Predictions for 2011-12

[Lloyd Braun]

I. We will start slow, finish strong, and end up between 105 & 110 points, good for the second seed.

II. Ballard has a strong year, finishes with 25-30 points, and becomes a fan favourite.

III. Luongo finally wins his first Vezina behind a team that tightens defensively to make up for a weakened offensive game.

IV. Owen Nolan makes the team, plays a fourth line in-and-out of the lineup role, scoring very little. His year ends up similar to Gary Roberts with the Pens, or Linden's last season here. He then moves up the lineup during the playoffs due to injury, and becomes an important secondary-scorer and a great source of veteran leadership.

V. After returning earlier than predicted, Raymond spends most of the year playing a defensive role on the third line. He is effective in this spot, but everyone on this board complains because he fails to regain his scoring touch.

VI. Edler steps it up and becomes an all-star, as well as a Norris dark-horse -- probably not top 3, but on the radar.

VII. The Sedin twins see their production fall back a bit. They each end up around 90 points.

VIII. Kesler falls back as well, struggling to regain his timing for most of the season. By playoff time, he is money and his line is on fire.

IX. Hodgson has a good season, but fails to keep a spot on the team once the regulars come back. He shows himself to be an NHL player, but team depth is his undoing. More physical but less skilled players like Nolan, Oreskovich, and Lapierre are given fourth line time over him, and he can't keep a spot in the top 9 when the roster is healthy. In the playoffs, he finally secures that top-9 spot and contributes.

X. Schneider stays for the whole year, leading to much speculation during the off-season about trading his rights. He surprises everybody by signing a one year contract to back-up Luongo, with only a small raise.

XI. Sturm has a solid season, more than worth his pay-cheque but not close to his prime scoring seasons. He is one of two forwards to become injured early in the playoffs, making room for Hodgson and Nolan.

XII. Hansen plays most of the year on the Malhotra/Raymond third line. He shows flashes of brilliance leading rushes with Raymond, but neither is able to finish consistently, and Hansen doesn't significantly raise the bar for himself offensively. This line uses speed and smarts to shut down opposing forwards, causing internet fans everywhere to question the notion that toughness = defence.

Lucky number XIII. We win the cup. Kesler narrowly takes home the Conn Smythe over Luongo.

[ESQ]

Raymond will recover but it will take until 2012-2013 season before he is 100%.

I'm going to predict the same thing for Kesler. Ask Ballard & Tim Thomas about the year following hip surgery. He's going to have a rough regular season but will find his stride heading into playoffs.

Kesler had hip surgery in 07, came back to a career year. Thomas had hip surgery in May 2010, came back with a Vezina and Conn Smythe season. Ballard...well we all know what happened there. I think Ballard's biggest setback was the timing of the hip surgery late in the offseason, and the subsequent early-season concussion, which is what really put him behind the 8 ball.

My Predictions:

1. 90+ points for the Sedins, 30+ goals for Burrows and Kesler, who comes back at a 40-goal pace.

2. Sammy returns to form, speed improved along with health and age doesn't affect his shot - gets 25-30 goals. Higgins gets over 20 goals. When Raymond returns, he is given a shot on the second line, if only to boost his trade value. Canucks try to trade him, as he has permanently lost his place in the lineup as a soft scoring winger.

3. Sturm neither dazzles, surprises, or disappoints anybody. Plays mostly on the 3rd line, with 2nd unit PP time. Hansen's offense improves, and the third line contributes ~40 pts each.

4. Salo plays almost the whole year (TOUCHES WOOD), and reminds everybody that he is the best Dman on this team. His health and PP icetime replaces Erhoff's production. PP stays near the top of the league. With Bieksa/Hamhuis as the shutdown pair and more PP time, Edler hits 50 points. Ballard is kept on as #5, but is given more opportunity when the inevitable injuries happen and shows his true worth.

5. Canucks start slow but not disastrously slow. None of the WC rivals have made off-season moves to address the Canucks' strengths, and instead are loaded up with goons.Canucks

are hungrier than ever. They finish 1 or 2 in the NHL.

6. Luongo has another career year, and has Vancouver fans incensed and clamoring for him to be traded. The Cult of Cory only continues to grow, with new acolytes dying their hair ginger and growing chinstrap beards. Unfortunately no other GM joins the Cult, and GMMG doesn't get the huge offer he wants for Cory and he is kept on the bench.

7. NW teams show streaky improvement. Only Minny will be in the playoff hunt by the end of the year. In May 2011 the Bow River, swollen by the tears of Flames fans, floods the city of Calgary. Locals rejoice at the free car wash. They then build a 1:1 scale effigy of the entire city of Vancouver, and set it on fire while calling the Sedins divers.

8. No major trades this year. GMMG stockpiles his draft picks for either an offseason trade or offer sheet.

9. Hodgson doesn't stay up, as their is no room. He dominates the AHL, becoming a premier scorer with top icetime. Schroeder shows the most drastic improvement from last year's disappointment. Tanev is kept on speed-dial and also improves. Rome or AnAl is traded, as their steady play and very cap-friendly contracts carry a high value to teams with weak 3rd pairings.

