The Armchair GM Thread - Soon We Can Hockey

[Intangibos]

Agreed, don't think MG was arrogant at all. I mean I guess some people like to equate intelligence to arrogance. I mean this happens all the time in politics as well, if you appear too smart then people think you are too out of touch.

They want you to believe they were born in a log cabin they built with their bare hands?

 

[arttk]

They want you to believe they were born in a log cabin they built with their bare hands?

Never understood why people feel the need to "relate" to the guy running an organization.

 

[vanuck]

There seems to be a blue-collar portion of the fanbase who have a disproportionate amount of spite toward Gillis for being an 'arrogant city lawyer' which is bizarre because he was a blue-collar gritty ex-player from Northern Ontario who only turned to law after being naively ripped off by Alan Eagleson during his career.

Not a coincidence that there seems to be a huge overlap between hating Gillis and thinking goon fights are great, Euros are poofs, and Don Cherry preaches the gospel.

I didn't find Gillis arrogant at all, except in his dealings with the media, who he hated (rightly). And who thus jumped at every opportunity to skewer him. And not surprisingly, who currently have their noses firmly up the butts of the current super-accessible regime.

All of this. I find it a bit reactionary tbh and not surprisingly many of the more old-school media types identify with that 80's mindset, hence all the brown-nosing. Gillis was literally too new and progressive for them and they couldn't handle that.

 

[The Drop]

Dorsett and prust are role players. Hard to believe I know, but 20+ point 4th liners that can fight are rare.

Role players.


Their role is to suck, get beat up and take away spots from real players.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

ok i have joked a lot that gillis haters hate him bevause he knows how to read. but to be serious, i really don't think it's a class thing, or an urban/rural thing.

it's that we all hailed gillis at first. especially around 2010 when the sedins jumped a level and joined luongo and kesler as elite guys, expectations were huge. and like kesler and burrows, some guys here puffed out their chests and talked to other fanbases, especially those in alberta and ontario. and then in 2011 when gillis was revealed to have no juice with the old boys, and later when the luongo contract completely and unfairly blew up in his face, the fanbase's brain broke. all the hailing gillis turned into bashing gillis because every single other fanbase staryed calling us names. and gillis wasn't there to stop it. toronto was still toronto, alberta was still alberta, the oilers and flames still had their stanley cup banners, and we were still canucks fans.

the blue collar thing was just a way to disassociate from the very forward thinking gillis regime, once the old laws were revealed to still be the law. the sedin bashing, which only abated last year if we're going to be honest, was much the same. and once benning came, a lot of guys took to him and went for his illiterate farmer affect because it was so different from cap specialists and sleep doctors. a year later, all but a handful of posters have come to their senses, mostly because benning's decision-making was so absurd there was no defending it. and here we are.

long story short, this isn't about how far down the 99 you live. nothing to do with class and everything to do with childishness. i bet benning doesn't even know how to use a computer, but ironically, this phenomenon has the stink of internet all over it. it's just reactionary internet nerds being reactionary internet nerds: pick an arbitrary position and argue it pointlessly until your mom turns off the router, no different than 4chan.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

What's interesting about Gillis being arrogant is that I don't think he was arrogant in his interviews. I actually think he was quite frank in his interviews and that is what came across as arrogant. He didn't use the standard PR phrases that we see management using now, and players spewing in every interview. I think he had his vision for the team and he tried to communicate what he could. Bluntness can easily be mistaken for arrogance, though. I mean, obviously he believed his way was the right way but I don't think he was ever a dick about it or anything.

As for the media, they ask stupid questions and try to create controversy. I've never once seen a reporter here ask a really hard question to anyone but Gillis. I think Gillis was just exasperated dealing with Vancouver's awful sports media, and I can't really blame him.

Seriously, am I just imagining things? Was he really arrogant? I really think he was just frank and candid, or as much as he could be without negatively affecting the Canucks (talking about trades for example). Being honest, blunt, and educated doesn't make you arrogant.

If anything, Benning has shown to be much more arrogant than Gillis. Gillis tried to surround himself with the best people possible to give him input so they could make good educated decisions. Do these people think Gilman or Crawford never disagreed with Gillis? I'm sure they had many lengthy discussions regarding personnel and right or wrong they came to a decision together. Benning on the other hand seems to be firing the people who aren't yes men, as if he knows better than everyone else and couldn't possibly be wrong. I'll take Gillis' brand of 'arrogance' over Benning's any day. At least Gillis was willing to listen, learn and improve.

i think both you and the gillis haters are forgetting the burke regime. burke hated the media and treated them with far more disdain than gillis did. and in turn, the media often challenged him, though not as vigilantly as they did gillis because burke is a huge intimidating dude and they are mostly sniveling cowards.

 

[Bourne Endeavor]

Dorsett and prust are role players. Hard to believe I know, but 20+ point 4th liners that can fight are rare.

Prust scored 20+ once in his entire career, in 2011. But nice try.

 

[WTG]

Dorsett and prust are role players. Hard to believe I know, but 20+ point 4th liners that can fight are rare.

Prust is done.

Guy can't skate, he is not a 20 point guy anymore. Dorsett without Horvat and Hansen carrying him will be hard pressed to get 20+ points. Maybe if McCann makes the team and he can carry those anchors both.

 

[brokenhole]

Prust is done.

