Post-Game Talk: Inter Squad 2 - Team Schneider 3, Team Luongo 0 (Team S also wins SO)

[604]

Raymond has had a pretty good shot for awhile, he just needs to get in a position where he can utilize it better.

I think that was the beauty with Shroeder tonight, he was hitting Raymond in full flight and/or drawing defenders to him that dishing to Raymond.

The best setup actually wasn't a goal but when he passed to Raymond at the side of the net with Luongo already down...unfortunately Raymond drifted too far over and hit the side of the net because he left himself with a brutal angle.

 

[shortshorts]

Just got back from the game, and wow. That was the longest wave I've ever been apart of at Rogers. That wave went around a good 7-8 times.

My take on some players:

Team Blue

-Burrows is very rusty. He's going to take awhile to get into it.
-Sedins were the Sedins. They were fantastic, but they need to stop the turnovers near our blue line though.
-Malhotra absolutely killed everyone on the faceoff. Poor Schroeder. Wasn't paying attention nearly enough, but he didn't make any noticeable turnovers or bad plays.
-Volpatti is a serviceable 4th liner. More ideal as a 13th forward/1st call up, though.
-Weise looks fantastic. Has the potential to be a good 3rd liner in the near future. Soft hands, finishes his checks, good defensively. Staple to our 4th line RW.

-Edler and Garrison clearly have good chemistry already. I'd prefer if Edler was on the left side though, it's clear he's uncomfortable there and his decision making is more suspect here. Garrison has a nice slapper. Didn't unload but it was still a bullet.

-Alberts absolutely crushing people. Raymond almost died, and came up swinging his stick at Alberts. No need to do that in training camp, but I guess he felt a need to solidify himself as the 7th D. I'm confident with Alberts as our 7th D.

Team Grey

-Higgins was unnoticeable both offensively and defensively. I still don't get why you people like him so much. He's a 3rd liner who was masquerading as a 2nd liner last year.

-Lappy is a solid 4th line C. I'm not sure he has the offensive potential to ever make himself a full time 3rd liner... but as a 4th liner he's ideal for a contenders team.

-Very impressed with Hansen. Great speed, great positioning, and very clean passing.

-Mayray. Told you guys it was Kesler and not Mayray . Simply put, Raymond needs someone to put the puck in his stick in positions where he can skate and shoot. Kesler doesn't do that, Schroeder does. (Only half serious because non sniping Kesler did this very often. Sniper Kesler doesn't)

-Schroeder made one sick pass to Raymond in the slot which wowed me. Great vision. What impressed me the most was his defensive positioning, balance and lack of turnovers. I don't see his size causing a ton of problems, the guy is built like a brick.

-Kassian played very well. He does all the little things right and was a key component to our second line. Very impressed with his size.

-Hamhuis, Bieksa are very rusty.

-Ballard and Tanev are very ready for this season. Ballard looking to prove people wrong. They played mistake free hockey and were communicating very well with each other.

-Luongo and Schnieder both played very well. Luongo was great despite Gretzky hat-tricking him.

 

[vanuck]

Agreed - moronic hit by Alberts on Raymond there. It's your own teammate you idiot.

You can tell Ballard and Tanev just work so well together. Love their D-to-D passes.

I think that was the beauty with Shroeder tonight, he was hitting Raymond in full flight and/or drawing defenders to him that dishing to Raymond.

The best setup actually wasn't a goal but when he passed to Raymond at the side of the net with Luongo already down...unfortunately Raymond drifted too far over and hit the side of the net because he left himself with a brutal angle.

Yep. That was a beauty of a play - a pass to an unguarded Raymond for a one-timer from his off-wing with Lu already down and out... couldn't believe it didn't go in. But their chemistry plus JS's ability to put the puck on MayRay's stick in good scoring areas is very encouraging, even if he hadn't scored tonight.

 

[PG Canuck]

Schroeder and Raymond impressed me. Hopefully that's the line that can hold their own for a bit until Kes/Booth return. Think we should keep Kassian with Raymond/Schroeder though?

 

[CanadianPirate]

Schroeder and Raymond impressed me. Hopefully that's the line that can hold their own for a bit until Kes/Booth return. Think we should keep Kassian with Raymond/Schroeder though?

What I find most interesting is if Schroeder and Raymond play well together there is no reason why they have to be split up when Booth and Kesler come back. Neither need to play with Kesler especially when Higgins has been the best player with those two.

Sedin-Sedin-Burrows
Booth-Kesler-Higgins
Hansen-Malholtra-Lapierre
Raymond-Schroeder-Kassian (or Weise if Kassian is not playing well or is still injured)

Having an offensive fourth line would give the Canucks an advantage over the other teams fourth lines and having that third line gives AV the shutdown defensive line he loves to have so much.

