so morrison gets a free pass because he's a local guy? he was completely useless all season long after nonis rewarded him with a 3+ million dollar contract. IMO this team needs a true number one centre which means that dumping morrison is almost the #1 priority. bertuzzi is gone, but i don't think naslund is going to be moved unless nonis gets a special offer for him.

maybe get rid of the whole team and move the manitoba moose to vancouver. they're cheaper to watch and they don't float most nights like the canucks!!!!

The canuck management rewarded the players by keeping the so called core group together at the beginning of the season. Unfortunately, these core players failed to meet the expectations of ownership and most importantly the fans. Their dismal half season performance necessitates change. One must remember that the conference they were playing was very competative and the canucks were just a few points shy of making the playoffs. The team won more games than they lost. So whatever change occurs must be accomplished in prudent and wise fashion. Rookie GM Dave Nonis certainly has to make some wise decisions during the off season. I wish him all the best.

Phew...somebody has the nerve to say it. Although unlikely, it would really sever the vestigal remains of the now defunct Westcoast Express, now replaced by Cheecho, Ekman, Thornton.

More likely is Morrison, and perhaps a waning interest in Cloutier could materialize into something. Auld has proven himself to be a number one, so they shhould pay him like one. He was one of the few bright spots this year, despite the media's love-hate relationship with him (but isn't that always the way?), and with more development he will get better.

Burgess is right about the defense. We'll also get Luc Bourdon, another Jovo style d-man. Carney was a nice surprise, but he's getting on...

Perhaps, in lieu of Linden, they could shore up some veteran from waivers. I don't know enough to know who will be available, but theres bound to be a couple oldie but goodies.

I have never left the bandwagon. I will not change teams. I like the new NHL. But, as Hockey is the paradox in my otherwise iconoclastic outlook, perhaps I myself will sever the last remaining artifacts of corporate culture and take a swan dive off the Wet Coast bandwagon express...

1. Fire Crawford;
2. Sell Morrison and Bertuzzi - Bertuzzi should have gone last fall, for his own good as well as the team's mental health, to a team in the East.
Preferrably to a team like Philadelphia or Toronto - the Star has never stopped complaining about him since the Moore incident so that would be a delicious irony.
3. Get rid of McCaw. More than anything this team needs an owner who knows and cares about hockey and the community. McCaw doesn't make it on either score.
4. Hire Ted Nolan to coach - and Trevor Linden as his assistant - retire Linden's jersey and have a big party.
5. Hang onto Naslund and the Twins and make Anson Carter the top paid player on the team.
6. Get at least one real goalie.
7. Look for a real general manager - keep Nonis as his assistant.
8. Scrap the pay-per-view games - the team's profitable now - those things are an offensive elbow in the community's eye.
9. Renew the twins contract.
10. Change the muzak tape at the Garage.

The firing of Brian Burke resulted in the demise of the Canucks. What a stupid decision that was.
Now his new ream, the Mighty Ducks are in the post season and the Canucks are golfing.
What sweet justice.

Go Oilers.

Hockey is like a love affair: If you don't take it seriously, it's no fun; if you take it seriously, it breaks your heart. (my twisted quote from Arnold Daly on golf.)
Canucks missing the play-offs just makes me watch the same commercials in another format.
Maybe I'll catch up on some reading.

Naslund has a no-trade clause.

Which means he has to want to be moved. I wonder how badly he really wants to play with childhood friend/rival Peter Forsberg, and what the Flyers would give us in return. Keith Primeau would even out the salaries, but KP has a notrade as well.

Zammer
Trade Bertuzzi for Forsberg and throw in Morrison to sweeten the deal - easy-peasey. First though, get rid of Crawford...he's the poison in the mix.

sorry, Yammer..

Why would the Flyers want Morrison? They are already overloaded at center with Carter, Richards, Umberger, Handzus, Nedved, Primeau, and Forsberg.

Why would we want Forsberg? He can't stay healthy. And as much as I think that Naslund is remarkably normal and civil for a professional athlete, I agree with Burgess' sentiment that it would be better to rebuild around a different player.

Team leaders shape and symbolize the team. The Smyl era, when I started watching, was one of grit and not much skill. The Linden era, after the St. Louis trade, was one of excellent skating teams that lacked the needed killer instinct. This Naslund era has given us a team with a lot of firepower and a fatal tendency to choke.

Moving on from Naslund would be a reasonable way to shake up the organization, as he would command considerable assets in return too, assuming he's agreeable to move.

Hopefully Noronen is another Kipper.

Yammer.
Your analysis doesn’t look at what I think is the real source of the problem - Crawford. I think Bobby Clarke would love Bertuzzi and embrace him – Morrison was just a way to sweeten the deal for Forsberg.

I think Naslund has perhaps three good years ahead of him and I think turning the Canucks into a real European-style team is the way to go for those three years. From that point of view I think Forsberg and Naslund would be a good coupling. The second line is fine; and there are enough good to middling players in the rest of the crew to create two more decent groups; the defence rests.

Crawford, with his never-ending attempt to fine-tune his one-ice units has sapped the whole team of its spark and vitality and as a coach what did he ever do - win a Stanley Cup with a STACKED Quebec Avalanche (transplanted to Colorado) team that only needed the addition of a top goalie. Not much of an achievement, imo. I think Crawford is a cold personality – a kind of passive aggressive guy who’s too convinced of his own genius because he keeps reading his press clippings from his one successful achievement.

Naslund should stay - Bertuzzi should have left months ago, if that had happened it would have been better for both him and the team and they’d probably still be in the hunt.

Think of all the games they lost this year by one goal while he sulked around like a lost child. Even if they’d managed just one point in each of those games it would a different story.

Last night, I almost cried. I screamed all year. I thought my beloved canucks were at least going to one round of the playoffs.
I think what started this all was the firing
of Brian Burke. He knew how to start a fire
in his team. He would have straightened out
everyone, including Bertuzzi. After all, it
wasn't it Burke standing by Bertuzzi all the
way through the Steve Moore ordeal? But, I guess we have to settle with Dave Nonis. Fire
Crawford? I don't know. Trade Morrison, definately. Trade Bertuzzi, definately. Trade Cloutier, as soon as possible. Naslund
should take this and just retire, he is just
there for the money now. Linden, my favorite player. Linden should retire and take up
a coaching/assistant coaching, some post which
could mentor him to becoming an NHL coach, he would be good for the Canucks as an assistant coach. I would keep the defence in tact and
serve Jovo with a contract. The Sedins contract is also up, I believe they only signed a one year deal and I'm not clear on this but I think they are some sort of free agent at the end of this year. I don't think
we'll see 40 wins next year but hopefully this
summer, the canucks do something good. If nothing happens, then someone should unload Nonis too! My two and a half cents worth from a sad Canucks fan. Yes, go Oilers!

