Monthly Archives: June 2012

Five UFAs to Target: 2012

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Prust

The Canucks have the means to take a run at Ryan Suter or Zach Parise. They are also rumored to be in the mix for prized prospect Justin Schultz. The team would love to add a front line winger or a top pairing defenseman. However, if they are unable to nab any of the big fish, they still have some other roster holes to fill. The UFA market is far from strong, but there are a handful of solid players in the second or third tier that will be available to sign come July 1.

Read on to find out about five UFAs that the Canucks could target this summer.

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Getting the most out of Marc-Andre Gragnani

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Gragnani

In February, the Canucks made a deadline deal and acquired defenseman Marc-Andre Gragnani from the Buffalo Sabres. He was technically traded for Alexander Sulzer in a one-for-one deal, but the trade was tied closely to the Cody Hodgson for Zack Kassian swap that was made official only minutes earlier on deadline day.

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Hard Working Willie Mitchell

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Willie Mitchell Cup

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Willie Mitchell is one of the best defensive defensemen in hockey. All it took was 719 NHL regular season games, 71 NHL postseason games, and stops in New Jersey, Minnesota, Dallas, Vancouver, and Los Angeles for most people to find out. Wherever he has gone in his hockey career, he has brought with him an insatiable will to win, a quiet confidence in his abilities, a tenacity to defend his own goal, and a really long hockey stick.

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2011/12 Player Usage Charts – Fantasy Hockey Implications

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Washington player usage charts

The Player Usage Chart for the 2011-12 Washington Capitals

The standard statistics in hockey have significant limitations. Plus-minus, even if used in the right context, doesn’t come close to telling us how well a player is performing defensively. Goals and assists are obviously important (goals win games), but there are underlying reasons that contribute to them. How much is a player shooting the puck? Where is he shooting the puck from? Is he playing against good players? Is he starting a lot of his shifts in the offensive zone?

Advanced statistics have been widely used by numerous NHL teams for the past few years, and thanks to the hard work of a few people, we as fans now have access to a wide variety of them.

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