Thats incredible. Jensen is scoring more on the Wolves than he was down the stretch on Oshawa.

The Wolves released Cannata after his win.
- boonerbuck

Not to be a Debbie downer, but do Kassian, Gragnani, Weise go to Chicago if we lose on Wednesday?

http://vimeo.com/nirvan/cainesarcade
- Scooby_Doo

That is an amazing kid right there. Thanks for the link.

The PP would be fine if the coaches would remove their heads from their asses... For the life of me I can't understand why we don't have:

PP1:
- Henrik on the half wall (check)
- Daniel down low (when he returns... until then - Higgins, for puck possession/cycling/give & go with Hank)
- Burrows in front of the net (best net presence on the team... fights for his ice and great hand eye coordination for tips)
- Tanev at the Right point (our best passer on D, working with Hank on that side)
- Salo at the top of the left circle (getting fed one-timers from his strong side ala Stamkos/Lemieux by Hank or Tanev)

PP2:
- Kesler along the left half wall
- Gragnani playing the Tanev role on the opposite side
- Edler playing the Salo role on the opposite side
- Ebbett/Booth in front to tip & screen? (Wow are we thin since trading Hodgson)
- Kassian or even Schroeder zipping around down low for puck possession/retrieval & cycling... Driving to the net to pot rebounds when there's a shot

Instead we set up shots from another area code & leave our best passing d-men on the bench or in the press box. If our 4th liners are only going to get 3 shifts a game, what's the harm in dressing 3 full lines and a few specialists like Gragnani (PP2), Schroeder (PP2), Malhotra (PK/faceoffs) instead?
- DrChristianTroy

wholly Crap...Kassian was watching the puck..not even hitting...wth is He doing out there...hes not in playoff mode

Not to be a Debbie downer, but do Kassian, Gragnani, Weise go to Chicago if we lose on Wednesday?
- 1970vintage

First, lets get one thing clear...I'm Debbie Downer. There cant be two.

I was just about to post that those guys are going to win the Wolves a cup. Tanev can go as well... and Bitz I think. The Wolves are going to be better than the Leafs.

wholly Crap...Kassian was watching the puck..not even hitting...wth is He doing out there...hes not in playoff mode
- Canuckfan2006

Kassian's one of 2 things...

A. Not too bright. (to put it nicely)

B. Unable to self motivate. Needs to be challenged to give a sh!t.

When he first got here, he looked promising playing with talented guys, worked hard, etc. Now that he's been relegated to the 4th line and a couple minutes per game, he looks disinterested. That's a huge problem.

I'll never understand why Gillis made that trade, but now that he's here we might as well put his skillset to use for more than a 4th line shift every couple periods.

For all the AV naysayers (and I am starting to become one of them) here is a counter article I came upon:

http://vansunsportsblogs....er&utm_source=twitterfeed

Gallagher: If Canucks can't come back then give them a new coach
SANTA MONICA, Ca.-- Because of his long tenure enjoyed as head coach of the Vancouver Canucks, it might be a useful exercise to mount something of a defence for Alain Vigneault after another season whereby it looks all but certain his team is going to come to another crashing, miserable end in the NHL playoffs.

Granted this agent may not be the most qualified for this, but those who worship the ground the man spits on will doubtless come out of their boots trying to keep him around because he's an easy man with which to work. So there will be plenty of "save the President's Trophy winning coach material," -- and rightfully so because his regular season record is very, very good.

When looking at the team he took into this post season, he was without his top goal scorer, his second-line centre has been off his game all season and the changes made at the trade deadline essentially left him with one play-making centre. It left him with plenty of toughness, but in the must-win game three, Dale Weise and Zack Kassian barely got a sniff. But the latter is a young player and we know how they fare in Vigneault regimes.

None of Ryan Kesler, Manny Malhotra, Samme Pahlsson or Max Lapierre can make plays on an even remotely regular basis, leaving only Henrik Sedin to do that job (which he does a lot because, of course, he never shoots.) Then again, even when Vigneault had Cody Hodgson he rarely used the kid, so maybe this is a bogus defence, particularly as he applauded the deadline changes heartily before the outset of the playoffs and may have had a significant role in their planning.

Missing Daniel Sedin, the coach decides to put Jannik Hansen on the top line with the team's only play-maker in games two and three of this series, a career high 16-goal scorer.

