Former Canucks Forward Geoff Courtnall joined the show and talked about what he is seeing from the Canucks against the Oilers, Elias Pettersson and how tough it was to play against Rick Tocchet.
Best assessment of EP40. It's confidence....it's his first real playoffs and even he is surprised to see his confidence go... thats really tough. Anyone writing him off might look as foolish as those who wrote him off as a rookie getting pushed around physically. He'll figure it out. He's still very effective on D, breaks up plays... and wow when he does get some confidence back, look out. I bet Lindholm went through similar and look at him now. Have faith everyone!
I feel like last night, a number of players seemed to think "Well we already got back home ice advantage, so we don't really need this game". There were a few times this regular season if the team won most of their games during the start of a road trip, the last game was usually a complete dud.
Good to hear he has advice for Petey. Geoff would know as a smaller skilled guy what it takes in the playoffs. And for him to offer encouragement for Pettersson, it would be a huge confidence booster.
The 94 Nucks team was the greatest. They were big and gritty and goony. Gilmour was the best player in the league back then, and every time he was on the ice, the Nucks would absolutely erase him. He ran out of gas fast against them. This Canucks team needs to replicate that against McDiver and just physically nullify him every. single. time. if they want to win it
All these ‘94 guys in great shape looking like they could still play. Maybe teach Petey how to bend his knees, engage his core and be a bit harder to push around than a daffodil on a windy day? Or lend him an old pair of skates? His ankles will collapse but it will force him to build real balance and strength. Tired of the Bambi on stilts act, if it’s not clear.
geoff courtnall is a good guy but hes also full of it. I met him before he couldnt help but tell me how great he was. Just in love with himself. I think he means well but he comes across as a real prima donna
Everybody mentions the game he missed the open net, but I think MORE of the open net he had in that same game, and instead of shooting, he PASSED it away...
I'm still a huge EP40 fan but you got to call it like it is: Pettersson is soft and the rough and tumble playoffs are too much for him. But that doesn't mean he can't change starting tomorrow.
I don’t think it’s too physically tough on him. He’s proved he can play in the playoffs in the bubble. But confidence wise, I think Courtnall is right.
The Canucks did not seem to be skating for the first two periods. Then they just had a collective brain fart for 30 seconds at the end of the game. Everything just seemed to slow down a few times with everyone waiting for someone to do something.
I have felt for a while now that Pettersson's problems is between his ears - his confidence has been 100% shot. The playoffs is a different animal, and he is naturally not accustomed to that pressure. The hesitation, the body language, etc., all suggest that he is currently not playoff-ready. This is the reason why I was initially very skeptical of the Canucks taking an all-in approach this year - guys like Pettersson needs to experience the playoffs and take that back to the drawing boards to learn what it takes to win in the post-season. He and the team almost needs to lose to learn how to win. The Canucks have opted to push all the chips to the middle of the table, and I don't know if this is a good thing for Petey... Trust that he will come around eventually, but I think this year's playoffs is likely a lost cause for him.
Why does he get a free pass? Boeser is fine. Huggy doing his thing. Joshua elevating with even less experience. Why do Pettersson fanboys give this guy so much leash?
Canucks nees better offense. 20 shots on net aint gonna do it. But i would blame Tochett for that. He worrys more about defense and that was quite obvious when he pushed Kuzmenko out of town.
