That is the problem between what the fans think and what management thinks.
I think Megna/Gaunce/Skille/Hutton all belong in the AHL.
I think the Sedins/Burrows/Hansen/Miller (albeit he is playing out of his mind this season) need to be traded.
I think the Canucks needed to do a full rebuild 3 years ago. Management see's it differently. The only difference between the Canucks today and the Canucks 3 years ago is that we did get a bit younger, we are still bad, and our prospect cupboard is better than it was.
- Codes1087

Yeah, it's crazy to see Benning deflect like that. I can't believe he's still the GM. I saw someone somewhere mention a trade of Ben Hutton for Daniel Sprong... I don't even think the Pens even hesitate to say no. Not a knock on Hutton, but Sprong is the Pens no. 1 prospect, and at the moment, Hutton is a 3rd pairing dman at best (or like you said, belongs in the AHL)

The guy 15th all-time PPG is excellent? You don't say!

Agreed, there were quite a few people who liked the trade. I was not one of them.
However you don't give up a guy who has finished top 10 in the league in scoring and has proven he can produce in the playoffs for hopefuls and spare parts.
I guess the logic was to be so bad they could get a top two pick, and it worked, but I still feel if they wanted to trade the guy they could have gotten a lot more.
- Rang

I think without that trade, they don't get Auston Matthews to be honest.

Yeah, it's crazy to see Benning deflect like that. I can't believe he's still the GM. I saw someone somewhere mention a trade of Ben Hutton for Daniel Sprong... I don't even think the Pens even hesitate to say no. Not a knock on Hutton, but Sprong is the Pens no. 1 prospect, and at the moment, Hutton is a 3rd pairing dman at best (or like you said, belongs in the AHL)
- j.boyd919

JB is a scout, not a GM. Forsling in the 5th round and Gaudette (currently 4th in NCAA scoring) in the 5th round is truly his craft. He has been able to pick up some really good prospect all through the rounds. Boeser also seems like a steal of a pick at 24 OA as well. As a GM though, he is just out of his element and truly not up to par.

Hutton for Sprong would not be enough at this point. Even given the inflation price of what D men are going for right now.

I was a bit on the fence about the deal to start, but after the Pens got Sullivan, I started to love the deal. The playoffs made me love it even more, and this year is just like rubbing it in their face. He has been everything here, that the Leafs thought they were getting. Now, I am sure it helps that he has a lot of help, but what the Pens gave up, compared to what the Pens are getting was robbery. Didn't the Pens get a 2nd round pick back in the deal and use it on what many consider the best goalie int he draft? I can't remember.
- Thorny

He was very good with the Leafs too. For many Leaf fans, the solution to being a bad team is to trade away your best players.We also traded Phaneuf for spare parts and guess what, now our defense sucks and we need a big, minute crunching guy on the back end.
I hope you guys win it again and Phil gets the Conn Smythe

I think without that trade, they don't get Auston Matthews to be honest.
- j.boyd919

That was their intention. They were going "full on" tank mode. It's hard to get superstars unless you tank.

Kessel's NTC really limited the return.....wasn't it 8 teams? Plus, the Leafs really seemed to paint Kessel as a bad guy. I remember Babcock saying something about wanting team first players (or something like that).

JB is a scout, not a GM. Forsling in the 5th round and Gaudette (currently 4th in NCAA scoring) in the 5th round is truly his craft. He has been able to pick up some really good prospect all through the rounds. Boeser also seems like a steal of a pick at 24 OA as well. As a GM though, he is just out of his element and truly not up to par.

Hutton for Sprong would not be enough at this point. Even given the inflation price of what D men are going for right now.
- Codes1087

Any possibility of Benning on the outs?

He was very good with the Leafs too. For many Leaf fans, the solution to being a bad team is to trade away your best players.We also traded Phaneuf for spare parts and guess what, now our defense sucks and we need a big, minute crunching guy on the back end.
I hope you guys win it again and Phil gets the Conn Smythe
- Rang

Phil should have won it last year

Any possibility of Benning on the outs?
- j.boyd919

I am not sure. He hasn't been given enough credit for some of the good things he has done, and is heavily criticized when he does things that people deem stupid. I know that Granlund/Shinkaruk trade seemed idiotic at the time, but Grandlund is having a huge year, and Shinkaruk is open to be claimed by Vegas and currently cant make the flames roster. Best case scenario would be Benning stepping into a scout role with the Canucks, but in regards to what President Trevor Linden has said, Jim Benning is doing everything that is asked of him in making the team younger, developing and drafting, and trying to get a new core. I don't think there is much he can do until after 2018 season when the Sedins are gone and the Canucks free up 14 mill in cap space.

I am not sure. He hasn't been given enough credit for some of the good things he has done, and is heavily criticized when he does things that people deem stupid. I know that Granlund/Shinkaruk trade seemed idiotic at the time, but Grandlund is having a huge year, and Shinkaruk is open to be claimed by Vegas and currently cant make the flames roster. Best case scenario would be Benning stepping into a scout role with the Canucks, but in regards to what President Trevor Linden has said, Jim Benning is doing everything that is asked of him in making the team younger, developing and drafting, and trying to get a new core. I don't think there is much he can do until after 2018 season when the Sedins are gone and the Canucks free up 14 mill in cap space.
- Codes1087

Who is being seen as the new core? Also that Eriksson deal... not a huge fan. I can't imagine the Sedins in different unis. They are the canucks to me. lol

What really kills me is that there were Leaf's fans that hated Kessel so much that they actually defended the return at the time and talked about how Toronto actually robbed the Pens.
- jaydogg1974

Toronto ended up better off from the trade. Kessel was going to be too old to pair with the younger core. And the trade helped then get matthews. Its still a win-win trade for both teams. Even if the return was soft.

