I’ll take some of that Kool-Aid
I admit it. I never thought it could happen.
No way. This kind of things just doesn’t happen for the Canucks. It never has, and it never will.
At least that is what I was saying to myself until a few hours ago when I woke up to find out that the Canucks had signed Mats Sundin.
Is this a joke? Are they screwing with us right now? Is Ivan Drago actually going to play for us? I had so thoroughly convinced myself that this would never happen that I started to say things like, “Even if we do sign him, we’re still not contenders.”
But now we have signed Sundin. He is going to play in Vancouver. He is finally going to give us two good lines. He is the type of big game player that this city has lacked since Trevor Linden’s first stint with the Nuckers.
Mike Gillis looked tired today during his press conference when he announced the signing. (When has he not looked tired?)
I hope that privately he let out a couple of Ric Flair worthy wooooooo’s. He has every right to.
Everyone questioned bringing him on as GM. He said he had a plan, but most people didn’t want to listen, including me. Not only did the guy deliver with his promise of a bold move, he also left room under the cap for more when we are going to need it.
When I’m wrong, I say I’m wrong. (I just stole that line from Baby’s Dad in Dirty Dancing.)
I was wrong.
Vancouver is a one horse town. We had another horse running for awhile, but Michael Heisley shot it. The Nuckers are all we have here now. We live and die with them. Every year, they have managed to kill us little by little.
Maybe that’s changing. Maybe we are a contender. Maybe we do have a realistic shot at Lord Stanley’s Cup. Right now, I’m not taking the maybe approach. I’m all in right now.
Pass me some of that Kool-Aid Mr. Gillis., I’m ready to drink it down. In the words of the Kool-Aid man, “Oh yeah!”
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I’m pretty sure Gillis went back to his GM room and did a few anson carter fist pumps in the air, haha.
Gillis will look like a genius if the Canucks become contenders, when probably only a month ago most fans were thinking he was a dud. Reason being this team (without Sundin) is better than anyone anticipated and weathering the storm created by Luongo’s injury well (not great but well enough). Nobody at season start would have predicted this team at the top of the division, most of us would have been saying with some luck we’ll be in the hunt for the 8th seed.
Now he’s got competition, opened the doors for some youngsters like Hansen, Brown, Rypien, brought in some good role players with energy like Johnson, Hordichuk, Davison, O’Brien and really improved depth overall. The addition of Sundin finally suddenly puts a point a game pivot like this team has never had (you can argue Messier I guess) into a lineup which is already winning without one of the best goalies on the planet. That and he’s managed to negotiate Sundin down a little which has freed over $2.5 mil in cap space which come deadline is worth approximately a $6.8 mil a year player. Suddenly, if he is willing to move the young assets or picks he could potentially go out there and land a Gaborik as a rental (provided he’s healthy) or another star winger.
All of a sudden you’ve got one of the best goalies in the world in net, you’ve got one of the deepest defences in the NHL and two of the better third and fourth lines going around. Special teams are above average and you have Sundin, Demitra and X-winger tag teaming with the Sedins. Suddenly this team has two legit top offensive lines and is no longer a one line team easily shut down in the post-season.