My dream makeover sees Bertuzzi and Crawford and Naslund all gone. We build around the twins, Kesler, Bourdon and Schneider. Go with speed and youth (the Canucks are painfully slow this year) for a couple of painful years, collect our high draft picks, and then peak again in about three or four seasons when kids like Edler, Hansen, and Schneider are coming into their own.

Yammer
Not bad. How do you keep the fans quiet though? They think; with some justification I'd say, that they need a winner - or at least a finalist - in the next two years.

I agree with everything you say except the Naslund part and especially agree that the team is slow now. I kind of like Burrows (sp?) as a real asset for the future. I said I was happy with the defence before but should have added that if they don't resign Jovo that opinion goes out the window too.

The fans here are so bloody fickle though. Every now and again - after I've been forced to listen to those two idiots do play by play on the radio - I keep it on and listen to some of the comments - a kind of masochistic exercise I'll admit, but I think you see that kind of thing at the arena too and it is pretty depressing. It's just a game after all and we should start to treat it that way again.

If I thought the fans could handle it, and really, in the end who cares, I'd go along with your suggestions too, Ron.

been coaching for thirty years. the most obvious thing about this team since about december was that the coach was no longer motivating them. check out the goals that the sharks scored in the last two games. almost every one of them was from an open man in the middle of the slot. all professional players know better than that. they've lost their desire and there's absolutely no chemistry. wholescale changes must be made, but the first step should be a new coach. not sure it will happen though, as the organization has always been a bit of an old boys club who cover each other's asses.

All this pathetic bleating is hysterically funny. I stopped watching NHL hockey some years ago when old time hockey tried to become a corporate money machine for Americans. Come playoff time, I would get caught up in the tribal thing around town, but I remained disappointed with the game on the ice. The "new look" NHL has not impressed me, as much of the physical aspect of the game has been removed, and high-priced floaters wallowed in celebrity. It is just not entertaining. The World Junior Championship, once again, provided the best hockey of the year. I have also taken in a couple of Vancouver Giants games. The Giants are one game away from the WHL final series, leading Portland 3 games to one with game five on Sunday. In the BC Junior league, the Burnaby Express (Darcy Rota, owner and Rick Lanz, coach) are up 2 games to one over the Penticton Vees, with game four tonight, Friday, in Burnaby. So, great hockey exists outside of the millionaire floater circuit. If you are a hockey fan, take in a game. It is great entertainment as the kids fly and hit. If you are not a hockey fan, have fun sulking all Summer and debate what millionaire will or won't be around next year. I could not care less.

Wallace
You're right of course. If we only had something other than the Salsa and the Salmon Kings in Victoria that's what I'd be watching too.

i understand your sentiment wallace, and i go to giants games as well. but there's nothing like watching the big boys when you compare the speed, the skill level and the power. put all that other stuff aside at playoff time and see if you can enjoy the 'new' nhl.

Regular readers will know that it is rare, perhaps unknown, for wallace and elliot to agree on anything. But, elliot, if the overpaid, grown men playing a childrens' game have the speed, skill and power, why don't they use it? I stopped watching the "big boys" play when it became, and has remained, boring.

put a mark, albeit small, on the wall.

The Canucks always seem to start the season like a house on fire. Then it seems that the other teams scout them and learn how to consistently beat them.
Sure, there were injuries to their defense - but aside from that - if this assessment is correct, it boils down to the fault of the coach.
Roger Nielson did not necessarily have a good rapport with players but he was a helluva hockey analyst who found ways to beat the opposition. Roger was the only coach to take the Canucks to the finals.
Is this coincidence?

Didn't Quinn coach them in 1994?

Crawford is clearly a big part of the problem. One hates to admit it, but Gumby in Calgary is a better motivator.

Crawford has to go. Nothing against the guy but even Scotty Bowman changed teams now and then. You only have a limited number of years before players tune you out.

As Yammer stated, Naslund has a no-trade clause but he might be willing to give his permission if it was to the right situation. The Canucks should try to find that situation.

I'd like to keep Morrison. Local boy, talented, he didn't have a great year but then who did?

Bertuzzi has got to go whether Crawford goes or not. I'd give him away for a bag of pucks just to free up the cap room.

There's going to be a hell of a lot of free agents this year including Marion Gaborik. Free to anyone who has the room.

No one else has said it but I think Jovo is gone. He's a free agent and his home is in Florida. If Mike Keenan wants him and Bertuzzi back I think he should take them.

I'm also not sold on the Sedin's and Carter. They had a great year but next year is not guaranteed. I doubt they could repeat their success if they became the number one unit but you never know. Carter should get a raise but not the bank, one year is still just one year. Anyone remember Ron Sedlbauer?

GWest,

I liked this, where's Nolan now? That guy got blackballed for some reason.

Hockey.... yawn.

Frank:
He coaches the Moncton Wildcats of the QMJHL this season, leading the team to a 24-10-0-2 mark.

I think the twins Carter line is okay, Carter was a great find this year - at a bargain price - I don't know if he has leadership qualities that would make him a potential captain if you trade Naslund - maybe!

I think you're right about Jovo, sadly.

Nolan is a good one - badly treated because of his ancestry I'm afraid.

I agree with the critics of professional hockey. It definitely is boring.
Teams are so much into playing what is known as 'the trap'(lining up at the blue line) good scoring chances are seriously reduced. It encourages teams to shoot the puck into the corners and go in and dig it out. If hockey people think this adds to the game, they've got another think coming.
The size of the European ice surface is needed, but that's just a start. I was converted to the way the women play the game..... no boarding!

Personally, I think I'll stick to watching pee-wee hockey.

