Official 2009/2010 Canucks Thread

[7seven]

http://www.cknw.com/Channels/Reg/Spo...spx?ID=1106467

Pavol Demitra says good friend Marian Gaborik has NOT bought house in Vancouver
Vancouver-CKNW980am

6/24/2009

Canucks forward Pavol Demitra says the rumours that pending Minnesota Wild free agent Marian Gaborik has bought a house in Vancouver are not true.

Demitra told CKNW that he knows for sure that Gaborik has not bought a house in Vancouver.

Demitra and Gaborik are best friends and talk every day and live on the same street in their native Slovakia.

Demitra tells CKNW that he would love to see Gabroik sign in Vancouver as a free agent this summer.

[murd0c]

I wouldn't be suprised if he said that so the Canuks don't get looked at again for tampering charges.

[411ken]

Roberto Luongo's agent quickly, and decisively, shot down a report he had reached an agreement with the Canucks on an extension which will be announced on July 1.

"I have six players in the draft, I haven't had any time to talk to anyone about this," Gilles Lupien said from Montreal. "I was hoping to talk to (Canucks GM Mike) Gillis Friday morning.
"I haven't talked to Roberto in more than a month. He told me he wanted to sit down with his wife and spend some time thinking about all of this."

In an interview on TEAM 1040, ESPN reporter John Buccigross claimed he heard that an agreement with Luongo and the Canucks had been reached and there would be an announcement on July 1.
Buccigross oddly said he was reporting the extension himself, and it was not an ESPN report.

"It seems like everyone in the media wants something done yesterday," Lupien said. "Everybody wants to push. Everybody wants a scoop. Well, there is no scoop here. This is something that is going to take some time. The media needs to relax and let us take our time on this.

"Stop pushing. You guys are pushing him right out of the city."Luongo has been on vacation since attending the NHL awards. He will be back and in Montreal this weekend.


http://communities.canada.com/thepro...some-time.aspx

[Harvey Specter]

We'll see if the rumors about Gabby are true come after the 1st.

[Hondaracer]

interesting

[Durrann1984]

http://communities.canada.com/thepro...t-canucks.aspx

When Pavol Demitra visited the Canucks months before July 1 last year, then-Minnesota Wild GM Doug Risebrough made tampering allegations.

The league investigated and dropped the charges, but not before giving the Canucks a warning.

It's a warning the Canucks have taken seriously. Tampering allegations are not to be messed with. The most famous case involved Scott Stevens when the St. Louis Blues tendered him an offer in 1994.

Even though the Devils matched the offer and Stevens stayed in New Jersey, a tampering investigation, which took five years, ended with the Blues getting busted. It cost them a fortune, both on the ice and off it. Try $1.4 million in cash and a first round draft pick, one the Devils could cherry pick during the next five years.

No one around Gaborik want his investment in Vancouver real estate to even hint at tampering. It's why it shouldn't be surprising that Gaborik's close friend, and former teammate, Demitra apparently told CKNW Gaborik he doesn't think Gabby has bought a house.

Demitra, having already been at the centre, understands just how serious tampering allegations could be in this case.

As someone close to the Gaborik situation said yesterday: "You are dealing with a very delicate, flammable issue here."

It's worth noting that several people close to Gaborik were contacted before the story broke. None denied he had bought a house. Several said they could not comment on the story.

[JKam]

Some are saying Gabby bought a house here so he and some friends can stay for the olympics probably to avoid the tampering allegations.

[trancehead]

Scotty + Gabby would be sick...
The speed of our game would pick up ridiculously

[goo3]

Originally Posted by Chairman Kaga

Canucks want Tavares/Duchene if Isles take Hedman

Getzlaf - Perry
Richards - Carter..

Hodgson - Tavares

[68style]

Haha nice comment by the agent... pushing Luongo out of the city with too much love and wanting him to stay here hey??? ... what a fucking jackass, I'd fire him the next day.

[SumAznGuy]

This is just as bad of a joke trade as the Pronger one.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=282921

Phil Kessels for Kaberle and the #7 pick.
Kessels is an RFA.

