Trevor Linden offered a very interesting opinion as to why free agent snipers find Vancouver to be an attractive option in the off-season. While many have suggested that Alain Vigneault’s “defence first” approach might scare scorers away, Linden made some salient points during an interview on the TEAM 1040 yesterday morning.
He suggested that Henrik Sedin’s passing ability was among the NHL’s elite, and that, when healthy, the Canucks’ defencemen are extremely skilled at moving the puck up ice to the forwards. Linden also pointed to Roberto Luongo as a goaltender who players believe they can win a Cup with in his reasoning.
While it’s not surprising for a player to highlight the attributes of his teammates as opposed to their weaknesses, Linden sounded genuine in his assessment of the current roster.
On the subject of his own future, the popular winger was far more vague. Linden said he hasn’t decided which direction to pursue, and whether his chosen path will be hockey related. It’s hard to imagine the Canucks not offering him a position somewhere in the organization, but Linden will still have to decide the capacity in which he wants to be involved.
>> This just might be the year the Detroit Red Wings win the Stanley Cup for the 11th time in franchise history. Why? Because no one is talking about them.
The Eastern Conference has all the flash and dash, but most still expect the champion to emerge from the West.
San Jose is the trendy pick to win it all based on their roster, with Anaheim a close second based on last year’s title run. But past playoff failures have the Red Wings flying under the radar, and that just might help them if they can stay healthy.
You won’t find a better blue line in the NHL with names like Nicklas Lidstrom, Brian Rafalski, Chris Chelios and Niklas Kronwall leading the way. Up front the Wings boast an enviable mix of skill and will; Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg dazzle with highlight reel markers while Tomas Holmstrom, Johan Franzen and Dan Cleary do the dirty work required to produce playoff-style goals. The only question is between the pipes; can Dominik Hasek and Chris Osgood do enough to win the requisite sixteen games? The prevailing logic says no, but their resumes suggest otherwise.
>> The big question leading up to this year’s Masters: do you take Tiger Woods or the field?
Despite just one win at Augusta in the past five years, I’ve heard more experts take Tiger against the other 93 players in the tournament than ever before. Though I’ll concede that he’s easily the front-runner to be fitted for yet another Green Jacket, those odds are simply too daunting at this time of the year for me to bet against the field.
>> Want to weigh in?
E-mail me at scott.rintoul@metronews.ca
