CANUCKS HOCKEY BLOG

fans like you.

Tagged: 2011 draft

2011 NHL Entry Draft: Canucks Select Joseph LaBate (4th round, 101st overall)

Blog

2011 NHL Entry Draft: Canucks Select Joseph LaBate (4th round, 101st overall)

When the NHL announced it was the Canucks’ turn to make the first of two 4th round picks, the fans in Minnesota, as they had done all weekend long, booed. At least, they did until the Canucks used the 101st overall pick to select Minnesota kid, Joseph LaBate. (And even then there were still some boos.) 4th round, 101st overall: Joseph LaBate, C, USHS – Holy Angels Consistent with their MO this weekend, the Canucks selected another big kid with the 101st overall pick; LaBate, a center, is 6’4″. From the Minnesota Hockey Prospects website: Has the combination of size...

2011 NHL Entry Draft: Canucks Select Alexandre Grenier (3rd round, 90th overall)

Blog

2011 NHL Entry Draft: Canucks Select Alexandre Grenier (3rd round, 90th overall)

With their second pick in the 3rd round, the Canucks went back to the QMJHL, selecting Alexandre Grenier, a big right-winger who spent last season with Patrick Roy’s Quebec Ramparts. 3rd round, 90th overall: Alexandre Grenier, RW, Halifax Mooseheads It’s clear that Mike Gillis wants to add some size in the system. At 6’5″, 200 lbs., Grenier is a beast. From Dan Sallows: Along with having excellent size and reach, he is a good skater, with nice hands, good puckhandling skills, has a tremendous release, adept hockey sense and vision, and plays an overall complete game. So much so, that...

2011 NHL Entry Draft: Canucks Select David Honzik (3rd round, 71st overall)

Blog

2011 NHL Entry Draft: Canucks Select David Honzik (3rd round, 71st overall)

Entering day 2 of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, the Canucks had the 60th, 90th, 120th, 150th, 180th and 210th picks. They then traded the 60th pick for the 71st and 101st picks. With the 71st pick, the Canucks selected goaltender David Honzik. 3rd round, 71st overall: David Honzik, G, Victoriaville Tigres At 6’2″, 209 lbs, David Honzik is a big, athletic goaltender. After a bit of an adjustment period, Hoznik got better as the season went on. He saved his best for the QMJHL playoffs. In 5 second-round games against the eventual Memorial Cup champions, Saint John Sea Dogs,...

2011 NHL Entry Draft: Canucks Select Nicklas Jensen in First Round

Blog

2011 NHL Entry Draft: Canucks Select Nicklas Jensen in First Round

I’ll be honest. I didn’t think Nicklas Jensen would last to the no. 29 pick. I didn’t even consider it. Going into the draft, Jensen was ranked 21st by NHL Central Skating, 22nd by International Scouting services, 24th by TSN and 19th by The Hockey News. Already 6’2″ and 188 lbs., he’s a power forward-type with good hands and good skill. He’s known as a smart hockey player too, which I’m sure GM Mike Gillis liked. Jensen, who plays for the Oshawa Generals, just finished a fairly productive first season in the OHL. He recorded 29 goals and 58 points...

Random Musings

Blog

Random Musings

Some random Friday musings as we eagerly await the NHL Entry Draft: There’s a lot of chatter leading into tonight’s NHL Entry Draft. The Canucks are said to be entertaining offers for their first-round pick (29th overall) and goaltender Cory Schneider to either move up the draft or to acquire a player that can help them win now. If they keep their pick, the Canucks have shown interest in top-ranked goaltender, John Gibson, and Vancouver Giants defenseman, David Musil. There were rumors yesterday linking the Peter Stastny to the Canucks. Here’s the thing: Stastny has a $6.6 million cap hit....

2011 NHL Entry Draft Talk: The Targets

Blog

2011 NHL Entry Draft Talk: The Targets

At 29th overall, you can be sure that the Vancouver Canucks certainly aren’t expecting to draft the next Taylor Hall or John Tavares. But historically, there have been some good players drafted 29th overall in previous drafts; like Mike Green in 2004 or Steve Downie in 2005. The organization will consider themselves lucky if they snag someone of that calibre, but the most important thing to remember is that whoever it is likely faces two to three years of development before making a ripple in the NHL pond. Below is a list of players who could find themselves wearing Canuck...

2011 NHL Entry Draft Talk: Prospects in the System

Blog

2011 NHL Entry Draft Talk: Prospects in the System

Photo credit: theahl.com Now that Vancouver Canucks fans have (we hope) managed to begin the healing process from the emotional rollercoaster of the 2011 Playoffs, it’s time to shift the focus to the 2011 Draft, where the building blocks for future success are put in place. Given that the 2011 crop has, for some time, been viewed as a generally weaker class than previous years, perhaps the Canucks would be best served to once again parlay their first-round selection in order to acquire the talent needed to win right now. But seeing as how the club already forked over their...

%d bloggers like this: