An Honest Discussion of the Canucks

An Honest Discussion of the Canucks

Welcome back. All right, as promised, I want to talk about the Vancouver Conucks today. Now, what’s interesting is this. Before the season started, I don’t think there were many people picking Vancouver to make the playoffs. And if they were, it was as a wild card. Like, well, they might be in the running for a wild card. Maybe they get the wild card. Uh we’ve then seen some pretty hefty injuries foisted upon the Vancouver Conucks. Uh and by extension, the fans watching them. Uh and it it it has definitely made things more difficult. Now, it’s not dire. It’s not an 8 n and one record is not is not terrible, but the underlying numbers are not fantastic. And the reality is that if the Canucks get everything together and they get their confidence and everything, maybe they make a playoff run as in they make it into the playoffs and maybe they could score an upset in the first round. But I think realistically it would be crazy to expect more than that. Now, I wanted to talk a bit about the contracts a bit and I wanted to just point this out a little bit. So, Patterson’s contract gets talked about a lot. Yes, it’s 11.6 million a year. It’s until 2032. It has a no movement clause, so you can’t trade him unless he says okay. Also, it is very heavy with bonus money, so you can’t buy it out either. So, the reality is Vancouver has Patterson for as long as they’re going to have him. and and unless he comes out and requests or demands a trade, unless we see some kind of a change in how the Canucks are approaching things, nothing’s going to happen there. So that’s why when people are all, you know, yeah, I’m learning about him, I he’s a Canuck. He’s going to be staying in Vancouver. So I am a firm believer in in supporting the players as long as possible and just being realistic. Uh Besser has a $7.25 million cap hit till 2032. He also has no movement clause. Um, I’ve seen some complaints that the Canucks didn’t think long term and should have let Besser go, but you’ve got to replace Besser with somebody. And one issue the Vancouver Conucks have, and I’m just going to say it here, is there are likely a lot of players in the NHL who look at the Vancouver Conucks. They know what went on last year with Vancouver and they’re probably gonna think, I I don’t know that I want to go to that team with everything that happened last year and previous seasons. And Vancouver’s not been a a team that players seem to be really really wanting to go to since I’d say the early 2010s. uh during the height of that that Sadines era with Kesler being the second line center back then they didn’t have too much trouble attracting players although keeping players at times has always been an issue with the Vancouver Conucks dating back for as long as I’ve watched him now De Brusk has a $5.5 million cap hit till 2031. He also has a no movement clause. Uh lots of no movement clauses on this team amongst their long-term contracts. Evander Kane is in the final year of a contract that pays him uh well the cap hits 5.125 million. I do still wonder I’m still bewildered about bringing in Kane. And I say this because if they hadn’t traded for Kane, they still wouldn’t be above the playoff line. They probably have a record similar to 8 n and one. Maybe they’d be 710 and one. But I I don’t see that Kane has necessarily brought up his trade value cuz I did hear that at the time of well, you know, he can play well. He brings up his trade value and the Conucks can move him at the deadline. Okay. But I I still I’m still bewildered by all they did there really was help out the Oilers, which I mean that’s nice, you know, geographically kind of a neighbor of Vancouver as long as you don’t know how far apart they actually are. But I I don’t know that I would have done that favor for the Oilers if I was Patrick Alvine. I don’t I don’t know that I would have I think it would have been like you want to throw in a first round pick in 2026. Maybe. But uh at any rate, um then you got Garland. He has a $6 million cap hit that kicks in next year and that’s through 2032 that has a no movement clause attached to it as well. And so he does not have a no movement clause currently, but he does have one that kicks in in July. and I don’t see him getting moved. Anyways, uh then you got Heedle, $4.437 million cap hit till 2027. In the interview Jim Rutherford did today, and that’s the reason why I’m doing this video, um Rutherford admits they knew that Heedle had this large injury risk, but they weren’t being offered any other centers back for JT Miller. JT Miller at the time they were trading him, the trade value just wasn’t necessarily there. And it sounds like he may very well have limited the options for the Conucks to who they could trade him to. And so Heedle ends up being the one that comes back to Vancouver. And yes, he’s hurt. It is a concussion. And there’s no timeline for return as of yet for Heedle. Of course, they’re also without Bluger. They’re without a number of players right now. Uh Forbert’s out as well on the blue line. It’s just it they’re a pretty beat up team