Confirmed with Link: [MTL/VAN] Brandon Prust for Zack Kassian & 5th

[WTG]

You're overrating Kassian and underrating Prust.

That being said, I still think it's a good deal for the habs.

Prust is a 4th liner.

Kassian is a top 6 forward.

I think you are overrating Prust.

 

[LeHaboholique]

When he played with the Twins, he generally produced. Only problem was Burrows would be buried on the 3rd line and not producing when that happened so Kassian was buried there instead to "spark Burrows". Never really played with Higgins - mostly with Matthias/Richardson/Vey last season and Richardson/Booth the season before. He also hasn't really gotten quality PP opportunities so most of his production has been at ES.

Good to know, thanks for the information. As a person I am excited to see what he can do, but as a habs fan I am ready for some sexy sexy disappointment.

 

[Redux91]

bigtime thumbs up

good feels.

 

[Phil Parent]

Typical Vancouver. Remember Luongo?

Typical Benning. He *****ed about Tyler Seguin when he was a Bruin.

 

[LyricalLyricist]

Prust is a 4th liner.

Kassian is a top 6 forward.

I think you are overrating Prust.

I've been pretty vocal in this thread about how happy I am with this deal but Kassian isn't a top 6 forward and Prust isn't a boat anchor.

Prust is a bottom 6 guy.

Kassian is a middle 6 guy.

Kassian has done **** all to be a top 6 forward. I like the guy and I understand Vancouver fans are likely pissed but he hasn't had one top 6 forward quality year so yah, it's overrating him.

 

[Whitesnake]

Prust is a 4th liner.

Kassian is a top 6 forward.

I think you are overrating Prust.

Kassian is top 6? You mean that's how he was used last year? And if not...who were the right wingers taking his place instead?

 

[Phil Parent]

Help me here...

Is that shirt a chinese rip-off? That logo looks incredibly shady.

 

[Whitesnake]

Help me here...

Is that shirt a chinese rip-off? That logo looks incredibly shady.

Yeah...that can't be a real jersey.

 

[David Suzuki]

Help me here...

Is that shirt a chinese rip-off? That logo looks incredibly shady.

his dad is a habs fan i would assume it's an old jersey or something

 

[Hackett]

Help me here...

Is that shirt a chinese rip-off? That logo looks incredibly shady.

He mentioned his dad is a Habs fan. Looks like something he dug up from his childhood.

 

[ToNedOuT]

I am not a Canuck fan but I live in BC and get a lot of Canuck exposure. He was definitely a polarizing player for the Canucks, but man there are some games where he puts it all together and is a dominate force.

He's pumped to be here and he's motivated. We're a better team with him. Excellent move.

 

[Lebowski]

If we'd be already having a great top 6 and the only thing that was left was to address our other weaknesses in our bottom 6, I'd like the deal. I was ready to part ways with Prust. The "problem" I have with the deal is the fact that, paired with Bergevin's comments, that he does seem to be fine with the top 6 of this team, that the offense isn't a problem with him and that the only thing needed was tweaking the bottom 6. I don't agree with that. I don't have a problem with taking a risk with Kassian. I didn't care that much about Prust.

No one on this board, absolutely no one, is comfortable going into the next season with our current top 6. At least, not that I know of.

I personally certainly do not disagree with your statement that Bergevin's comments are troubling.

Where I completely divert from your stance is that these two, namely Bergevin's previous comments and the deal at hand, shouldn't be linked in anyway. I look at the deal for what it is. Not for what I think it means in Bergevin's mind. Not for what may or may not come next as far as addressing the top 6 situation goes. For that, you can only wait and see.

The thread is about a Prust vs. Kassian + 5th round pick trade. We fleeced the Canucks in that deal. Be happy about it and move on.

Maybe if you'd stop inventing things, we'd go somewhere. I disagreed with him being younger, cheaper and bigger? Where? How could I? What I'm saying though is that it's not necessarily a proof that makes a player better. Is Jimmy Hayes better than Milan Lucic because he's bigger, cheaper and younger?

You brushed them aside altogether. I didn't claim being bigger, cheaper and younger is what made him a better player. These two things aren't related whatsoever (stretching again here...). Kassian is a much better player for different reasons. Being cheaper, younger and bigger does add to his value in a vacuum, though, and mostly his value to our team as well. We've been carrying this Napoleon complex for far too long.