[wienerdog]

I predict, somewhat boldly:

* Ballard will be AV's undoing, and he'll get fired and replaced by McTavish

Muahahaha!!



I love it when a plan comes together...

[Meds]

Meds 20 predictions.

In chronological order.....

1. Luongo starts out like a man possessed and silences all critics by the end of November with Vezina talk already brewing by Thanksgiving.

2. Ballard makes good use of his extra minutes and sends a gift basket of mini-muffins to the greedy kraut in Buffalo.

3. Samuelsson starts off looking good but is either demoted or traded by mid November.

4. Our PP doesn't regain its form with the lack of a true Sniper on the second unit and opponents making a point of doing nothing but taking away the Sedin's passing lanes.

5. Schneider gets 4 starts by the end of November and continues his solid play. The media credits him with pushing Lou. Lou begins to come back down to earth, vultures begin to circle.....again.

6. Sedins struggle out of the gate as teams play them physical and take liberties because they aren't afraid of our struggling powerplay. Both on pace for a 75 point season and speculators continue to speculate. Burrows sticks with the top line by being on pace for 70 points, albeit with a good number of them coming shorthanded and on shifts following a PP.

7. Kesler continues to prove himself as a top 3 forward by carrying the team at both ends of the ice and sitting in the top 3 in scoring as we roll into December.

8. Schneider gets 5 stars from Nov 10 - Dec 15, wins 4 of them, but the team is playing .500 hockey. Media and fans are all over Luongo and trade rumors abound. Gillis denies rumors but confirms speculation about inquiries from several teams.

9. Our third line provides the boost the team needed to off-set the lack of production from the Sedins. Malhotra shows signs of having lost something to his injury in the faceoff circle but still is in the top 10 centers in the league in that department.

10. With a floundering PP and the majority of our losses being the result of "sticking to our gameplan" with no adjustments while opposing teams do their homework and give us nothing Gillis gives Vigneault the axe and a new coach takes the reigns.

11. The room feels the shake up and the New Year shows a new team.

12. Luongo plays like a top 20-goalie for January and then has people talking Vezina again from February on out.

13. Higgins returns to his Montreal form and the Sedins up the ante with some latter-half season performances that have Flames fans crying.

14. Canucks win another division title. And finish 2nd in the West, behind LA, with the only other NW team in the top 8 being Minnesota who finish 7th and are knocked out by us in the opening round of the playoffs.

15. We sweep Columbus in the 2nd round and take the King's in 7. Kesler, Luongo, Burrows, and Bieksa all being talked about for the Conn Smythe.

16. Luongo finally gets his ring, Vancouver gets their banner and their parade, 41 years of sadness come to a close.

17. Kesler wins his second Selke and the Messier leadership award. Luongo gets his Vezina, Burrows owns the Conn Smythe (5 game winners including 2 game 7's), Gillis gets another GM of the Year award.

18. Following massive success and wanting to compete again next year, Gillis looks at the salary cap and shakes the hockey world by dealing away Luongo, and the rights to Mason Raymond to New Jersey for the rights to Zach Parise (with whom Jersey has been unable to come to terms long term). The media frenzy is sick. The Devil's are thrilled to be replacing the retiring Brodeur with Luongo while questions about Vancouver's crease are rampant. Gillis points to Schneiders 20-4-4 record, 2 SO's, and his < 2.50 GAA and .910 SV%.

19. Gillis inks Parise (who is coming off a 42 goal season) to 5 years in a seriously front-loaded $6M cap hit contract. Edler is re-upped to the same deal as Bieksa and Tanev and Hodgson are given their first 1-way contracts at $1.2M each for 2 years. Sturm signs on for another $2M and Rome is released to UFAgency.

20. Schneider is re-signed for 3 years to a back-loaded contract that counts $2.5M on the cap and Gillis signs Marty Turco for $1M as a back-up to play 30 games and work with Schneider and Eddie Lack who spends half the year with the big club on a 2-way deal and plays 10 games.

[the Dogsalmon]

and one time at band camp...

[Hockey Widow]

Meds 20 predictions.

In chronological order.....

Well done and thought out!

[BCReefer]

AV is AV and does CH and KB4 in the butt all the while giving "plumbers" more icetime and more chances.

Canucks make the playoffs.

Luongo does well in the regualr season but gets a tan from the red light behind him in the playoffs.

AV keeps Luongo in net for 7 goals because Luongo wanted to stay in and he is a fierce competitor.

Canucks go out in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th round and blame it on injuries.

CalPuke - has a new topic started everyday about some person on the Canucks or the city.

Crosby wins the scoring title.

Washington gets to the finals.

Boston finally gets a penalty called against them in the playoffs.

Philly struggles with the "new" but makes the playoffs.

[dhabums]

Hey - it was at least half serious!

Does anyone else have the cojones to put a few predictions out there?

S_C

I predict the opposite of what you said. Yes, that's right, the EXACT opposite.

[dhabums]

Meds 20 predictions.

In chronological order.....

1. Luongo starts out like a man possessed and silences all critics by the end of November with Vezina talk already brewing by Thanksgiving.

