Home > 2019 > 03/21 > What is the Future of Nikolay Goldobin?
64
Photo Credit: Bob Frid - USA TODAY Sports

What is the Future of Nikolay Goldobin?

| Faber

It’s no secret that Nikolay Goldobin has been in Travis Green’s dog house all year long, the 23 year old, former first round pick has seen his fair share of healthy scratches this season. Nikolay Goldobin has shown some flashes of excellence in his 123 NHL games but those moments seem to fall by the wayside in the eyes of Travis Green.

It’s clear that there is a way that Travis Green wants his players to play, he wants them to be involved in the play on both sides of the ice, Green wants his guys to be engaged in every board battle and be strong on the puck whether they have possession or are trying to retrieve the puck.

That stuff is all great, but scoring lines in the NHL shouldn’t be treated the same as a bottom six line, some lines need to be looked at differently if their production is good enough. For example, Alex Ovechkin can try things that Nic Dowd can’t, players are all treated differently so why aren’t the lines treated differently in Travis Green’s eyes?

The coach has had problems with Goldy’s game for a good portion of the season and has rarely praised him, like he mentioned back at the beginning of January when asked about Goldy.

“To win in this league, you’ve got to be going. You’ve got to skate. You have to take away time and space. You can’t just wait for time and space. The onus falls on the player. He needs to make an effort to get the job done.”
-Travis Green.

It’s been a tough few months for Goldy and looking back it could have started when the Canucks acquired Josh Leivo in a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Leivo plays a game that coach Green regularly praises, some nights Leivo does deserve it, but he also fits the mold of a Travis Green type of player. I don’t want this to be a shot at Leivo because I think he has brought a lot to this team since they acquired him, but at the same time he has simply not performed as good as Goldy has when paired up with Elias Pettersson and Brock Boeser on the top scoring line.

Five on Five Time on Ice as a trio.

77-40-6 = 156:01
17-40-6 = 197:04

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Goldobin has been more of playmaker than a scorer this season and when a playmaker is not playing with scorers it makes it extremely tough to make a mark on the scoresheet. Earlier this season Travis Green paired up Jay Beagle and Nikolay Goldobin and said “I thought when I put Goldy with Beagle, I thought it would be pretty obvious of the kind of game that he has to play when he’s with that line.”

Goldobin is still young, but at 23 years old he is definitely at a crossroad in his career. You hear a lot of retired NHL players talk about adjusting their game to find a spot in the NHL, Goldobin will likely not do that, he is top six scoring winger and will probably not ever adjust to be a defensive specialist. When you see Goldobin and Pettersson moving the puck it just seems different, they both move the puck with the one extra pass mentality and that can either result in a wide open net or simply one too many passes.

Many fans reaction to Goldy’s game is that he makes one or two defensive lapses a game and those often result in goals against. I’m not going to say that I haven’t seen this at all, but I damn sure am not going to say that I have seen it every game. Over the past few weeks, Goldy has taken Travis Green’s video tips and given more of an effort to be strong on the boards in the neutral zone while also being tougher in the corners.

The problem for me is that even though you can say that Goldy is bad defensively, his five on five stats are actually indicative of being one of the better linemates for Elias Pettersson.

I understand that many believe Josh Leivo is a good option for the Canucks and with Nikolay Goldobin’s recent struggles, Josh Leivo has found a steady role as the third piece of the Pettersson-Boeser combo. Josh Leivo has two goals and two assists in his last 18 games, in those games he is averaging over 18 minutes of ice time. Comparing that to Nikolay Goldobin’s last 18 games, where Goldy has two goals and two assists, but in only 14 minutes of average ice time.

This shows that Josh Leivo is getting plenty more time than Nikolay Goldobin on the same line as Elias Pettersson over the past 18 games that they were both in the lineup.

So what is the future for Nikolay Goldobin? A lot of Vancouver media is coming around to the belief that Goldy’s time in Vancouver could already be over. If this was the last season we saw Nikolay Goldobin I personally belive it would be a mistake. Coaches coach to get the best out of their players, Travis Green has gone away from the trio of Goldobin-Pettersson-Boeser, even though that trio has one of the highest GF% on their team and even ranks up against some of the best in the NHL.”

