Wow.

Okay. Forget I ever mentioned Rick Nash. Let's just forget we were ever talking about a power-forward.

Let's just stay with what we have...the fans have spoken. Never, ever - under any conditions - should we ever even consider, in the most hypothetical scenario, trading Vanek.

He is an über-sacred cow. And folks would rather murder their own children than to even consider such a remote possibility. It would be blasphemy.

Fine. Peace out.

...and THAT's why this team (and this city) will never win a championship. We fall in love with certain players, and can't even fathom the possibility of moving them to address other needs, become more balanced or better; overall.

That's also why Darcy and Larry and Lindy will retain their jobs, ad infinitum - They are doing exactly what the majority wants...not rocking the goddamn boat.

My point is simply that Vanek is hated on WAAAAY too much.

I'd TOTALLY be ok with a trade that moved Vanek and some pieces for Nash. But, lets be realistic here. Nash just signed an 8 year extension this past July. He's the focus of the franchise. Why would they move him?

Well lets see here, we're first in our division, our team is lead in goal scoring by Vanek, he's a +3 player, he's amassed 5 ppg, 2 GWGs, and is shooting at 14%, not to mention his contract is virtually unmovable in the NHL as long as they continue to use a flawed salary cap. He also averages 18 mins of ice time a night, and has been on the most consistently productive line all season. I'm not saying we can't rock the boat, I'm just saying don't go and trade away your best player that you know you're having success for, to get another player who MIGHT give you better results. We're first in our division, and are a top 5 defensive team in the league, what more could we want?

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"She's like plan C after an 18 pack"

Squanto 7/27/2010

Oh hail the sacred hockey player Vanek.... OOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAWWWWWWMMMMM...



He totally hits the net every time.

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"Counting all the assholes in the room, I'm definitely not alone!" ~ Michael Poulsen, Volbeat, Still Standing.

with this knowledge Van could be even better.

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HOCKEY IS BACK!

Not to belabor this point but..

Since the lockout:

Vanek
144 G
116 A
260 P

Nash
136 G
123 A
259 P

Obviously they're different types of players, and play a much different style of game. However, their production is pretty damn similar. If people are screaming about Vanek's numbers with a cap number of $7.143M, what would they say about Nash and his $7.783M?

For the record, if I had my choice, I'd pick Nash, simply because I like his style of play better than Vanek's. However, it's hard to deny that their scoring output is similar.

Nash is -4 since the lockout. Vanek is +33.

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Proud LGBTQQ Individual

in addition: Vanek is the 3rd goal post.

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HOCKEY IS BACK!