Here's a little weekend amusement for you. At 3:42 of the above clip, Scott Oake asks Brendan Morrison a question, but it's not just any question. It's our question, tweeted to Oake earlier in the day. It's kind of neat. Oake leads into already smiling, confident that it will "lighten the mood" (previous questions were about despair, existentialism and why god has forsaken man). Then, not only do they say our full name on-air (take heed, Jeff Klein), they take a moment to chuckle at it. They are undeniably amused. I'm fairly sure what B-Mo mumbles there is "that's pretty good." Yes. It is pretty good.
Now, I don't mean to get ahead of ourselves, but Skeeter, I think, now that we're a pretty big deal (at least as big as Tim from Bellevue), we should quit our dayjobs. This week alone, we've landed twice on Puck Daddy (here and here), once on the New York Times, and finally, in our coup de grace, Hockey Night in Canada. Yes sir, the PITBul is running rampant in the media (btw, first time using that nickname, and I agree it doesn't work). I'm just saying, we've earned the right to be unemployed, at least.
Also: does anyone object to us calling this our first interview? We're going to call this our first interview. If anyone asks, we just interviewed Brendan Morrison.
Did you hear the news? Like many of us suspected he might, Brendan Morrison has signed with the Calgary Flames. Their sudden dearth of quality made the move a no-brainer for Flames GM Daryl Sutter, and thank goodness. That's about the only way Sutter makes a smart move; this offseason, he's appeared so brainless he might be zombie-proof. Morrison's contract in Calgary is a happy ending to an alarming moment of silliness for Vancouver fans, who seemed to lose all sense, reason and perspective after learning of Morrison's player tryout.
There was never a place for Morrison in Vancouver. The Canucks' big weakness in the bottom-six last year was lack of size and defensive ability. Was Morrison going to fill that void? Only half of it. Vigneault has long preferred a fourth-line that can crash and bang over one that can score. Problem was that last season's 4th line crashed and banged with utter disregard for whether or not the puck was going into their net. AV wanted better energy guys, not bottom-line offense. Morrison couldn't be that.
I gave in to the local hype not long after Skeeter tried to quell it, arguing that Morrison might be the ultimate depth guy. This was Morrison's argument as well. But wing depth is not something we were lacking either. Jannik Hansen and Jeff Tambellini are already going to be fighting one another to be the official utility winger. They're just as fleet of foot as Morrison, capable of offense, much more likely to throw a body-check, and already under contract. They showed they could play, and Morrison was superfluous there too.
One could argue that, if you play well enough, the team makes room for you. This is true, but Morrison didn't play well enough. He had one great game, one good game, and the others were forgettable. And yet, despite the reality (which I suspect most of us saw and ignored) that Brendan Morrison didn't deserve a contract here, the city of Vancouver was up in arms this weekend when he didn't get one. The Canucks message board exploded with doom-and-gloom posts so dumb I can't quote most of them without dulling my wit to comprehend them. If you're feeling brave, there's a lot of fun stuff in here. Even the media couldn't help but frown and bluster: "With Morrison out, looks again like Canucks have 4th line that wont score. Vigneault will love it. Then playoffs. Madden was CHI 4th line C," Iain MacIntyre tweeted dourly. Everyone was pissed. I had a slough of Vancouver fans tell me that the Canucks were stupid not to sign him, but they were speaking from their hearts, not from their heads.
The 35-year-old former Canuck wasn't expected be out of work long, and I for one am glad it happened sooner than later. The dude is a class act all the way and it was hard not to feel for the guy throughout training camp. Here he was trying to extend his career while his wife was at home, schooling his three young children out of the family's rented two-bedroom townhouse. Now I know I'm going to get skewered for saying that as a lot of people wish they had Morrison's problems. But those people are missing the point. As anyone with a family can attest, you want the best for them. And when they're missing out on things because your job is up in the air, well, I'm just saying I'm sympathetic to the cause.
Despite our best efforts to pretend he did, Morrison didn't fit here. We just refused to face it because we liked him so much. B-Mo? He was that friend from back in the day who needed a place to stay. We didn't have a room for him, but we felt so bad for him we almost let him crash on the couch. Yes. Brendan Morrison was Dupree, and we narrowly lost sight of ourselves with him around.
Folks, let us finally let Brendan Morrison go. Be glad he's moved on to Calgary because, just like when an old college buddy visits from out of town, we all got a little silly with him around.