Miraculously enough Hansen gets one goal and Sedin, playing his guts out in game three, sets up several good scoring chances only to watch them all stopped by Jonathan Quick, or have the ensuing shots miss the net.

Now Henrik knows what Steve Nash feels like in the NBA every night -- but we digress.

Meanwhile Kesler and David Booth remain together labouring away on the same line, each acting as individuals almost oblivious to the presence of each other -- Chris Higgins having checked out for the playoffs -- so far thus making the Am-ex line a distant memory. Playing your best career goal-scoring winger (in Daniel's absence, Booth) with your only play-making centre Sedin and perhaps reuniting Kesler and Alex Burrows never happens even though the team can't rent a goal. Neither was Max Lapierre who at least worked on the top line in the mean-nothing games down the stretch. His second-best defenceman Alex Edler, the pride and joy of Vigneault's assistant coach Rick Bowness, seizes up for reasons unknown and plays like, well, Rick Bowness. And once again this team is on the verge of a ridiculous conclusion.

Surely that's been something of a Vigneault trademark since his arrival, his first year perhaps his best in 2007 where a team that had no chance rode Roberto Luongo into the second round before going out on their shields losing to the eventual Cup champions.

That was followed in '08 by a hideous collapse down the stretch whereby the team missed the playoffs. In '09 they had the Chicago Blackhawks down 2-1 with the lead in the third period of game four only to lose those next three and drop a series they should have won. The following year the Hawks were probably a better team but not by much, and the season ended miserably with Chicago humiliating Vancouver in one-sided home games.

The following year he takes his team all the way to the final and that's good. But not before it almost blew a 3-0 series advantage in the first round, ridiculously poor efforts in games four and five the main reason. The team was hanging by a thread in game seven OT, Luongo having to make a great save off Patrick Sharp to avoid what is likely to happen in reality this year.

Seriously, after all this, a first round exit for a President's Trophy winning team? And this year there is no blaming the goaltending. It's been fine.

Monday here Vigneault was spinning the great goaltending of Quick and making references to being "against elite teams.”

Elite teams? This is not the '87 Oilers, it's the eighth seed that gave up a two-goal lead to lose to San Jose at home when fighting for what theoretically should have been a better playoff position. Please.

“I've been on teams where the coach has been fired a couple of times but it's not decisions we make,” said Samme Pahlsson, who was on hand when Scott Arniel was fired by Columbus in January this season. “We didn't think it was the coach's fault there.

When asked about here in Vancouver should the team lose this series he thought for at least two seconds and finally said: “It's the same here.”

Players at this level always take the blame, publicly at least. Barring a recovery of historic proportions in this series however, it says here this group, however comprised next year, deserves to hear a different voice.

For all the AV naysayers (and I am starting to become one of them) here is a counter article I came upon:

http://vansunsportsblogs....er&utm_source=twitterfeed
- AlexF

Ugh. Another terrible article by a blogger. Nothing to back up his POV other than blaming this latest collapse on Daniel's injury and Edler's sloppy play. Where are the stat comparisions? Give me something other than stupid excuses for why AV isn't at fault...

AV has had a large hand in several post season collapses... 2 last year alone. 1st round collpse, and SCF collapse.

Edler's sloppy play started when he began getting thrown out there with a new partner every game. Bieksa, then Salo, then Bieksa, then Gragnani... When a d-man loses his sense of trust in knowing what his partner is doing at all times, the instincts that make him great are reduced to hesitation & second guessing.

NEW COACHES PLEASE.

For all the AV naysayers (and I am starting to become one of them) here is a counter article I came upon:

http://vansunsportsblogs....er&utm_source=twitterfeed
- AlexF

I've never seen so many excuses and deflections in one story.

They dont talk about how AV did the switchup and layed back in all three Hawks series from midway of game two eventually putting the team on it's heels resulting in two eliminations and a one goal 7 game series that should have been over far earlier...

They don't talk about how AV mixed and matched the D pairing when they point to Edler making AV look bad. AV said the mix and match was all about prepping players incase there are injuries etc... it wasnt working and the D was healthy yet he still opens the playoffs with Edler and Bieksa. Now it may not be AV fault those guys didnt work out but the truth is AV put himself in a position where he had to go back to his pairing that worked best now trailing in a series. At what point do we expect Edler to get his confidence back? It seems to me AV got in the way of that and now too little too late.....something he's always been guilty of.