 

[Towel-Power]

Schroeder and Raymond impressed me. Hopefully that's the line that can hold their own for a bit until Kes/Booth return. Think we should keep Kassian with Raymond/Schroeder though?

I think we definitely need size on that line as Schroeder and Raymond look like 2 16 year olds and Kassian would provide that. I'd keep that line for Saturday but I could see Kassian back on the 4th line and Higgins on the second or something.

 

[professorchaos]

Just got home - took my kids to see the scrimmage.


My take is a bit different.

Edler and Garrison showed some real creativity offensively, but were brutal defensively. Particularly on the 2nd goal, they just backed in and gave Raymond way to much space. Garrison has a great shot and made some really nice offensive reads, but was not strong defensively.

I thought Corrado looked reasonably good tonight - he was #58 right? His defensive partner seem to treat the puck like a hot potato, but Corrado was okay. Last night he looked like a spectator when the Sedins were in the offensive zone, but tonight he did a much better job. Given the depth on our defense, he certainly hasn't earned a roster spot, but he had a better night than a couple of veterans.

My take is that the guys who have been playing in the AHL and Europe looked to have much more jump. Understandable, but I do wonder why the Sedins and Edler didn't play in the SEL.

Luongo, despite giving up 3 goals on the first 12 shots, played pretty well in the scrimmage. All three goals were major defensive lapses. In the shootout, Luongo was pretty bad, particularly on Lapierre's pathetic effort.

Schneider however was outstanding.

Ebbett was okay, and clearly had lesser wingers tonight, but Schroeder was much better. He showed an ability to hit Raymond in full stride.

I agree with your take on things more than I do HF's (not to say I don't appreciate his/her opinion). Garrison did make some nice defensive plays covering for Edler who was completely out to lunch on a few, namely the second goal you mention. Edler needs to tighten up his positioning. Corrado also played a solid game, not bad for a guy his age. I would also add that Volpatti played quite well, I don't know what people expect out of him but in my opinion he did his job and got some pucks on net as a bonus (not to mention a cross-rink backhanded pass that went tape to tape). All in all a very good scrimmage, can't wait for the season to start.

 

[NFITO]

Schroeder and Raymond impressed me. Hopefully that's the line that can hold their own for a bit until Kes/Booth return. Think we should keep Kassian with Raymond/Schroeder though?

I think those are the lines that AV will start the season with... looked like he had them matched up against each other with the Lapierre (shutdown line) playing against the Sedin unit and the Malhotra (4th line) playing against the Schroeder unit (2nd line).

That's the end of training camp, and I'm guessing that what we saw tonight with the lineup is what we'll see at the start of the season:

Sedin-Sedin-Burrows
Raymond-Schroeder-Kassian
Higgins-Lapierre-Hansen
Volpatti-Malhotra-Weise

Hamhuis-Bieksa
Garrison-Edler
Ballard-Tanev

Schneider will start game 1, while Luongo will play game 2.

AV will probably juggle things early and often, but my guess is this is the lineup we start the season with.

 

[King of Anarchy]

Higgins was unnoticeable both offensively and defensively. I still don't get why you people like him so much. He's a 3rd liner who was masquerading as a 2nd liner last year

I don't get why you're putting so much stock in a glorified practice. Higgins was one of our most consistent and effective forwards last season.

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

I don't get why you're putting so much stock in a glorified practice. Higgins was one of our most consistent and effective forwards last season.

43 points in 71 games. There were teams last year where that was considered 1st line production.

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

I think that was the beauty with Shroeder tonight, he was hitting Raymond in full flight and/or drawing defenders to him that dishing to Raymond.

The best setup actually wasn't a goal but when he passed to Raymond at the side of the net with Luongo already down...unfortunately Raymond drifted too far over and hit the side of the net because he left himself with a brutal angle.

Man, if he and Raymond click long-term we could have a straight-up nasty team in April provided the team is relatively healthy.

 

[Shane]

My take is that the guys who have been playing in the AHL and Europe looked to have much more jump. Understandable, but I do wonder why the Sedins and Edler didn't play in the SEL.

I'm not sure about Edler---somebody else said he was rehabbing his back? But the twins didn't want to uproot their families (kids in school and such) unless the whole season was lost, which thankfully never happened.

 

[croatNUCKS]

I'll put all my money on the grey

very smart guy

 

[shortshorts]

I don't get why you're putting so much stock in a glorified practice. Higgins was one of our most consistent and effective forwards last season.

This is my opinion over the course of last season. He's good at everything, great at nothing. He's a utility tool which can be placed everywhere.

He's great value for his contract, but as soon as he asks for a raise (inevitably) I hope we walk away.