I had kind of hoped the strike would continue and the NHL would disappear down a black hole and pull Gary Bettman down with it.
Then a new league with several more Canadian teams: Winnipeg; Regina or Saskatoon; Hamilton (or London); Quebec City; Halifax and maybe one other along with, say, 10 or 12 of the top US teams along the 49th could be created - say a maximum of 24 teams.
Playing, as Jack's says, on a bigger ice surface.
That, it seems to me, would be better than the current situation.

alcibiades, I was hoping for the same thing. The breaking of the control by New York over the league.

That there isn't still teams in Winnipeg and Quebec City and that places like Hamilton, Halifax and Saskatchewan can't even get a try-out is pathetic when every dustbowl down south has no problem getting a franchise.

I'd like to see the end of the experiment in Tampa Bay, Florida, Phoenix, Anaheim, Carolina and Atlanta.

Turfing Bert vitiates the need to get rid of Crawford, and he's done enough to warrant keeping him for ONE more. But having the accumulative testosterone they bring to the locker room is quashing Nazzy's good-cop routine.

Brendan's gonna have an 80-point year because he knows we won't be nice to him at the grocery store if he doesn't pick it up like he obviously can.

Anyone who thinks we should either trade or not provide (reasonable) remuneration for the consistency and passion of the Sedins and their brother-from-another-mother didn't watch the games that I did this year.

We're all partly to blame for their inconsistency. I can't believe we saddle them with all that baggage and boo them when they're down and constantly say "they're bums" or "they're gonna blow it" as soon as they lose a game or two or a good player gets hurt. You guys suck. Be quiet. Or don't watch. Your self-loathing and fear-based projections of inferiority have no place in this mundo of machismo. That same agnostic self-loathing that causes Botano to subject himself to the pains of perusing topics of which he has no interest - on Good Friday nonetheless!

And I can't believe you have all overlooked the obvious: Is it mere coincidence that our Prime Minister's teams (the Flames and Sens) are both perched atop the standings, while the dissonant left-coast remains floundering like Nemo? I think not people. George Orwell was right. In fact I expect to be marshalled from my apartment within the hour.

You're right Alcibiades - there is absolutely no sense having hockey teams in the southern climes. In fact, it's probably detrimental to the game.
First, I believe we have to improve the game's sophistication - of which it now has none - and make it less appealing to fight fans.

In saying that, I don't want to knock the sport of boxing - which probably can be the most skilled of all.

Left-Right-Left,

I've never booed the Canucks. I still recall Barry Wilkins scoring our first goal.

The Canucks didn't miss the playoffs due to a lack of support. Quite the opposite, they have had constant sell-outs in spite of a high ticket price.

They could drop to a 50 point season next year and still make money hand over fist because most fans will support them regardless and their history demonstrates that.

Left-Right-Left
Naw! Turf Crawford too –his brand of vitiation has affected the team too long - he's plied his passive/aggressive trade enough already

You're right about the fans though, nothing will please them - if Naslund goes Carter should be captain

As someone else posted above here - go Oilers, anything but those Gumby-led clones from Calgary – in that case we'd be forced into watching more spectacles of that super-fit athlete harper trying to pretend he cares
(you have to watch that word vitiate - a lot of people use it incorrectly)

Orwell wasn't much of a sports fan!

Frank - your point about their overpayment-based dispassion possesses considerable sagacity. I stand corrected. Though I counter that the spoiling overpayment pandemic is league-wide, whereas the chronic and reactioary defeatism is very much endemic to Vancouver. I'm not saying the city and fans are to blame, I just think we don't give them the support they need. But you're right: spare the rod, spoil the child. And I'm not even religious.

Fire Crawford and retire Linden. Linden's career record amply supports the fact that Keenan had it right. Linden is poison in a dressing room, not to mention remarkably ineffective on the ice. In his first eight years in the league (88-89 to 95-96)he scored 231 goals in 611 games. In the 631 games he has played commencing with the 96-97 season he has scored 125 goals. Linden turned 26 in April 1976. That should have been the beginning of his prime but it was the beginning of the long and torurous end. In 93-94 the Canucks were a 41-40-3 team who made the great run in the playoffs to the finals. The next year they were 18-18-2 (strike shortened), the next 32-35-15, the next 35-40-7, the next 25-43-14. Note the trend? Linden got traded part way through the 97-98 season.

Every team he went to (Islanders, Canadiens, Capitols) had a worse record the year he left them than when he arrived. Since his return to the Canucks they have gone from a 45-23-13 division leader to the dysfunctional unit that has missed the playoffs. Naslund's point production has gone 104, 84, 78. Bertuzzi's 97,60 (in 69 games), 70. Morrison's 71, 60. 54.

An awful lot of "coincidences".

Frank - if you're still here, an old friend who's just in the process of changing her sex asked to be remembered to you - over on the French youth site.

wstander...

Surely one player (Linden) can't screw everything up!
You're facts just ad up to superstition. Otherwise, he's a defensive forward.

correct, Jack's, coincidence doesn't imply causality

An awful lot of "coincidences".

and a lot of pathetic performances from players that should know better

Rutu ,took so many stupid penalties it is REALLY UNBELIEVABLE ,i saw,bert,nas,morrison and you can name your own STUPID PLAY OF THE GAME.

passes whizzing by and players STANDING there watching...not supporting other players around the ice when they should...and the coaching is pathetic,not seeing and doing something,that is so obvious...

as far a linden goes,HE'S A GRINDER,not a top score.but one suggestion about him being on the coaching staff sounds good.

the twins and carter are going to be good til the other side figures out the chemistry,then it's over.

CONSTANT line changes and personel are what keep things interesting and hard for the other teams to define.Crawford may have a ring but he is a lousy coach.

and junior,peewee,bantam should all be supported because those leagues are dynamite entertainment for the bang per buck ratio .

If Linden is a defensive forward, and a grinder, he is lousy at both. He is good at swooping around in big circles, with one hand on the stick, as he peels off against the man he is supposed to be checking however-a technique several of the Canucks have learned to imitate. The one honour he deserves is that, over his career, he has been a good face off man. Keep him on the staff as a coach, and the poison will remain.