and it’s just reality. It always happens in Vancouver. I was kind of surprised to read that Jim Rutherford was surprised at the depth of the injuries. Welcome to Vancouver. I again remember all the way back to the 80s when you’d have a bunch of players out at the same time. Cool. Cool. Uh it’s just that’s how things work. So the Canucks do have this lack of depth down the middle, but nobody’s offering a second line center. And I keep hearing from local media and and you know there are certainly some in the fan base. I think most fans are realistic. I think most Canuck fans are realistic now. Maybe more so than than media and and the team in that we understand this team at best is probably midling. Probably middle of the pack. Maybe they make the playoffs. But are they a danger to win a Stanley Cup? No. No, they’re not really a threat to win a Stanley Cup. Um the idea that well anything can happen when you get in there. Rutherford did say that in the interview, but I mean I if the Minnesota Wild said that tomorrow and said, “Hey, we want to make the playoffs. Anything could happen when we get there.” What would the reaction be from Wild fans? Yeah. And of course, if a Buffalo uh management member said, “Uh, our plan is to make the playoffs.” That would probably bring laughter. And that’s from Sabres fans, not from the rest of us. Uh Quinn Hughes. So, a lot of talk about Quinn Hughes. He has a $7.85 million cap hit. Yes, it’s over in 2027. I would say he’s probably going to go. Um Rutherford was asked about Hughes looking kind of dower this season. I I think it’s just the Conucks are just not an exciting and fun team to play for right now or play with. I can’t imagine it’s a ton of fun for the players to play it. It’s not a ton of fun to watch sometimes either. Um and the last time I heard a player being considered grumpy, that was Bo Horvat. And now Kuck Kuck fans are saying we shouldn’t have traded Horvad. I said that when he got traded and I was told I was wrong because he looks grumpy. He doesn’t look happy. If I had been fired for every from every job I had cuz I didn’t look happy. Yeah, it I I would have been out pretty quick. Uh heronic $7.25 million cap hit till 2032. He has a no movement clause and was part of what they got when they decided to make the moves they did uh involving Horvette and Miller. Uh Herronic is a player that’s on the Conucks because they were willing to move their forward depth to improve their defensive depth. Now we talk a lot about the defensive depth that’s there, but the forward depth is definitely lacking. Uh there’s a no movement clause attached to Heronic’s contract. Now where it gets interesting to me is this. Heronic at 7.25 25 million is absolutely a reasonable cap hit with that contract being until 2032. If the Vancouver Canucks got to a point where they said, you know what, we have to make a big change here. I think if they put Heronic on the block at some point, there’d be a lot of attention and I think there’d be a lot of teams calling because of that certainty on that contract. The no movement clause makes it more frustrating. Absolutely does. Marcus Person, $5.5 million cap hit till 2031. He also has a no movement clause. And I like Marcus Patterson. I don’t know if I like him at 5.5 million, but with the way that all the salaries are going up, I’m sure that a few years from now we’ll be saying, “Hey, it’s only 5 a half million for this guy.” So, with the the the amount of Pattersons this team has, um I don’t feel like Elias Person’s taken that next step this year either. Um I actually think I was more impressed with them last season than this season, but maybe expectations are a little bit different. Uh, but those are the three contracts I wanted to look at on the blue line and just point out how many no movement clauses there are. And then there’s Demco. So, there’s been a lot of negativity about the Canucks keeping Demco, but he had one more year left on his contract this year. I don’t think if they’d made him available for trade, I don’t think they would have got anywhere near back what fans would have wanted. And the idea of keeping Sheilovs, it sounds great, but uh, no movement clause for Demco. He has an $8.5 million cap hit now until 2029. that cap hit kicks in next year and then you got lankin at 4.5 million till 2030. There’s a no movement clause attached there as well. I do think Lankanin the the amount of time and everything. I think that contract is one that uh I will be interested to see if that’s one that they could trade if they made them available at some point. But keep in mind there’s that no movement clause. No movement clauses keep players where they are. So they’ve only made the playoffs twice since 2015. Now, of course, this channel came into existence in 2016, so maybe it’s me. They made the playoffs in 2020. They made the playoffs in 2024. Both times they made the playoffs, they got out of the first round, and of course, in 2024, they won the division. Now, winning the division in 2024, I think, has has left Canucks management may be feeling like this team is is a little better than what it is. Because to me