Goldobin wants to be an NHL player, but when we hear that Goldobin was wondering “Why are you picking on me?” when being shown video by the coaching staff it brings me to believe that the trust between player and coach could be lost. Travis Green has implemented his “Tough Love” on some players that has found good results. What if Goldobin is further ahead of some of those guys at this point in his career? Goldobin was leading the team in assists at a certain point of the season and at the time who would have believed that he would have been benched for nine of the previous 27 games near the end of the season.

I believe in Goldobin, I think the way he thinks the game is something that not enough players on this team possess, his underlying numbers confirm that not only does he contribute to the top scoring line but he actually can make them better. Goldy still has a decent way to go to be an everyday top six winger in the NHL but with the recent decisions by the coach, we may not get to see peak Goldobin in a Canucks jersey.

For those who say that Goldobin can only play with Pettersson and if he doesn’t play on that line he is ineffective, you are not wrong, Goldobin has struggled when not with Pettersson.

I actually remember a duo that wasn’t as effective when they weren’t paired up together.

Maybe this is a bit of a stretch…

But seriously Travis, play Goldobin with Pettersson.

The problem isn’t going to fix itself and we are drifting closer and closer to the point where we will not be signing Nikolay Goldobin this offseason. This Canucks team needs so much more scoring talent as we move forward in rebuilding to be a playoff team and moving out Goldobin would be a mistake. Jimbo made two big moves at the 2017-18 trade deadline and that was acquiring Nikolay Goldobin and Jonathan Dahlen. It would sure be a tough look to see both of these players not make an impact on this team moving forward.

The team claims to believe in Goldobin but if they don’t play him in better situations we could see the highly skilled Russian elsewhere in the NHL. I don’t know exactly what the future hold for little Nicky but I would sure like to see the remaining games this season feature the scoring trio that leads this team in goals for percentage.

If the #FreeGoldy movement isn’t heard loud enough I hope that it is now. Travis Green may need to make adjustments when dealing with these high skilled players, The West Coast Express line was treated different than the young Sedins at the time and if the Canucks want more scoring from their top end players I would try and treat them as top end players.

It has to at least be worth a shot, the playoffs are out of reach and coach Travis Green should be looking at options for next season and unless we climb into the top two of the draft or sign Artemi Panarin, there isn’t much help coming for Pettersson and Boeser. Ride the wave and unleash the chains of the young trio to shine as a top NHL scoring line. Pettersson has shown he can carry a line at times this season and with the chemistry we saw at the beginning of the season it blows me away at time that Goldy-Petey-Boes isn’t and everyday thing.

These final few games will likely decide, what is the future for Nikolay Goldobin?

64 Comments |

  • It is so very stupid not to play Goldy with Pettersson. If Goldy doesn’t fit into the Canucks future, at least let him build his numbers up so he has some trade value.

  • If there is one thing that bothers me about Green, its his use of Goldy, this kid has delt with more tough love than any Canucks player and its getting tiresome, the kid has regressed as a result, that’s on the coach. I totally agree with playing him through the remaining games on EP’s line without any COACHING, LET HIM PLAY.
    If he fails then make decisions this off season but the book is not closed on him and another team will probably rub it in our faces…

    • So your are saying give him another try. How many failed attempts are enough? The New Jersey game was the straw that broke the camels back.

      He was playing with Pettersson and Boeser in that game. He was at fault for the last goal simply because he either could not keep focus on the game; did not recognize the danger; or did recognize the danger and just did not feel like making the effort to stay with his check. It cost them a point.

      It’s clear that there is a way that Travis Green wants his players to play, he wants them to be involved in the play on both sides of the ice, Green wants his guys to be engaged in every board battle and be strong on the puck whether they have possession or are trying to retrieve the puck.

      This is not just a Travis Green philosophy: it is every coaches in the NHL as well. To suggest this is somehow on Green is misguided. It is followed up by this gem:

      That stuff is all great, but scoring lines in the NHL shouldn’t be treated the same as a bottom six line, some lines need to be looked at differently if their production is good enough. For example, Alex Ovechkin can try things that Nic Dowd can’t, players are all treated differently so why aren’t the lines treated differently in Travis Green’s eyes?