Now, when the subject FINALLY reaches the "But he's also better"...now we're talking. And to a point that I keep saying that he might very well be. People say that he already is despite mostly playing around 13 minutes for a team like Vancouver....fine. Despite Prust, who does reach the end of his shelf life, still playing a good PK and defending his players the way Kassian won't be able to do.

Prust's role on the PK can be replaced by a plethora of other players, I'm not worried in the slightest with that. As for the defending his teammates part, they're more or less in the same boat. They can defend themselves. Neither can really take on the heavyweight class.

Plus, don't tell me you're really worried about not having a "mandatory goon" on the line-up. We're in 2015. The Bruins just traded Lucic for God's sake.

Yeah, if he ends sucking and we let him go.....it won't be a problem. We still get a 5th. Not sure where I mentioned this. But I also happen to disagree with people that says that Kassian IS, right now, a better hockey player. Shoot me. He STILL has things to prove.

I think he proved plenty enough. I think watching him over a few games is enough of a proof that's he's a far better player at this very moment than Prust has been over the last season. Fine, you want him to prove himself some more. Worst case scenario, he becomes dead weight on the 4th line... Kind of like Prust, at the end of the day.

Am I against the deal itself? No. My point was mostly about the fact that Bergevin do seem to be fine with the top 6....and the fact that Kassian has already proven to be a much better hockey player.

And we've come full circle. As I said, Bergevin's previous comments on the top 6 situation shouldn't matter in judging the kind of return we got for Prust. Completely unrelated. And that's what most people that are seemingly complaining against the deal in this thread are raving about. Bergevin trading Prust for Kassian and a 5th round pick doesn't prevent him from making another move down the line to improve the top 6.

Now, if you want to complain about Bergevin's current stance on the line-up, whether it be Desharnais on the first line, Galchenyuk stuck on the wings, lack of high-end offensive talent and whatnot, there's a place to do so, and believe me when I say I have a lot of less than flattering things to say on that matter. But at the end of the day, this kind of talk doesn't really belong in the discussion at hand.

 

[Tyson]

his dad is a habs fan i would assume it's an old jersey or something

His dad was a Habs fan. I believe he died several years ago...

 

[David Suzuki]

His dad was a Habs fan. I believe he died several years ago...

Oh I believe you're right, my bad.

 

[tc 23]

His dad was a Habs fan. I believe he died several years ago...

His dad passed away when Kass was a kid. His brother was basically his father figure growing up.

 

[Habaneros]

Kassian is top 6? You mean that's how he was used last year? And if not...who were the right wingers taking his place instead?

Kassian got 198 NHL games....at 24

What he will become is still undecided .he very well could be a full timer top 6 ....that is up to him ...will see.

 

[Big Lurk]

Get the feeling Bergy got a big deal coming....

barberio, pateryn, tinordi, beaulieu, gilbert, emelin, petry, subban, markov, nygren.

yup.

 

[tc 23]

Kassian is top 6? You mean that's how he was used last year? And if not...who were the right wingers taking his place instead?

Kassian wasn't really used in the top-6 last year. He spent most of the season on the 3rd line centered by Richardson/Vey and with Matthias/Dorsett on LW. Vrbata/Burrows were RW1 and 2 for most of the season.

Many Canucks fans felt that Kassian deserved top-6 or PP opportunities though but was never given it because the team wanted him to be and tried making him into a grinder.

 

[mustardnight*]

Euh...you said it on the post I replied to.

Aren't you talking about this deal? The Kassian-Prust deal?

And facts? Kassian can be as lazy as Rene Bourque most of the time....how's that any better? Kassian should be seen as a total project. That YES might pay off....but that could also be let go as soon as June 2016. How people are already giving him a surefire bottom 6 role and maybe a top 6 role makes me remember how Rene Bourque would also be that guy too.....Sorry, I'll wait a little more till I say he is. As, you said it yourself, we are ONLY July 1st. If we have to be patient with Bergevin moves as we are not in October, we probaby have to be patient with Kassian before giving him the potential than we think he has...just like the 2 teams before us also thought he had. We got rid of Prust for a project. Not a surefire players with the tons of FACTS you think it's actually real facts.

Are you being negative again> and then contesting facts after positing what amounts to your opinion, which maybe I should remind you is SUBJECTIVE

 

[Ezpz]

his dad is a habs fan i would assume it's an old jersey or something

Was a Habs fan. His dad died when he was like 7 or 8.

