Yes, finally a sane person! I agree he is no superstar but he is a warm body who is expected to pop about 40 points a year who is (this is the important part folks) HAPPY TO PLAY IN VANCOUVER. The legions of idiots who seem to think that all Benning has to do is pick up the phone and sign elite players for cheap don't seem to understand this. Yes, of course he is somewhat overpaid JUST ABOUT EVERY FA VANCOUVER HAS SIGNED IN THE LAST COUPLE OF DECADES HAVE BEEN OVERPAID. Why? Because it is an incentive to come to one of the least preferred teams in the NHL that's why. Folks thinking that all we have to do is beckon "come hither" to the likes of Tavares are truly deluded and when Benning fails to sign guys like him because he won't sign here for ANYTHING (with all things being equal) then suddenly Benning is a useless bum. This isn't Boston where everybody likes to play for lots of excellent reasons, it's the salt mines. Evander Kane MIGHT sign here if we overpay him massively because he's from here and he's a problem child (just what we need; he'll be in rehab by Christmas says I) but anybody else of quality? Forget it. Hence we have players like Gagner on our roster.
Player Discussion Sam Gagner
- Thread starter Bleach Clean
- Start date
Yes, finally a sane person! I agree he is no superstar but he is a warm body who is expected to pop about 40 points a year who is (this is the important part folks) HAPPY TO PLAY IN VANCOUVER. The legions of idiots who seem to think that all Benning has to do is pick up the phone and sign elite players for cheap don't seem to understand this. Yes, of course he is somewhat overpaid JUST ABOUT EVERY FA VANCOUVER HAS SIGNED IN THE LAST COUPLE OF DECADES HAVE BEEN OVERPAID. Why? Because it is an incentive to come to one of the least preferred teams in the NHL that's why. Folks thinking that all we have to do is beckon "come hither" to the likes of Tavares are truly deluded and when Benning fails to sign guys like him because he won't sign here for ANYTHING (with all things being equal) then suddenly Benning is a useless bum. This isn't Boston where everybody likes to play for lots of excellent reasons, it's the salt mines. Evander Kane MIGHT sign here if we overpay him massively because he's from here and he's a problem child (just what we need; he'll be in rehab by Christmas says I) but anybody else of quality? Forget it. Hence we have players like Gagner on our roster.
The "playing in Vancouver is such a burden" argument isn't just weird because it's a world class city, was/is one of the most winning franchises between 2000-2015, with a softball tossing media crew that treats players like royalty... it's also weird for the following, via 31 Thoughts.
But yes, bless Sam Gagner for allowing hockey to continue existing in this market. Especially when his likely next best alternative option was to play in Kazakhstan. Which maybe isn't a bad thing?
But yes, bless Sam Gagner for allowing hockey to continue existing in this market. Especially when his likely next best alternative option was to play in Kazakhstan. Which maybe isn't a bad thing?
Melvin
21/12/05
It's a f***ing joke that anyone thinks this place is any sort of pressure cooker. I lost a lot of respect for Friedman with that nonsense
Hit the post
I have your gold medal Zippy!
heh, you've just revealed your real identity "MS". Welcome to the boards Mattias Öhlund!
(I'll know better than to attempt to throw an elbow at your bad eye in the future 'MS'
).
David Bruce Banner
Nude Cabdriver Ban
I would far rather have had Granlund playing on that top line than Gagner.
Maybe even Gaunce, as I’m still in the camp that thinks he might have done untapped offensive potential.
I might consider Gagner over Dowd as our #1 center... if everything were to irrevocably and insanely pear shaped.
Maybe even Gaunce, as I’m still in the camp that thinks he might have done untapped offensive potential.
I might consider Gagner over Dowd as our #1 center... if everything were to irrevocably and insanely pear shaped.
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Players don't care about whether or not a place is a "world class city". They care about the travel, the taxes, the cost of living and the legacy of the team itself which in Vancouver's case is one of a day late and a dollar short with a strong smell of shame and failure. I've lost track of how many ex-Canucks have said that they were happy to be out of the media/fan pressure cooker that is Vancouver as opposed to (insert name of city not named Toronto or Montreal here). A quick survey of this board should show you the daunting prospect that awaits the new Canuck player; there are maybe a half dozen players on the current team that aren't considered trash by a majority of the fanbase that expresses itself here. We've had to bend over backwards and grossly overpay almost every decent player we have ever had starting with Messier. One local ex-NHLer that I know (as a neighbor) told me he had a chance to sign in Van but flat out refused for most of the reasons stated above (plus he hated Kesler and Burrows). Canucks made him a very solid offer but another team matched it and that was that. When the contract was announced many thought it was a bit rich but then nobody knew about the Canuck offer. It apparently happens a lot with this team. He played his whole career in the east and he figured it added several years to his career thanks to the vastly reduced travel. He also loved the fact that he could go out into the public and nobody knew who he was which is almost impossible in Vancouver.
You’ve lost count? So either you should be able to list a couple dozen off the top of your head or else we get to laugh at your basic arithmetic skills.