 

[Var]

This is my opinion over the course of last season. He's good at everything, great at nothing. He's a utility tool which can be placed everywhere.

He's great value for his contract, but as soon as he asks for a raise (inevitably) I hope we walk away.

Well count me as another fan of Higgins. Liked him in Montreal, still like him in Van. Good on D, good playmaker, rarely out of position or causes turnovers, makes the right play along the boards. Also rarely injured. You're right about the utility tool, and his adaptability is a great quality.

 

[luongo321]

This is my opinion over the course of last season. He's good at everything, great at nothing. He's a utility tool which can be placed everywhere.

He's great value for his contract, but as soon as he asks for a raise (inevitably) I hope we walk away.

Higgins elevates his game to another level in the playoffs. Without him and maxim playing the way they did in 10-11 playoffs we wouldn't have made it to the finals. Good at everhthing and great at nothing? Sounds like te reasoning commentators came up with for why spott didn't pick corrado for team canada. Higgins has no fear and he also has a pretty decent shot. A Canuck that will actuallly shoot uP high.

 

[Cocoa Crisp]

Man, if he and Raymond click long-term we could have a straight-up nasty team in April provided the team is relatively healthy.

If Schroeder and Raymond form the nucleus of another scoring line, we are in much better shape heading into the playoffs.

A lot has been made of our supposed lack of offensive depth, but the underlying issue IMO isn't a lack of quality scoring forwards, it's that the mode of attack has been very homogeneous throughout the lineup: everyone cycles down low and works it back to the point. And as well as we do that up and down the lineup, it's much easier to play a team like that, to scout a team like that, than one that displays a more versatile attack.

Raymond/Schroeder are capable of playing a north-south attack, one that potentially doesn't involve feeding the point. Adding this to our the mix with our bread and butter Sedin line attack could be lethal.

 

[Land O Lakes]

Wild fan here. I'm excited for you guys. Schroeder is downright sick when playing with the right line mates (been the case at NTDP, Gophers, and Worlds). He's like your little diamond in the rough.

As long as AV keeps a finisher on JS's line it's going to be a fun year watching this progress.

 

[L4cer8]

Wild fan here. I'm excited for you guys. Schroeder is downright sick when playing with the right line mates (been the case at NTDP, Gophers, and Worlds). He's like your little diamond in the rough.

As long as AV keeps a finisher on JS's line it's going to be a fun year watching this progress.

What a lot of people don't realize about him is that he's absolutely jacked. He may be small, but he has so much strength that I think it easily makes up for it. I'm still jealous of your prospects though.

 

[PG Canuck]

I think we definitely need size on that line as Schroeder and Raymond look like 2 16 year olds and Kassian would provide that. I'd keep that line for Saturday but I could see Kassian back on the 4th line and Higgins on the second or something.

Kassian will have to play the body consistently come the regular season though, something he wasn't able to really work on in these scrimmages. His back may also be giving him troubles, hence why I questioned if we should leave him there on the second line, when he may be a liability with his back acting up on him.

 

[craigcaulks*]

I don't get why you're putting so much stock in a glorified practice. Higgins was one of our most consistent and effective forwards last season.

And finished 1 point behind the great Mike Richards.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

This is my opinion over the course of last season. He's good at everything, great at nothing. He's a utility tool which can be placed everywhere.

He's great value for his contract, but as soon as he asks for a raise (inevitably) I hope we walk away.

I'd pay more to keep Higgins. He may be a third line talent, but he's able to play 2nd line minutes without embarrassing himself. He's a tireless worker who gives it his all every shift, and he'll do the dirty spade work on a line without complaint.

This is the kind of complimentary player you win cups with. Not everyone can be a flashy scorer, those guys need to have and handle the puck. Higgins is a brick and mortar guy. I can't believe how good he's been here, and for how little money. And I also can't believe how little we gave up to get him.

One of our best acquisitions in recent years, IMO.

 

[Pseudonymous*]

I'd pay more to keep Higgins. He may be a third line talent, but he's able to play 2nd line minutes without embarrassing himself. He's a tireless worker who gives it his all every shift, and he'll do the dirty spade work on a line without complaint.

This is the kind of complimentary player you win cups with. Not everyone can be a flashy scorer, those guys need to have and handle the puck. Higgins is a brick and mortar guy. I can't believe how good he's been here, and for how little money. And I also can't believe how little we gave up to get him.

One of our best acquisitions in recent years, IMO.

Agree 100%, LOVE higgins and will definitely pay some more to keep him around. I never want our third line to not include higgins and hansen

 

[Mr. Canucklehead]

Further discussion can go to the Training Camp thread or the Pre-Game Thread for Saturday.

Closed.