They totally 100% wash AV's hands in the Hodgson trade. The history goes much further back than a TDL meeting.... this guy is a clown.

I've never seen so many excuses and deflections in one story.

They dont talk about how AV did the switchup and layed back in all three Hawks series from midway of game two eventually putting the team on it's heels resulting in two eliminations and a one goal 7 game series that should have been over far earlier...

They don't talk about how AV mixed and matched the D pairing when they point to Edler making AV look bad. AV said the mix and match was all about prepping players incase there are injuries etc... it wasnt working and the D was healthy yet he still opens the playoffs with Edler and Bieksa. Now it may not be AV fault those guys didnt work out but the truth is AV put himself in a position where he had to go back to his pairing that worked best now trailing in a series. At what point do we expect Edler to get his confidence back? It seems to me AV got in the way of that and now too little too late.....something he's always been guilty of.

They totally 100% wash AV's hands in the Hodgson trade. The history goes much further back than a TDL meeting.... this guy is a clown.
- boonerbuck

Best line at the end of the regular season was Burrows Sedin Lapierre... how many times have they played together in the postseason? ZERO.

Best line at the end of the regular season was Burrows Sedin Lapierre... how many times have they played together in the postseason? ZERO.
- Scooby_Doo

As much as I dislike Lapierre (stemming from his Montreal days), he's a damn effective guy in the playoffs. he should be played in meaningful minutes imo.

Just a note, that was painful for me to write.

I've never seen so many excuses and deflections in one story.

They dont talk about how AV did the switchup and layed back in all three Hawks series from midway of game two eventually putting the team on it's heels resulting in two eliminations and a one goal 7 game series that should have been over far earlier...

They don't talk about how AV mixed and matched the D pairing when they point to Edler making AV look bad. AV said the mix and match was all about prepping players incase there are injuries etc... it wasnt working and the D was healthy yet he still opens the playoffs with Edler and Bieksa. Now it may not be AV fault those guys didnt work out but the truth is AV put himself in a position where he had to go back to his pairing that worked best now trailing in a series. At what point do we expect Edler to get his confidence back? It seems to me AV got in the way of that and now too little too late.....something he's always been guilty of.

They totally 100% wash AV's hands in the Hodgson trade. The history goes much further back than a TDL meeting.... this guy is a clown.
- boonerbuck

Of course it's his fault if pairings and lines don't have chemistry... He's the one in charge of who plays with who. He's NEVER had a clue about which players' skillsets compliment each other. How long did it take him to put Burrows with the Sedins. Every other player in the organization was tried there while I was campaigning for it here on hockeybuzz.

Of course it's his fault if pairings and lines don't have chemistry... He's the one in charge of who plays with who. He's NEVER had a clue about which players' skillsets compliment each other. How long did it take him to put Burrows with the Sedins. Every other player in the organization was tried there while I was campaigning for it here on hockeybuzz.
- DrChristianTroy

It still amazes me how many people called AV a genius for that move.

You were not alone. There were those who were asking for it early and eventually most wanted it because there was no one left to try. Still...we waited.

Of course it's his fault if pairings and lines don't have chemistry... He's the one in charge of who plays with who. He's NEVER had a clue about which players' skillsets compliment each other. How long did it take him to put Burrows with the Sedins. Every other player in the organization was tried there while I was campaigning for it here on hockeybuzz.
- DrChristianTroy

Also, with the undiscipined hockey, all the yapping, all the diving and lack of execution, it's clear the players have tuned this coach out. Our core guys like Kes, Burrows and Bieksa have basically only heard one voice their entire professional careers. It's time for a new voice.

Does anyone remember the season we had Bulis and with only a couple of games left in a season where we were 2 points out, AV blows a defensive zone face off with seconds left by not putting a second face off man out. After the wave out, Bulis lost the face off...game tied...then lost. A year we missed the playoffs by a couple of points... Things like that cost us more than anyone wanted to admit back then. AV history is riddled with poor decisions.