Steve: this is exactly the kind of knee-jerk journalism that sends elite athletes fleeing from your city as fast as they can go.
Trade Naslund? The guy played injured for weeks because he had to carry his under-performing linemates on his back. He also gave up a chance at playing for his country in the Olympics because he was thinking about the welfare of his team. This is the thanks he gets?
The players on the Canucks should all share the responsibility for their failure to make the play-offs. No matter how great a player is there are still 22 other players on the team and Nazzy simply couldn't carry them all.
Yeah, the team played some stinkers where they didn't even bother to show up, but why should all the blame be directed at one guy? Even though he had only a so-so season (for him)Naslund usually played as hard as he could.
In my opinion the problems with the Canucks begin and end with Marc Crawford. I would also get rid of Jovo-like his passion but his lack of commitment to off-season training makes him too injury-prone. Also get rid of the too-easily rattled Cloutier.
However, the #1 thing I would change (if I could) are the baying hounds who call themselves sports journalists.Remember when they drove Bure out of town? How history repeats itself.
Fans: don't be sheep who listen to made-up crap about 'divided' locker-rooms. Support your team,dammit!

Think we're getting a consensus here. Keep Naslund - Trade crawford - now what about bertuzzi or is that a foregone conclusion?

wstander:

you need to look at the data again. Linden spent 00-01 in Washington and the Canucks had 90 points. He returned to Vancouver 16 games into the 01-02 season and they ended up with 94 points. In 02-03 they had 104 points and in 03-04 they had 101 points and won the division. Looking simply at Naslund, he had 75 points the season before Linden returned, yet the next season (with Linden after 16 games) saw Naslund jump to 90 points. The trend continued with 104 points the next season before tailing off in the 03-04 season after Naslund had his head injury.

Not only are you wrong about the Canucks performance since Linden's return, you completely confuse causality and coincidence.
If your premise is accurate regarding Linden's direct influence on the performance of the team then your conclusion is completely wrong in view of the numbers. In other words, if we accept that Linden is as important as you argue then the data forces one to accept that he made a huge difference to the team and Naslund after his arrival.

The premise itself, that one player can be that influential on a team, is faulty. Linden is one player, and he has a role to play. He is not a top line scorer any more, and he really never was. He was a solid 2 way hockey player at his peak, and still an effective grinder late in his career.

Bure,was NOT driven out of town ! He ,was a gold bricker,bum knee and all.He,apparently liked the NIGHT LIFE elsewhere,more than,Van(NO FUN)couver...and as far as i know from seeing him at the Olympics,he is coaching,you can correct me if i am wrong,but his carrer was a real flash in the pan.

Gerhardius says it best wstander and i think you just have a hate on for Trevor Linden...myself my distaste is with Rutu,but i don't blame him solely for POOR TEAM PERFORMANCE,they are all guilty...

and i have said it before Bertuzzi is just carrying to much baggage and does not play like the OLD BERT,that we used to cheer for.

National Hockey League? an oxymoron I would say, which country does that "National" represent?
Vancouver Canucks? can you name 5 people who have roots in or near Vancouver, and are associated with that organization?
This "game" is strictly pablum for the masses, so we may forget that we are being screwed!
Everyone has an opinion it seems, yet nobody knows what really happens in the lockerroom, so why guess?
Let the rich bastards figure it out by themselves!

I agree with that consensus, except Linden has hands of stone, and he isn't good enough anymore. Simple, sorry, love him, bye bye.

I sure agree with some of you that Burke's departure was the death knell. Lose the present administration, keep the players and the change would be good. The defense was decimated and since the team was built around them there never was a chance to succeed without them being healthy.

One reader said drop the pay per view. Man, who cares about a team you can't watch anyway? I agree 100%.

And who blames fans? When you pay what you pay to see them live, and they build and market themselves around success, you cannot blame the fan for brutal marketting and unrealistic expectations that originate form the management. I mean, have we seen enough pictures of these guys looking up and to the side into a spot light? Who are the clowns that market these guys?

Keep them all except Linden, Morrison, Nonis, Crawford, Cloutier, and a handful of the slower lowlights that cannot win a faceoff if their life depended on it. Get some centres that can win a face-off and have speed.

Blaming it on Bert is too easy. But Jovo and Cloutier for Luongo would have been good I have to say, although Jovo is a great player he aint no Neidermayer.

And Linden as coach!
Gloomy, crawl into a closet somewhere and read Russian novels by candlelight.

thomas49

I don't "hate" Linden. I was 95% in support of the players in the labour dispute with the owners, and Linden was the president of the Players Association. I admired him for that. I just think he is not a very good hockey player, and has not been for most of his career. The disconnect between what Linden actaully did as a player, and how he is revered by the Vancouver press must have a demoralizing effect on teammates. Ironically, my distaste for Linden as a player began because of how well he played in the 1994 playoffs. He was only 24, but he never came close to that again, and I put that down to lack of effort on his part. He coasted on his laurels for the rest of his career, a trick that was made possible by an adoring Vancouver press.

I think Naslund has done the best he he could under the present coaching regime, but it's clearly not working, partly because opposing teams have scouted the Canucks very effectively. One of the problems with the Canucks' offense is its predictability and lack of finish. For the latter half of the seasons, other teams have looked dangerous where the Canucks simply seemed floundering and ineffective.

If I were an opposing coach, I'd know exactly how to defend against the Vancouver Canucks: keep them to the outside, clog the slot to remove any advantage a centering pass might have and then simply wait for them to dork out and incur one of their their--on average--five or ten bonehead penalties and take advantage of the resulting numerical superiority.

Offensively, they remind me of the old Vancouver Whitecaps, another one-trick pony: Carl Valentine carried the ball down the right wing, then crossed it into the goal area. Period. Opposing coaches stopped any serious marking of Valentine and instead just clogged the goal-front zone with defending players awaiting the inevitable cross. And the Whitecaps still continued to use the play long after its effectiveness had obviously been blunted.

Well, what to do? Without casting an apersion on Crawford, I think it's time for a new coach. I'd like to see them hire from overseas since the Swedes, Finns and Czechs are clearly playing some of the best hockey in the world right now, and they kicked our collective North American butts but good in the Olympics (and don't drag out the tired old 'meaningless' excuse, I've no patience with it). I'm bone-tired of NHL 'grit', that euphemism for viciously unsportsmanlike dirty play that's still the norm in the NHL; I want to see a more professional approach resulting in real teamwork and skill, and four years is a long time to wait.