A strong October? Gutsy.


Quick question, is there a Stanley Cup riot after we win? Or is it called a "car burning, window smashing extravaganza"?

[damonberryman]

Predictions are tough. So many elements have to come together at the right time. here goes.

1. COHO comes into camp healthy and makes the team. Shroeder is close and will come up in the winter.

2. The Flames start out stron but are done by Dec. This is about the same time Canucks start to click

3. Oil score a ton of goals but lead NHL in goals given up.

4. kings will be a force all year

5. Huge trade before the deadline. the Canucks have enough talent to sit and wait while watching the market. They get someone like Morrow from Dallas

6. Philly wins the East but Pitts burgh takes the spot for the Cup.

7. Van goes to SCF and wins in 6. Lou will not be our starting goalie.

[LotusBlossom]

Predictions are tough. So many elements have to come together at the right time. here goes.

1. COHO comes into camp healthy and makes the team. Shroeder is close and will come up in the winter.

2. The Flames start out stron but are done by Dec. This is about the same time Canucks start to click

3. Oil score a ton of goals but lead NHL in goals given up.

4. kings will be a force all year

5. Huge trade before the deadline. the Canucks have enough talent to sit and wait while watching the market. They get someone like Morrow from Dallas

6. Philly wins the East but Pitts burgh takes the spot for the Cup.

7. Van goes to SCF and wins in 6. Lou will not be our starting goalie.

Bold, I like it!

If Lu isn't our goalie, are you saying Schneids will step up?

As for point #4, I was thinking they were going to be that this past season, but due to injuries and lack of direction it seemed, they weren't. I see them having a very good year this year as well.

[Southern_Canuck]

2) Pleasant surprise #1 will be Ballard having a very solid season, healthy, prepared and given enough time to show he can be a top 4 guy

Ballard will be solid and garner 40 points this year.

* Ballard will be AV's undoing, and he'll get fired and replaced by MacTavish

II. Ballard has a strong year, finishes with 25-30 points, and becomes a fan favourite.

4. Ballard is kept on as #5, but is given more opportunity when the inevitable injuries happen and shows his true worth.

2. Ballard makes good use of his extra minutes and sends a gift basket of mini-muffins to the greedy kraut in Buffalo.

I predict the opposite of what you said. Yes, that's right, the EXACT opposite.

I wasn't surprised to see the positive prediction for Ballard from dhabums, also known as Ballard's only Norris Vote, but to see the entire board predict his success has me puzzled...

Did everyone see something in Ballard's performance last season that was a predictor of success in 2011-12... or is it just wishful thinking?

S_C

[ODB]

I wasn't surprised to see the positive prediction for Ballard from dhabums, also known as Ballard's only Norris Vote, but to see the entire board predict his success has me puzzled...

Did everyone see something in Ballard's performance last season that was a predictor of success in 2011-12... or is it just wishful thinking?

S_C

You're simply obsessed with Ballard! If I didn't already know you gave your heart to Linden I'd start to wonder just how much you actually love Ballard?

[porp]

I think Ballard bought in, worked his ass off during the summer, and makes an even bigger improvement than Alberts did over the previous summer.

I stand by that. He's going to be at least this coming season's AnAl (Andrew Alberts) in terms of progress.

Ballard isn't a bad defenceman, but he's been the whipping boy this past season. Every mistake he makes, the punishment is nuclear (or at least, air-fuel bomb). Yes, he's had injury/recovery woes, his conditioning is suspect (compared to the rest of the team), and some of his mistakes come from plays that aren't in AV's preferred playbook.

I think Ballard is a gamer, and mature enough to understand that in order to get ice time (at least in order to get enough attention to get traded to a team that will appreciate him) he's going to have to buy into the program.

Can't wait until training camp!

(On a tangent; imho Mike Weaver was unfairly over-maligned as being a small dman during his stint with the 'nucks. He was very effective against high-skill but smaller forwards and was as effective as he was effectively matched against. Ballard's not a monster [hell, Hamhuis has the height to make him not a midget, but he's pretty shrimpy] but he's a speedy little skilled dman who could be very effective when matched against the right opposition lines especially given his "special move" hipcheck to keep forecheckers' heads up [as opposed to Hamhuis who ended his season delivering one - yeah, cheap, it was a fluke, but watching that hit was really demoralizing].)

[Boston Canucker]

I wasn't surprised to see the positive prediction for Ballard from dhabums, also known as Ballard's only Norris Vote, but to see the entire board predict his success has me puzzled...

Did everyone see something in Ballard's performance last season that was a predictor of success in 2011-12... or is it just wishful thinking?

S_C

I think the Ballard prediction is one of the easiest actually. With Ehroff gone Ballard is simply bound to get more ice time. The hip injury clearly hurt his start of the season. He had some rough games, but he also had games where he can show that he can be a 3/4 D-man. A fresh start, injury free, no Ehroff chewing up minutes, and I think that leads to Ballard getting back in the rotation regularly, getting his and the coaches' confidence back, and then away we go. He won't be a top pairing stud, but I'd be surprised if he wasn't noticeably better.