Also, with the undiscipined hockey, all the yapping, all the diving and lack of execution, it's clear the players have tuned this coach out. Our core guys like Kes, Burrows and Bieksa have basically only heard one voice their entire professional careers. It's time for a new voice.
- hertzman

Mac T keeps his players accountable. He may not be as good as AV in the regular season but he's all about playoff preparedness. He'll have those turkeys blocking foam pucks for 20 minutes straight a practice coming down the stretch. Everyone. You block, finish your check or sit on the bench. Shut your cake hole or you watch from upstairs. There was quite the spotlight on him for this stuff the year of his Oilers run to the final.

I'm not really on any kind of bandwagon for Mac T. I honestly hope we can do better respectfully. Still, AV has never been good at preparing his teams. Even in the regular season the team plays down to the bottom feeders. This has been a problem the entire time he's been their coach. I think Mac T's mental fortitude is legendary going all the way back to his earlies NHL days,,, something we need behind the bench. AV can take his regular season systems and shove them up his ass. I would rather a former cup winning NHL warrior coaching my young guns. Maybe we can watch our prospects score on our team now...not the opposition. The list of young players AV doesnt want on his roster is getting out of control. It's even worse for the veteran leadership Gillis has attempted to add for the playoffs... they have all been sent packing. I really think AV has had way too much roster influence on both Nonis and Gillis the entire time he's been the coach.

Does anyone remember the season we had Bulis and with only a couple of games left in a season where we were 2 points out, AV blows a defensive zone face off with seconds left by not putting a second face off man out. After the wave out, Bulis lost the face off...game tied...then lost. A year we missed the playoffs by a couple of points... Things like that cost us more than anyone wanted to admit back then. AV history is riddled with poor decisions.
- boonerbuck

I've blacked all that out, I can't even remember the last there games. How we doing in the series anyway?

Mac T keeps his players accountable. He may not be as good as AV in the regular season but he's all about playoff preparedness. He'll have those turkeys blocking foam pucks for 20 minutes straight a practice coming down the stretch. Everyone. You block, finish your check or sit on the bench. Shut your cake hole or you watch from upstairs. There was quite the spotlight on him for this stuff the year of his Oilers run to the final.

I'm not really on any kind of bandwagon for Mac T. I honestly hope we can do better respectfully. Still, AV has never been good at preparing his teams. Even in the regular season the team plays down to the bottom feeders. This has been a problem the entire time he's been their coach. I think Mac T's mental fortitude is legendary going all the way back to his earlies NHL days,,, something we need behind the bench. AV can take his regular season systems and shove them up his ass. I would rather a former cup winning NHL warrior coaching my young guns. Maybe we can watch our prospects score on our team now...not the opposition. The list of young players AV doesnt want on his roster is getting out of control. It's even worse for the veteran leadership Gillis has attempted to add for the playoffs... they have all been sent packing. I really think AV has had way too much roster influence on both Nonis and Gillis the entire time he's been the coach.
- boonerbuck

Mathieu Schneider says hi

Mac T keeps his players accountable. He may not be as good as AV in the regular season but he's all about playoff preparedness. He'll have those turkeys blocking foam pucks for 20 minutes straight a practice coming down the stretch. Everyone. You block, finish your check or sit on the bench. Shut your cake hole or you watch from upstairs. There was quite the spotlight on him for this stuff the year of his Oilers run to the final.

I'm not really on any kind of bandwagon for Mac T. I honestly hope we can do better respectfully. Still, AV has never been good at preparing his teams. Even in the regular season the team plays down to the bottom feeders. This has been a problem the entire time he's been their coach. I think Mac T's mental fortitude is legendary going all the way back to his earlies NHL days,,, something we need behind the bench. AV can take his regular season systems and shove them up his ass. I would rather a former cup winning NHL warrior coaching my young guns. Maybe we can watch our prospects score on our team now...not the opposition. The list of young players AV doesnt want on his roster is getting out of control. It's even worse for the veteran leadership Gillis has attempted to add for the playoffs... they have all been sent packing. I really think AV has had way too much roster influence on both Nonis and Gillis the entire time he's been the coach.
- boonerbuck

When has MacT ever gotten to coach a roster like the one we have? I'd love to see what his philosophy could do with this group. He's been my #1 choice as AV's replacement since he left Edmonton. He's done a great job with Chicago.

Mac T keeps his players accountable. He may not be as good as AV in the regular season but he's all about playoff preparedness. He'll have those turkeys blocking foam pucks for 20 minutes straight a practice coming down the stretch. Everyone. You block, finish your check or sit on the bench. Shut your cake hole or you watch from upstairs. There was quite the spotlight on him for this stuff the year of his Oilers run to the final.

