Canucks News N Notes 24-25

[Cousin Strawberry]

If necessary, trade h next summer to jersey where they can sign him to a gazillion x 8.

But, I believe Hughes will stay here. I feel it in my sub-cockles.

Next year the return will be significantly reduced.

When I look over the roster I see nothing to get excited about. There needs to be a replenishment. The pipeline is drained down and spitting out the chunks at the bottom of the farm tank

[Blob Mckenzie]

If necessary, trade h next summer to jersey where they can sign him to a gazillion x 8.

But, I believe Hughes will stay here. I feel it in my sub-cockles.

Next year the return will be significantly reduced.

When I look over the roster I see nothing to get excited about. There needs to be a replenishment. The pipeline is drained down and spitting out the chunks at the bottom of the farm tank

You make Brown Cherry and Flake Price seem like upbeat, happy people.

[Chef Boi RD]

If necessary, trade h next summer to jersey where they can sign him to a gazillion x 8.

But, I believe Hughes will stay here. I feel it in my sub-cockles.

I get those feelings when I buy lotto tickets with the rest of the 649 zombies, but it never seems to pan out. I am not hopeful.

[Megaterio Llamas]

If necessary, trade h next summer to jersey where they can sign him to a gazillion x 8.

But, I believe Hughes will stay here. I feel it in my sub-cockles.

I get those feelings when I buy lotto tickets with the rest of the 649 zombies, but it never seems to pan out. I am not hopeful.

The good thing is that we all seem to stick around no matter what feeling we get.

[Cousin Strawberry]

If necessary, trade h next summer to jersey where they can sign him to a gazillion x 8.

But, I believe Hughes will stay here. I feel it in my sub-cockles.

Next year the return will be significantly reduced.

When I look over the roster I see nothing to get excited about. There needs to be a replenishment. The pipeline is drained down and spitting out the chunks at the bottom of the farm tank

You make Brown Cherry and Flake Price seem like upbeat, happy people.

Ok let's get real here...

On the big club we have goaltending, an excellent defense and a very average collection of small and soft forwards.

In the pipe we have an A level D prospect, a solid B forward prospect and nothing whatsoever more other than longshots to make it.

We need a rebuild. There are solid defenders to start building around. Get er dun

[Meds]

If necessary, trade h next summer to jersey where they can sign him to a gazillion x 8.

But, I believe Hughes will stay here. I feel it in my sub-cockles.

Next year the return will be significantly reduced.

When I look over the roster I see nothing to get excited about. There needs to be a replenishment. The pipeline is drained down and spitting out the chunks at the bottom of the farm tank

You make Brown Cherry and Flake Price seem like upbeat, happy people.

Ok let's get real here...

On the big club we have goaltending, an excellent defense and a very average collection of small and soft forwards.

In the pipe we have an A level D prospect, a solid B forward prospect and nothing whatsoever more other than longshots to make it.

We need a rebuild. There are solid defenders to start building around. Get er dun

We need half a rebuild......

[Nuckertuzzi]

We need a rebuild. There are solid defenders to start building around. Get er dun

At least there's some semblance of a head start on the rebuild, plus some major trade chips in Hughes, Demko and Garland. So they're not exactly starting from scratch like the Hawks and Sharks. Would also definitely include the two Peteys (not Jr D), Hronek, Chytil, Debrusk, Lankinen, Joshua, O'Connor (basically pretty much anybody older than 24) to the fire sale should we arrive at that eventuality. Can't help myself but keep going back to the missed opportunities at the deadline (arrrggghh!!!!).

Gotta be honest, the thought of what kind of haul we can get in return on an all out burn it to the ground fire sale intrigues me. Other than the agonizing thought of losing Quinn, the alternative plan excites me far less if at all. Milking a few more years of mediocrity only to spur more at best ain't exactly giving me the warm and fuzzies.

[Lancer]

We need a rebuild. There are solid defenders to start building around. Get er dun

We need half a rebuild......

This is all predicated on Quinn indicating he won't re-sign in Vancouver no matter what. Even so, management has until the '26 offseason - or the '26 TDD at latest - to deal him. Rutherford has stated that they consider the '26 TDD as their deadline to sign or trade Hughes, on the assumption that they will use the intervening time to convince Quinn to change his mind.

What if management decides to hit the nuke button (and also supposing that ownership will agree) and ditches Hughes, F. Petey and any forward of note older than 24 to kick off a rebuild this offseason with an eye for tanking for McKenna? Even if they don't get the 1st overall pick in '26, there is some consensus that the top end of that draft is still pretty strong compared with others like '25. In that case, management will be essentially telling the fan base that the last 15 years have been a waste; they brought in the talent, but not the character required to make the team competitive; and it's time to burn it all to the ground and start over. They may be able to market a 'quick turn-around' with a solid (if not spectacular) blueline with no Hughes and solid goaltending (they can put Demko on the shelf or trade block if he wins too much for lottery contention; hell, he may want out in that event after all) and a solid bottom-six. I don't think that buys much.

Forget ownership; I don't think the fan-base could handle a rebuild at this point.

The lesson of all this is don't draft or sign Americans where you don't absolutely have to. Americans have shown that the only reason they would play in Canada is if they're drafted by a Canadian team or the alternative is the AHL or Europe. At least the city has caché with Swedes. Too bad Vancouver seems to always get the wimpy Swedes.