 

[Redux91]

i have 0 doubt kassian will be played in the top 6, not because he is a top 6 player, but because our top 6 is that bad, lets hope he rounds it out nicely

it will be nice to be able to throw out gallagher out there and be a little bulldozer, and then right after next shift the RW will switch into the 6`3 kassian, should throw some teams off nicely

im down, i really am.

 

[Cole Caulifield]

4 goals with the Sedins. 3 goals with Higgins. Better than what he had to play with.

Carried by Higgins...

 

[JAVO16]

Hey guys, Nucks fan here. Just want to say, congrats on the trade. If it wasn't obvious, you guys won massively. Trading anything other than a top-10 pick in the first round would be a win for you - Kassian is a contributing NHLer which is more than most first round picks become. Trading him away for what amounts to nothing is... well, just par for the course with this brain-damaged idiot running the show in Vancouver. I'm convinced Benning is Mike Milbury disguised as a man who looks like even more of a simpleton.

I digress. I've been one of Kassian's biggest fans for his entire tenure with the Canucks (and actually before that with Buffalo, coincidentally). So I'm pretty biased. But I still see a big, strong powerforward with very soft hands. He's been dealing with many injury issues the past few years and he never really got on a roll. But if he can stay healthy, and put things together, you have a star powerforward in the league.

... Who you got for free...

But I don't know what I was expecting. Have you guys seen the video of the Bruins brain trust having a meeting where they decide to trade Seguin? The fact that a bunch of adults could sit around a room and come to that decision just shows how incompetent these "professionals" really are. It reminded me of that scene from Moneyball, except in reality these guys are even less competent at what they do.

And Benning was one of those idiots and now he's the worst GM in the league, and the other idiots in Boston are still making idiotic decisions, trading a franchise center and then potentially a franchise Dman. It's absolutely mind boggling how these guys are deemed qualified to serve coffee, never mind manage a sports team.

... But I digress ... again.


Sorry for the long rant. This is obviously frustrating for me, having my team run by incompetent morons. But I'm genuinely happy you guys got Kassian, because Montreal is one of my very favourite teams besides Vancouver. If Benning is gonna shred all of Vancouver's talent and toughness and youth and potential, at least I can sleep easier if he gives it to a team like you. When Vancouver inevitably collapses into mediocrity for the next 15 to 20 years under incompetent management, I may be jumping on your bandwagon if there's room left.

Congrats!

Management seemed bent on transforming Kassian into a low-skill grinder. He was scratched in the middle of a 7-10 game streak where he was scoring at a point-per-game pace for some reason and was only added back into the line-up because Burrows was injured during pre-game. As soon as his scoring slowed down a bit, he was dropped down the line-up and they tried pushing him into that role again.

At his best, Kassian's a guy who carries the puck well and makes plays with the puck. When he's playing with confidence and has enough leash where won't be benched everytime he turns the puck over, he's a really good and effective player. If managed properly, Kassian should be a top-6 forward. His production was basically all at ES with limited minutes while playing with guys who can't score to save their lives.

Great posts ! Thanks for taking the time to come on our board and post some interesting insight !

Canucks fans are PIIIISSSSEEEED but they are funny, check this out;



bergevin: I'm gonna do it...i'm gonna ask for a 5th
dudley: lol, he's gonna know we're pranking him
bergevin: no, watch, watch...*picks up phone*..."hey benning, we want a 5th too"
dudley: what's he saying? what's he saying?!?
bergevin: "i understand"...*hangs up*...he said yes!!!
dudle: whaaaaaaa!!!! NOOOOOO! For reals?!?!
bergevin: hahahaahahahahahaha

I like him already !

 

[cphabs]

Great posts ! Thanks for taking the time to come on our board and post some interesting insight !

I like him already !

They all start like this...

 

[Kriss E]

i have 0 doubt kassian will be played in the top 6, not because he is a top 6 player, but because our top 6 is that bad, lets hope he rounds it out nicely

it will be nice to be able to throw out gallagher out there and be a little bulldozer, and then right after next shift the RW will switch into the 6`3 kassian, should throw some teams off nicely

im down, i really am.

Precisely why some people aren't jumping up in excitement. We got a project here, and it's likely Kassian that will be slotted into top 6, which would be terrible imo.
Kassian isn't what we need. Sure, he'll probably be better than Prust. God..I hope so.
But Bergevin should be working on bringing in real help, not another project.