| Harvey Specter | 09-16-2008 12:53 AM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hot Karl
(Post 6032280)
reading comprehension ftl.
minny was interested in signing naslund, a free agent this summer. that in no way means there was any interest in trading gaborik for naslund + anything.
making it nazzy + luongo for gaborik, that'd be about the only way that was going down. or something equally dumb like adding in edler and two 1st rounders.
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The point I was trying to make was the Wild obviously had interest in Naslund even before the offseason and Gaborik hasn't been happy in Minnesota for a while now so who knows maybe we could have landed Gaborik in Vancouver using Naslund. And I’m too lazy to search this but I'm pretty sure we had trade rumors about Gabroik wanting to play in Vancouver late last season as well.
Edit:
Camrose Prosepct Tournament or as the Flamer fans called it "Calgary prospects vs The Gillis plan C club". Quote:
Grabner steals show in loss
Iain MacIntyre, Vancouver Sun
Published: Monday, September 15, 2008
CAMROSE, Alta. - He could have had five goals Monday night, but Michael Grabner settled for two.
Still, it was a good start - and a better one that most teammates had as the Vancouver Canuck rookies were beaten 6-3 by the Calgary Flames in a prospects game.
Grabner, the 2006 first-rounder with the turbo wheels, should star at this level. So he did what was expected.
Daniel Rahimi did more - or at least, differently - than he was expected. And that's a National Hockey League training camp in a snapshot: elite prospects trying to validate their status, and longshots pushing themselves from their comfort zone to get noticed.
Rahimi, the 21-year-old Swede of Iranian descent, had one of the game's biggest hits and initiated a fight with Flames' prospect Ryley Grantham, who had 163 penalty minutes in Moose Jaw last season.
Grabner, on a lively line with Dan Gendur and 2008 first-rounder Cody Hodgson, initiated a Canuck comeback in the second period.
The inexperience of the lineups was reflected in the jersey numbers, which read like Fahrenheit temperatures across the Prairies on Monday. Even the coaches would admit they need videotape to accurately assess how everyone did.
But nobody had a worse night than Vancouver goalie Julien Ellis, whose career as a Canuck started in tears and hasn't improved much since the 2005 draft.
Ellis, among the first batch of cuts from main camp last year, suffered what appeared to be a serious lower leg injury in the third period and could not finish the game.
"I hurt it down here," the 22-year-old said despondently as he gently touched the back of his right ankle. "I heard a snap."
Canuck coach Alain Vigneault, who watched from the stands while minor-league coach Scott Arniel ran the bench, said the injury didn't look good but an X-ray would be required to asess it.
It didn't take an X-ray to know that Grabner was the best Canuck and best player on the ice in the middle part of the game.
He helped get Vancouver into the game when he swept in the rebound from Gendur's shot at 1:20 of the second period, and briefly lifted the Canucks into a 3-3 tie late in the frame when he squeezed the puck past Flames' goalie Matt Keetley from a sharp angle after a terrific burst of speed down right wing. Grabner also was stopped on a breakaway by Keetley and fired point-blank over the net after a setup by Hodgson.
"Both teams have some very young guys, very inexperienced kids out there," Vigneault said. "[Grabner] should stand out, and in the second period he did. He's going into his second year. He has got to come into these situations here and be an impact player. He was the best player on the ice in the second period. That's what we expect out of him."
Arniel, who helped nurture Grabner through an erratic first season in the American League last year, said he has seen a more confident player since the Canucks opened their rookie camp on Saturday.
"He's a year older and feels like he's not a rookie anymore," Arniel said of the winger who turns 21 on Oct. 5. "He feels a little more comfortable. I think him coming here seven weeks early and skating with a lot of regular Canuck guys, he's feeling like he fits in a little bit more. Last year, he looked a little out of place. We saw the confidence on the ice tonight."
Grabner, Hodgson and Gendur were plus-two in a three-goal loss, which was impressive.
"I think we played really well together," Grabner said. "Cody's a really good playmaking centre. You can see it: he has a really good eye to see the opening through sticks and skates. He's easy to get the puck from."
Vigneault cited defenceman Yann Sauve, a second-round pick in June, when asked which players impressed him.
Another blueliner drafted in the second round, Taylor Ellington (2007), also made some strong plays in the defensive zone.
Defenceman Patrick Coulombe, who nearly made Vigneault's team as a free agent from junior two years ago and is one of the oldest players at 23, did not distinguish himself.
Rahimi did, if only for his willingness to stand in and absorb punches from one of the Flames' toughest prospects.
"I'm not that good of a player, so I have to do something else," Rahimi smiled. "I want to show everyone that I'm willing to do everything, even the things I'm not really good at, to make it as far as possible."
Arniel, who coached Rahimi last season in Manitoba, said: "It's funny because Danny had one fight last year and it was with one of the toughest guys in the league. He wants to prove to people he can play all different kinds of games. This is what you want kids to do - you want them to compete. When they're trying hard to get to next week's camp, they maybe go out of character sometimes. And that's what Danny did."
The Canucks' main training camp begins Saturday in Whistler. Vancouver's kids play here again Tuesday night against the Edmonton Oiler prospects.
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