Remember, hockey players not NBA players.
Aaaaaaand go ...
I don't think Vancouver was or is an attractive UFA destination. We're not bad, we're just not the top. We could have signed Gretzky and did sign Messier but we basically offered the most. We also signed Sundin by offering the most. We were Shane Doan's 2nd choice but again we offered the most (more than what he signed for). We were able to sign Hamhuis and Garrison (also offered him an extra year) because we had the home town connection. If we offered Evander Kane the most, he might end up signing here.
The Swedes love us though. We're a top 3-5 NHL cities for Swedes.
The Swedes love us though. We're a top 3-5 NHL cities for Swedes.
Hit the post
I have your gold medal Zippy!
That generally applies to most UFA's so with respect to many sports teams though. Offer that athlete enough money, and they'll sign much of the time. Sure the status of the club affects the decision somewhat (but not all the time obviously as just look at the reason why Forsberg never signed here despite the presence of his "best friend" on the team during the peak of the WCE).
Hey if you think I'm going to say "How high?" every time you say "Jump" you are sadly mistaken. I won't burn a calorie trying to convince you of anything because it would be a waste of a calorie.
No worries, I didn’t expect you could actually back it up. Just wanted to make you admit it.
Megaterio Llamas
el rey del mambo
Just an FYI. 75% + OF UFAs are overpaid in varying degrees. I am probably being generous. The only time you win with a UFA is if you catch lightning in a bottle chemistry wise, or you grab a guy at a reasonable rate who exceeds expectations.
Most guys you sign for big money have to basically duplicate career years past their prime. The money someone like Eriksson signed for, he wasn't going to justify his contract from day one without maximum performance and a little more.
Most guys you sign for big money have to basically duplicate career years past their prime. The money someone like Eriksson signed for, he wasn't going to justify his contract from day one without maximum performance and a little more.
me2
Go ahead foot
Most of that is based Linden and Benning being unable to process what was happening around them.
reality: team sucks and bad constructed, struggling or getting worse
Lindenning's mind: well constructed team. Playoff team. Getting better every year.
Media: results are in: team sucks
Lindenning: can't you see what a great team we have assembled, we did a great job, we made no mistakes. So why you so negative? You are only saying it sucks because you are trying to cause trouble. I hate this market.
I find it hilarious that Linden has conducted himself like a used car salesman and is shocked the contact lens treatment isn't winning over the fans.
BenningHurtsMySoul
Unfair Huggy Bear
He dropped his usual "the Petterssons, the Boesers, the Juolevis" the other night
JuniorNelson
Registered User
According to Jimbo this is a "make-or-break' year for guys like Baertschi or Granlund....but they're RFA's with little leverage and there's no way they're going to come close to earning Gagner's $3m a season....and frankly he can't carry a candle to either to those two guys five-on-five...and of course Gagner is now solidly in the way of other young wingers cracking the lineup. An awful signing, that looks even worse when you contemplate that they're stuck with the contract for two more seasons.
I think it applies less to sports with a salary cap where the difference in the offer isn't that significant. Take Stamkos. There is no doubt that he left money on the table. I bet that even if we offered him the max he wouldn't come here. The same probably applies to Tavares.
The point is that I don't think Vancouver was somehow like a top destination for free agents when we were winning and now it's not. Guys who want to go to winning teams of course would choose winning teams. But at the end of the day, it's not like we were able to get free agents who weren't from here to accept less to come here. And let's face it, Beautiful British Columbia is pretty wet during 90% the hockey season.
PuckMunchkin
Very Nice, Very Evil!
Can't they both be true?
Can't Benning be a useless bum (apart from his drafting) and Vancouver be a undesirable location for FAs?
I don’t think we’re an “undesirable” location. In a league with 30, now 31 teams it’s impossible for us to be in on every one but we’ve signed our fair share of medium profile UFAs over the years. Excluding the hometown guys like Hamhuis, Mitchell, and Garrison we’ve grabbed guys like Demitra, Vrbata, Eriksson, Samuelsson, Malhotra, and Sundin. I’d hardly say we’re being shunned by players around the league. Yes we probably don’t have much chance with most US born guys but that’s really about it.
We are definitely not an undesirable location. But there is the fact that there are more Ontario and Alberta raised players than there are BC raised players. It's hard to convince guys who are from out east and playing out east to come out to the west and Alberta boys seem to prefer Alberta over us.
Hit the post
I have your gold medal Zippy!
Don't players generally not live among us plebs? Is there that much a difference between the more "affluent" parts of various cities in North America?
Sure, when hometown factors in then that makes sense. And Toronto has made hay on that in the past, though largely to poor results (Tucker, Corson, Roberts). Overall money/term, team systems, team quality, and promised role would play a much bigger role in a team's ability to attract UFA's than anything else. Outside of a few large US markets, I think we're in the next tier of teams that seems to be in on a decent number of UFAs. Which is fine, I wouldn't expect us to be any higher or any lower.