Agreed, there were quite a few people who liked the trade. I was not one of them.
However you don't give up a guy who has finished top 10 in the league in scoring and has proven he can produce in the playoffs for hopefuls and spare parts.
I guess the logic was to be so bad they could get a top two pick, and it worked, but I still feel if they wanted to trade the guy they could have gotten a lot more.
- Rang

Wasn't his NTC pretty strict. Could only list 8 teams and all of them had cap issues. So it came down to trade him to the Penguins for pennies on the dollar or no trade.

He was very good with the Leafs too. For many Leaf fans, the solution to being a bad team is to trade away your best players.We also traded Phaneuf for spare parts and guess what, now our defense sucks and we need a big, minute crunching guy on the back end.
I hope you guys win it again and Phil gets the Conn Smythe
- Rang

I thought you won the phaneuf trade. You got out of his 5 remaining years at 7 per year. That clears the cap to hopefully find/pay a future franchise dman who fits with the age of the core. When the maple leafs are a legit contender it will be nice not having $7 million/year on the backend of that contract when phaneuf is 34.

I believe the salaries you took back were near term payments that won't matter when your 3 young studs are starting to look to get paid.

Phil should have won it last year
- j.boyd919

I mean he had the most points among Penguins players, but he was not the most valuable player by any means. The main reason they dominated in the playoffs was because the HBK Line played against 3rd pairing Dmen and 3rd/4th so often.

Who is being seen as the new core? Also that Eriksson deal... not a huge fan. I can't imagine the Sedins in different unis. They are the canucks to me. lol
- j.boyd919

Sedins have really showed their age this year. They have been excellent Canucks for a long time, but father time doing this.

I think they have established Demko/Boeser/Juolevi/Horvat/Baertschi/Hutton as their core moving forward. I think the 24/25/26 year olds in Sutter/Granlund/Gudbranson were brought in to bridge the gap between the Sedins/Hansen/Burrows age group. We are still nowhere close to where we need to be though. I still think we are about 3 or 4 years from being competitive.

I mean he had the most points among Penguins players, but he was not the most valuable player by any means. The main reason they dominated in the playoffs was because the HBK Line played against 3rd pairing Dmen and 3rd/4th so often.
- joecool2931

You could flip it and say Kessel was the most valuable player because he allowed the Penguins to run a stacked 3rd line and tear up the 3rd pairing Dmen. If not for Kessel's production, where would they have been?

You could flip it and say Kessel was the most valuable player because he allowed the Penguins to run a stacked 3rd line and tear up the 3rd pairing Dmen. If not for Kessel's production, where would they have been?
- j.boyd919

that really was a fun cup run

You could flip it and say Kessel was the most valuable player because he allowed the Penguins to run a stacked 3rd line and tear up the 3rd pairing Dmen. If not for Kessel's production, where would they have been?
- j.boyd919

Kessel is a stud, the guy can skate like f*ck for someone who looks like they shouldn't. I really don't understand the Kessel hate, the guy is a excellent player, just hates the media. Man the guy went through Testi Cancer and went through it like a champ. I would take Kessel any day of the week on my team.

DK and Yohe are pretty much saying the Pens are going to bring in a top 4 dman. Who sits if that happens? Maatta or Cole?

that really was a fun cup run
- stayinthefnnet

When I have nothing to do, I'll pull up old cup games on Kodi and watch them

DK and Yohe are pretty much saying the Pens are going to bring in a top 4 dman. Who sits if that happens? Maatta or Cole?
- Thorny

I think it comes down to Maatta/Daley/Dumo on who sits.

DK and Yohe are pretty much saying the Pens are going to bring in a top 4 dman. Who sits if that happens? Maatta or Cole?
- Thorny

They've said that, but i've yet to see them say anything about how much it would costs or who we would target.

Is there even a top 4 dman on the market besides Shat? I don't believe we have the assets for him. It would costs us a 1st sprong and maybe sundqvist. 1st plus B+ prospect + solid prospect.

I think it comes down to Maatta/Daley/Dumo on who sits.
- j.boyd919

Dumo is Letang's partner on the first pair. How does he go from that to sitting

Dumo is Letang's partner on the first pair. How does he go from that to sitting
- jchst22

Dumo is not being scratched.

Any deal for a top 4 dman likely means daley or maatta going the other way for the cap to work. Maatta as a piece, Daley as a throw in to make the #s work

They've said that, but i've yet to see them say anything about how much it would costs or who we would target.

Is there even a top 4 dman on the market besides Shat? I don't believe we have the assets for him. It would costs us a 1st sprong and maybe sundqvist. 1st plus B+ prospect + solid prospect.
- sditulli

Agreed. I don't see it. Prices are through the roof for that kind of asset. They're paying Maatta top 4 money already.

The last thing I want to see is the Pens trading Sprong. That would be horrifically short sighted.