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Read all about the guy that Mike Gillis stole yesterday, Hunter Shinkaruk, HERE.


June 30, 2013, The Buffalo Sabres had just selected Rasmus Ristolainen, then Lou Lamoriello’s phone went off and the chaos on the west coast started.

Thoughts of rage filled the streets on Vancouver as fans took to twitter to express their disappointment with the trade – many citing that the deal wasn’t nearly enough or that there were better offers out there.

Are people right? Time will tell as I’m sure insiders will tell us in the coming weeks what other teams offered for Schneider.

But face the facts people, would you want to trade a franchise goalie to a divisional rival just to pick up a couple of “B” level prospects? I sure wouldn’t.

My guess is Gillis said, “You need to improve the offer.”

MacT said smugly said, “I know I have the best offer you’re going to get.”

Gillis countered with, “True,” knowing full well the only player he really cared about getting was Horvat and thus choose to send Schneider as far away as possible and still get the only player he really cared about getting for Schneider.

But rather than look at what Vancouver lost via the trade, I prefer to look at the player Vancouver gained.

Bo Horvat is not Cory Schneider, but Horvat fills a need that Vancouver has going forward and he will fill that need for at least seven years

He is an excellent two-way centre that scored 49 goals in 88 total games last season. The kid is generally at his best when it matters the most and was the OHL playoff MVP. People have compared him to Bergeron and Couture throughout the course of the season.

HB's very own Todd Cordell wrote this about him:

“Horvat’s an exceptional two-way player with high end leadership qualities, so there’s nothing stopping him from having a lot of success in the NHL. He has the upside to be a top-line center but the safe projection is probably an above average second line center.”

Corey Pronman of Hockey Prospectus wrote this about him:

“Horvat is one of the most complete forwards in this draft. He is tough, hard working, and defensively skilled, with enough offensive ability to project as a scoring line player. He was a top player for one of the best teams in the CHL. He is a good skater, with a technically sound stride, as he picks up speed quickly and easily. He is a strong, physical center who will lay the body, displaying the two-way work ethic NHL teams want to see. He is an aware penalty killer, good at faceoffs, and overall projects as a center who will start his shift in the defensive zone more often than not. His creativity progressed throughout this season, and his puck skills, hand-eye coordination, and playmaking vision all rank as above average; he can flash high-end offensive skill. It is difficult to find a weakness in his game.”

So rather than focus on what Vancouver lost via trade, I prefer to look at what Vancouver gained. And what they gained is a very good hockey player, who may be lining up on the third-line next season.

And when that happens I get this odd feeling that people in Vancouver will be saying, “Cory who?” sooner rather than later.

More on the other picks later…


Well that's a wrap.

Ian


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