      The best scoring lines in the league work incredibly hard. Skill without work does not get you far. You appear to be suggesting that Ovechkin does not work hard, or battle for pucks or backcheck. That, and the other minor difference is the fact Ovi scores 50 goals a season. You are actually comparing Ovechkin to Goldobin?

      It is not “defence” that is Goldobin’s problem; it is effort all over the ice. After he was scratched and returned in January, he played well for like 3 games and I gave him credit. Then back to same old same old. You do not develop a player by rewarding poor effort. It is not fair to the rest of the team. You are not going to pump up his value by playing him; the league knows what he is.

      • Gotta say I agree with DJ on this one. I like Goldy, mostly because the Canucks really, really need him to pan out. He has good vision and hands. But the fact is, he’s already getting special treatment. He’s generally not being forced to work his way up from the third and fourth line, and he’s not in Utica. The onus is on him, he has to score more.

        In my opinion the argument made in this article, while well-constructed, suffers from its small sample size. Leivo is bigger, stronger, works harder and is more defensively responsible. If they both have 4 pts in 18 games it should be obvious who Green is going to ice, along with every other coach in the NHL. In order for Goldy to flip that extra four minutes a game in his favor, he has to significantly outscore Leivo. That’s it. In the end, sports are results-based that’s the beauty of them. You don’t get points in the standings for potential, at some point you actually have to produce. There are a lot of players in the league, and out of it that could put up numbers if paired with Pettersson. Goldy has to do something to distinguish himself from them, and quickly. That said, until they clearly have a better option I would keep him around for the start of next year. But not much longer than that…

      • I’m fairly confident that he has ‘party’ issues away from the rink. It makes no sense to me that he’d have a stretch of games where he’s consistently one of their best players with TG giving him loads of ice time, then suddenly he’s benched for 3 or 4 games. I’m sure they know when makes bad choices away from the rink, and that’s their primary reason for disciplinig him, and not necessarily poor play, even though it was most likely the former that lead to the latter.

        • Evidence for this assertion? He might just be immature and not ready to be a consistent pro. This may or may not include excessive partying.

          When he was traded to Vancouver and was meeting the team, the first impression he left with the sedins was that he liked fast, expensive cars. Really? While there’s nothing wrong with liking nice care, that’s the first impression you want to leave with future hall of famers. I suspect Wilson quickly observed this and realized the effort required to transform him into an nhl player so was on with trading him.

          • When Goldy is ‘on’, he’s a very useful player showing flashes of brilliance…and when he is TG embraces him and gives him lots of ice-time…then all of a sudden he has one bad game and he gets benched for 5 straight. It makes no sense that he would get punished so harshly for one bad game after having a stretch of 5 or 6 games when his was one of our better players…so there has to be more to the story. Brian Burke: “Beer and girls have derailed many a1st round draft pick”

        • If Goldy has “party issues “ I am sure with all the cell phones, Twitter, snap chat, instagram, and Facebook it would have surfaced by now. Why can’t the fan base accept that he lacks the courage and compete to be a top level nhl player

          • Because this is the most in denial fanbase in the league.

            Also, be aware that this forum is *not* representative of the ‘real’ fanbase that live in the lower mainland and actually pay to support the team.

            It’s been long established that the majority of here are Vancouver Island windowlickers who don’t have a vested interest in the Canucks, they just want a game to watch and a place to vent… sucks to be them eh.

      • The following sentence, which I totally agree with, raised a number of red flags with me.

        “For those who say that Goldobin can only play with Pettersson and if he doesn’t play on that line he is ineffective, you are not wrong, Goldobin has struggled when not with Pettersson.”

