vancouver canucks
By bounce58
@bounce58 (17385)
Canada
September 30, 2009 12:23pm CST
In the long run, I believe that the Canucks-organization's decision to send Cody Hodgson back to Juniors is the right choice. No sense rushing a young player to the NHL where he would have more opportunities to fail than to succeed.
That being said, I am excited for the Canucks this season because I think that they have a good team! Season starts tomorrow in Calgary!
2 responses
@tjhtommyj (261)
• Canada
1 Oct 09
I think both decisions are the wrong one. Cody Hodgson has done all he can in junior hockey. He was the OHL and CHL player of the year (selected over this "god" they call Tavares.) He took his team to the OHL finals last year. The rest of his line have moved on, he's got nobody left to play with. Already a 100 point player and he voiced before training camp that he had zero desire to play in the OHL. Not to mention he's already the World Juniors in scoring and captured two gold medals.
That being said, I don't believe keeping him up is the right choice. One, he's a young player and you need to be careful with him and two, since coming off the offseason surgery he hasn't been the same and he does require some more conditioning. So he doesn't quite belong in the NHL but there's nothing left for him to gain in the OHL. Unfortunately these are the only two options because he isn't eligible for the AHL...but I don't see either benifiting him. The OHL is the less harmful of the two options, but neither are benificial.
I'm reminded of Bobby Ryan. He was sent back to the OHL for a fourth year as well and after accomplishing all he could in the OHL he had zero desire to play there. He had an awful year in the league, by anyone's standards let alone his. As a result he was forced to take an extra year in the AHL to properly develop because his desire and work ethic had deminished after an extra year in the OHL. Hodgson is a good kid and I don't see that happening to him, but by having expressed zero interest to play in Brampton, I see it as a glaring possibility.
Currently, he has a bright future in this league but as I've said, he's caught between a rock and a hard place. Neither option is favourable, none are benificial at this point, and both could wind up being harmful.
@bounce58 (17385)
• Canada
1 Oct 09
Hi tjhtommyj. I think you've summed up the feelings of the people in vancouver about hodgson. Well, at least the feelings of the avid hockey fans anyway. What about this emegency rule? I'm not at all familiar wih all the rules, since hockey is a sport I've only grown to appreciate recently. I heard that the only way he can be called up from juniors is through this emergency rule.
@tjhtommyj (261)
• Canada
3 Oct 09
The emergency rule is very rare. It's used when the AHL affiliate can't send another player, whether it's a two-way contract issue, a travel issue, an injury issue, or a straight up pro-contract issue. There's a lot of ifs buts and what ifs so I won't get into detail but they are used VERY rarely. I recall it being used just one time since the lockout and that's when the Florida Panthers called up Matthias. The emergency rule is not something I would bank on and that's the only way to get around not being able to call up a player in the OHL. By sending him back to Brampton management has essentially said you will not see Hodgson in a Canucks uniform this season.
@TremendousMachine (779)
• Canada
1 Oct 09
The Canucks did the right thing. Hodgson was not ready for NHL play. He played more like Dan Hodgson, a slow skating high scoring from years ago. I was surprised how slow he was but he's still a top prospect. He could still be this generation's Adam Oates.
