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Question to wilde! Any chacce Craig Mactavish becomes coach of the Vancouver Canucks?

tokugawa

Member
Sep 8, 2005
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Hey wilde I have always enjoyed your posts and you seem to have a pretty good grasp of hockey especially with your beloved Habs. That being said, I wondering if you could provide some feedback for me on this post.

But before you do, I WANT TO MAKE IT CLEAR TO ALL YOU GUYS (not you wilde) OUT THERE this post is not an attempt at TROLLING! If you need more information about these topics, I suggest you Google Dan Bylsma, Michel Terrien, Larry Robinson, Robby Ftorek, Marc Crawford and the Colorado Avalanche 96 Cup winning team.

In any case, back to you wilde and to my question. Any chance Craig Mactavish will become coach of the Vancouver Canucks by season's end?

Not sure what you think about the Canuck's coaching for the past few years but I seriously think Alain Vigneault needs to go! Sometimes I just shake my head when it comes to how he handles or treats some of his players such as Booth, Ballard and now-traded Hodgson. Yet bonehead players like Rome and Raymond can continue to make mistakes galore yet receive no repercussions. Also his continued unquestioned loyalty to Luongo is sometimes detrimental to the team. He has no problems throwing certain players under the bus but those that do need it, get handled with kid gloves.

And how the hell do you line up the Sedins with Mason Raymond who is such a one dimensional player whose game hasn't changed one iota since he's entered the league. I mean the guy doesn't finish, he doesn't make his line mates better, he's not a great play maker, he doesn't go hard to the net, he doesn't want to be anywhere near the net and he always tends to passes the puck off to someone who is unable to make a play i.e., throw it back to the point to the D Man who is then immediately checked. The play usually starts with Raymond and it ends with Raymond; it usually ends up being a waste of a shift for that line. In my opinion, he's decent penalty killer but when it comes to line, it's probably best to keep on the fourth line. But some for some reason, Vigneault loves Raymond!

Anyway, what are the chances of a coaching change here in Canuck land? I think Craig MacTavish would be a good fit for the Canucks! Coaching changes have worked in the past for Pittsburgh with Dan Bylsma (for Michel Terrien) and the New Jersey with Larry Robinson (taking over for Robby Ftorek).

Note: In terms of winning percentages AV may be good but I think at times it's overrated. Marc Crawford had a great winning percentage in Colorado in the nineties but then again he had a great teams (Sakic, Forsberg, Roy, Nolan, Ricci, Keane, Foote, Deadmarsh, etc) back then. I think any coach could have won with those teams. If some of you (not you wilde) need a baseball analogy, the same goes for Cito Gaston. Was he a great technical manager? No he wasn't but he was good at managing egos.

So in summary, can the Canucks be a better team without AV? What did you think of AV's performance when he was in Montreal? Yes Reggie was there at the time but I still thought he should have done more at the time with the rookies instead of always trying to ice a veteran team in a futile attempt to make the playoffs, which they didn't.

And on a side note: Do the Canucks really need Raymond? Curious to know what's your take here wilde?

Finally, apologies to this long winded post. I was afraid if I didn't clarify things, I would be accused of being a troll and writing asinine posts as one individual has suggested.
 

wilde

Sinnear Member
Jun 4, 2003
3,040
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Holy Shit dude, now all of a sudden, I feel like Bob McKenzie - the hockey insider on TSN.

First of all, Alain Vigneault is signed through the 2012-2013 season, i.e./ one more season to go. I think the success or lack thereof in this year's playoffs will determine the fate of AV in Vancouver. They will either give him a contract extension because of success in the playoffs or let him go in the off season because of an early exit in the playoffs. What the Canucks probably won't do is to let AV play out the last year's of his contract as a lame duck coach. Now if AV becomes available, I think the Habs will give him serious consideration to return. It's no secret that the next Habs head coach must be bilingual, you can count the number of those with NHL head coaching experience with your fingers.

When AV was the head coach in Montreal he was was basically thrown into the fire. He was inexperienced but he did quite well with what he had, namely the players or lack thereof. He lasted 3 seasons plus 20 games (those were some dark times to be a Habs fan), and made the playoffs only once, in his first year in Montreal but he was one of the coach of the year candidates in 2000. Rumor has it that he ran a couple of players out of town whose names escape me at the moment (one of them I believe was Darcy Tucker). Therefore, his alleged mishandling of players is nothing new but remember, every coach has their favourite whipping boy.

In terms of Raymond, he feels like one of those player who can skate like the wind but lack finish (think Russ Courtnall or Jan Bulis) and soft as butter. I would trade him in the off season if there are any takers.

