Page 31 | Rob The Hockey Guy | A Vancouver Canucks Hockey Blog

2010 Team Preview: Team USA

August 20, 2009 Rob 1 Comment 2010 Olympics

With Team USA beginning their orientation camp this week in Chicago and Team Canada starting theirs next week in Calgary, what better time to get an early preview on the 2010 Olympic Hockey tournament that is only 6 months away. For the next few weeks Canuckz.com will preview each of the contending nations. Today we preview Team USA.

team_usa

IIHF World Ranking: 5th

Top players in 2010: Parise, Kane, Stastny, Thomas, Miller, Rafalski

2006 Olympic Result: 8th

What’s in their trophy case? World Cup in 1996, Olympic Gold Medal in 1980

Canuckz.com’s predicted 2010 roster:

76074528RB059_NHL_Winter_Cl

Goaltenders:

Miller

Thomas

DiPietro

komisarek

Defense:

Rafalski-Komisarek

Martin-Whitney

Suter-Orpik

J. Johnson

parise

Forwards:

Parise-Stastny-Kane

Kessel-Gomez-Ryan

Booth-Drury-Brown

Langenbrunner-Kesler-Malone

Pavelski

richter

The 2010 Olympics will mark the beginning of a new era of USA Hockey. Gone are most of their key members of their World Cup in 1996 such as Richter, Leetch, Roenick and Hull. The 2010 team will be a lot younger, with the likes of Parise, Stastny, Kane, Kessel and Ryan all playing key roles, despite all being 25 years of age or less. As Team USA general manager Brian Burke loves to mention, they ought to be considered underdogs behind the likes of Canada, Russia and Sweden.

But Team USA has a lot to look forwards to. To start with, for the first time since Mike Richter they are well positioned in goal, with either Ryan Miller or Vezina trophy winner Tim Thomas between the pipes. They are a bit thin on defense, but their forwards have a lot of speed and skill. Sound a bit like that young team in 1996 that won the World Cup? They begin play in pool A with Canada, Switzerland and Norway, so a top 2 finish in the round robin is almost a certainty. The IIHF may have them ranked #5 in the world at the moment, but I think on the small North American ice surface, they will at least make the semi finals in Vancouver.

Is Iceland in the competition this year?

Bertuzzi Back in Mo-town

August 19, 2009 Rob 1 Comment Free Agency

bert20skates20by20fans

On Tuesday the Detroit Red Wings signed Todd Bertuzzi to a one year, $1.5 million deal. This is an interesting deal on a few fronts. First, anytime a team decides to roll the dice on big Bert, it’s interesting. Second, it’s Bertuzzi’s second tour of duty with the Wings, he was a late season addition with Detroit in 2007. And third, Bertuzzi, at least on paper, it’s a bargain. He actually put up respectible numbers with Calgary last season, notching 44 points in only 66 games. Of course it’s the defensive liabilities and attitude problem that scares away most teams.

If there’s one team that has the leadership base to deal with Bertuzzi, it may be Detroit. And if there’s one coach to harness Bertuzzi, it may be Mike Babcock. Detroit is the only team in the league in which signing Todd Bertuzzi makes sense. Detroit is a team where he can play on the 2nd or 3rd line, and fade into the background a little bit.

Call me crazy, but I’m still a bit of a Bertuzzi fan. During his best years in Vancouver (2001-02 and 2002-03), he was arguably the most dominant player in team history. Just think about it. Pearson Trophy winner Markus Naslund played for Vancouver at the time and teams spent all their time coming up with game plans to stop big number 44.

In case you needed a refresher…

Sportscaster of the Week: Ray Ferraro

August 18, 2009 Rob 1 Comment Sportscaster of the Week

ferraro

Every Tuesday, Canuckz.com profiles a Canadian sportscaster. Sometimes they’re sportscasters we like, sometimes they’re ones we don’t. This week it’s one of the best in the business, Ray Ferraro. Ray Ferraro is almost like the Troy McClure of the broadcasting business. He could start every broadcast with “Hi I’m Ray Ferraro, you may remember me from TSN, Sportsnet, Team 1040, NBC, Canucks TV PPV…”. What I like about him is he’s not afraid to tell it like it is and offer REAL insider information. Too many ex-players are unwilling to really tell you what happens behind the scenes and criticize players. Ferraro has no trouble doing either (remember when he ripped into Patrik Stefan after this?).

