Reefer2 wrote: 1) Canucks would never win the cup with AV as coach. AV is nothing but a defensive coach who will always revert to a trap when he should attack(see game 2 of this series), he was forced to play an attacking style of hockey by MG and he had the guns to do it. AV does not bring up young guys and give them a chance. AV cannot adjust his game within the game. Again AV has been made to look really great when he was given a team with the offensive talent this team had over the past 3 - 5 years.
Agreed, but between him and Newell Brown they did devise some set-plays which led to an up-tick in scoring. The problem is everyone in the league has figured them out and the coaching staff hasn't come up with anything new. They've proven before they can innovate, but they either have no new ideas or won't impliment them.
Reefer2 wrote:2) Canucks have too many of the same type of players (Sedins, Raymond, & Hansen) who are soft perimeter players who can skate but don't go to the net. How many games night after night for the past couple of years have we seen all 3 forwards behind the net with no one in front. Cycle, cycle, cycle shot, shot blocked or goalie save but look no one in the dirty area to score. Kesler is the only player I would say at least trys to go to the net or deflect shots.
Hansen can go to the dirty areas and has on occasion. There are others who can and have before on occasion (Higgins, Booth, etc) but it seems that's not in the gameplan, despite the fact that it's what they need to do. AV talks a good game, but if he can't get his forwards to get off the boards into the middle of the ice even when those players of capable of doing it (hell Daniel did it more than occasionally before) then it's time for Gillis to find someone else who can.
Reefer2 wrote:3) Edler & Bieksa are over rated, they are good but they are not true #1 more of #2b type of players. This is OK except when you count on them to be Weber type players. Do you remember when we all thought Edler was going to be the next Lindstrom, Edler is a guy who was in the right place at the right time. His numbers were what they were/are because he played on one of the most offensive talented teams, even now his numbers are there because he plays 25 mins a night and on the top PP unit. Give any D man that and plays with the Sedins and their number would be higher than expected. Not saying he didn't have the raw talent but I wonder about his success is more of the environment and not what he created. Where was Bieksa toughness against Boston, a lot of talk about this yet we see it so rarely that he lives on reputation of what he did the first few years of his career.
I don't think Edler is overrated at all. Agreed that he is not a dominant D of the likes of Weber, Doughty or Karlsson but he can be a good #1 on a good team... one day. Yeah, his numbers may be the product of being on the ice with the Twins just like Erhoff, but he has the skills and the size. The problem is between his ears and either he needs a new coach in his ear or a new team. Either that, or Gillis has to go out and get that stud defenceman with Edler as cheaper bait.
As for Bieksa, he's a good top 4 when healthy and someone has to remind him what got him the room and the money he gets nowadays. Again, it comes down to coaching.
Reefer2 wrote:What pisses me off is that for the past 15 years, give or take a couple of seasons, the Canucks have had a top end team and we always seemed to either have a GM who wouldn't put the final pieces in (i.e. beach ball Dan) or a coach with an ego the size of Manhatt and played his favorite players instead of doing what is best for the team.
I don't think Gillis has lacked for trying to get those pieces to win it all. I think he just misjudged what he was getting and wasn't willing to part with assets needed to get what he could have got. I'd rather see that than Cheezeburglar's dithering and frittering away higher picks for slugs on the periphery (though Roy is starting to look like one such instance). For all the time, effort and money going into pro scouting and such, Gillis has struck out more than he's got on base. If he wants to stick around, that's one key area he needs to fix before we see another Ballard-type trade.
I think a lot of key pieces are still there, but the coach has to go.
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