Finally, my take on MacTavish. He has a reputation as a player's coach and is good with young players. He is currently coaching the Chicago Wolves in the AHL trying to make his way back to the big league. He took the Oilers to a surprising Stanley Cup finals in the 2006 playoffs and like the Canucks, lost the final and deciding game 7. He won 4 cups as a player with Edmonton and New York, so he has good pedigree. As a sometimes Canucks fan, I feel that he would make a good head coach in Vancouver but he might come off as having too much Edmonton baggage which may not fly with the Vancouver media.
 

tokugawa

Member
Sep 8, 2005
487
3
18
Holy Shit dude, now all of a sudden, I feel like Bob McKenzie - the hockey insider on TSN.

First of all, Alain Vigneault is signed through the 2012-2013 season, i.e./ one more season to go. I think the success or lack thereof in this year's playoffs will determine the fate of AV in Vancouver. They will either give him a contract extension because of success in the playoffs or let him go in the off season because of an early exit in the playoffs. What the Canucks probably won't do is to let AV play out the last year's of his contract as a lame duck coach. Now if AV becomes available, I think the Habs will give him serious consideration to return. It's no secret that the next Habs head coach must be bilingual, you can count the number of those with NHL head coaching experience with your fingers.

When AV was the head coach in Montreal he was was basically thrown into the fire. He was inexperienced but he did quite well with what he had, namely the players or lack thereof. He lasted 3 seasons plus 20 games (those were some dark times to be a Habs fan), and made the playoffs only once, in his first year in Montreal but he was one of the coach of the year candidates in 2000. Rumor has it that he ran a couple of players out of town whose names escape me at the moment (one of them I believe was Darcy Tucker). Therefore, his alleged mishandling of players is nothing new but remember, every coach has their favourite whipping boy.

In terms of Raymond, he feels like one of those player who can skate like the wind but lack finish (think Russ Courtnall or Jan Bulis) and soft as butter. I would trade him in the off season if there are any takers.

Finally, my take on MacTavish. He has a reputation as a player's coach and is good with young players. He is currently coaching the Chicago Wolves in the AHL trying to make his way back to the big league. He took the Oilers to a surprising Stanley Cup finals in the 2006 playoffs and like the Canucks, lost the final and deciding game 7. He won 4 cups as a player with Edmonton and New York, so he has good pedigree. As a sometimes Canucks fan, I feel that he would make a good head coach in Vancouver but he might come off as having too much Edmonton baggage which may not fly with the Vancouver media.
Thanks wilde. Excellent observations. Exactly what I was expecting. You are PERB's version of Bob McKenzie! More Bob and the TSN Panel and less Ron Maclean, Don Cherry and PJ Stock is what we need.
 

grusse

Well-known member
Feb 18, 2010
3,871
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not to steer the topic away,but,looking back to Game 7 O/T.....if Burrows
doesn't score that goal,I wonder if AV is still the Canucks' coach?

Also,I wonder if there might have been more roster changes?

Pure speculation,I realize,and many might disagree.
 

tokugawa

Member
Sep 8, 2005
487
3
18
not to steer the topic away,but,looking back to Game 7 O/T.....if Burrows
doesn't score that goal,I wonder if AV is still the Canucks' coach?

Also,I wonder if there might have been more roster changes?

Pure speculation,I realize,and many might disagree.
Agree with you there - Burrows saved AV's behind for at least until to the start of this season.

I always thought that MacTavish was brought in just in case if AV started to screwing up.
 

wilde

Sinnear Member
Jun 4, 2003
3,040
44
48
not to steer the topic away,but,looking back to Game 7 O/T.....if Burrows
doesn't score that goal,I wonder if AV is still the Canucks' coach?
I remember that goal well, it was white knuckle time for Canucks fans. The goal came as a result of a weak clearing attempt by Chris Campoli (he tried to lob it out instead of banging it off the boards, Don Cherry is right sometimes). Burrows gloved it down and swiped at the rolling puck. And the rest, as they say is history. That win gave Canucks fans the feeling that this could be their year as eliminating Chicago exorcise the ghost of the two playoffs past. Had they lost that game there is no doubt in my mind that AV would have been fired.
 

wolverine

Hard Throbbing Member
Nov 11, 2002
6,384
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E-Town
Mac T was doing the same thing with the Oilers what the OP is accusing AV of now...giving plumbers and used vets 1st line and power play time, giving mistaken-prone players lots of ice time instead of benching them, favoring the veteran goalie over the prospects.
 
Ashley Madison
Vancouver Escorts