If you have 90 minutes to spare, TEAM1040 has graciously posted the link to Trevor Linden's complete radio appearance on Tuesday.
I was out doing errands during the broadcast yesterday, so I caught a good chunk of it while I was in my car. Between his conversation with host Matt Sekeres and a barrage of listener questions, a lot of ground gets covered.
Most importantly: despite my attempt to get Dustin Penner a contract in yesterday's blog, Linden made it quite clear that they're finished shopping for the summer. The group that's signed now will be the one on the ice at training camp.
I got behind Penner based on his reasonably energetic turn with the Ducks last season, rather than his frequent stretches of underwhelming play earlier in his career. I feel like now that his big contracts are behind him, he's more aware of the fact that he has something to prove. He might not be the guy to set a great example for the young players in the room—I'll grant you that—but I still think he'd be a difference-maker in some of our most important games of the year, against Los Angeles and Anaheim.
He's also great on Twitter and had some fun as a guest live-Tweeter for the Kings during their playoff run. For all the criticism that has been heaped on him, Penner seems to have a level-headed ability not to take himself too seriously.
But never mind. Boss says no.
For those of you who do want to see the prospects get a chance to play, Linden did say that Bo Horvat, specifically, would be given every opportunity to make the team—though of course he'd have to earn his spot. When Sekeres suggested that Horvat would be lent out to Canada's World Junior team if his development or ice time started to stall with the Canucks, Linden was quick to say that he hoped that wouldn't be the case—that he'd be too important to the team to release for any period of time.
That's the strongest vote of confidence we've heard yet for Bo's chances.
As for the rest of the prospects, it sounds like Linden's very keen to build a good team in Utica this year and give most of the AHL-eligible players a chance to develop. I expect that's where we'll end up seeing Hunter Shinkaruk, Brendan Gaunce—maybe even Nicklas Jensen for a second season.
Never at a loss for words, the fellas over at
Canucks Army have a quote-filled synopsis of Linden's radio appearance.
In direct contrast to last year's ex-coach who shall not be named, Linden made the biggest headlines on Tuesday for coming out against fighting in hockey and suggesting that it's on its way out of the game. He even placed some of the blame for the current state of affairs directly on Don Cherry and "Coach's Corner":
I recall this incident when I was playing -- Mattias Ohlund came across and just levelled someone with a great bodycheck, which is a great part of the game that should be celebrated. Next thing you know he's got some guy that can't even skate chasing him around the ice. That isn't right, that's not the way our game is played. But it's a mentality that has been coached in, talked in - you know, Coach's Corner influence. We see it in the playoffs all the time; extremely hard hitting, and there's no fighting. And I'm not sure that the intended use of fighting - which is to protect our stars - actually works. I think it's something that as we go down the path the NHL is going to have to look at.
Perhaps just as controversially, Linden admitted that, while he does drive to work every day, he's a supporter of Vancouver's bike lanes. Says he loves the usage that the new Point Grey Road corridor is getting and is amazed at the number of bikes he sees as he's driving over the Burrard St. Bridge to work every day. He believes that if you want to encourage more physical activity, and get people out of their cars, you have to give them the infrastructure to make that happen.
Linden says he still gets up and rides every morning before work, but says that's as much for his "mental health" as anything else.
Chances are, we won't be getting much new news and information beyond this interview for the next while. I'll pull out more tidbits in subsequent blogs that can anchor our future discussions.
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