Canucks Army Monday Mailbag: July 31st

I’m no baseball expert, but I have a pretty good handle on this hockey thing. I don’t know how realistic the chances of the Toronto Blue Jays bouncing back are, but I know the Vancouver Canucks don’t have a hope in hell of turning it around next season and likely the one that follows.

I am by no means a football expert, either. There was a time, however, when I only covered football. I’ve been a Pittsburgh Steelers fan for as long as I can remember. I’m not entirely disconnected from football. In fact, it’s right up there with hockey in terms of sheer enjoyment. It doesn’t hurt that in football I have a favourite team and they just happen to be pretty damn good and entertaining.

With that, I’ll offer you a sleeper based on my knowledge of the Steelers offence. I’d take a look at Ju-Ju Smith-Schuster in the later rounds. Right now, I’d expect he’s fourth on the Steelers depth chart at receiver, but that’s subject to change at any given moment. Martavis Bryant, talented as he may be, is always a risk for a long-term suspension and Sammie Coates is downright useless. Those are the two players directly ahead of Schuster on the depth chart. I’d be wholly surprised if he’s not ahead of Coates by season’s end. Being a third receiver in the Steelers offence can be a pretty cushy and opportunity-rich gig.

Full disclaimer: I’m just pulling a number out of thin air. Let’s predict a solid 20-points for Nikita “BFG” Tryamkin.

I guess it depends on who you ask. For Tryamkin, it was that or an icing last season. Given the two options, perhaps uncontrolled exits were, in fact, good? In general, one would prefer a controlled exit though.

I’d be surprised if the Sedins’ don’t find themselves in that role by season’s end. They’re just too old for what the Canucks have asked of them these last few seasons, and I think that plays a role in their decreasing counting stats. It’s not outlandish to think that the Sedins and Eriksson could hold down a modestly effective offensive line in the Canucks’ top six that just kept the puck from the other team for minutes on end. Everyone would probably be better off for it, too.

Now, here’s a question I can get behind. I polled a handful of scouts on this topic when I was in Chicago for the draft, and they almost unanimously thought Olli Juolevi a slightly better prospect than Miro Heiskanen. The one scout who thought Heiskanen the better of the two said it was by a razor’s edge. With no vested interest one way or the other, even I have to admit, there’s something endlessly hilarious about people giving the Canucks a hard time for taking Juolevi fifth overall last season and letting the Stars have a pass for taking Heiskanen with the third pick. Honestly, there’s a case that neither pick was the best available option where their teams took them, but if either of the two is the more egregious misstep, it’s Heiskanen.

This is a good opportunity to add that ceiling and floor share a far more symbiotic relationship than most give credit. The idea of “boom or bust” prospects is a touch outdated, not that you’re making that connection — I just wanted to use this opportunity to drop that piece of information. For argument’s sake, let’s say Heiskanen has the higher ceiling and Juolevi is a surer bet.

I’ve heard scouts and industry experts drop the Nicklas Backstrom comparison for Elias Pettersson, and I tend to think it holds merit. I don’t know if the Canucks have a prospect of Backstrom’s quality in Pettersson, but they share certain stylistic similarities, which is encouraging for the Canucks in its own right.

The Canucks aren’t going to have a tonne of company at the bottom, but I’d expect the Colorado Avalanche, Vegas Golden Knights and the New Jersey Devils to share that space.

There are only three players from the 2017 NHL Entry Draft who I see as having even the slightest chance of making the show. Nico Hischier and Nolan Patrick should have every opportunity to make their respective teams, but who knows how long either sticks. I wouldn’t be surprised if Owen Tippett made the Florida Panthers out of camp. He’s a hell of a player, and the Panthers need all the help they can get on their wings after gutting their top six.

The more inclusion, the better. If a female player is talented enough and physically able to withstand the rigours of minor league hockey, then why keep them from playing? It’s 2017, after all. If you can play, you can play, right? In general, I think hockey has an inclusion problem. It’s an old boys club if there ever was one and they all look strikingly similar if you catch my drift. It’s long past overdue that the NHL make a concerted effort to open their doors to women and people of colour, and I’m open to just about anything that helps.

Any moves that address the Canucks’ scouting department are good moves. Beyond Director of Amateur Scouting, Judd Brackett, that part of the Canucks’ hockey operation leaves a lot to be desired. I get the sense from people close to the situation that Ryan Johnson is a great hockey mind, and someone they surely expect to stay in a front office in some capacity for as long as he’d like. I haven’t put a tonne of thought into the Canucks front office shake-up, but at a glance, they seem largely for the best.

I doubt the Canucks will go to Thatcher Demko this season if they can avoid it. This will be Demko’s second season in professional hockey, which makes him fairly raw as far as goaltenders are concerned. Why rush the kid? I would suspect they’ll go back to Richard Bachman if they need a third goalie at any point in the season.

The KHL’s data set isn’t as expansive as the NHL’s, if memory serves, but they do have some pretty interesting stuff on their website. I’d go there if you’re looking for something beyond boxcars.

The Canucks will take the best player available to them, one would think.

I’m the worst person to ask this question too. My apologies. I just don’t really care for hockey books. When I read, that’s usually my escape from work, etc. so you can see where I might be coming from here.

I was quite young for much of the Mark Messier era in Canucks history. In general, I look back at how he produced as a Canuck and can’t help but wonder if the city is being a touch harsh on the guy. Then again, his arrival signalled the end of Trevor Linden’s time as a Canuck and that kind of sucks, so I guess that would go a ways towards explaining why he’s so reviled in this city. Honestly, I was too young to care about Messier’s time as a Canuck when I was a kid. Now that I’m covering the team and have disavowed myself of fandom, I just couldn’t care less. I guess I sympathize with the city’s hatred, but it’s not something I care about one way or the other, personally.

So, that’s a tough one. Like any good socialist, I believe strongly in the power of personal rehabilitation rather than punitive measures. On the other, this sport isn’t welcoming to women in general, and I think moments like Semyon Varlamov playing a game a day or so after a domestic violence charge is a good snapshot of why that’s the case. Perhaps there’s a good middle-ground? Severe suspensions, unlike any we’ve ever seen yet, and the ability to return to the sport once someone’s proven themselves a better person comes to mind as one approach worth exploring.

Really, though, I shouldn’t be the one to answer this question. I think this is one best left for the people primarily affected by the issue. As a 26-year-old white male, I can’t understand what it’s like to be a victim of domestic violence — rather, it’s not as frequent and the dynamics are such that there isn’t an apples to apples comparison worth making.

I think Nikolay Goldobin has the offensive potential to be a first line player, frankly. Whether that’s the most likely outcome or not is another story entirely. Goldobin’s far more likely to be a middle-six forward than a top-six scorer if we’re being realistic.

Maybe we’ll record one this week?

Because the Canucks don’t seem terribly interested in acquiring futures and haven’t for most of Jim Benning’s time as the Canucks general manager.

Not soon enough.

The Canucks made up their mind on Jordan Subban a long time ago, it seems. Subban’s defensive game is a problem — that much I can agree on. Where I disagree with the Canucks is that I believe he brings enough to the table offensively to still make him a net positive contributor to the team’s ability to win hockey games.