Vancouver Canucks: Grouse Grind for Prospects, Summer Summit Fallout (jacob markstrom)

jacob markstrom

Vancouver Canucks: Grouse Grind for Prospects, Summer Summit Fallout

By Carol Schram

Jul 10, 2015 • 2:46 pm

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The Vancouver Canucks prospects just got very lucky.

The weather turned just in time for their trip up the Grouse Grind. These overcast skies, cooler temperatures and a solid air-quality reading of 2 make for pretty-much ideal conditions this morning.

Trevor Linden issued a challenge to the prospects during last night's Summer Summit with the season ticket holders. He said that he, at 45 years old, can get up the Grind in 39:30. He expected the kids to beat that number today.

I'm impressed by the guys who were able to squat down for this "after" picture at the top:

I take it that's 6'9" goaltending prospect John MacLean on the far left?

No word yet on times. I want to see them all!

If you missed the Summit last night, you can watch it in its entirety here. It's just over an hour long.

There was lots of talk of how the anger of the critics showed their passion for the game, and how great it was to be able to dig into hockey minutiae so enthusiastically in the middle of July.

I'll second that point—we're now less than two months from the Young Stars tournament and I'll be counting down every day until the boys get back on the ice.

What did we learn on Thursday night?

The biggest bombshell was Jim Benning's statement that he *could have* traded Ryan Miller instead of Eddie Lack, but chose not to.

Given all the goodwill that surrounds Lack in this marketplace, I'm not sure that's information Benning should have shared, but I think I understand why he did it. Despite the popular opinion around these parts that Miller is an aging veteran who's overpaid, Benning was probably trying to let people know that Miller does have value around the league—more value than Lack.

Benning went on to explain that other teams simply don't see Lack as anything more than a backup. That's different from Robin Lehner, Cam Talbot and Martin Jones—backups who *have* been handed No. 1 jobs with new teams next season. And given that Lack ends up in a backup role behind the (admittedly shaky) Cam Ward in Carolina, the outcome of events backs up Benning's statement.

I wonder if the Sharks or the Oilers, for instance, would have been interested in a proven, veteran No. 1 like Miller instead of taking a chance with the more uncertain assets they've ended up acquiring?

Also, you can add my voice to those who think Lack's decision to put Roberto Luongo on his new mask is more creepy than quirky.

I wonder if Eddie's vibe is going to read differently from afar than it did when he was here in Vancouver?

The bottom line for me on this issue—I was glad to hear Trevor remind the season ticket holders that the point is not that the Canucks kept the older, more expensive Miller over Lack; it's that they kept the younger Markstrom, who Benning says he can envision becoming a No. 1 down the road.

I'm intrigued by the progress that Markstrom made this season and I'm glad we'll get to see this story play out, to find out whether or not the former 31st overall pick can finally realize his early potential.

My favourite line of the night goes to Jim Benning: "I don't want our young players to get picked on this year. Dorsett and Prust will create a safe working environment for our players."

"Do you think Gino created a safe working environment for Pavel?" mused John Shorthouse in response.

I also liked Trevor's real estate analogy when he talked about the trade value of players. No matter how much you love your house, the market ultimately determines what it's worth—and the same is true of hockey players. They're worth what you can get for them.

The rest of the rhetoric from the ticketholders' Q&A session was pretty familiar.

After that, an introduction to five of the team's most intriguing prospects: Jake Virtanen, Cole Cassels, Jared McCann, Brock Boeser and Thatcher Demko. Cassels does seem to have a devious sparkle in his eye compared to his father Andrew, who was more of a by-the-book kind of a guy.

Two other nuggets to wrap up:

• The team is working on building a standalone sports bar in the West Tower area of the arena, which would be open at non-event times as well as for games and concerts. ETA for the grand opening is next January.

• Plans are in progress to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Rogers Arena, with 20 special themed nights on the calendar for next season.

I'm happy about this. The team get a fantastic job with the nostalgia during its 40th anniversary season in 2010-11—and look where we ended up that year! The trips down memory lane made the intermissions at the rink a lot more entertaining. It's great that they've found another angle to travel back through time and celebrate the history of the team and, in this case, the other events that have happened in the building. Olympics, anyone?

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