Gloomy:

Dave Nonis
Steve Tambellini
Ian Clark
Roger Takahashi (Kamloops)
Brendan Morrison

Thats five, not that it makes any difference if nobody or everybody who works for the Canucks is from Vancouver or in close proximity. I am not sure to what extent you believe that there should be a direct relationship between place of birth and place of work, should all employees of BC Hydro & BC Ferries be from BC? A quick peek at Canada411 shows at least 1966 businesses with "Vancouver" in their name, should we limit the idea to "bread & circuses" type businesses? I wonder how many members of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra have "roots in or near Vancouver."

I did a quick survey of my summer soccer team last year. Out of 16 players only 2 of us were born in or near Vancouver. We actually have as many players born in Nairobi, London (UK), and Santiago (Chile) as we have from here. Our team name has a geographic affiliation based solely upon the park we first played in together. Is it a stretch to conclude that the name "Vancouver Canucks" is simply based upon a geographic relationship and not remotely intended to imply that the team is made up of Vancouverites?

wallace; if you've been watching the canuckleheads you haven't really had a good indication of how entertaining the game can be this year. how about giving the playoffs a try this year? i had quit watching myself for the past 10 years or so b/c i was finding the game too boring but i've found with the new rules, and especially the elimination of centerline offside, that the game moves more freely and fluidly and the skilled players are able to show their stuff. i'm hoping these playoffs will be well worth watching.

Elliot
you've found your groove man! stick to sports and can the politics - we'll all be happier.

Moves'll be made that's certain. It is possible I may be hired to replace the can of soup who was brought in to (cheaply) replace Brian Burke. It is a little known fact I am a hockey genius. How do I know this? When I drink enough beer the voices in my head tell me to how to solve all the Canucks' many woes.

The loudest of the voices always tells me to insist, in language that would not make it by the Tyee censor, that the Canucks change their name to the Millionaires as the Great God of Hockey intended. To save the Canucks the Canucks have to go.

Go Mills!

That would be fitting as the cost of attending a game spirals out of control. Only millionaires are rich enough or stupid enough to shell out that kind of cash to watch hockey. A company I used to work for had access to a box before somebody realised that we could make clients and employees happier with that cash by simply using it in house to improve benefits and service.

but it would be boring around here.

wow! there is still hope!

gut the fish.

trade the overrated crawford. there are still teams in the east who do not realize he is has parlayed an illusion into a lucrative coaching contract. he may yet have some value to this team.

bert should have never been allowed to return to the canucks. i hate the leafs, give todd to them, he is not smart enough to be the force some think he can be.

keep the core together.

the core is now jovo, ohlund, salo, auld, carter and the sedins. naslund could stay or go, for the right offer. hopefully stay.

great career for linden, but it is over. hope he knows it.

all other positions at ice level should be available.

a canuck is a french canadian. there is already a team named for french canadians.

these pseudo french canadians have chosen a whale for a logo.
i am not smart enough to see what connection there might be to a west coast hockey organization.

a comment on the retro uniforms - looks like they were designed by a gradeschooler, perennial losers, burn them all.

take the fish guts, wrap them in the garbage of your choice, the sun or province, and put them in the can by the curb.

withhold your monetary support of the canucks until the garbage has been collected.

1. Fire Crawford

2. Give Nonis another chance...one more season

3. Keep Nazzy but give the C to the re-signed Jovo

4. Unload Bert, Mo, the two rental Ds, and one of Cloutier/Auld

5. Find a true first-line center for Nazzy

6. Get a true #1 Goalie to play with Cloutier/Auld

7. Give Linden a gold-watch big enough for him to operate with post-lockout hands-of-stone.

....I might add that we could probably acquire a nice flying pig as well if we can do all this and stay under the salary cap ;-) ;-)

a flying pig,some beer and a baggie of green !

sounds more like Pink Floyd than hockey ...

Hey Elliot,ya in or whut,we are gonna get Roger Waters and a flying pig for Cloutier,whadda ya think ?

oh,ya ! and a big bag o green .

It's funny to see all the weird rants and rationalizations that surround the Canucks' performance. The fact is they were missing some of their best players for a long time. They did well enough before they lost them and they did poorly while they were gone. How about that? It's not clear how Naslund, Bertuzzi and Morrison (who all got about 75% the points of previous years) were meant to adjust their play to accommodate weaker goaltending and inexperienced defending. All the same, kudos to Carter and the Sedins, to Ohlund and to Auld for stepping up. And to poor Matt Cooke who won't be due for an injury for the rest of his career...

if they can't trade naslund they should at least take the 'c' off his jersey. there are only two swedes in the nhl that are capable of providing the toughness and leadership necessary to be a captain, and that's mats sundin and peter forsberg. as for bertuzzi, lots of talent but no consistent game, and morrison has always been over-rated in my opinion. btw, what's with all these people lamenting the loss of brian burke? this is brian burke's team, and nonis' big mistake was not making enough changes to it.

ELLIOT! Nonis is a Burke acolyte,he helped build the team with Brian ! Small wonder ,he,did not change anything...

So ! what about it,Clouts fer a flying pig ,or whut?

WE NEEDS A GOALIE,AND AULDS AINT IT !

So now the grammatically-incorrect Leafs are officially out, which does my heart good. But how about that Toronto stretch run? What were they, 8-0-2 with their backs against the wall? Wouldn't that be a treat?

thomas and burgess; nonis is a burke acolyte, and burke is a quinn acolyte, and both the loafs and the canuckleheads missed the playoffs. i've argued with dan russell many times about fat quinn being a phoney. he left the canucks in dire straits in '97, and now he's screwed the maple laughs up as well. proof's in the pudding.
p.s. get rid of auld and cloutier, keep the finn and get a real goalie in here.

Elliot, man, you have definitely found your niche - go man go!

NO KIDDING EINSTIEN !

now whut about the flying pig ? i already got the BBQ going...

or is it gonna be a mascot,cause i hear non stop bitchin and kvetchin about that sardine on their logo

sorry gotta go, mama wants to dance

I agree with most of you, including Eliot which really shocks me lol. I am a diehard Canuck fan and will be until I'm gone or they are ... whichever comes first lol ... but here's my thoughts:

I think Naslund will go home to Sweden in the off-season. That's where he really wanted to be this year anyway. Yes, he gave up the Olympics for the Canucks but I really don't believe his heart was in it this season.

Jovo is gone. His wife is expecting twins and living in Florida. No way will the Canucks be able to keep him. I am grateful for his efforts since returning early after his surgery though.

