Canucks getting better ...

[LonelyGhost]

lost to Calgary 3 - 1
then to San Jose 4 - 3
then to Anaheim 5 - 1

I guess Luongo is having a nasty introduction to the pace
of the Western conference ...

and the stupid, stupid, stupid penalties don't help ... is Josh Green
the next Buttoozi???

yeah, i know, its ONLY pre-season ... but Calgary, Anaheim and San Jose
don't seem to be having them there problems ...

 

[The Lizard King]

It's only exhibition. The Leafs are 2-1, do you think they'll play at that pace during the season? Calgary, San Jose, and Anaheim have less in the way of job openings and a lower player turnover from last year. You won't have much of an idea as to how the Canucks stand until after 20 or 30 games. They also start off with a whack of road games which might not help.

 

[Smother]

Road games happen to every other team as well.......quit making excuses for them.
They're gonna suck this year...............big time!!
Second and third lines are weaker than last year!!!
People in this city are thinking GOD is in the net!!!
Loungo's human.....keep that in mind......he's not the whole team!!
People are having way to high expectations of this team because of this Goalie!!!
Where's the proof......Look in the papers...hear the local sports station such as TV and radio.......Loungo this....Loungo that!!!!
Who's gonna score the goals?.......The Sedins / Naslind Line?? That line hasn't been proven yet.....

 

[FuZzYknUckLeS]

Domo Arigato

Is it true that Mr. Roboto Luongo got scored on by the first shot of the year?
'Cause that would just be sad. Seven mill a year sad.

 

[The Lizard King]

Road games happen to every other team as well.......quit making excuses for them.

Hardly, I'll be the last person to make excuses for the Canucks. I'm pointing out the obvious. It could actually bring them together, so it could be a factor either way. You're right, road games happen for every team, however, they have 11 games in 20 days and 9 of them are on the road and it includes stops as far east as Chicago and as southeast as Dallas. It's not exactly travelling between the eastern cities or within the lower southwest U.S. Travel much on business?

They're gonna suck this year...............big time!!

That may be the case but to what degree they will or won't can't be determined while they're still carrying a minor league team with them.

Second and third lines are weaker than last year!!!

Maybe but Carter will be lucky to get within 10 goals of last year. I didn't realize Ruuttu was such a great player.

People in this city are thinking GOD is in the net!!!

No, people are thinking that this is a significant upgrade over anything they've had here since McLean. Luongo may prove to be the first superstar the Canucks have had since Bure. Human and not the whole team? Of course, and that explains his record in Florida.

People are having way to high expectations of this team because of this Goalie!!!

Don't know who you've been talking or listening to but pretty much everything I hear is that they'll either miss or barely make the playoffs.

Who's gonna score the goals?.......The Sedins / Naslind Line?? That line hasn't been proven yet

You sound like a typical Vancouver sports fan...on crack.

we'll get a real indication the last 3 or so preseason games when all the moose that are playing now are put out to pasture.

That will be a start anyways.

beening a long time real fan, that stays on the band wagon even when it gets bad. i have to say that i have a bad feeling about this season.

Depends on what your bad feelings equate to....I think they'll end up where the Bob McKenzie's of the world (insiders) think and that's out of or barely in the playoffs. Bad? I don't know....not nearly as bad as last year when much more was expected.

 

[LonelyGhost]

I'll give Luongo the pre-season to find his style, he is, after all, having to
learn what its like to play in the West, where players can actually, skate,
move, and score ... it must be like watching it all on fast-forward!

The other thing he has to get used to is the time change and the travel
that is involved ... none of those nice trips from Detroit to Buffalo to Toronto
to Ottawa to Montreal to New York, New Jersey, Long Island etc.

Finally, he has to develop some confidence and experience with his
defense ...

But the rest of the team really has no excuse for the shit they are
pulling on ice ... none. Was it Calgary where they got 8 penalites in
a row? One of them was some twinkie who hooked Paneuf 200 ft from
the Canuck goal! WTF???

And where is Vingeault in all this???

sigh.

 

[hornyitalian06]

I believe the Canucks will show the doubters, they will do will this season.

 

[Smother]

Well that's my point.....if they don't make the playoffs ...or get eliminated after the first round......none of this makes no difference......that is...

No improvement from previous years......same ole song and dance....
bring us to the 3rd round or finals....then were talking......thats improvement..

we'll see though....