I think Ferraro is at his best when on with Pratt and Taylor on the Team 1040. He has great chemistry with them, and I think the open format of talk radio allows him to really let loose. The format also allows them to play “Brass Bonanza” every time he’s introduced.

Sergei Shirokov… So Who is This Guy Exactly?

August 17, 2009 Rob 0 Comments Signing

shirokov

Not since Pavel Bure has a Canucks sixth round draft pick generated so much interest before ever playing an NHL game. The Canucks signed their 2006 draft pick Sergei Shirokov on Monday. This begs the question: so who is this guy exactly? Well, Shirokov looks like he has the potential to be a steal of a draft pick. Last season, he lead CSKA Moscow of the KHL in points with 41 points in 57 games. Not too shabby considering his age (22) and the age of the other players he’s playing against. Of course, there are many examples of players who dominate in Europe and fall flat on their face in the NHL (hello Pavel Brendl, hello Jiri Dopita) so this should be taken with a grain of salt. Regardless, the Canucks might have an unexpected blue chip prospect on their hands here. He’s probably a long shot to make the team this year, but could be in their plans by next season.

And now for the best news of the Canucks signing a Russian player, Ra-ra-rasputin! Enjoy…

Mason Raymond Gets a Job at Dairy Queen, and a Sneak Peak at the New Team Canada Jerseys for 2010

August 14, 2009 Rob 0 Comments Rumours

raymond_blizzard

Cool story from this week. Mason Raymond worked a shift at Dairy Queen yesterday, to help out with Miracle Treat Day. Proceeds of all Blizzards sold on Miracle Treat Day go to help the Children’s Hospital. Apparently this wasn’t a planned event, Raymond just happened to visit the DQ in Yaletown to get Kyle Wellwood a Peanut Buster Parfait, and was asked if he could help out this week. Raymond obliged, and gave a few fans a pleasant surprise on Thursday. I’ve had the chance to meet Raymond briefly once, and he seemed like a real down to earth guy. Lets hope he can take the next step this season, a very important one for his career.

I checked out icethics.info for a sneak peak at the Team Canada jerseys to be unveiled on Monday. Not a huge difference (you’ll notice the logo is different as they were forced by the IOC to remove the Hockey Canada logo. I’m not really a fan of the design (I liked the Salt Lake 2002 design the best), but I think I like the logo better. It’s simpler and I think it works. Below is a sneak peak at the leaked jerseys:

canada2010red1 canada2010white1 canada2010crest1

Sportscaster of the Week: Hazel Mae

August 11, 2009 Rob 3 Comments Sportscaster of the Week

hazelmae_desk

Every Tuesday, Canuckz.com profiles a Canadian sportscaster. Sometimes they’re sportscasters we like, sometimes they’re ones we don’t. This week we profile a sportscaster that we like to look at but don’t like to listen to! This week’s Sportscaster of the Week: Hazel Mae.

You probably remember Hazel Mae from her days at Rogers Sportsnet, accompanied by a glass desk and little leather skirt, cheerfully providing the day’s sports highlights. After Sportsnet, she moved on to NESN in Boston, working Red Sox games as a sideline reporter. She was probably the most obvious example of a sports network in Canada trying to sell sex in their sports reporting. I’m not sure she ever got the network high ratings, and I’m not sure she was ever taken seriously, given her attire. It’s not like she’s the only good looking female sports reporter to come out of Canada (Jennifer Hedger, Martine Gaillard, Evanka Osmak are other examples), it’s just that she’s like the Anna Kournikova of Canadian sportscasting. Marginal talent, above average looks, and most importantly… a willingness to flaunt it!

hazelmae_interview

But the real legacy of Hazel Mae in Canadian sportscasting is her little leather skirt and its ability to accurately judge hockey fights during Don Taylor’s sportscasts! Well, that, and a reference in the best Canucks rap video ever made: “Trapper’s Delight.”