Get rid of Crawford. As mentioned above, his inability to motivate this team killed them this year. When the players aren't performing then it's the coach's job to light a spark under them, bench them or whatever. For example, Bert should have been benched a few times throughout this season but Crawford was too intimidated or whatever it was to do it. The power play sucked. Who else to blame but the coach? When I saw Nonis being interviewed during intermission of the PPV game last week, it seemed to me that he was hinting that Crawford was gone. Anyone else get that impression?

Nonis is just as bad. He should have found a backup goalie who was reliable immediately after discovering how long Cloutier was going to be out. Anyone who can expect Auld to play almost the entire season without backup is nuts and incompetent. He also should have found some defencemen with experience sooner. Nonis allowed this team to sink while he waited for the trading deadline and advice from Burke. He should be gone.

With a new coach, give Bert until Christmas to prove himself. If he still stands still, tries those stupid fancy plays of him which cost us more games than I can count, and is not playing the game that gave him that big fat pay cheque of his then dump him.

Reward the Brother Line for doing their best to save us this year. Without them, we wouldn't have even been in the race for a playoff position.

Go Edmonton go!! And Canucks, the Cup is ours next year!! lolol

Ohhh and get rid of the PPV games. They are a jinx to the team!!! lol

Improving the game?

I don't think the owners would ever approve Olympic sized ice surface. Seats would have to be sacrificed in the renovations.

Excellent suggestion in a new book by Mark Moore titled "Saving the Game".

He writes... "After a great deal of thought, the only practical way out of the squeeze is to switch to 4-on-4.

On the Olympic size ice surface, he suggests that it just increases the amount of ice away from the net.

Is that Steve Moore's brother? Seems to me I heard he'd written a book.

I think solving the problems in Vancouver starts with making changes to the ownership.

it would also mean those prima donnas would actually move their feet a little more as well.

You saw how Team Canada did on BIG ICE in the Olympics.They actually had to work at playing!

Not hard enough - the working part - alas. Big ice is a great idea - problem with 4v4 comes up when there is a penalty, or two. 4 on 2 would be a disaster...the rules would have to be changed. Maybe the first penalty would entitle the wronged team to a 5th skater for 2 minutes - then the worst case would be, as it is now, 5 v 3 if 2 players are in the box.

Going to 4/side should also mean teams could be smaller - would the players be willing to lower the salary cap - I doubt it?

No easy solutions, I think BIG ICE is the way to go.

Naslund isn't going anywhere. He has a no trade clause in his contract and chances are he will still be wearing the C next year. Plus, Bert and Crawford don't get along. Once Bertuzzi is out of the picture, Naslund will no longer be in the difficult position of being Bert's best friend, and the go between for the players and the coach. Losing some of the locker room politics should free up a lot of head space for Naslund and the rest to actually concentrate on the game.

Lose Bert, keep Naslund.

Consider this: if a penalty really was a disaster, maybe we would see fewer stupid penalties?
As is the game is interrupted everytime a player finds it easier to hook and grab, than to skate!
Maybe those fat-asses would have to get in shape!

GLoomy
Maybe 4 a side would work. I just can't see 4 v 2 being viable, that's all.

Thats a great idea that a penalty would make it 5 on 4, that would solve the economic problem of the big ice, and get us 4 on 4 hockey with these huge fast better equipped humans. fewer concussions but fewer big hits, that would be a drag.
How about changing the goalie back to no limits, and allow him to use a modified stick so he is a sweeper? Brodeur would love it.
But sadly, without hitting it is going to be deadly boring. It may have 3X the scoring, but so what. Anybody that enjoys sports dosn't need 10-9 scores.

I just got in from a great hockey game where all the players and I mean all of them gave their best effort. And get this, that effort came from both teams.

The third star of the game was the loosing goalie and the Vancouver fans cheered him wildly.

The star player for our team, well our super star player probably led the team in hits tonight. Just about scored the prettiest goal of the season and five minutes later scored the insurance marker.

Yes the Vancouver Giants are proving once again - like the New West Bruins proved many many years ago; Junior Hockey is a far superior product than the NHLemon.

Keep Morrison, he's not overrated, he's an average player who does the best he can and stop calling him overated. Get rid of Crawford as said by so many above. Trade Bertuzzi for Brule.

Carolina thinks he's to small as evidenced by two injuries in 7 or 8 NHL games. Let Brule play for the Giants again next season - Memorial Cup - in order to keep his free agent status limited for another season and thereby allowing him to develop his man strength. Then sit back and enjoy.

Why on earth would Columbus trade Brule for a guy 12 years older with a bad attitude and big salary?

Columbus knew exactly what they were getting when they drafted Brule in June 2005: a talented kid with loads of potential who was not ready for full time NHL play. Teams do not give up on a 6th overall pick after 7 NHL games, and certainly don't trade him for a Bertuzzi circa 2006.

Trades have to make sense to both sides, unless of course you are dealing with O'Connel in Boston or Milbury in Long Island. Trading Bertuzzi is a fine concept, but what is his actual market value? Certainly not a top 10 pick from 2005.

No kidding - and what's left there?
I think Bobby Clarke might go for Bertuzzi, under the right conditions.

you're on to something there g west. bertuzzi would look great in a flyers uniform. bottom line is that the canucks need an overhaul and why not let the so-called 'big line' go? they choked big time this year and maybe nonis could get something for them. naslund to the rangers and morrison to calgary. take anything you can get for them and take it from there.

Crawford for Nolan, keep the rest except Cloutier. Can't lose Morrison, he IS the only guy that can win a faceoff. Linden is done, make him assistant coach and take advantage of his intangibles.
Bert will rise again!