'Twould be nice if Canadian stars started behaving the same way. "Elbows Up" and all...

[Chef Boi RD]

I’m fairly convinced Quinn Hughes is going to Market come July 1st 2027, that is, if they haven’t traded him before then. He’s going to walk right into New Jersey’s loving arms. I imagine New Jersey has been notified of the “possibility” of this “hint, hint, wink, wink”.

Something to keep an eye on is what New Jersey does with their salary cap in the meantime, leading up to the summer of 2027. It will be an indicator without mentioning it. It’s safe to assume that Quinn will be “getting paid” on his new deal, substantially. Will Jersey be making the room to contend for his services? They’d have to as any other team would.

I’d be cutting loose now, and yes I agree, the Americans for the most part, the big shot Americans that is, don’t want their retirement contracts putting them in Canada until they retire. It’s a new breed. Need to start looking at other options, like Canadian’s and sticking with the Swedes.

[Meds]

We need a rebuild. There are solid defenders to start building around. Get er dun

We need half a rebuild......

This is all predicated on Quinn indicating he won't re-sign in Vancouver no matter what.

I was just replying to Cuz's assertion that the defensemen are solid, and he's right. Our blueline is very good right now.....it's the top-6 forwards that need rebuilding.

If Hughes leaves, then torch the entire thing down to the bedrock.

[5thhorseman]

I imagine New Jersey has been notified of the “possibility” of this “hint, hint, wink, wink”.

Yeah, this is what I was saying I think is not in Quinn's character.

[Chef Boi RD]

I imagine New Jersey has been notified of the “possibility” of this “hint, hint, wink, wink”.

Yeah, this is what I was saying I think is not in Quinn's character.

Spoken words without words being spoken was what I was conveying, Jersey is reading the tea leaves, as well as the Hughes family. I’d have no issues with Hughes character if he ends up in Jersey, it’s the business of hockey. That’s the whole point of qualifying for UFA. Giving a veteran player a right to choose where he can play, control his own future, rewarding a long career in the game.

Also, did it ever cross your mind that Quinn maybe doing the Canuck organization a solid by hinting that this is a very real possibility instead of stringing the organization along like Johnny Hockey did with Calgary? Preparing the Canucks, giving them a chance to get some assets in return for him leaving? You want character? That’s character.

[Meds]

I’m fairly convinced Quinn Hughes is going to Market come July 1st 2027, that is, if they haven’t traded him before then. He’s going to walk right into New Jersey’s loving arms. I imagine New Jersey has been notified of the “possibility” of this “hint, hint, wink, wink”.

I dunno, you could be right. I think we're just a paranoid group of fans right now after the last 12 years of shit that seems to have culminated in a vicious tease in 2024.

Hughes doesn't strike me as a guy who is going to bolt just to play with Jack and Luke in New Jersey. Most brothers who have been decent, or better, NHL'ers, have played together towards the end of their careers after chasing their own legacies to one end or another. If Crosby and McDavid are generational talents, Hughes is a skate blade's width away from being one as well. His motivations are more likely winning and building his own HoF legacy. There are reasons that I could see him leaving Vancouver, but the NJ brothers reason is not one of them.

If Hughes leaves I think it will be primarily because he doesn't like the direction that management is taking things. If he was a free agent right now, or even next summer, I think he probably would be gone just on that reason alone. But JR/PA have a bit of wiggle room here to convince him otherwise. I think it will depend upon what the decide to do in regards to Tocchet's replacement and Pettersson.

The other reason I can see is because he's American. The taxes and economics of Canada vs USA can be quite enticing for American players who play north of the border. Let us assume that the going rate for Quinn in 2027 is $15M. If Hughes plays in Vancouver he will be eligible for an 8 year contract which will guarantee him $120M at that rate. He will, under the current tax structure, pay an estimated $7.97M in taxes on a $15M annual salary. The same contact in Florida, Texas, Nevada, or Tennessee, will see him pay $5.5M in taxes. Playing in those places lets him pocket an additional $2.5M per year. So he can actually take home $10M more over 7 years than he could playing 8 years in Vancouver. Obviously there are ways to shelter and invest to avoid paying all of that in taxes, however, when you also factor costs of living and being in your own country on top of potential proximity to family, well now there's serious incentive to leave. So now we are back to reason one.....what does the team look like, and what are the chances that a Canucks team with Hughes will be in the mix to win, and win consistently?

Time will tell.

[Meds]

I imagine New Jersey has been notified of the “possibility” of this “hint, hint, wink, wink”.

Yeah, this is what I was saying I think is not in Quinn's character.

No. It's probably not.

However, the guy spends his summers training with his brothers, the family is close. I can easily see a conversation coming up between them over fireside beers.....

Luke: Fuck bros, wouldn't it be cool if we all got to play together?

Jack: Dude.....we do.

Luke: I mean like if Quinn was with us in New Jersey.

Jack: Oh yeah.

Luke: What do you think Quinn, that would be cool if you signed in Jersey eh?

Quinn (non-committal and casual while drinking his 3rd wobbly): Yeah Luke, that would be fun.

Next thing ya now Luke is chatting it up at training camp within earshot of the coaches and GM of the Devils and lets that slide to some teammates.

[Chef Boi RD]

You’d be very naive to think the Hughes brothers/family and Jersey organization hasn’t considered the possibility, all joking about it aside.