Headshots February 21st
Thomas Drance
February 21 2012 02:53PM
Beloved former Canuck Matthias Ohlund (pictured above with Naslund and the Sedins) will go under the knife on Thursday.
Headshots are a Canucks Army feature where we link to the day's freshest news, and other assorted Canucks web-goodies. If you've written a blogpost, produced a tribute video or birthed a clever .gif into existence - please e-mail Thom at thom.drance@gmail.com.
Small, But Not Insignificant
Thomas Drance
February 21 2012 01:27PM
Alain Vigneault's extreme situational deployment strategies have been a hot topic among hockey stats nerds this season. The topic even went mainstream this weekend when Malhotra's O-zone start rate was mentioned by Elliotte Friedman on Hockey Night in Canada during Saturday evening's game.
I'm of the opinion that zone-starts have a major impact on a skaters point production and possession stats. In my view, they also tell us a lot about which skaters a coach thinks are his team's best at either end of the ice. Most people wouldn't dispute any of the above, but David Johnson of hockeyanalysis.com isn't most people.
Read on past the break.
Trade Deadline Preview: Inventory
Thomas Drance
February 21 2012 11:05AM
More lopsided trades please (image via thestanchion).
Show me the hockey fan who doesn't love hockey-trades - and I'll show you a liar. With that in mind, Canucks Army will be bringing you an exhaustive trade deadline preview from now through Friday. We'll look into Canucks deadline history, drool over unicorns, and circle menacingly over the cellar-dwelling carcasses of the "sure-fire sellers" at the 2012 trade deadline. Today, however, we'll start our trade deadline preview series with some yeoman's work: a thorough inventory of Canucks needs, assets, possible strategy and cap-space. What should the Canucks look to add, what chips do they have to play with, how much cap-space do they really possess and how much risk should the Canucks take at the deadline?
All that and more, just click past the jump!
Player Polls are Overrated
Thomas Drance
February 19 2012 04:09PM
You know whose over-rated? The team with the 3rd most wins since the lockout - that's who!
The results of the the NHLPA/CBC player poll were released on-line this afternoon, and the Canucks didn't fare particularly well. In fact, in a poll that was answered by 318 NHL players, they fared very poorly indeed. Not only were individual Canucks skaters and coaches conspicuously absent from any individual accolades - but the team was overwhelmingly the most common answer to the question "which team is over-rated?"
Game #59 Preview: Children of the Corn
Thomas Drance
February 19 2012 11:33AM
And then bam! Stanley Cup. via thewonderofafairytale.
The Oilers are not a particularly good hockey team, which is largely the result of brutal management. After a hot and totally unsustainable start to the season, they've plummeted like a stone to the bottom of the standings, which, is where they belong. They don't belong there because I have any particular dislike for the Oilers - though I do - they belong there because the Oilers "brain trust" is composed of unserious, snake-oil salesman who've mastered the art of marketing false hope, and failing to back it up with any substance.
The Oilers sit 10 points clear of Columbus at the bottom of the Western Conference, so it's in their best interest to just lay down tonight, and dream of Nail Yakupov. Of course, the Oilers always get up to play the Canucks, especially when Vancouver's club visits their North Albertan barn. The Canucks are coming off of a clinical dismantling of the Maple Leafs last night, and this will mark the first game of a relatively difficult six game road-trip - the teams last extended road-trip of the season. Hopefully the Canucks can start their trip off on a winning note, which they'll do so long as they feel comfortable pummeling the hell out of some children.
A more detailed recap and underlying numbers after the jump!
