Alain Vigneault | Page 2 | Rob The Hockey Guy

Deadline Dealings: Canucks Acquire Higgins and Lapierre

February 28, 2011 Rob 0 Comments Trades

Just when you thought the trade deadline was going to pass with Canucks general manager Mike Gillis doing nothing, he pulled off a pair of deals. The Canucks sent Evan Oberg and a 3rd round pick to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Chris Higgins. Gillis also acquired Maxim Lapierre and minor leaguer MacGregor Sharp (part of the all-name team) from the Anaheim Ducks for Joel Perreault and a 2013 3rd round pick.

Game 6 Recap – Hawks Too Much For Canucks

May 13, 2010 Rob 4 Comments Game Recap

The better team won. Face it. I have heard lots of whispers from the Canucks players and from fans that somehow the Hawks aren’t the better team, which boggles my mind. They were the better team during the last two regular seasons, they were the better team the last two playoffs. Sure there were some mitigating factors. Willie Mitchell’s injury sure hurt. Playing game 6 with a less than 100% Sami Salo and losing Alex Edler made things difficult. Lots of the Canucks forwards were banged up. Injuries ARE excuses, legitimate excuses. Injuries don’t mean you automatically lose, but they make things more difficult. These injuries meant that the Canucks had to be extra good, seeing as how they were underdogs to begin with. In the next few days I’ll take a retrospective look back at the Canucks season that was, but for now, lets concentrate on what happened in the deciding game, game 6 versus Chicago.

Game 4 Preview – Vigneault Shakes up the Lineup, Burish Calls Canucks 'Clowns'

May 7, 2010 Rob 0 Comments Game Preview

Skate and go to the net, presumably that’s the message from Coach V to his troops tonight. Alain Vigneault has a few lineup shuffles in mind for tonight’s contest. Pavol Demitra and Rick Rypien will sit out tonight’s contest in favour of Michael Grabner and Tanner Glass. Here’s what the Canucks lines are expected to look like:

Game 5 Recap – Not So Quick

April 25, 2010 Rob 5 Comments Game Recap

Game 5 was the first one sided game of this entertaining series. For the first time in the series, Roberto Luongo clearly outplayed Jonathan Quick, who was chased in the second period. For the second game in a row, the Canucks power play equaled the Kings power play, perhaps indicating that this penalty killing jinx is at least close to ending.

Demitra to Play Saturday

January 15, 2010 Rob 0 Comments Injury

Team 1040 is reporting that Pavol Demitra will likely make his season debut Saturday versus the Pittsburgh Penguins. Great news, now all they have to decide is where to put him. Has the second line of Samuelsson, Kesler, and Raymond shown enough to not get broken up? I’m not sure it has. It appears Alain Vigneault isn’t ready to shake up his top two lines. Here’s what the lines looked like at practice today:

Canucks Shopping Demitra and O'Brien?

December 8, 2009 Rob 0 Comments Rumours

Interesting stuff from Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. Among other things, Garrioch is reporting that the New York Rangers are interested in acquiring Pavol Demitra and that the Canucks are shopping Shane O’Brien. Interesting news on both fronts.

What's Wrong With this Team?

October 6, 2009 Rob 0 Comments Bandwagon Douchebaggery, Game Recap

They’re 0-3 and in less than one week have gone from cup contenders to talentless bums (according to the bandwagon douchebags anyways). Well, the fact of the matter is that this team isn’t as good as those early season predictions (loyal Canuckz.com readers already knew this after reading this post) and they’re not as bad as their 0-3 record suggests.

Vigneault Signs Extension

September 24, 2009 Rob 0 Comments Signing

The Canucks have just announced that Alain Vigneault has signed a three year contract extension. The contract takes him through the 2012-13 season.

What To Do About Hodgson?

September 23, 2009 Rob 4 Comments Special Feature

Will we be seeing Cody Hodgson in Canuck blue this season or will the people of Brampton be seeing him back in one of those snazzy green Brampton Battalion jerseys? That’s the decision that Mike Gillis and Alain Vigneault are trying to make and fans of the Canucks are debating. Yesterday I theorized that Hodgson would be sent back to junior.

Hodgson Injury, Vigneault's Contract, Cloutier's Comeback and More!

September 8, 2009 Rob 1 Comment Free Agency, Rumours

Nice to see Cody Hodgson back on the ice this week at Canucks prospect camp. Hodgson injured his back from the 120+ games he played at the NHL exhibition/OHL regular season and playoffs/AHL playoffs and had surgery on it over the summer.