

Could we have done any worse with Cody in the line up in Game 7?

[Topper]

Could we have done any worse with Cody in the line up in Game 7?

yes

[CrzyCanuck]

One thing that should be pointed out about the Sedins is yes they did ok as rookies for sure but keep in mind they were handed their icetime on a silver platter. They did not earn it. This is especially true in their sophomore season. The bottom line is they were given a chance, given HEAPS of icetime including 2nd unit PP right from the get-go...and were allowed to make mistakes & play through them w/o fear of being scratched every other game and after a single mistake. In the end patience paid off and there was a very strong return. HUGE difference between how Hodgson has been handled so far. Hopefully that will change and he'll be given an opportunity however I somehow doubt it from what AV has shown thus far.

That team didn't have the depth this current Canucks has. The Sedins were arguably the only players with offensive potentials after the WCE. But yeah, skating aside the Sedins skills were far more mature than Hodgson. But keep in mind the Sedins had played 3 years of SEL before coming over.

It is true that Hodgson does not and probably will not get that kind of luxurious privilege under coach AV. But I do think that our depth has more to do with Hodgson's limited ice-time.

Yeah, Topper it was pathetic to see Hodgson trying to use his OHL shitkill against the grown-ups. He needs more experiences playing with and AGAINST professional players.

If you break down Hodgson's current status of each skill.... (Using EA Sports attributes just for fun), I wonder how the pro scouting ranks each attribute currently and how they rate the potential for each attribute?
Balance:
Skating:
Speed:
Acceleration:
Puck-handling:
Wrist shot:
Slap shot:
Bodycheck:
Stickcheck:
Face-off skill:
Offensive awareness:
Defensive awareness:

Which areas would most likely be his strong points? I suppose it'd be the awareness, or the so-called hockey smarts.
Nevertheless, Hodgson, while stlil being a top prospect in the system, has slowly lost his aura I believe. Whether it was due to injury, inappropriate training, or other stuff, he needs to work extra harder now.