        This shows me that Goldy is a very one dimensional player. If he can only play well on one line with an elite centre but isn’t effective when playing with Horvat (who’s no slouch) then there’s a problem. He was reasonably effective at the beginning of the season and put up the points (mostly assists) but then the rest of the NHL discovered that Pettersson was an elite player and started putting their #1 D Men and checking lines against him. Pettersson and Boeser fought through this but Goldy’s production fell off sharply. Having “good hands” is a valuable asset but it takes a lot more to be an effective NHL’er. There a lot of players with talent who just don’t have what it takes to be in the NHL and, sadly, Goldy is one of them.

        • There is an additional reason why Goldobin was moved off of the Pettersson line. Pettersson and Boeser can play in all (5v5) situations; Goldobin not so much. You are limited in your usage of the line with this restriction.

  • A coach can’t realistically demand that a player be as talented as Connor McDavid. A coach can demand that every player gives it his all, whatever that may be.

    You’re asking Green to accept less than the best from a player. What’s wrong with that? Why not tolerate it from Goldobin if he’s still a valuable player? Because if Green tolerates that from Goldobin, why not Boeser, or Pettersson or Horvat? These players are good enough that they’re valuable even without giving their very best. Okay, but the fans better be ready for many more years of missed playoffs.

    The team culture seems to be in a pretty good place right now. There’s an air of professionalism and commitment. And I think that’s because management insists on it. Don’t ask them to stop doing that.

    • Culture…? Professionalism…? Commitment….?
      But…but…but… what about his Corwick and Fensi….? Plus he is young, small, soft and European….. shouldnt he get a pass just for that….?

      • LOL

        The writer dramatically dumbed it down for you Locust and used goal differentials and goals against.

        You still couldn’t grasp it.

        “but.. but.. but… I don’t understand basic evidence and feel stoopid, so I’ll pretend I played the game and you didn’t. Then I’ll regurgitate tough guy words to feel strong! Ah, that makes me feel better and less stoopid.” – Locust

        • I just dont get all the love for Goldobin. He hasn’t done anything since the first month of the season when everyone racks up points. Since the going has got tougher as the teams get their players and strategies in order,,,, nothing. Petey plays hard at both ends of the ice. Defends as hard as he tries to score. Not Goldobin. NOT the type of player you win with in the playoffs.

  • What would have been really helpful would have been to compare the roster of UFA LW’s that was just posted with Goldobin. What is Goldy’s value viz. these other options? Is it worth signing older, more expensive players to long term contracts when Goldy might be a legitimate alternative?

    • Especially for a largely one dimensional player who got most of his points playing with one player (Pettersson) during the easiest point in the season (pre US Thanksgiving). We all want Goldobin to succeed but if you don’t bring effort, grit and a consistent approach, displaying flashes of offensive talent isn’t enough in the NHL. If his flashes of talent yielded points I’m pretty sure green wouldn’t dwell on the other gaps in his game.

  • I also do not like the way Goldobin has been treated. He gets unfairly benched on a gaffe when other players have made similar gaffes yet see no reduction in ice time. The difference is Goldy can make amends by scoring either by goal or assist, something the others can’t. All players make mistakes, most learn from them. Seems Goldy doesn’t get the chance to learn. This team lacks scoring and sidelining a player who can generate offence is maddening. Look at the past few games, either going to O/T because they can’t get that next goal or nearly blowing a 5 goal lead. We need guys like Goldy who can help get that next goal. Green is wrong in his approach and it likely will cost us the player. I’m sick of seeing players come to this team, get hooked so often, then get a chance on other teams and excel. He may not be the next Vaive or Neely, but he can score. Playoffs are out of reach no matter what the standings say. PLAY HIM. Who cares if they give up an extra goal here or there, he will get better if he knows that one tiny mistake won’t lead to a benching. If he makes a mistake, put him right back out there to make up for it. That’s how you build a player’s confidence.

  • It’s funny, this is almost identical to Hutton and still the bloggers don’t see the forest cuz the Corsi and Fenwick gets in the way. I feel like we should cut and paste the old responses to the ‘Why is Ben Hutton benched woes’ of last season, MattyT could ya help a brother out?