 

[hornyitalian06]

Yes, it pre-season but it gives us fans an idea of the depth of the club. Some of the players will sent to farm team and the remainder will cut from the team.
Vancover Canucks are going to get better as time goes by and I think they prove their critics wrong about an average season and maybe making only the firt round of the playoffs.

 

[jimbo2006]

The next thing I'd like to see is a Canucks-Ducks matchup in the playoffs, but that might be looking too far ahead.

Based on the latest stats, Luongo's on pace to tie Bernie Parents' record of 47 wins in a season.


However, Brodeur's on pace for 49 wins

 

[mustangjoe]

Based on the latest stats, Luongo's on pace to tie Bernie Parents' record of 47 wins in a season.

who cares. It's a mean nothing stat. how many games were there to a season back then? apples & oranges.

 

[jimbo2006]

It was an 80 game schedule back then. You bring up a good point though, since those were the days of the Broadstreet bullies, so putting up 47 wins may not have been as difficult as in today's NHL where team parity is the norm. Luongo's had to earn most of his wins, which were by 1 goal decisions.

Another thing to think about is if Luongo keeps that up this year and in subsequent seasons, his agent will ask for even more money in a salary cap league..not necessarily a bad thing but something to consider

 

[Hoops]

In today's NHL there are more wins to be had due to OT and shootouts.
How many wins does Luongo have that are by OT or shootout?
Parent would've had more if these were around back in the goon days.

 

[jimbo2006]

True, but going back to that 73-74 season, the Flyers finished 2nd overall with 112 pts and they had a GF/GA differential of +109 goals! Like Luongo, Parent started most of the games that year, hence the 47 wins

Given that stat, doesn't look like Parent needed any OT or shootouts to rack up those wins. True, Luongo's won his share of games via shootout or OT, but that also means he's had to play more minutes/game and manage to remain fit, mentally sharp and focused for the next game. Getting back to the goal differential, due to the fact the Canucks have gone on a scoring binge of late, they now sport a +2 differential

 

[KYG]

Another thing to think about is if Luongo keeps that up this year and in subsequent seasons, his agent will ask for even more money in a salary cap league..not necessarily a bad thing but something to consider[/QUOTE]



Yeah but the most an NHL player can make in one season I believe is 7 million.

 

[jimbo2006]

Yeah but the most an NHL player can make in one season I believe is 7 million.

That's based on current league revenues. If the NHL achieves some semblance of success in promoting the Crosby's and Ovechkins to a wider audience in the U.S. then league revenues could shoot up and the cap could go up to 50 million with the highest salary in the 9-10 mil range.

Currently Luongo takes up 13.6% of the team's salary cap space. Under this hypothetical scenario, it could become 20% and Canucks ticket prices would have to head north even more

 

[KYG]

True but other teams will have the same problem. Eventually players like Crosby, Pronger, Ilya Kovalchuk, Kiprusoff, etc. will be making the maximum allowable. Is Luongo worth that? So far he's proven that...

 

[jimbo2006]

Yep and if the Canucks make the playoffs and go deep enough you know there'll be a raise to be factored in once his contract comes close to expiration

Personally though, I'd rather pay a premium to watch Crosby or Ovechkin score a bushel of goals rather than watch a bunch of plumbers playing in front of a stone wall

 

[KYG]

The Nucks had that run and gun offense but it got them nowhere in the playoffs. They won the one playoff series and that was against St. Louis when the whole team had the flu.

Maybe this defensive system is more suited in the playoffs.

 

[Hoops]

True, but going back to that 73-74 season, the Flyers finished 2nd overall with 112 pts and they had a GF/GA differential of +109 goals! Like Luongo, Parent started most of the games that year, hence the 47 wins

Given that stat, doesn't look like Parent needed any OT or shootouts to rack up those wins. True, Luongo's won his share of games via shootout or OT, but that also means he's had to play more minutes/game and manage to remain fit, mentally sharp and focused for the next game. Getting back to the goal differential, due to the fact the Canucks have gone on a scoring binge of late, they now sport a +2 differential

I'm not sure if you are supporting my point or against it.
The point I was making is that Parent didn't have the opportunity to turn tie games into wins during OT or shootout. He had 12 ties that season. I'm sure he would have even more wins.
I don't think that wins is a stat that truly reflects a goalie's ability anyways. It is a team stat also.