[411ken]

Originally Posted by 68style

Haha nice comment by the agent... pushing Luongo out of the city with too much love and wanting him to stay here hey??? ... what a fucking jackass, I'd fire him the next day.

Who starts rumours of him having signed and extension? the media of course..they should just stop making stories up and give them time to get it done... Hope that shuts up the media now...

[stuff99]

REPORT: LUONGO, CANUCKS TALKING ABOUT LONG-TERM EXTENSION

Despite being one year away from unrestricted free agency, reports are saying that goalie Roberto Luongo is discussing a contract extension with the Vancouver Canucks.

CKNW Radio in Vancouver is speculating that Luongo and his agent, Gilles Lupien, are asking for a long-term deal that would be at least five years in length, and worth a minimum of $8 million per season.

Luongo is scheduled to earn $6.75 million next season in the final year of his current deal.

The report says that Luongo wishes to be among the highest paid goalies in the league, but he also does not want to handicap Vancouver's payroll and might be willing to take less money to make the team more competitive.

"The way Roberto wants to go, he doesn't want to hit the jackpot, he wants to have a good team," Lupien told CKNW. "And by doing that, you have to work with the team. We're looking for a bit more money, but nothing that would strangle the team. I think we're going forward to have a deal done in the future."

CKNW also speculates that with Luongo in talks to stay with the Canucks long-term, back-up goalie Cory Schneider may get moved this weekend at the NHL Entry Draft in Montreal. Schneider was the Canucks first round draft pick, 26th overall, in the 2004 Draft.

[stuff99]

i dont get how he wants the team to stay competitive if hes askin for 8 mill per

[Noir]

Originally Posted by stuff99

i dont get how he wants the team to stay competitive if hes askin for 8 mill per

Werd: It's gonna make it all that tougher to retain all our skill players and moreso to poach other UFAs to progress the team.

[Chairman Kaga]

I know Lu wants to win and all but he seems kind of greedy if that is his asking price. He has been good but hasn't done anything to get us far in the playoffs and instead he is asking for a raise?

[Gumby]

"he doesn't want to hit the jackpot, he wants to have a good team"

"We're looking for a bit more money"

Why so greedy? What can you do with 8 million that you can't do with $6.75M?

[411ken]

I think 6.75-7m is fair to Luuu if not..trade him and let's give Scheineder some starts.

[JKam]

Wow, it's not like we can't survive without him. He should be more realistic and realize that he hasn't really carried us far into the playoffs and that the salary cap is dropping soon. Now he wants a raise? I say kick the bum out!

[Hondaracer]

Originally Posted by SumAznGuy

This is just as bad of a joke trade as the Pronger one.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=282921

Phil Kessels for Kaberle and the #7 pick.
Kessels is an RFA.

I don't see how it's do bad, I could see Burke making the deal for sure the only thing is that Burke suuposidely likes kaberle alot

[stuff99]

Sedins fading from Vancouver's priority list

And both sides still as far apart as ever

By Ed Willes, The Province
June 26, 2009 8:18 AM

Mike Gillis and J.P. Barry, who represents the Sedin twins, are both experienced, knowledgeable hockey men who've been involved on the business side of the NHL for years.

Both know the market. Both know the relative worth of players. Both know what's fair and not fair. Until recently, both worked as agents and shared information and insights about the game.

They've also said they've enjoyed a cordial professional relationship over the years and when Gillis became the general manager of the Vancouver Canucks last season, they concluded a successful negotiation over the services of Mats Sundin.

At least it was successful for Sundin.

Now, we mention all this because Gillis and Barry are currently embroiled in a negotiation over the Sedins in which the two sides are as far apart as Pluto and Mercury. The tone of the discussions has been civil, publicly at least, but there's also been little movement since the talks began last offseason, largely because there is a fundamental difference of opinion over the twins' value.