    You can’t win with 18 pulling one way and 3 the other. You can’t .Once you say it’s okay for Goldy to cheat, then it’s okay for Sven, then it’s okay for Tanner, then, 4 guys are freelancing and Green is an ex-coach. Green wants Goldie to figure it out and until he does, it doesn’t matter if his Corsi, Fenwick or pretty moves are better than Leivo’s, Leivo is getting his spot. Almost exactly like so many were whining that statistically Hutton was better MDZ, why was he sitting, it was obvious if you were paying attention, Hutton wasn’t working hard enough to ern it whether he was better or not. If Goldy wants to play with Petey next season, be in shape, work hard and play the right way, otherwise he can be another team’s Sergei Samsonov.

    • If any other player had the same stats as Goldy has had in the New Year CA would be screaming for their immediate trade. Question. Who has more goals/points in 2019, Eriksson or Goldobin? This site claims to care about analytics, but they pick and choose how to interpret the data to support their chosen narrative all the time.
      I agree that it ultimately comes down to influence and message. If you let even one player coast on a team it sends a negative message to their teammates. This is especially true when you start to bring in younger players.
      I still don’t think they will trade him. As you point out, they are giving him the ‘Hutton’ treatment. It worked once, and I think Green is a far better judge of players than any of us. There is a very real possibility that he gets the message and turns it around for next season.

      • And there’s a very real possibility he doesn’t learn and he’s playing on a new team by Christmas.
        But if he comes to camp in top shape and pays attention to the details, he will play all the minutes he can handle on the top line. He’s not going to learn by being rewarded for bad habits.

    • Agreed, this looks like the Hutton situation 2.0.

      Goldobin hasn’t produced enough to justify getting any extra leeway (for his coasting).

      Way too much is being made out of this situation.

    • I can see why the writer isn’t a GM or a coach in the NHL. So easy to write crap blame it on Green and Benning come on give me a break he just isn’t as good as all the numbers that you pull off pqaper. The game is played on the ice not on paper. Agree that this is much like the Hutton situation from last year, he has pulled his socks up and is now playing great if Goldobin was smart he would hire a trainer and work his ass off.

      • Poor Goldy, it might be the case he doesn’t have a checking bone in his body, I would give him the beginning of next year after the Hutton treatment to see if that turns him around, if its same old same old, the Canucks should try to get what ever they can for him.

  • Expect a lot of down votes for this; but, (IMO) it is time to walk away from Goldobin. If he can’t play a strong defensive game, then he had better put up points (like Boeser)…which he isn’t. Even with Petterson recently he has been a drag on that line. Wish him well in what ever he does. Trade him or let him walk at the season’s end. Personally I would expect him to be playing in the KHL in a year or two. There is a reason San Jose let him go.

    I am amazed how some individuals who comment here and writers for CA give Goldy a complete free pass; but rag on players like Sutter..who does give a solid effort. Goldy may have the talent; but that is about it. I guess that’s my rant for the day.

  • I really like Goldy, and I think that he, like Jake, have come a long way, and have both grown considerably. Giving up on him now would be ridiculous.
    What I might speculate to this situation is possibly 2 things
    1. Perhaps Goldy’s biggest asset is also his biggest source of frustration from the coach. His creativity is what makes your eyebrows pop up when he makes a great play that other people couldn’t think about doing, but perhaps it is that creativity that also takes him further away from whatever game plan the coach has drafted up, thus out of position, etc, or in a bad spot in case of a turnover. Playing with EP in this case would seem good because he is the only other person on the team with that level of creativity but he always seems to cover for his mistakes when they happen with a good back check or something, its like as soon as things go awry, boom. He hustles back into the perfect spot defensively. Goldy may have made his biggest strides perhaps learning from and playing with EP this year in this sense (I would argue Boeser and others have started playing a little more this way watching him too with diving poke checks across the ice and such).
    2) They feel like he only fits on EP’s line, but they want a bigger physical presence with EP and Boeser. Someone who will stick up for them and grind the boards well. If this is the case, don’t be suprised if JB tries to go after and probably overpay Ferland this year. JV could play the left wing too, and he seems to have really been working on his playmaking this year. He has the physicality and the speed to keep up, hell, he’s great at taking the zone, but I don’t know if the coach feels he has the vision or hockey IQ the coach is looking for on their wing.
    Who knows? Just speculation.