I'm not really on any kind of bandwagon for Mac T. I honestly hope we can do better respectfully. Still, AV has never been good at preparing his teams. Even in the regular season the team plays down to the bottom feeders. This has been a problem the entire time he's been their coach. I think Mac T's mental fortitude is legendary going all the way back to his earlies NHL days,,, something we need behind the bench. AV can take his regular season systems and shove them up his ass. I would rather a former cup winning NHL warrior coaching my young guns. Maybe we can watch our prospects score on our team now...not the opposition. The list of young players AV doesnt want on his roster is getting out of control. It's even worse for the veteran leadership Gillis has attempted to add for the playoffs... they have all been sent packing. I really think AV has had way too much roster influence on both Nonis and Gillis the entire time he's been the coach.
- boonerbuck

Pre cap he managed to get some highly overmatched teams into the playoffs and even a series victory or two against then highly priced powerhouses like Dallas and Colorado. I wouldn't even mind seeing him back in Edmonton.

First, lets get one thing clear...I'm Debbie Downer. There cant be two.

I was just about to post that those guys are going to win the Wolves a cup. Tanev can go as well... and Bitz I think. The Wolves are going to be better than the Leafs.
- boonerbuck

Can I be negative Nellie?

Seriously though, the Wolves should have a long run, could be great for boosting confidence of our young guys and giving them valuable experience for next year in the NHL.

Mac T keeps his players accountable. He may not be as good as AV in the regular season but he's all about playoff preparedness. He'll have those turkeys blocking foam pucks for 20 minutes straight a practice coming down the stretch. Everyone. You block, finish your check or sit on the bench. Shut your cake hole or you watch from upstairs. There was quite the spotlight on him for this stuff the year of his Oilers run to the final.

I'm not really on any kind of bandwagon for Mac T. I honestly hope we can do better respectfully. Still, AV has never been good at preparing his teams. Even in the regular season the team plays down to the bottom feeders. This has been a problem the entire time he's been their coach. I think Mac T's mental fortitude is legendary going all the way back to his earlies NHL days,,, something we need behind the bench. AV can take his regular season systems and shove them up his ass. I would rather a former cup winning NHL warrior coaching my young guns. Maybe we can watch our prospects score on our team now...not the opposition. The list of young players AV doesnt want on his roster is getting out of control. It's even worse for the veteran leadership Gillis has attempted to add for the playoffs... they have all been sent packing. I really think AV has had way too much roster influence on both Nonis and Gillis the entire time he's been the coach.
- boonerbuck

This is my main concern with the “fire AV” talk. It’s not that I’m not open to someone else coming in, it’s that I’m not open to someone worse coming in. I understand it’s a situation of “how do you know until you try”, but I think we’re a good enough and profitable enough club now to be seeking out better known and well-respected coaches as opposed to AHL, journeyman, or 1st time coaches. And, at the risk of sounding picky, I really don’t want to see a coach come in a revamp the squad to play a defensive style of hockey because that’ll just drain the joy of hockey for me.

Does this seem backwards...

Kassian is young and going to turn over the puck once and a while. AV has benched him for this. Kassian cant be counted on for his offensive consisitency obviously but he's expected to play physical and hit. He goes games without doing this one thing he is very capable of and the coach never seems to bench him for it...

This just seems backwards to me. I'd give him contructive criticism for the turn overs and see where it takes me if I were the coach. BUT, if he doesnt hit enough and make his big presence known out there...I'd shut his minutes down and make sure he gets the message.

Instead he gets benched for making the same mistakes as the older players are making. Then his confidence is down and there's no way he's going to hit very often in fear of mistakes and AV's eventual dog house treatment.

Then again, AV sent Cody to the 4rth line for 3 games after a game he scored in(when we were not scoring) because it was followed up by a turn over. The rest is history....

This reminds me of my 8th bday I spent in the hospital. I could get away with anything... I do not remember ever a day where I could get away with all this AV bashing. I'd rather take playoff success...but this is very close.

Thats incredible. Jensen is scoring more on the Wolves than he was down the stretch on Oshawa.

The Wolves released Cannata after his win.
- boonerbuck

Why?