I thought the twelve year cycle would come through for the Canucks, but this is the new NHL. The name of the game is entertainment, and we've got one of the best products this side of the World Wrestling Federation. This is prime time soap opera, with plenty of drama. Lawsuits, injuries, squabbles and the most fickle fans in Canada. The only person to call it like it is is Neil McCrae! Yes Angry boy himself! If the Canucks sucked he'll tell you why. Stupid penalties, dumb plays or out worked, he calls it as it is. Every one else wants to play general manager, trade Bert, trade Auld, just emotional nonsense from the typical hockey fan. Thirteen other teams going though the same emotions of missing the playoffs, and then fifteen more who will not win the Stanley Cup for many reasons including Lady Luck. All of them needing to trade away their players, fire the coach and find a starting goalie! That's the window dressing. Beyond that there is a game on the ice. This where the magic is. To watch the rare talent rise above the rest and keep you on the edge of your seat. Beyond the business of the NHL, there is a great game to behold. Occasionally a team will rise to the challenge on shear determination. Like the Flames run to the cup last time out. Outgunned in every series on paper, yet they make it to game seven in the finals. The Florida Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes, Anaheim MD all teams like the Flames who have had runs to the cup. Generally being overwhelmed in the finals by power houses like Detroit, Colorado, or New Jersey. Besides obvious talent, the key to winning at that level is chemistry. In a league transition year the Canucks failed in the chemistry department. Not the talent department. Jovo brought some much needed confidence back to the team only it was too little too late. But he sure is exciting to watch, pure talent. Makes the whole team better. The Canucks had enough scoring talent and the top six were bunched pretty close for a balanced attack. Naslund still led but the Sedin line benefitted from more ice time. The coaches did everything they could to keep the "big line" together but you could tell that something was missing this year. To behold the great game you must watch the NHL objectively. Yes they have the talent, but not always the best value for your entertainment dollar. So in that respect Canuck fans have no reason to be the whinning fence riding, bandwagon jumpers that they are! You have to measure success in many ways, as only one team gets the trophy at the end, that doesn't mean 29 dismal failures. Do you look forward to watching your team next year! That's a true fan. Good luck Calgary, they seem to be doing more with less. The fans love it! Remember the red mile! Calgary will go as far as Kiprusoff takes them this year.

clubofrome
Speaking of which, the current perversion of 'sport' I mean, have you come across on your television the monstrous bloody aberration called 'Ultimate Fighting Challenge’?
I happened upon it on the tube last week whilst flipping through the upper channels looking for something else - hey I don't watch much TV and that stupid rolling menu goes too slow.

If there were no other evidence available to underline the state of rot in the American Empire, this 'sport' which appears to have some direct genetic connection to gladiatorial combat would go a good part of the way to making the case for me.

How could anyone be a 'fan' of that?

Nice polemic Club...

I like the part where you rail against emotional nonsense from armchair GMs, thereby implicating almost everyone whose comments hinted at some kind of post-mortem on the season.

You then offer us the same thing, before waxing poetic on true fanhood and the joys of the red mile. Very objective.... ;-) ;-)

It seems they're softening us up for more CNBC live coverage from Gulf Wars IV and V, the Iranian invaisons. The more we accept on TV the more they show us. It's a mystery about half the programming on TV, and the other half is commercials. As we've said a hundred times before, project dumb down the average voter is complete. Mission acomplished. That's why Deeby and I agree the only reality television is sports. You see them score and there is no illusion. Flames 3 - Canucks 1, it's simple to understand and other than Don Koharski coming out of the Rangers dressing room in game seven of the '94 Ranger cup win, no real meaty conspiracy theories exist. It's just the sport of it. Some say another distraction from the real problems we have in society.... but I like sport. I have my favorites, hockey, sailing, bull shooting... as noted by deeby! Never be afraid to call bullshit! It's the only way to keep people honest. We need more of that in society, as we're force feed a diet of fast food media and fast talking snake oil salemen dressed up as politicians and lobbyists. Stand up and cry enough! They are making a mockery out of us. I for one will not be mocked. It's time someone put their foot down.... and that foot is me.

Bring back Dave Babych, get rid of the rest. His shot from the point will go wide, way wide, but it's a good start. We need renewel.

I still think Bertuzzi should be the first to go; he has been the infection at the heart of the team since his hit on Moore....come to think of it, I didn't like his style - on and off the ice - even before that.

Replace him with as close to Thornton as we can get. Then, if that doesn't work, send Crawford to the golf course, and keep working down the line until we get an energetic, functioning team.

Rationale? The only way Bertuzzi knows how to play a winning game, is to kill off his opponents. Comparing his style of 'play' with Thornton is like watching a bar fight instead of Mohammed Ali. Put Bertuzzi in a crunch and he either ends up in the penalty box, or skates around waiting to hand off the puck.

And he's arrogant enough to tell the cameras he "wants back in Vancouver" and "should be back". With his record over the past three seasons? It's no wonder Naslund couldn't function, Bertuzzi thinks he's a law unto himself, and sure wouldn't take direction from a decent guy like Naslund.

If justice were to be done, Moore would get his millions and the Canucks would give out 2006/7 seasons tickets for half price!

Get rid of Crawford..Nolan would be good..or a Sutter..tho I don`t know if a Sutter would really fit in Yuppie Vancouver

Let Jovo go home to Florida...for Luongo

Keep the Finn to back up Luongo

Cloutier and Auld Lang Syne..

Drop the 2 rental D-men

Bring up Bourdon

Rutuu and Cooke, Park..gonzo

Keep the rest.

The new rules didn`t benefit the Canucks. Everybody started playing the way they`d BEEN playing in the Crawford era. They couldn`t adjust..they were no longer the fastest kid on the block.

Nice to see someone else espousing four-on-four; if the NHL owners refuse to go to larger ice-surfaces, it's really the only way to go to free up the game. Combined with competent officiating (yeah, yeah, I know---the terms 'NHL' and 'competent officiating' are usually oxymoronic) and appropriately much more severe penalties for contact infractions leading to injury, the resulting game will force coaches to be much more creative tactically. It'll also remove the current emphasis on size and meanness and place it more on puck-handling skills and maneuverability; since this also allows smaller players to play, the talent pool is that much wider.

Funny, no-one but Don Cherry and other worshippers at the shrine of The Hit had a problem with these high scores in the Gretzky Oiler days when some of the most exciting offensive hockey ever was played for us fans lucky enough to see it. Then came The Trap and the referees looking the other way as clutch-slash-hook-trip-elbow-cross-check-and-grab tactics slowed the game to the speed of mud. Very attractive. Can't wait for that style to come back.

If you think no hitting is deadly boring, I don't have to offer an opinion here, just an observation: listen to any home crowd during a game---it buzzes loudest when its team is directing shots on the visitors' goal and scoring, much more so than after a good hit. It's a free-wheeling attack and resultant shots on the opponents' goal that excites the fans most, even though the coaches hate it. Well, the NHL coaches (a lot of them retired hard-rock players, didja notice?) had it their way for years and they damn near ruined the game beyond recall, so screw 'em.