  • Totally disagree with this article. The last game Goldobin played where he beat the man to an icing but lost the battle for the puck and on the ensuing rush left the man in the slot open for an easy goal. Great skills but no compete and weak on the boards. To say he’s better than Leivo is ridiculous. Leivo’s bigger, competes harder, forechecks and can shoot the puck. Green’s not picking on him he’s just frustrated he can’t get it and he probably never will. He should be watching Roussel who doesn’t have as much skill but gives it every shift and battles. More ice time for a guy who’s just cruising around playing a one way game is not the best way to build a winner.

    • Against Chicago, Pettersson was hit from behind in the boards and fell to the ice. It was more of a push and I didn’t have a problem with the non-call. Leivo skated by and hit the Chicago player from behind while he was standing over Pettersson. Could easily have been a penalty, but wasn’t called as it was only a bit more than what happened to Pettersson. Over all not a big deal, but Leivo gave a response for Pettersson being knocked around. That has value in the dressing room. No, I don’t think it will keep the next team from knocking Pettersson around, but it will help the Canucks believe in each other and form bonds amongst the team.

  • “Goldobin has been more of playmaker than a scorer this season”

    Absolutely!

    I’d bet 10:1 that Goldobin has more passes that led to an odd-man or breakaway scoring chance this season than any other player in the NHL. It’s just unfortunate that 99% of them were to the opposing team.

    Honestly, you guys need to quit raking Green over the coals on this one. Goldobin is bad defensively and terrible at giveaways entering the offensive zone. On top of that he rarely scores, and only garners points when he’s on a line with other players who excel at scoring. It’s only the stellar play of Markstrom that’s kept Goldobin’s terrible +- from being NHL leading (in a bad way). As it is, he’s worst on the team of any player who doesn’t get PK time by a wide margin, this while playing mostly with the top Canucks in terms of +-. It boggles my mind why anyone would think he’s worth keeping around.

    Giving him away for a bag of pucks would make the Canucks a better team.

    • Dan Murphy from Sportsnet …. who was apparently abducted by the Canucks twitter crowd — it cannot be a coincidence that he reveals a subconscious facial tick when guests present a different opinion than that of the mothership —…. referred to Goldobin as “Ultra-Skilled”. I think he is misinterpreting the mean of one or both words.

    • Not sure if you were given the assignment to write an article about how Green has mistreated Goldobin or if you actually believe what you wrote. Next time try watching some of the games Goldobin has played you would have noticed why Green doesn’t play him. Don’t mean to be nasty but am getting tired of reading these crappy articles I got through the fix six paragraphs and went straight to the comments as the content was an insult to the readers intelligence. Nice to have your stats back up what you are trying to get across but too bad reality on the ice blows the stuff away that you had quoted from the graphs.

          • Appreciate the comment though, and reading this back I need to do better in my opinion. Next one I’ll get back to my bread and butter, expect it this weekend 🤙. Cheers!

        • Dude, a word to the wise… don’t follow the same mistake as many other newbie writers here have and listen to the armchair critics and trolls. It never ends well. They know nothing. Seriously.

          • What this guy said.
            In this market there has always been waaaaay more negative about our team and players not performing than positive, your opinion is still valid, there is always two sides to a story.

          • Thanks Tony, reading back the article didn’t come across as I wanted but I appreciate the advice. My next one will be a better representation of myself as a writer I think. Cheers!

    • I won’t trash your article or the writing and your stats supported your position. I hope Green is giving Goldy the Hutton treatment and it works for next year. But I agree with North Van Halen’s comments about all the players being in sync. You can’t Allow some players to cheat as its hard to make others play the right way. You can get away with more if you score 50, but those players don’t tend to win cups. Imagine how much better the team will be if Goldy figures it out.

    • FWIW, I actually liked your article.
      It ambitiously set out to try to sway general perception, and backed it up with data and reasonable supporting theories.
      And for the most part did so without the usual arrogance we are so accustomed to here.