it feels like there’s an expectation of well if we’re healthy then we’ll we’ll be at least as good as some of these other teams and we could get in the playoffs and who knows who knows I do. Um now Rutherford’s contracts through 2026 2027 for anybody who’s curious. Patrick Alvine signed a three-year extension in January of 2024 but um I do wonder how much longer the Canucks can be underwater before there’s a change that’s made. And clearly we’re not going to see a rebuild. They’re very clear they’re not going to do a rebuild. So I’m not sure how this looks because you’ve got a lot of your your bigname players are signed with no movement clauses. And so trades are very difficult. I’m not saying they’re impossible. I have talked about trading players with no movement clauses and said you can trade them, but it is more difficult when you’re trading somebody with no movement clause. Um now right now what are the needs for the team? Two two top six forwards. Is it three? Is it two? And then on top of that, do they need two in the bottom six as well? And I say this because there are definitely some players who are trying their hearts out for the Canucks right now, but I do think upgrades are needed. It’s not a lack of effort. I’m not going to I’m not going to talk about the Conucks in terms of effort. I think the effort’s been there, just that top end talent hasn’t been. And where I think it gets frustrating for Kuck fans right now and where some of the anger is is we’re now seeing Chicago, San Jose, and Anaheim coming out of their rebuilds, which took a long time. And I think when people talk about doing a full tear down rebuild, I don’t think they understand that can take six or seven years. And then there’s no guarantee that it works. Like there’s there’s definitely an upside if it does, but when it doesn’t, how long has Buffalo been out of the playoffs? and they’ve done the full tear down multiple times. Uh Utah before they were Utah and they were in Arizona did the full tearown multiple times and now we’re starting to see that upward uh mobility in the standings for the Utah Mammoth uh that we didn’t see for Arizona. Now they’re still searching for that second line center. And when I hear some of the names being thrown out there like Zaka, I’ve heard that multiple. Why in the world is Boston trading Zaka? They’re they’re in the playoffs right at least right now, right? Boston’s had a seven-game winning streak. They look pretty good. So, why would they trade? Why would they? And then what would the Conucks have to give up to get Zaka? Probably a center because Boston like Zaka quite a bit. But when I hear these names, it just goes in one ear and out the other. And I don’t even put it on the board for a news video because what in the world are the Conucks going to move? Because in this interview with Sportsnet, he being Jim Rutherford has basically said, uh, they’re not trading Coots. They’re not trading Vander, they’re not trading a first round draft pick this year. Thank God they’re not moving a first round draft pick this year. When I see when I see Rutherford saying, “This is a pretty good draft.” Yeah. Yeah. Keep that first round draft pick. Uh, and don’t trade Coots. Don’t trade Valander. And and then this this comment, this is the the quote that seems to get a lot of attention. And he says, “A rebuild is not something we’re going to look at doing. They’re not even going to look at it. They’re not they’re not even going to consider it.” Uh like I said, we’re in transition. So they’re outside the playoffs. They’re just in transition. No need to sell anybody off. And he said, “We’re not trading all these players for draft picks that may or may not end up playing someday.” I totally understand that with third or fourth round draft picks, but if you’re able to get a first for any of these players, I would sure as heck hope that that first round draft pick would play for the Vancouver Conucks at some point. Um, it is it is an interesting position you find yourself in as a team outside the playoffs if you don’t feel like making those moves. And then what makes me really nervous is when I see him saying that, you know, they might look at somebody in their mid20s and picking up players in the mid- 20s. That’s Jim Benning talk. That’s the exact same thing Jim Benning did. Jim Benning would move young players who were 20, 21 to get back a player who was 24 or 25 and then say, “This player’s further along in their development. We feel like this guy can help us right now.” And then we would watch as those younger players who got traded for the guys in their mid20s would end up being better players. And that did happen at times, not every time, but there were occasions where that happened. Um, I still remember the anger in the Canucks fandom about trading Gustaf Forsling. Good thing he didn’t win back-to-back Stanley Cups. But, uh, Rutherford says the best case scenario is that the team gets healthy. Uh, they find help at center and they push them push themselves above that playoff line and get in the playoffs. And then you never know what’s going to happen. I do. uh you win in the first