More to the point, there is a fundamental difference of opinion over their value relative to the salary cap. Gillis believes a dramatic downturn in league revenues and, by extension, the cap is coming and signing the twins at market value will severely limit the Canucks going forward.

Barry, on the other hand, argues that, if there is a market correction, it won't impact the high-end players and the Sedins have proven conclusively they're high-end players over the last four seasons.

They're also about to become unrestricted free agents in a week and given their age -- they turn 29 in September -- and their proven level of production, the market for their services is clearly defined. At its lowest end, it's $6 million US a season. At it's highest, $7 million. You can quibble about term, but, in the end, any deal should fall somewhere between those two figures.

I mean, anyone who's looked at NHL salaries for more than five minutes can make that determination. But the Canucks and Barry aren't even speaking the same language, so what can we deduce about things as they now stand?

Well, if you're Barry, you have to think Gillis either has no intention of signing the Sedins or he really believes he can get them at a bargain. But that's also besides the point because there isn't a reputable agent in the game who would recommend the deal the Canucks are offering to the Sedins.

Gillis knows that. Barry knows that. So unless things change radically in the next week, it appears the twins have played their last game as Canucks.

Again, if you're in Barry's shoes, what other conclusion is there? The twins are many things, but in a world where Anze Kopitar commands $6.8 million a season, they're not $5.5-million hockey players. That's also been the Canucks' position from the outset, and it hasn't changed in almost a year.

In the meantime, Barry has offered a compromise solution based on Henrik Zetterberg's deal with Detroit, which was flatly rejected by Gillis. And Barry has read where Marian Gaborik has purchased a house in Vancouver. And Barry has read where the Canucks have talked to Ottawa about Dany Heatley.

Add it all up and the least you can say is the twins don't appear to be the Canucks' top priority.

Now, that might change. There's a school of thought that Gillis believes the twins will eventually accept a lesser deal because of their desire to play in Vancouver. If that's the case, the Canucks' GM will have scored a major coup and given himself great flexibility under the cap.

But we keep coming back to the central issue of this negotiation.

The Sedins are worth more than $5.5 million on the open market. They will certainly get more than $5.5 million on the open market. It just doesn't look like it's going to be in Vancouver.

And if that's the way this plays out, we're going to have a long, long time to discuss Gillis's decision.

[stuff99]

Just chill out over the fate of Luongo

Many fans can't wait to know if ace will sign an extension with eager Canucks

By Jason Botchford, The Province
June 26, 2009 8:22 AM


Vancouver Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo stands in his crease during Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinal Round of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Chicago Blackhawks. The Canucks won 5-3.

Vancouver Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo stands in his crease during Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinal Round of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Chicago Blackhawks. The Canucks won 5-3.
Photograph by: Jeff Vinnick file photo, NHLI via Getty Images

Take a deep breath and relax, Canucks followers.

That's the advice from Roberto Luongo's agent Gilles Lupien. It's some sage stuff for a wired market speeding down information highways -- such as Twitter, message boards and talk radio -- with no clue where they are going and little in the way of actual information to feed this city's rabid hunger for offseason Canucks news.

In took just two days for the market to chew through the Province exclusive this week that Marian Gaborik has bought a house in the Vancouver area.

It was like watching the marauding biker gangs in those Mad Max movies terrorize a village, leaving behind scorched earth.

Every piece of info, rumour or real, is chewed to the bone in these parts, then dissected like a med-school cadaver.

Unsuspecting ESPN reporter John Buccigross didn't seem to know what he was wading into when he dropped a flammable, unsubstantiated report on TEAM 1040 Thursday afternoon. Essentially, in a hit-and-run interview, he said he was "hearing" goaltender Luongo had agreed to an extension with the Canucks which would be announced July 1.

Welcome to Vancouver.

Now get ready for your dissection, Buccigross.

The report was news to Lupien, who quickly and decisively denied and dismissed it.

"I have six players in the NHL draft. I haven't had any time to talk to anyone about Roberto's future," Lupien said from Montreal. "I was hoping to talk to [Canucks GM Mike] Gillis on Friday morning.

