GDT - Canucks vs Blues 7 PM PST SNet

[dbr]

It'll be interesting to see how the coaching staff handle Gragnani and Tanev.

Together they might be the softest pairing in the league and you know AV isn't going to like that, but the alternative is putting one into the top four or sitting one of them - and it seems like the best thing for both players at this point is to play.

[donlever]

...well if Gragnani has to play 18 games or whatever it is to stay RFA that would seem to indicate he is playing and, as you infer, MAG and Chris together makes AV shudder, especially considering the way the league is going with it's back to the dead puck impressions of late, so that would lead one to think Chris is going back to Chicago.

But "the Gillis" said not to that already?

Perhaps Salo gets a half dozen games off.

[Aaronp18]

MAG is definitely a work in progress but he is 5 years younger than Ehrhoff.

I think people are just intimating they see some of what he brought in MAG. An Ehrhoff lite if you will. At least that's what I was trying to portray.

Kid needs refining for sure but he's quick (but yes an ugly skater), and is very offensively minded.

TBH I have no idea what we are going to do when all our defensemen are healthy!

Bieksa-Hammer
Salo-Edler
Tanev-Ballard??
MAG
Rome
Alberts

At least we have depth.

[coco_canuck]

Gragnani's offensive skills and instincts were evident last night, but so was his questionable defensive play.

Naturally, d-men take longer to get properly acclimatized to new teams and systems, so we should be patient with Grags to see how he fits.

Based on a one game sample, his offensive skills fit in very well with the Canucks style of play and he should be fairly productive offensively if he plays with confidence and makes offensive plays. He made some very good offensive plays last night and displayed good hands and vision in the offensive zone.

But in his own end, Grags is very much of an adventure. We can chalk some of it up to a lack of familiarity with the new system and teammates, and that may explain why he didn't maintain his position on a few occasions and either moved to help out the defender on the right side or drifted off his line. He doesn't have much of a physical game, so being hammered in his own end and being outmuscled by strong forwards is going to be a concern, but areas that can be improve with quicker decision making and safer plays in his own end.

This is probably a system thing too, but on a few occasions he circled back or passed back to the defender when he either had an outlet lane available or when the safe and best play would have been to just chip it off the boards and into centre. Van's system is all about pushing the puck forward, and while re-setting and passing back is allowed, it has to make sense and be at the right time, and that's something Grags will have to figure out.

[donlever]

Marc Andre reminded me of a couple of guys I play pick up with.

D men who somehow are always in and around the opposition net or making drop passes to guys who have little time or space.

He skates awkardly but it is aesthetics only as it appears he can get where he needs to go quickly enough.

Obviously his hands and eyes are good and he made a couple of plays that almost got there and would have been sweet had they worked out.

Again, we will see.

One need look no further than #4 to know that some of the stuff we saw last night won't sit well with AV were it to continue along similar lines consistently.

Clearly game 1 on a new team from a guy that has not played much in 5 weeks results in making rash judgements an excercise in folly.

[KeyserSoze]

Clearly game 1 on a new team from a guy that has not played much in 5 weeks results in making rash judgements an excercise in folly.

So should I or shouldn't I get MARC-ANDRE tatted down one arm and GRAGNANI down the other?

[donlever]

So should I or shouldn't I get MARC-ANDRE tatted down one arm and GRAGNANI down the other?

I'd stick with Hawks down one side and Worth down the other.

Given the choice of course.

[KeyserSoze]

Hawks = 鹰派
Worth = 价值

I'm not Chinese, but this is gonna look sick!

[Nuckertuzzi]

Did Bertuzzi actually throw hits?

Ask Barrett Jackman ??

Ask Chris Chelios
Ask Bryce Salvador
Ask Dion Phaneuf

[Benjo]

Kudos to Kassian for not losing his mind on that Perron slewfoot. He has clearly been told not to take away PP opportunities from the team because he certainly had reason to go after Perron for that play.

I think reading Sabres boards has helped me lower my expectations of MAG to the point where I was pleasantly surprised by what I saw last night.

I think teams are learning how to handle the Canucks PP. During breakouts our D bank on the forechecker not over committing and getting caught deep, instead they aren't curling back they are swooping in and knocking the puck off our last man back. It's time to add a new wrinkle to keep the PK fore-checker honest.

[coco_canuck]

Clearly game 1 on a new team from a guy that has not played much in 5 weeks results in making rash judgements an excercise in folly.

Yeah, suffice it to say he's a still developing high-risk/high-reward offensive d-man who needs to work on his defensive game.

I like the potential, but it's too early and naive to make any sort of confident projection as to the type of player he will be for the Canucks. Like you said, he will have to clean a few things up in order to get consistent ice with AV.

[coco_canuck]

I think reading Sabres boards has helped me lower my expectations of MAG to the point where I was pleasantly surprised by what I saw last night.

If you remember a couple of years ago, not many Canucks fans would be crying if Bieksa was traded for 50 cents on the dollar.

Not only do d-men take longer to develop, but they're also easily criticized based on a few mistakes or tendencies in a given game.

KB was rightly criticized here for his brain farts and lackadaisical play at times, all the while he brought toughness, good puck movement and a very good ability to get the puck out of the zone quickly and winning battles along the board.

Not to say Bieksa was perfect, but it was clear he was a better and more valuable player than many fans thought he was.

Now with Gragnani, there are obvious flaws in his game as we saw last night, but he hasn't even played a full NHL season yet and if you've watched the Sabres play for the first 2/3rds of the year, you'd see how horrible they were defensively. Not a great situation for a high-risk player who needs a bit more freedom to be effective.

MAG may turn out to be nothing in the end, but I wouldn't take the criticism all too seriously, at least not as serious as some on those boards suggest...because to some, they'd happily see him go for a bag of pucks, just like some did with Bieksa.

[clem]

Lappy's intensity & enthusiasm are infectious. You could see him grinning & talking on the bench with Kassian early in the game. As the game progressed, they went on a tear.

It reminded me of the Detroit game, where Lappy was jumping up & down in the bench after the tieing goal.

A good influence for the new guy.

[donlever]

KB was rightly criticized here for his brain farts and lackadaisical play at times, all the while he brought toughness, good puck movement and a very good ability to get the puck out of the zone quickly and winning battles along the board.

Not to say Bieksa was perfect, but it was clear he was a better and more valuable player than many fans thought he was.

...and clearly one other thing which we never did talk about in all the Bieksa debates.

This guy is good, and by good I mean FUCKING GREAT, in the room.

An integral piece of the core puzzle of this team.

A mover and a shaker.

A keep the boys loose type of guy.

A dude The Gillis wants around.

#thingsfansdon'tthinkofsometimes.

[donlever]

I think teams are learning how to handle the Canucks PP. During breakouts our D bank on the forechecker not over committing and getting caught deep, instead they aren't curling back they are swooping in and knocking the puck off our last man back. It's time to add a new wrinkle to keep the PK fore-checker honest.

Yeah we need to shake this shit up (although the lack of opportunities in the slowly but surely grinding to a halt NHL has something to do with it) to put a little spark in our git along.

Kassian in front of the net with the Sedins, shoot the puck.

Kesler on unit 2.

For a game or three.