I've got some good news and some bad news! You can just look at the
good news and pretend to be a spokesman for the Canucks
organization, or just the bad news and pose as a member of
Vancouver's " the sky is falling" media. Or you could read both and
be intelligent, well-informed, and good-looking (it worked for me).
THE GOOD NEWS (THE FUTURE) - The good news is that with a
loss in Detroit on Wednesday night (HUGE UPSET!) the Canucks will
secure themselves a spot in the league's bottom three, and
therefore, once Atlanta is entered into the mix, a top 4 draft
pick. This would give them the opportunity to select one of the
much-heralded Sedin twins, Calgary Hitmen star Pavel Brendl or
Patrik Stefan, who's had success in the IHL. All four of these
Europeans have star potential.
Now the bad news. To get one of these gems, the Canucks have
completely and utterly bombed this season. Loss after loss after
loss etc... Next season players like Josh Holden and Peter Schaefer
will benefit from their experience this season and should step up.
Shaefer found a comfy spot with Naslund and Messier on the first
line and could stay there if Mark Crawford decides to spread out
his already thin offence a bit. This could land Holden with Alex
Mogilny (they showed flashes of promise in limited stints together)
and possibly Todd Bertuzzi.
The defence will be another year older and more experienced, and the
addition of Bryan Allen, Canadian Junior team member and dominant
force on the back-end for the Oshawa Generals. Goalie Kevin Weekes,
acquired in the Bure deal, has been shaky at times, spectacular at
others and is slated to play quite a few games next year.
Promise, promise, promise. Brian Burke has also expressed interest
in a couple of BC boys who starred in U.S. college hockey this
year. Fernie's Jason Krog, the Hobey Baker Award winner and a
quick, dangerous sniper, and Steve Kariya (the younger brother of
Paul), who captained his Maine Black Bears to the NCAA
Championship, will both receive offers to come home. But Burke
warns that those offers will quickly cease if the potential signing
bonuses reach the ridiculous levels that a desperate market often
produces. Assistant GM Dave Nonis has stated that the club will
pursue a "second tier free-agent". So with a high draft pick, the
potential of incoming college or pro players with offensive
prowess, a maturing defence and an up 'n coming goalie, the Canucks
future looks brighter than many teams (I'm looking at you,
Islanders).
THE BAD NEWS (THE PRESENT) - First and foremost, the Peter
Zezel debacle. Peter's young niece is currently in a Toronto
hospital, and she's dying. Zezel, unmarried, thinks of her as his
own daughter and has been justifiably distracted for most of the
year. He has left the team on a few occasions to visit her, but his
commitment to the team has kept him in Vancouver. He has been
planning to spend whatever time he may have left with her as soon
as the season ended, so his request at the trade deadline was to
not be moved.
The Canucks, obviously a non-playoff team, will be done mid-April,
and Zezel could go back east without having to worry about the
post-season. So what did the Canucks do? They traded him to Anaheim
(a definite playoff team) for a low, low draft-pick. Peter Zezel
was made to be the bad guy. He refused the trade and it was voided.
He has since left the club for Toronto, and won't be back since he
is an unrestricted free agent this summer.
It boggles the mind why Brian Burke, thought to have both a brain
and a heart, would trade a man whose niece was dying for a 900 and
somethingeth pick. Keep Zezel and let him go at the end of the
season or, even better, encourage him to leave now while still
paying him. That seems reasonable under the circumstances. But to
trade the man and extend his commitment seems insane and heartless.
This is just another situation that has exploded in Burke's face
(see Bure trade, Mike Keenan firing, etc.). In the team's defence,
they have made a donation to her cause, and while many would label
it a political gesture, it is a gesture nonetheless.
That's almost 300 words of bad and we haven't even touched the
on-ice performance of the team. I attended the 7-0 drubbing at the
hands of the Sharks. It was ugly. There is no other word to
describe the team's play. No offence, no defence, UGLY. They are
now playing out the string and can hopefully lose enough to be
passed by the Islanders, who are three points behind but have two
games in hand.
RANDOM THOUGHT - I sure feel sorry for Kevin Weekes, who
still hasn't won an NHL game. He lost 11 as a Panther last year and
has another half-dozen Canuck defeats. His confidence is low and
has contributed to some weak goals, but I'd admit that it's pretty
damn hard to feel confident when wearing goalie pads and a Canuck
jersey.
INJURIES - Played vs. Chicago on April 5 without Mark
Messier, Todd Bertuzzi, Bill Muckalt, Brad May, Bert Robertsson,
Peter Schafer and Mattias Ohlund. That's four valuable veterans and
three younger guys, all important to the team. Schafer has played
great hockey since being recalled and will be around for years to
come (it was only a month ago that his NHL career was being
described as dead by local media). I'd like to see any NHL team
compete without three of their top five forwards and a top
defenceman. Wait...that's what Philadelphia is doing right now
without Lindros, LeClair, Recchi and Desjardins. But they have
Bobby Clarke watching over them, so they can't lose!
BY REQUEST - I have been asked to discuss the deals that
Detroit made at the deadline, and while I don't want to step on any
feet, I have a duty to my many fans. I couldn't believe the Chelios
deal, but it became all the more shocking when I heard immediately
there after that they picked up Ulf Samuelsson, too. That's two
physical, intimidating and annoying defencemen. Most teams would be
happy with just one. The Wendel Clark deal surprised me only in
that he didn't go to Dallas, The Stars did end up picking up Benoit
Hogue from the Lightning for Sergei Gusev and picks, but he's a
serious downgrade from Clark, and hasn't put them over the top the
last two years. Why now? I think that Clark will re-sign with the
Wings, if for no other reason then a winning lineup that includes
Wendel Clark, Jamie Macoun and Larry Murphy should haunt Leaf fans.
He's played well with Fedorov, and is always a crowd favourite.
Other reactions:
- Bob Clarke's an idiot to pick up Dushesne ( Desjardins will be
back! ) at 4 mil a year, and I'll co-nominate him along with John
Vanbiesbrouck for overpaid veteran whose mistakes haunt Philly in
the playoffs. Two great pickups Bobby !!!
- Buffalo was smart to pick up Juneau, he'll help, as will Rhett
Warrener, but it won't be enough to get them passed the second
round.
- San Jose gets to share the glory with Detroit for best trade.
Getting Vinny Damphousse was a great move, as he gives them
leadership and speed. Look for him to pick up Joe Murphy's play -
and look for Jeff Friesen to emerge as a recognized star when the
Sharks give the Avs a run in the first round.
- Ottawa didn't get a star with Donato or Emerson, but they got more
speed and skill... and from North Americans this time. If they
succeed in the playoffs, look for team's to follow their
speed/finesse example. If not, opponents will just bring back the
goons.
WAYNE AXFORD - THE MAN, THE MYTH, THE AWARD - It's really
hard to choose a best Canuck, so I'll go with the democratically
elected choice. Adrian Aucoin, whose four goals since the last
award lead the team, wins again. He now has the advantage on Markus
Naslund, three selections to two, with one more to go before a
winner is crowned. I heard that Adrian not only leads NHL
defencemen in goals (23) but is fourth among D-boys with 200+ hits.
Congrats Adrian! And I'd also like to congratulate Wayne Axford for
his sense of humour in giving our Comparative Civilizations class a
surprise test last week! That was a blast!