It's no surprise about the Sweatt brothers. I wold argue that both Billy and Lee have NHL talent, but neither is quite ready for regular action. Ironically, Lee the defenseman needs to work on his defensive coverage, and Billy the forward needs to work on his hands. Still, Billy's checking speed and Lee's poise and puck-moving ability are excellent assets to have down on the farm. They're sure to make that team better, as well as push one another to see which can get to the NHL level first. Here's hoping we see another brother tandem on the Canucks someday soon. We seem to have good success with brothers.
Victor Oreskovich's demotion was a disappointment, but he'll play games with the Canucks this season. Count on that. He has great skating ability and he hits like a truck, but his defensive coverage was suspect. Oreskovich is a real wild-card and could have paid off in spades, but I like that Vigneault and the coaching staff avoided the risky, sexy pick and went with big guys they were confident weren't going to get scored on.
Brendan Morrison's release is really disappointing, both for fans and for B-Mo himself. But, like Skeeter said earlier in the preseason, the only available job is one he wasn't quite cut out for. He could have brought wing depth, but so can Jannik Hansen and Jeff Tambellini, who were already Canucks property. Unlike Edmonton, Vancouver is aware you can only have so many small forwards under contract, and Morrison's lack of a contract coming into training camp made it easy not to give him one. Here's hoping he can land on his feet somewhere. As much as it pains me to say it, Calgary would be a good fit for him.
There are a few more questions, but they're all likely be resolved in exactly the way we think they will. Joel Perrault, Eddie Lack, and Cody Hodgson are more than likely headed to Manitoba. Peter Schaefer is more than likely being released. But, if Alex Burrows goes on LTI, and with Rypien hurt to start the season, the Canucks could keep 15 of the 17 forwards below. Something to think about if you're wondering, like I am, why Hodgson hasn't yet been spotted at YVR. Here are the 28 guys who remain in training camp.
Forwards (17) Alex Bolduc, Alex Burrows, Guillaume Desbiens, Tanner Glass, Jannik Hansen, Cody Hodgson, Ryan Kesler, Manny Malhotra, Joel Perrault, Mason Raymond, Rick Rypien, Mikael Samuelsson, Peter Schaefer, Daniel Sedin, Henrik Sedin, Jeff Tambellini, Raffi Torres.
Defensemen (8) Andrew Alberts, Keith Ballard, Kevin Bieksa, Alex Edler, Christian Ehrhoff, Dan Hamhuis, Aaron Rome, Sami Salo.
Goalies (3) Eddie Lack, Roberto Luongo, Cory Schneider.
Earlier this week, Skeeter wrote a sobering piece regarding Brendan Morrison's tryout with the Vancouver Canucks in which he contended that there's really no room for him. Skeeter's argument? As a center, Morrison would have to slot in on the top three lines, because the fourth-line is not suited to his style of play:
On a tertiary scoring line, Morrison fits. On a fourth-line that plays under 10 minutes a night, is expected to bang and crash, and might slot into penalty killing duty, Morrison doesn't come even close to fitting. Morrison doesn't hit often enough (he had 33 hits last season), doesn't kill penalties (he averaged a whopping 34 seconds of shorthanded ice-time per game last season), and he obviously doesn't fight. He's a playmaker who would have no one to pass to (a situation Kyle Wellwood faced constantly). His skills would be wasted and his role would require skills that he simply doesn't have.
Unfortunately, this is a valid argument, and I mostly agree with Skeeter. Morrison is a smallish, offensive center and he's not the permanent answer on a crashy, bangy, hands-free sort of line. The Ryan Johnson experiment and his subsequent crumminess (apart from shot-blocking) got us wanting a center with some size and some grit, and sadly, Morrison is not that. In this, Skeeter is correct.
There are, however, other considerations. First, Brendan Morrison is really nice. I forgot how much I missed his good-natured repartee with the press and his innate Vancouverism. It's hard to be analytical, sobering and dispassionate when I am so, so biased in favour of B-Mo. I love this guy. A friend of mine used to be his nanny. He scored this goal (also above). He played his heart out for this city. He's got no friggin' teeth and he lost them for you, Vancouver.
Okay, so that's not really a reason. Here's one though: Morrison's can play the wing.
From the mouth of Morrison himself, on Ben Kuzma's Twitter: "I will bring depth and versatility. I have played the wing with Backstrom and Ovechkin. I can fit on any line, any role." Morrison is a smart, smart guy, and here is a soundbite that sounds straight from a job interview. Way to sell yourself.
Looking outside, there are spots aplenty on the wing, especially to start the season. Alex Burrows is hurt, which means Mikael Samuelsson likely moves up, leaving a spot next to Raymond and Kesler. Who takes that? Hodgson? Schroeder? Tambellini? Shirokov? Hansen? Morrison? The spot that Canucks fans had reserved for Cody Hodgson on the third line is even more wide open now that Hodgson's skating injured. The same guys are vying for that.
