Who will be the first Vets to go?

[Chef Boi RD]

The pre-Benning/Linden players, or Gillis players? Benning and Linden seem to have one thing in mind, building that classic 4 line forward group, with the top two lines focus on scoring, the 3rd line, your energy, shut down line with an edge who can also chip the odd point and the tough, gritty 4th line with players who can actually play. It doesn't sound like a team of tweeners that Benning and Linden want in which Gillis so coveted. The classic tweener of all time - Chris Higgins has to be on the bubble with the new regime. Chris, nice guy and all, this town loves nice guys...but the well travelled journeyman is a confused player, not edgy enough for the 3rd line and not offensive enough for the top 2. I see Chris lasting the season, but come the next off season, I could see his services being no longer needed here, especially with all these good young forwards with potentially a higher ceiling in offense and a higher ceiling in gritty 3rd line hockey.

After that, if the Canucks are looking like a non-playoff factor heading towards the deadline and Burrows and Bieksa are having good seasons, I see one or both of these being great trade deadline 'Seller' pieces further adding to what is looking like a great promising future here in Vancouver. But we must be careful, do not want to have a team completely void of good solid veteran leadership to help mentor these up and coming kids like we saw with the gong show in Edmonton. The kids need mentors and Alex and Kevin are good vets for that, but if the offers are crazy at the deadline if we are sellers, and they both had good to great years, they might be too good to turn down. Kevin and Alex are both 33, the window to trade them for a quality return is closing.

I think Hansens edge, grit wins himself some time under Benning, more of a classic 3rd line energy player than Higgins. But the season will reveal where he stands as Benning and Linden bring in the new era.

After that its, Sestito, Richardson and Matthias. IMO, Richardson and Matthias are redundant, kind of the same. I believe Richardson has one year left on contract. They may let him walk in favor of the younger, similar Matthias. These two will be battling it out with each other for a place in the line-up come season - 2015-2016, especially with centres - Horvat, Cassels and McCann knocking on the door for those bottom 3 centre positions.

[Blob Mckenzie]

Who cares ? Enjoy the sunshine and get your dusty lungs outside instead of hovering over your computers worrying about a hockey team weeks away from playing . The pissing down rain and lousy hockey will start soon enough . Off to White Rock I go to lay in the sand and catch some rays .

[Chef Boi RD]

White Rock? What a shit hole that is

Is rather go to Docs old summer hang out - Trout Lake

[Blob Mckenzie]

Nursing a hangover Pacific Blue . Tired of the same ol d same old around the pool . Have already torched seven weeks of vacation with only a week left . White Rock it is amigo . Have some fish and chips and a couple clammy pints .

[Chef Boi RD]

Some of us are at the office on a Sunday and this is all we have. Pathetic we know, but at least it's something.

Haha 8 weeks of holiday...who are you, Donny Taylor?

I feel lucky to have 4, even though I can't really use them.

Blobby Beer Nuts is a Union shop steel fabricator with loads of time in, I think he works in quality control, that's why he gets 8 weeks paid holiday. Plus he's got Kinder Morgan money behind him. I'm surprised he's stretchin' it out outside the tri-cities area. Typically, he's driving drunk down Ioco to buntzen lake, is it? You know out Anmore way, like the rest of the red neck coquitlam-ites.

[Hockey Widow]

Not to de-rail this thread , but I think we could see a move or two once camp begins to wind down.

If some of the younger players earn a spot I could see Hansen or Higgins moved out. They have modified NTC and would be easier to move. I can see Sestito and Markstrom moved and if not then waived. Those would be my projected casualties of this new era.

And I also agree that if we are contending for a playoff spot we are not going to trade anyone else from the core at the trade deadline. But if we are sellers all bets are off and I can see a real purge happening. By that time Benning will have a real solid understanding of what we have in the system and what we need moving forward.

[Strangelove]

White Rock? What a shit hole that is

I'd rather go to Docs old summer hang out - Trout Lake

It's where we dumped the bodies.

As for "Who will be the first Vets to go?"...

That all depends on which youngsters are first to do the pushing.

And don't forget some of these centres (Matthias) can play wing.

Doesn't hurt to have an extra faceoff man on the line...

[Strangelove]

Ryan Miller.

After letting a few soft ones, the crowd will get on him. The Team and Province will create a controversy and he'll get fed up.

We know he has a short fuse. We also know he has no idea what he's getting into with the fans and media here.

The Eddie chants will begin early and will be heard often.

I doubt Vrbata will last long either. If the team is a non-playoff team he's a decent chip, though I can't imagine he's worth more than a second round pick at the deadline.

Tell us more oh Prophet of Doom.

[ClamRussel]

Some of us are at the office on a Sunday and this is all we have. Pathetic we know, but at least it's something.

Haha 8 weeks of holiday...who are you, Donny Taylor?

I feel lucky to have 4, even though I can't really use them.

Blobby Beer Nuts is a Union shop steel fabricator

Odd, I was under the impression he earned his 8-weeks summer vaycay as a PE teacher. Sort of the Tri-Cities badass Kindergarten Cop figure.

[Chef Boi RD]

Close Clam, Blobby Beer Nuts wanted to be a PE teacher during his studies up the hill at SFU, but his legendary party animal status got him shit canned by the Dean, which lead him to ground zero - steel fabrication industry

[Canuck-One]

Another starting line up.

Sedin - Sedin - Vrbata
Burrows - Bonino - Kassian
Higgins - Vey - Horvat
Dorset - Matthias - Hansen
Sestito