F'n Tired @ 11:53PM

August 9, 2009 Binh Ho 2 Comments Uncategorized

sleepy-cat1

New site design is up (well just general layout). In the next few weeks, I’ll be slowly tweaking it to handle some of the new features we’ll be introducing , refining / adding details to the layout, as well as fixing any stupid bugs (so post a comment if you find any! I’m already aware of a bunch).

Tonyz Tanti, all you get is a pint for this. Still made it in before the deadline after all!

Mike Gillis' Search For a "Puck Moving Defenceman"

August 9, 2009 Rob 0 Comments Rumours

He’s out there somewhere… isn’t he? It seems ever since Ed Jovanovski signed with the Phoenix Coyotes three summers ago, the Canucks have been trying to find a “puck moving defenceman” (that’s the buzz word of the year for Canucks fans) that can make a good first pass and run the power play. Not that the Canucks don’t have decent offensive blueliners already. Kevin Bieksa is a good all-around defenceman, but is not a true power play quarterback. Sami Salo and Alex Edler both have the big shot from the blue line, but they don’t rush the puck up the ice with ease and they each need a lot of time to load up their canons. So who will it be? Who is available? Who can fit under the cap? All legitimate questions that depend on who the Canucks will move (and believe me, it will be somebody) to make room. That player will be a forward, which will make room for a defenceman.

86297900EG029_Carolina_Hurr

How about Anton Babchuk? This article out of Carolina from the News & Observer states that Babchuk, a restricted free agent, will be traded. Apparently the Hurricanes are not looking for a forward in return, rather they are interested in a prospect or draft pick instead. That’s not great news for the Canucks, who are thin on prospects, but deep on forward. While this is the case, Gillis could always trade one of his forwards for a draft pick to lessen the impact of losing a draft pick for Babchuk.

So who is Anton Babchuk!? He’s a 25 year old defenceman who in his first full season in the NHL last season scored 16 goals (5th best in the league last season) and 19 assists. He was also a plus 13 (second to only Eric Staal on Carolina last season). He was at his best on the power play, notching 9 power play goals. To put that in perspective, consider that Salo, Bieksa and Edler each scored only 5 power play goals last season. Babchuk is also 6’5″ and has a great slap shot that he can get away quickly.

Don’t believe me? Check this out:

Hats Off to JR, Roenick Calls It a Career

August 6, 2009 Rob 3 Comments Special Feature

jeremy-roenick

Jeremy Roenick officially retired from the NHL today. A lot of people remember him as being a bit of a jerk or a loose canon, but he was a lot more than that. He was one of the most entertaining players both on and off the ice. Back-to-back 50 goal seasons in Chicago in 1991-92 and 1992-93 and three straight 100 point seasons between 1991-94 were his best seasons. He also went to the Stanley Cup Finals in 1992 and won a World Cup with Team USA in 1996. He never won a Stanley Cup though, but he joins great company with that distinction.

Anyway, what better way to look back at some of his greatest moments than to look back at his early years with the Chicago Blackhawks…

….And some of his funniest moments! Enjoy:

roenick-babcock

roenick-salute

courtesy of pauliewood.com

Canucks Re-sign Hansen

August 5, 2009 Rob 0 Comments Free Agency

hansen-celebrate

The Canucks have re-signed RFA Jannik Hansen to a two-way deal worth $550,000. Hansen would have to clear waivers in order to go to the minors, and I think it’s unlikely that he wouldn’t be claimed by another team if they tried to send him to Manitoba. This is an interesting deal for the Canucks. Hansen is a nice role player to have, but he’s also the 13th NHL forward that the Canucks have signed (14 when you include Cody Hodgson and 15 if you include Michael Grabner). Consider that most NHL teams only carry 13-14 forwards, and it’s only a matter of time before Gillis pulls the trigger on a deal for a defenceman.