More sobering than Skeeter's initital article is that even the Canucks' depth down the center is one injury away from real trouble. We have our top-three centres, yes, but they're all healthy now. What about in February? Consider that an injury to Kesler or Sedin last season would have made Kyle Wellwood our second-line center with absolutely no wiggle room. Injuries are a part of the game, and the Canucks prospects might not be ready to help absorb them just yet. As Jason Botchford pointed out, it's fairly likely that none of the Canucks' kids are ready for full-time duty.
It takes time, especially on good teams. Shouldn't be revealing. Patience has been reaping rewards for some teams for a long time. Few are better than the Detroit Red Wings. Many around the league, including the Canucks, idolize their player development and how slowly they bring in their talent.
We've all seen, by now, how Mike Gillis loves a convertible center, and we know about his search for depth. Is it possible that Brendan Morrison is the ultimate depth player? If I were Jannik Hansen, the everyman who, in the past has been slotted in wherever needed in the short-term without ever nailing down a permanent spot, I'd be wringing my hands at the thought of a Morrison contract. Not only can Morrison do Hansen's job on the wing, but he can step in at center in a pinch. Effectively, Morrison affords the Canucks a backup for any forward spot, 1 through 12, and Vigneault doesn't have to worry about intermittent rookie mistakes. The fact is that Jannik Hansen is inconsistent. Personally? He's not my favourite player. He tends to show great offensive flair and couple it with poor defensive play, or shine defensively only to disappear on offense. Hansen isn't really a two-way player; he's an inconsistent one-way player. Morrison, on the other hand, is a little more predictable.
I agree with Skeeter that Brendan Morrison might not be the best fit as a fourth-line center, but he might be the best fit as a thirteenth forward. And, considering that injuries have been all too common with this team, the thirteen forward is going to play.
So the newshasspread that Brendan Morrison will be attending Canucks training camp on a PTO (Professional Tryout). He claims it's to actually make the team and earn a contract, rather than simply to showcase his skills throughout the pre-season for the rest of the NHL. The problem is, where does he think he fits into the Canucks lineup?
Morrison is a natural centre who is decent at faceoffs and is still a functional playmaker at this point in his career. He put up 42 points as a third-line centre for the Capitals last season, the majority of them assists. While he's lost a step in his skating stride since the West Coast Express days, he can still skate.
The problem is, the top 3 lines are all set at centre: Henrik, Kesler, and new-arrival Malhotra aren't going to budge (though Malhotra indicated he might move to the wing if someone like Hodgson or Schroeder stepped into the lineup). The only vacant spot at centre is on the fourth-line.
Harrison wrote a post last month detailing the possible fourth-line centres currently in the Canucks system and it's admittedly not the most awe-inspiring list. But, quite frankly, they're all better suited for the job than Brendan Morrison. On a tertiary scoring line, Morrison fits. On a fourth-line that plays under 10 minutes a night, is expected to bang and crash, and might slot into penalty killing duty, Morrison doesn't come even close to fitting. Morrison doesn't hit often enough (he had 33 hits last season), doesn't kill penalties (he averaged a whopping 34 seconds of shorthanded ice-time per game last season), and he obviously doesn't fight. He's a playmaker who would have no one to pass to (a situation Kyle Wellwood faced constantly). His skills would be wasted and his role would require skills that he simply doesn't have.
So Morrison, the natural centre, doesn't fit at centre for the Canucks this season. And while he did some spot duty on the wing in Dallas, it's not an ideal fit. Still, with Burrows out to start the season and Hodgson questionable to be ready for training camp, Morrison has the opportunity to prove that he can fit on the wing for the third line or possibly slot into a top-six spot until Burrows returns from his injury. He will need to out-perform the youngsters, particularly Jordan "The Return of Cliff Ronning" Schroeder and Sergei "Remember Me?" Shirokov, with Cody "Seriously, Stop Asking Me About My Back" Hodgson being the darkhorse if he's cleared to play in the pre-season.
The other hiccup is that the Canucks are currently at their max 50-contract limit, meaning they would need to make a trade or buyout a contract in order to sign Morrison or one of the standout training camp invitees like Matt Fraser or Pierre-Olivier Morin.
Let's face it: I, along with many other Canucks fans, love Brendan Morrison. The West Coast Express brought excitement back to Vancouver after the agony of the Mike Keenan/Mark Messier era, and Morrison was a hometown favorite. He's an amiable guy who plays through injuries and works hard at all aspects of the game. I'd love to see him return to the Canucks and finish off his career in Vancouver, but I don't want him to be the fourth-line centre. It's not a role that fits his skillset.