Jovo is a free agent so if he signs outside of Vancouver the Canucks get nothing. Cloutier has another year on his contract: who wants him for that money? Park and Ruutu are free agents and not likely back. Cooke is in a similar position to Cloutier except he had more trade value after last season. Cooke missed 37 games with 3 different injuries, and given his small size he can be expected to wear down faster than other players who play a similar style.

Your list has two players signed for next season: Cloutier & Cooke. Both have had injury problems this season and have contracts that are large for their utility. The only way to get another team to take them would be to accept similar sized contracts in return, and it won't be guys who are over achieving.

Think of the trade that brought Naslund here for Alex Stojanov in 1996. Both players were under-achieving and it was an exchange of disappointing first round picks from 1991. Stojanov played 35 more NHL games in his career and the trade looks like a joke now.

When you think of all the Canuck trades that went bad from their point of view it's good that the Naslund, Bertuzzi and Jovo trades worked as well as they did. Lots of people forget how financially successful this team has become since the dark days of the mid - 90s.

Ted Nolan would be very very interesting.
The Expos would be better yet.

Gordo, is that you...? :-)

Ah the Nucks,

Where does one start?

Well, Bertuzzi has to go. He is the ultimate cancer in the dressing room. He is Terrel Owens without the talent.

Naslund is the softest supposed star I have ever seen. Messier was a leader. Yzerman is a leader. Naslund is the kid you played road hockey with and was team captain, only because he had the nets and the goalie sticks.

Crawford needs to step down. Give the reins to Mike Johnston and watch the team succeed. Barring that, hire Teddy Nolan. He's paid his penance for screwing muckler over, and he's a great coach. His team will win the Memorial Cup this season. You heard it here first.

The NUcks are in trouble. They need a transplant of sorts.

Love him or hate him, Daryl Sutter said the Flames lacked an identity when he came to Calgary and he gave them one.

What is the Nucks identity?

NDN_Coach
You're right, gotta give Gumby (Sutter) credit!
Wonder how far they'll go. I'd rather see the Oilers succeed but they don't have the guns and McTavish is too busy looking for excuses. Naslund is a great guy but you're sadly right, he doesn't have the jam to be captain. I'd like to see Carter in the role but he's probably too much of an intellectual - I'm always impressed when he does a thing with the media - none of that forelock tugging bs we get from every other hockey player about how they 'played hard and really gave it all they'd got' stuff.

The canucks definitely need a mulligan.

G West,

Yeah, you don't quite want a guy like Sean Avery spouting off to the media, but then again, one gets tired of all the time-worn cliches that come from the mouths of players today.

Being an Oilers fan, I want to see them do well, but MacT is pretty much done in Edmonchuk, unless the Oil make the Semis.

Can't stand the Flames, but I do give credit where credit is due, in regards to their team now. I'm also biased because their assistant coach is from my hometown.

Saw Nonis at lunch and the guy just doesn't impress me as a GM. It looks like he rehearsed his answers for the last two weeks.

Maybe time for the new BC owner to really clean house.

Amateurs.... It's the same core that put the team on top of the division and in the playoffs. Prove once and for all it's not the players, fire the coach. One guy goes the rest stay, apart from the usual predictable moves in the off season. Otherwise you gut the team talent and start a rebuilding stage. A lot of people with real hockey knowledge find it surprising the Canucks have missed the playoffs. Injuries played a key role, but you can't put all the blame on the top players. The Sedins/Carter are not going to carry this team. If Naslund/Bertuzzi/Morrison are sincere and want to return with a vengeance then a new coach could be the prescription. You think they'll still sell out with the Sedins and Carter as the big draw? Unless Nonis can work a miracle trade with like for like top players/prospects in the eastern conference expect to see the same product again next year. Crawford doesn't deserve to be fired anymore than other coaches do. (Except ultra disaster Keenan) But it's the easy way out for Nonis if he has to make someone accountable for this season. Then Naslund/Bertuzzi have a clean slate, and they'll be playing for future contracts. Gutting the core is what Boston did when they traded Thornton to San Jose. Speaking of really stupid moves, Sports Net announced they are picking up Sean Avery for their playoff hockey panel. I'll be sending an email voicing my extreme displeasure. Kelly Hrudey will not be impressed either. Lastly, not cheering for Jerome Iginla is un-Canadian, just ask Don Cherry! Come on! You know you want to! Remember the red mile......

NDN_Coach you have asked the right question. What is the Nucks' identity?

Right now they are like Naslund - high end talent but in need of better speed and spirit.

I could do without the cheapshot stickwork but I admire other aspects of Matt Cooke's game -- the hustle and intensity.

I'd definitely dump Linden at this point, I don't see him doing a thing out there and in the room, the NHLPA controversy has got to be a total cancer. Poor Trev, he was like the mayor of Vancouver a year ago.

Back when Darryl Sutter was with Mike Keenan in Chicago..the Hawks were in town..both Sutter and Keenan were big Blues (music) fans (Chicago) and headed to the Yale after the game for a beer and to take in the sounds..my son was there and had a couple of beers with Sutter and talked Hockey..music..whatever..he said he was a really nice guy..not a touch of any kind of pretension or arrogance...Keenan was something else again..very aloof.. arrogant...you`re talking to ME?

Don't expect much from Nonis if that news conference was any indication - he should have stayed home and phoned it in.

I agree with many of the views expressed by the author and the bloggers - axe the Crow, trade Bert, trade Nazzy, trade Moe, keep the Sedin triplets, etc. The main thing I can't agree with is go Edmonton; my vote goes to Ottawa, but with Hasek injured they have their work cut out for them.

Hey, if we're widening the focus - GO HABS! Why didn't you say something sooner, ha!

noon thursday ap 20
Leafs just fired QUINN - will crawford be far behind?

i hope you're not insinuating that the phoney quinn will be back here are you? when that goof left vancouver the team was in a shambles. he came here with a five year plan and left a disaster behind after eleven. then he went to toronto and did virtually nothing there. if nonis has any sense whatsoever he will resist this temptation and look for a coach who isn't living in the past.

Elliot
I'm not....but those talking heads of radio on Tv at rogers sportsnuts were - believe it or not....the current management of orca bay would surprise me with nothing their so-called 'brain' trust came up with...which one of them actually had the 'brain' this year?