      • Also would like to add that I don’t think you’re entirely wrong, despite all the pitchforks around here.
        While I support Green and his coaching style, and the majority of comments here about earning icetime, is it not also fair to look at areas that Green could improve?

        Take for instance, the playing style of the Pettersson line lately; I don’t think anyone would argue that this line’s real threat comes off the rush, as both Boesser and EP are masters of moving laterally into open ice, then finding the open man against the grain as defenders chase and get out of position. And yet what do we see? EP leading the rush with no support, and dumping it in.

        Yes, defence wins games.
        Yes, you have to know how to dump and chase, and play along the boards in the playoffs
        But you also need to play to your strengths. And it could be argued that Goldobin is not being encouraged to play to his.

  • Green wants grinders. Problem is skill wins Stanley Cups. Grinders don’t. Green can’t have his team prepared for the opening period of a game. Green can’t hold a lead heading into the 3rd period. Green has been pushing a lousy powerplay all year. Green doesn’t have an offensively gifted mind. His mind is grind grind grind. I personally like how Goldy played after his last benching. I like the way he sees the ice and makes plays. Unfortunately he is Greens whipping boy. So he might already be damaged goods.

    • I’m not going to say grinders win cups, but they are as necessary as the skill. Both parts of the same system. Playing every 2nd night for 2 months, at an increased intensity means you need your grinders. They wear down the other team, they win the battles and do the heavy lifting allowing the skill players to do what they do best, and hopefully knock the other teams skill guys off their game. All star games are for skill only, cups are won by complete teams who execute their systems best.

  • I just dont get all the love for Goldobin. He hasn’t done anything since the first month of the season when everyone racks up points. Since the going has got tougher as the teams get their players and strategies in order,,,, nothing. Petey plays hard at both ends of the ice. Defends as hard as he tries to score. Not Goldobin. NOT the type of player you win with in the playoffs.

    • Petey plays harder at both ends of the ice than most of the league, that’s a tough comparison.

      Green is doing the right thing, but I hope Benning plays this properly. The reason there’s love for Goldy is our desperation for another top 6 winger and the poise and playmaking he shows in the offensive zone.

      I know he gives it away coming into the zone far too often, but that I would think you could correct if he played regularly and was getting positive vibes from the coach.

      Too bad he doesn’t seem to have figured out the rest of the game, so he is potential that may never be achieved. I think the Hutton comparison is the most accurate, and I feel the same way as I did about Hutton at this time last year.

      Don’t walk away from him, don’t dump him on the cheap. Either keep him and see if he responds like Hutton, or trade him in a package that gets us a true top 4 defenseman. We have no assets to waste, and there’s not a lot of real threats to Goldy’s potential role on the team. This is a time to be patient, he’s young and a controlled contract, so I want a decent return if we’re giving up on him.

  • Being a RFA, it’s hard to envision any trade scenerio happening, the Canucks will probably go the same route as what they did with Pouliot and not offer him a contract and take their chances at offering a lower end 1 year deal

  • All his hockey life Goldy has been one of those skill guys who never had to play the 200×85 game because he did not have to. But once you’re in the show there is nowhere to hide if you do not possess all the right things in the toolbox to be successful. Green and everyone else sees his upside but the downside as well. People are polarized on this young player which is clearly understandable given the way that Goldy plays. Would hate to see him go to another team then hit a stride that he could have hit here in theory but didn’t. This is a tough one for sure for Benning to decide on.

  • Just re-read the article. I can’t believe you almost compared Ovechkin to goldy. That said, I am impressed how well you are taking the feedback. I look forward to more articles from you!

  • Goldobin is a good example of where statistics can be misleading. I saw that his fancy stats with Goldobin were quite high but one needs to look at skewed data. As Green says, you strip out November and what has he done? He had 3 short scoring streaks to pad his stats and has been ineffective otherwise. Definitely fails the eye test and the only reason why he has 1-2 defensive lapses resulting in goals is because Green limits his minutes. To steal a line from Team Tank, we should have flipped Goldobin before the trade deadline for picks or another high-risk/reward reclamation project (that’s as good as it gets, folks) because his value was greatly inflated (see article above).