TropicalFruitGirl26

Bowie William Horvat. Just this season, was made the Canucks' 14th franchise captain at age 24....and I think the organization made an excellent choice to slap the "C" on this particular player as I really do see him as being quite representative of the Canucks moving forward. Hard working, well rounded, not as much fanfare as some of his teammates such as Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser, or even Quinn Hughes, but very effective, is an absolute face off monster, and as he showed recently when he notched his 100th goal of his still young career, then followed that up with his 1st career hat trick, he can put the puck in the net just when you think he all about just making the plays. Time will tell, but his relatively low profile in the face of more well known teammates, his skillset, maybe even his demeanor, reminds me of a young Patrice Bergeron. And if Horvat's career mimics Bergeron's, then the Canucks truly have a guy they can build around for years to come in addition to their higher profile guys And just like Bergeron, I don't think he will be much of a "kept secret" when it comes to talking about some of the league's best overall players if he continues his improvements year after year like he has. If I were to knock something about his game, perhaps it is decision making under extreme pressure....I've seen him turn the puck over a bit more than he probably should given his abilities. Just 24, right now, I will attribute that to experience, or lack thereof, in dealing with the league's best each and every night on the ice. I suspect he will get better in that area, sooner than later. @jammer2 You got anything you want to mention about this very good young player? I mention you because if I am not mistaken, you were one of the first posters on this site to talk about him even before he made the NHL and seemed quite high on his abilities even then.

In his last game two days ago, he added yet another goal, this time on a breakaway where he beat Carey Price cleanly. You know, when you said heavy game, I did leave that part of his game out...he IS quite the hitter as well, isn't he? Over 130 hits in every season where he has either played a full season or the majority of games in a season. Seriously....I don't see how Ottawa wouldn't find itself with a plethora of suitors for his services at the trade deadline, and if enough teams inquire about him, as I suspect they would, the resulting 'bidding war' could result in the Sens getting more for him than I initially thought they could. Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay, Colorado, Edmonton... just off the top of my head teams where he would instantly fit in. Man, I wish that one Senators fan were still around...he always had very good insights on the Sens and their players...and I think at one time he had mentioned Pageau as being a player people would need to look out for.....looks like he was right. And as an aside to your aside, I picked up Pageau in All Stars as a replacement to an injured player about a month back....he hasn't left my lineup since.....

No worries..Wild would have a long way to go to dig themselves out of the hole they are in. I will just take the satisfaction of a good win and mostly well played game. All I ever really expect from this team this season...just be competitive. If they aren't gonna be good enough, then they aren't, but I want to see the effort there, and tonight it was. FWIW, I thought Minnesota should have gotten more goals out of this, but Grubauer did his job for the most part.

So far, the Wild seem to be calmly skating the puck out of their zone when they get it..... looks good...so far..... And now here comes the extra attacker for the Avs.

No "prevent defense" please...…….

I guess his first goal didn't clue them in... lol He is a fantastic talent though. NO excuse for Wild players not to have someone on him.

Damn...Makar...of course.... Lead cut in half...

PK time... Dumba can only watch from the box....

Ok, good. Then at least we will get a PowerKill..errr, PowerPlay next frame.

Well... Good news....game is scoreless...Wild aren't behind. Bad news...… game is scoreless... Wild got the bulk of chances, couldn't get past that Grubauer dude. And did someone get a penalty as the buzzer went?

NO WAY!! That has NEVER happened!!

Man....Avs coughing up ALL KINDS of chances, Wild can't bury any of them!

Oh my.....Parise... He got Grubauered….

Avs looking like geniuses trading Tyson Barrie to Toronto for Kadri and giving Cale Makar the minutes Barrie would have occupied. That rookie is looking pretty damned awesome.

Careless centering feed by Hartman just after the PP. Fortunately, he and his linemates worked their tails off to not let that turnover go in the Avs favor... they managed to recoup the puck and keep it in the Colorado zone.

PP time...let's go boys...

He also had the blocked shot that led to that chance.

Was about to post about this. Glad to see that. Team, such as it is, certainly stands a better chance at a W with him in the lineup than not in the lineup. Go Wild!

First of all, @russwiz welcome to the site.... Short answer, it might be too late to make the NHL if that is what you were alluding to. Usually guys who get there eat, sleep, breathe and live hockey since they are in early grade school...maybe even K or earlier! But, that is not to discourage you. If you feel you have it in you to work hard and try to make a go of it, by all means, NEVER let anyone tell you otherwise. Even if say you get to college and have a decent or ok college hockey career, but never make pro, even something like that is more than many others will ever achieve. Go for whatever sports you think you can do well in, put in the work, bottom line.... keep education in mind though and do all you can to bolster that. After all, even if you don't make pro athlete, maybe with a good education, you can get a career within sports and that is pretty awesome too! Put in whatever work you want, don't be discouraged, although be realistic. Don't sacrifice higher education just for the sake of trying to make pro athlete....even those who may be 'shoe-ins' as pros (if there is such a thing) would be unwise to dismiss education.... injuries can end even the most promising careers in a nanosecond. Anyways, just a small take from someone who has participated in sports and knows what its like to face that grind and the competitive nature of it and how it can really be stressful. I made sure I got higher learning in there though. Welcome to the boards again....please, find some threads and talk some hockey with us if you like. Any other questions or concerns, flag down a mod or even some members who would be helpful, and we will see what we can do for ya.

As for "problems" with the Flyers....young defense, young goalie, veteran forwards not all performing to their abilities. The young stuff can be fixed with coaching and time, the other stuff? Hmmm....dunno…..

Yea, I know what you mean.... it CONSTANTLY shows me liking @ruxpin 's comments when I CLEARLY can't stand the man... HF needs to look into these anomalies….

Not sure about the Mike Commodore reference, but the rest I get it and agree.

Threads for talking about specific players. This time, we have Jean-Gabriel Pageau. Seems the guy has been mostly a defensive specialist with the Senators since his inception in the NHL, and outside of one 43 point season, is mostly a 30'ish point type guy. Not very impressive from a raw numbers standpoint, but seems this season, he has become one of the Senators best players. He is still only 27 and will be a UFA this off season and carries a current cap hit of just $3.1M Some may be inclined to think he is playing over his head with his 12 goals in 21GP so far this season, but even if he is, is there a team out there that would make a trade to Ottawa for his services? Even as a defensive center (he is playing top C in Ottawa, probably by default, but still...), he is a danger to chip in goals from the bottom six on a deeper team...his FO numbers are good and he doesn't turn the puck over very much and is VERY opportunistic while short handed. Is this the real JG Pageau coming through? Or is he doing a "contract year" spectacle? I think he could really help a contender and given his impending UFA status and relatively "low" previous career numbers in goals and assists, it may not cost much to acquire him.

Well dam, @WordsOfWisdom you called it! Babs out...Sheldon Keefe in!

You are right: Neither goalie is the long term solution. That honor falls to whomever can emerge from the AHL...or maybe even a guy the Wild don't even have yet. Dubnyk had his run. His best seasons were halted almost everytime the Wild met the Blackhawks. Now he is an aging goalie who won't ever see the kinds of runs he had before. Stalock was always a back up, always will be. Plays well for a few games, then, with the league seeing him often enough, they take advantage of him. Classic backup.... can play well for spurts, but overuse him, and well, the results aren't pretty. But since right now neither goalie has any real trade value, the Wild are just stuck with both of them till their contracts expire. Doesn't even pay to do a buy out on Dubnyk and have his cap hit follow the team around after he is gone seeing as how Minnesota is nowhere near contention.