"I haven't talked to Roberto in more than a month. He told me he wanted to sit down with his wife and spend some time thinking about all of this. It all depends on how he thinks."

Maybe Buccigross is right and what he's "hearing" is accurate. But it does seem unlikely given everything on GM Mike Gillis's plate, including the Sedin twins, the draft, unrestricted free agency and his crop of restricted free agents.

Even Lupien said the first week of July isn't the right time to be talking about a Luongo extension. There will be plenty of time this summer, he said, adding that Vancouver needs to chill and let things unfold over time.

"It seems like everyone in [Vancouver] wants something done yesterday," Lupien said. "Everybody wants to push. Everybody wants a scoop. Well, there is no scoop here. This is something that is going to take some time. Everyone needs to relax.

"Stop pushing. We're taking our time with this, and we aren't pushing anybody. We are relaxed, like we're on a boat. When the boat is ready to dock, we'll dock it."

Lupien's adamant he wasn't hiding a secret deal. He said he doesn't even know yet how a possible deal would look. He said if Luongo wants to stay, everything will be on the table when he talks to the Canucks, even a short-term extension which could be ideal for the Canucks. That's like a hanging curveball for Gillis, given his aversion for long-term deals.

"It could be a one-, two-, or three-year deal," Lupien said. "It all depends on how much. If the money is good, then short-term is fine. Is it long-term, or is it short-term? I don't know, I haven't seen the numbers."

For his part, Gillis dismissed the Buccigross report, leaving the ESPN reporter twisting in the wind by telling The Province: "It's not true."

But maybe Gillis and Lupien are hiding something, and it would be something big.

To find out, we'll just have to relax and wait for July 1.

- - -

[MR_BIGGS]

Damn out of town and limited access to internet..and all this crazyness is happening!

[stuff99]

Concerning Jay Bouwmeester, it's yet another case of wait and see for the Canucks

By Ben Kuzma, The Province
June 26, 2009 8:25 AM

NHL free agency doesn't commence until Wednesday, but the frenzy to figure out sticker prices is overshadowing the entry draft in Montreal.

On eve of the annual selection process, five teams were considering parting with a third-round draft choice for exclusive negotiation rights with unrestricted free agent Jay Bouwmeester. The Canucks were rumoured to be in the mix.

They had trade-deadline interest in Bouwmeester, but the price tag for the Florida Panthers defenceman was a roster player, prospect and first-round draft choice. Fast forward to Thursday and the thought of GM Mike Gillis parting with a pick just to talk to Bouwmeester before free agency, with no guarantee he'd sign, seems ludicrous. It's against everything Gillis says about picks and prospects not being sacrificed.

"Our planning is long-term," Gillis said Thursday.

Gillis could take a run at Bouwmeester when free agency opens because it will be a function of money, not manpower. The Edmonton native earned $4.875 million US last season and could command $6 million. But at age 25 he'd fit long term with any team that has salary-cap space, including the Canucks, who have 13 players under contract for next season at $33.8 million.

With the Canucks expected to lose Mattias Ohlund to free agency and in need of a puck-rushing defenceman, Bouwmeester could fit. However, it could all depend on how the Sedin saga plays out. The contract gap between unrestricted free agents Henrik and Daniel -- they're seeking identical 12-year, $63 million US deals -- and the Canucks is considerable. The sides were to meet again Thursday.

"We're still optimistic we're going to get them signed," said Gillis.

Meanwhile Thursday, one report suggested the Canucks wanted to move from the 22nd overall pick to No. 2 in hopes of landing Swedish D Victor Hedman.

In return, Tampa Bay would want Kevin Bieksa, Cory Schneider and another player along with swapping picks.

If the Canucks do pick at No. 22, they may opt for D Stefan Elliott. The North Vancouver native had 55 points with the Saskatoon Blades last WHL season.
© Copyright (c) The Province

[Chairman Kaga]

Originally Posted by Gumby

Why so greedy? What can you do with 8 million that you can't do with $6.75M?

I can think of 1.25 million extra reasons