round, you get our hopes up, and you get destroyed in the second round. Probably in a seven game series, though, so that it looks really close maybe against a team like the Oilers. And then after losing game seven, uh the Conucks and the Canuck fans can say, “Well, we’re close. We took that series to seven games, so clearly we’re almost as good as the Oilers.” And then rinse and repeat. So, but we’ll see, right? Um, Abbottzford has been decimated in the offseason and their record currently 39 and two. Uh, they’re 17 and2 in their last 10 games. I was there for the one. So, hey, good luck charm. But the reality is, and the reason I point out Abbottzford is because there’s just not depth in this organization now. There when when injuries are taken over like this, uh, it’s it’s the the organization can’t sustain itself. And one thing I talked about in the video where I where I was talking about eight trends in the NHL and two predictions. One of my predictions was that the teams that don’t have the depth when we get to these injuries because of the condensed schedule, those teams are going to have have struggles. Those teams are probably going to fall off because they don’t have that depth in the organization. Uh the Canucks penalty kill at 66.7%. Uh Rutherford says that that is in part because they got Forward out and they got Bluger out and they’re two of their best penalty killers, but that penalty kill is tied with the Ottawa Senators for the worst in the National Hockey League. Uh their goal differential is a -12. It’s worth looking at because teams that score more than they allow usually end up in the playoffs and teams that allow more than they score usually end up outside the playoffs. And with Vancouver, there have been nights where they’ve got lit up and now this come this road trip which starts today. They’re at Carolina tonight. Then they’re at Tampa on Sunday and they’re at Florida on Monday. It’s a three-game road trip. But man, and then they come home next Thursday and play against Dallas. So, uh, the next four games are going to really tell us where this team is at. And I think most Canuck fans know. I think most connect fans understand that this team, if you don’t want to do a rebuild, fine. But at the very least, say, “Look, this is not the year.” And to me, I love Quinn Hughes. He’s the most talented player this team’s ever had. But I would rather not see the Conucks giving up on the future or anything like that just because they’re so absolutely horrified and mortified at the idea of Hughes leaving. Obviously, Hughes leaving would be disastrous for their blue line and it wouldn’t be great for the organization and it would take years for for the for the organization to recover. But when we look at players who’ve left teams, high-profile players, sure some of those teams have fallen off. Columbus comes to mind when they lost Paneran and Babski, but there’s other examples as well of teams finding a way to adapt and to get better. And I I think instead of crying about the possibility of Quinn leaving, you you try to do your best to keep him keep him here. But I would certainly hope that the team isn’t trying to prop themselves up and stay in this hunt just for that idea that Quinn Hughes would stick around if if they make the playoffs because I think Quinn wants to win a Stanley Cup. Um for all the discussion about well he’s going to go to New Jersey and play with his brothers maybe. But for New Jersey, who are at the top right now in the metro, New Jersey certainly had their ups and downs too. And there is no guarantee of New Jersey winning a Stanley Cup over the next four to five years either. There’s no guarantee of anybody winning a Stanley Cup over the next four to five years. You just basically hope. And for Hughes, uh, in 2027, he is going to be able to sign seven-year contract. that may very well be the only time that he’s able it may very well only be the only time he’s able to sign a seven-year contract. Um I doubtful after that seven years he’d sign another seven years somewhere else. And so I don’t I don’t blame players for trying to maximize what they can get out of their contract. I don’t blame them for wanting to go to market and see what everybody’s offering cuz it’s the only time you can do it. So, while I think it’s great when players sign ahead of time and they decide to stay, I totally understand why play why players want to go to market and see what’s out there. And Hughes is going to make a lot of money. He is going to make a lot of money. And I don’t think he owes the Canucks anything. I don’t think he owes it to them to take a hometown discount. I think that when his contract is up, I I think it makes sense for him to ask for not necessarily the max, but his value and and look at the other defenseman around the NHL, what they’re being paid, and say, “I think this is what I’m worth.” And I I think if he does that, then whatever GM he’s working for at the time, whether it’s Vancouver or somewhere else, says, “Yeah, we agree. Cool.” And you get it done. You sign it on the on the dotted line and and you move on. But um for all the talk about Hughes