Skip to content
Join our Newsletter
  1. Home
  2. Courier Archive
  3. News

Stick in Link: Benning backtracks; McLeod makes a mess

Also, Gaunce is good; Larsen's anchoring heuristic; Tryamkin talk; Markstrom's music mix
Will Graham
Stick in Link

It’s time for “Stick in Link”, the feature where we just plug in a bunch of stuff written by others! Featuring a smattering of links from around the Smylosphere and beyond every Tuesday and Thursdayish. Warning: our links are so hyper, they change colour when exposed to heat. (Have something for us to share in the next edition? E-mail us at [email protected] or tweet us @passittobulis. Or tell us some other way. The point is: we'll probably link it if we know about it.)

  • Playoffs or bust? Maybe not this time. The players and coach are saying the right thing, but it's possible that Jim Benning might be planning to sell assets at the trade deadline, depending on where the Canucks land at the end of their six-game road trip. Seems that their earlier statements about not moving players with NTCs were just a ploy to keep the media at bay. [The Province]
  • Like politicians, it's unwise to take what a general manager says on face value. At the beginning of the season Jim Benning indicated he wouldn't ask veterans to waive their no-trade clauses. Now he's singing a different tune. [Canucks Army]
  • Janik Beichler isn't surprised by Benning's about-face. No GM wants to move players with NTCs and NMCs, but Benning is ultimately going to do what he believes makes the most sense for the team when the deadline rolls around. [The Canuck Way]
  • Pierre LeBrun covers a number of Vancouver topics, including a certain controversial goal and the McLeod hit on Sven Baertschi. But the most interesting bit is regarding the trade deadline, where LeBrun doesn't see a lot of traditionally movable assets. [TSN1040]
  • The Cody McLeod hit and the subsequent non-suspension were bullcrap. You know it, I know it, Jeff Godley knows it. McLeod's hit was intentional, unnecessary and predatory. One of the problem with the NHL's approach to these hits is in the poorly phrased rulebook. The League ought to take a page out of the IIHF's book and get those dangerous hits out of the game. [The Canuck Way]
  • Not above a (semi) retraction, Ryan Hank now sees that there's more to Brendan Gaunce's game that meets the eye. He's played the whole season on the fourth line, and when on the ice he makes the team better. [Always90Four]
  • Poor Anton Rodin. The winger has undergone his second knee surgery in two years. Canucks fans were hoping to have a good look at him this season, but with an injury history like that he may join the ranks of training camp All-Stars like Fedor Fedorov and Sergei Shirokov. [NHL.com]
  • If you're worried about Vancouver shipping off Jannik Hansen at the trade deadline, here's a bit of news to brighten your day. And by news I mean unsubstantiated rumour. But it is Bob McKenzie after all.

     

     

  • In this addition of Naked Eye vs Nerdy Guy, Dan Murphy and Dimitri Filipovic zero in on Nikita Tryamkin. The huge Russian is fun to watch, but if we take a hard look at what he brings to the game, is there enough for Canucks fans to get excited about him? (Spoiler: yes. His ceiling is high. Pun intended.) [Sportsnet]
  • More Tryamkin! Ryan Biech also sees some serious upside with the giant defender. The last 15 games have been his best. [NHL.com]
  • Is Vancouver's boring-yet-efficient style of play going to damage them long-term? By hanging in the playoff race with a conservative playing style and plenty of luck, they may end up making trades they otherwise wouldn't and put off doing the rebuild they likely need. Dimitri Filipovic with some mad charts. [Sportsnet]
  • Think Philip Larsen is a failure of a power play quarterback? You're not wrong, but that's not on him: it's just your anchoring heuristic talking. That doesn't make Larsen bad, we just need to understand what he does best. J.D. Burke has the details. [Canucks Army]
  • Jacob Markstrom just won me over a little bit more: he loves Johnny Cash. [Canucks TV]
  • Let's finish off this list with a heavy Quebecois accent: Alex Burrows interviews Michael Chaput on his upcoming 100th NHL game against the Columbus Blue Jackets (who gave him his career start.) He talks about past achievements and his most embarrassing moment.