Guy can't skate, he is not a 20 point guy anymore. Dorsett without Horvat and Hansen carrying him will be hard pressed to get 20+ points. Maybe if McCann makes the team and he can carry those anchors both.

It might be pretty frustrating watching McCann serving up some buttery passes and have the tomato cans smashing it into a d-mans shin or 10ft wide of the net. But just think of the mentoring he will get.

 

[Nuckles]

Guys, I got it! Let's sign Jonathan Cheechoo, he's a 50+ goal scorer!

 

[Toxic0n]

The legend of Prust keeps growing. First he was "a fast skater", then a player "with some offensive upside", now he is a "20+ point 4th liner". By the time the season starts, he will a "20 goal scorer", maybe even almost as good as Kassian

 

[Zaddy91]

Prust was a way to get rid of poison kassian

Prust will be replaced by gaunce mc cann or virtanen in no time

Benning is building a champion

Srry drafting. Not trading or signing. Drafting

 

[racerjoe]

Just staying off topic here, I think Gillis has his image of being arogant largely do to his fued with the media. I think they have painted a picture of him that is just not compeltely true.

Does anyone know the reason why we don't try to move Gaunce back to center? I think it would solve so much problems we have right now. Another ace in the circle, gets rid of Vey, promotes youth, he is defensively sound. It just makes so much sense, I can't be the only one thinking it.

 

[Zaddy91]

Because mccann sutter

Kenins and gaunce as Lw is something weve desperately needed. Size and physicality

 

[Josepho]

Prust was a way to get rid of poison kassian

Prust will be replaced by gaunce mc cann or virtanen in no time

Benning is building a champion

Srry drafting. Not trading or signing. Drafting

Stop saying that. I doubt kassian was just a matter of WD not liking him, but don't spew **** like that when there isn't even proof of anything.

 

[Stanley as in Cup]

Stop saying that. I doubt kassian was just a matter of WD not liking him, but don't spew **** like that when there isn't even proof of anything.

I know not facts but i was chatting with my buddy who played for Missouri mavericks a few years ago. He said a couple guys in the Canucks system played there (i can't remember who) and he said that kassian was a spaz and a head case. I think that just lines up with the fact he never got a chance to move up the roster or regular playing and that Benning had to add to get rid of him. Not fact just seems to confirm

 

[Eddy Punch Clock]

Guys, I got it! Let's sign Jonathan Cheechoo, he's a 50+ goal scorer!

I was thinking about the other JC.

Jimmy Carson.

 

[Ho Borvat]

Just staying off topic here, I think Gillis has his image of being arogant largely do to his fued with the media. I think they have painted a picture of him that is just not compeltely true.

Does anyone know the reason why we don't try to move Gaunce back to center? I think it would solve so much problems we have right now. Another ace in the circle, gets rid of Vey, promotes youth, he is defensively sound. It just makes so much sense, I can't be the only one thinking it.

I wonder if the plan was to start him on the wing for his first season of pro-hockey, and eventually move him back to center?

Unless they see him as another Matthias (big center, who is better on the wing) I think it would be best to have him at center (since he was essentially drafted as a shutdown center).

 

[Ho Borvat]

I know not facts but i was chatting with my buddy who played for Missouri mavericks a few years ago. He said a couple guys in the Canucks system played there (i can't remember who) and he said that kassian was a spaz and a head case. I think that just lines up with the fact he never got a chance to move up the roster or regular playing and that Benning had to add to get rid of him. Not fact just seems to confirm

Not gonna lie, but this seems like such a huge stretch.

 

[tantalum]

Yes the poisonous Kassian who was given a letter the other night by the Habs. Pre-season or not, players don't get letters unless they are providing some sort of leadership or setting a good example.

Such poison.

It was absolutely clear that if nothing else the players really liked Kassian the person. That shouldn't even be in question.

 

[ginner classic]

I know not facts but i was chatting with my buddy who played for Missouri mavericks a few years ago. He said a couple guys in the Canucks system played there (i can't remember who) and he said that kassian was a spaz and a head case. I think that just lines up with the fact he never got a chance to move up the roster or regular playing and that Benning had to add to get rid of him. Not fact just seems to confirm

The only guy I can see that played in the Vancouver system and also Missouri was Kellan Tochkin. So....not really sure how much insight he would have had into why Kassian just had to be traded with that massive, cap-killing contract.

 

[JuniorNelson]

It doesn't matter what Kassian is, they didn't want him any more.

In other news there is a big young center on waivers and his name is Brody Sutter! Benning should sign him up, right away! Two Sutters would be like announcing a Cup run!

 

[y2kcanucks]

Stop saying that. I doubt kassian was just a matter of WD not liking him, but don't spew **** like that when there isn't even proof of anything.

I've consistently taken the position that the trade was an idiotic one, but I'm changing my stance that we have to trust management on this one particular trade.

 

[MadaCanuckle]

Guys, I got it! Let's sign Jonathan Cheechoo, he's a 50+ goal scorer!

Well, as far as I see it, he could crack our top 12, since some guys will not played just based on their age ...

 

[MS]

Would have substantial interest in Max Friberg who was just waived by Anaheim - has been waived early to try and sneak him through much like Markstrom last year.

This is the sort of guy a retooling team should be looking at for a bottom-6 spot, not junk like Prust.

Excellent skater/defensive forward with grit and a history of big-game goals who has produced quality AHL numbers the past two years.

Don't need wingers but this is the sort of guy I'd make room for.