and all the the and and to me it it is kind of paranoia at this point, especially since it’s talked about every single bloody game, every bloody game it is Peterson sucks. Hughes is going to leave. Demco’s every sing Demco’s hurt. He’s never coming back. He’s never going to be the same. Uh it’s just it’s the same every single game. So I wanted to put this on the board. I wanted to discuss this with all you fine people on the internet and then I don’t have to put it on news boards and everything cuz it’s done. My expectation is this team will continue to spin its wheels. And whether it is because Franchesco Aqualini doesn’t believe in rebuilds, whether it’s Rutherford not believing in rebuilds, whether it is this delusion that things are built well enough that they only need a piece or two and they could be a contender. Whatever it is, this is a team that feels kind of rudderless and and kind of like there there isn’t a plan. I I think for me personally, even if you don’t want to rebuild, just it doesn’t feel like there’s a plan. It feels like it’s all reactions. It’s reactions to injuries. It’s reaction to this guy asking for a trade. It’s reaction to this guy’s contract being up and and not not enough planning ahead and and having a vision for what this team’s going to look like in five years. what what the plan is going to be for, okay, we’re not a contender now. We’re in transition, however you want to look at it. When can this team realistically be considered a Stanley Cup contender? And a lot of fans look at this team and realize there aren’t those top-notch prospects coming up. We don’t have a Celibbrini. We don’t have a Bard. We don’t have a Leo Carlson. This team desperately needs top-notch talent that you can usually only find in the draft. But because of the way they’re running things, they’re always going to be drafting 14th or 15th rather than 3rd, fourth, or fifth. At least with the way things are trending right now, it certainly looks like uh they could end up drafting, you know, 10th or 11th maybe in that kind of range. Um he did mention, you know, if we could win a draft lottery, I got to chuckle. Canucks don’t win draft lotteryies ever, but uh if they did win a draft lottery, that would go a long way certainly. and Gavin McKenna would look fantastic in a Canuck jersey. I would do back flips. If I ever see the Canucks win a Stanley Cup, you guys get a dance. And if the Conucks ever win a draft lottery, you’re definitely going to get a dance for that as well, especially if it was this coming year with with with McKenna being the number one pick. So, and then of course there’d be rumors right away if Conucks are considering moving the pick in order to get Crosby from the Penguins. and then I’d watch my head explode. Uh I would I would actually physically leave my body and my spirit would watch as my body just imploded from that news. But at any rate, uh there you go. Thank you guys so much for watching for all your support. Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below. And I I just wanted to to clear the air on all this. I’m I’m not like super duper negative on the Canucks. I’m just very It’s apathy at this point. I don’t expect anything. I love the players. I love the players. I I I do and I respect their their work ethic and and the grind. I just don’t see them having as much top- end talent as other teams in the West that are going to make the playoffs and or are likely to make the playoffs. So, I I have realistic expectations here. This team makes the playoffs, it’s going to be because they start playing fantastic defense and every game’s 2 to1 or 3 to2. They get a bunch into overtime and Demco comes back from injury and plays really well or Lanken and plays like he did in the first half of last season. But even then, I still don’t see them going that far in the playoffs. Would love to be wrong. Love to be wrong because I have said for many years now, um, I don’t think this team wins a Stanley Cup in my lifetime. I don’t think it happens. And, uh, this channel’s been around now for nine years. Still hasn’t happened. So, I I feel pretty confident the next nine years, probably cut free. But, let me know your thoughts. Hit like and subscribe in the event you may not have done so already. Thank you guys so much for all your support and I will continue to basically ignore all the panic about Hughes, the panic about Patterson’s numbers and the overreactions every time Demco has little injuries here and there. I don’t think the injuries dealing with right now is major. I think he’s out a couple weeks and I just it’s reality. It’s how it’s going to be with Demco. And yeah, if they’ve kept Sheilovs, maybe things are a little bit better, but where do you trade Demco? What do you get? Like it’s just anyways it’s the life of a Kuck fan. I kind of expect this. But let me know your thoughts. Do hit like and subscribe if you’ve not done so already. Uh thank you guys so much for your time, for your attention, and for watching. I will talk to you again soon.

Hey all and I wanted to talk about Vancouver today.

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