Good News! Willie Mitchell Is Healthy! Now Is He In The Canucks' Plans?
by Sean Zandberg on Jun 19, 2010 11:06 AM PDT
in Free Agency
50 comments
(First of all, apologies for the site being down for an extended length of time. We appreciate your patience as these things happen from time to time.)
"I’ve got a big part of my life back," Mitchell proclaimed to Iain MacIntyre from The Province from Minnesota, where he and his family spend most of their summers. "I have no uncertainty; I want to play hockey. It took a little longer than I expected (to recover), but I’m looking forward to next season. I’m really excited. I feel normal again."
Mitchell said that the post concussions symptoms disappeared about 2 and a half weeks ago and that he has begun the strenuous training required to make it back into the NHL for the 2010-11 season. Mitchell said he received a lot of support from fans during the dark times and that he wants to play for the Canucks and even finish his career here. But that is where the "problems" start..
(More after the poll and jump.)
Mike Gillis and Mitchell met last week and Willie called the meeting "encouraging." But Gillis wants to make sure that Mitchell is 100% before any commital takes place. He wants Mitchell to go through rigorous testing, which ManIntyre says naturally begins on the ice. But Mitchell isn't planning on skating again until he returns to Vancouver mid-July. Mid-July? Well that is 2 weeks after free agency season opens. Timing issue.
Is Mitchell in the Canucks' plans? Gillis said in the article: "If there is a deal available to do, for sure we’d like him back. There are multiple things you can do (contractually)." That is most likely referring to a lower base-rate salary with bonuses tacked on if Mitchell can stay healthy for an entire season. Or: a multi-year deal with a descending contract as the years go on so that the average yearly cap hit is less. Or both. You can't blame Gillis for be cautious.
But come July 1, if there is not enough commitment to Willie Mitchell from the Canucks I honestly believe somebody else is is quickly going to step up and show him some money, concussions or not. There is no denying his shut-down abilities. I really hope a deal can be reached. It's tough to figure which way Mike Gillis is going to go this summer. If he lands a top 2 defenceman and pays around $5 million for him, the pressure for Mitchell to accept less dollars becomes so much greater. Personally, I'd be taking a long hard look at Mitchell and trying to keep him here. In my fantasy world he does re-sign here, remains healthy and management gives him the captaincy. Oops, did I say that out loud?
How about you?
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Welcome back to health Willie!
The absolute best part of this story is that Mitchell is (relatively) healthy again. I was seriously worried he would be affected for life, let alone being unable to play hockey. Glad to hear that he’s on the road to recovery/normalcy.
Contributor to Nucks Misconduct
Also, check out my blog 'Nucks and Pucks or follow me on Twitter
yeah, all of SBNation was down this morning. luckily, it was up right in time to break the news about the Hamhuis.
speaking of hamhuis, i’m hoping he doesn’t sign with philly and comes here instead. i’m a little iffy as to whether or not it’s willie’s time to leave.
Nucks Misconduct contributor.
Also on Twitter.
Still waiting for the Canucks to win the Stanley Cup.....
Good news for Willie and his family.
In capworld, in my opinion, there is no way you can spend anything close to the $3.5 Willie was making on a ten year vet with concussion issues (this past concussion was just his latest). So if someone is willing to spend more on him, by all means go. If he’s willing to accept less money and a diminished role, perhaps, but if the team is counting on him as part of the top d pairing, I don’t think that’s wise.
My hopes exceed my expectations
-WeepingTile
I would love it if we resigned him! The Canucks are a different team with him in the lineup. I realize that I’m not in their locker room, but I’m with you on giving him the captaincy and then he can hand it over to Kesler when he retires and Kesler is in his prime. That’s how my little fantasy works anyway.
I still think Willie should consider hanging up the skates…if it takes you over 4 months to recover from post-concussion symptoms, you should really be thinking about what might happen the next time.
Of course, if he really does want to play again, I would love to see him back, but not at his previous price. And I think MG should still go after a(nother) #1-2 guy as well.
"Playin hurt, baby that don't faze me. I don't got time for pain. The only pain I've got time for is the pain I put on fools who don't know what time it is!"
1 yr, 2 mill + incentives deal… plus optional year 2
i would love to have willie back but he maybe at a reduced role next year… i really feel bieksa will be packaged, and we will be signing a top 4 d
edler ehrhoff
salo UFA
mitchell sob/aa/rome
a reduced role?? No way! Willie is king!
by Sean Zandberg on Jun 20, 2010 8:40 PM PDT up reply actions
and he can be paired with an offensive defenceman. Why put Edler and Ehrhoff on the same line? That’s where Willie should be
by Sean Zandberg on Jun 20, 2010 9:00 PM PDT up reply actions
NHL 08
Tells me that Offensive D + Defensive D = good line chemistry!!
"Playin hurt, baby that don't faze me. I don't got time for pain. The only pain I've got time for is the pain I put on fools who don't know what time it is!"
haha!
I hope you aren’t going to use NHL 11 for any betting purposes!
by Sean Zandberg on Jun 21, 2010 6:18 PM PDT up reply actions
for anyone who’s interested, Copper & Blue has a very good analysis of what the Canucks need to do this offseason.
Nucks Misconduct contributor.
Also on Twitter.
Still waiting for the Canucks to win the Stanley Cup.....
I'm going to wince with every hit this year...
…but since it sounds like he wants to come back, it may as well be with us.
But.
I like GT-R’s contract offer (1 year, $2mil & option year) and pitch for Shaone Morrisonn and/or Johnny Boychuk. Though again, in my opinion we need to pony up on the third line more than defence.
Shaone Morrisonn is going to make more than he’s worth. Partly as a result of being a UFA and partly as a result of him being overpaid in his arbitration hearing. He has the tools to be a solid top 4, he just never really put it all together consistently, much to my chagrin.
I'm gonna pain you dearly Woodhouse, when I peel all your skin off with a flensing knife, sew it into Woodhouse pajamas, and then set those pajamas on fire.
by Steckel Me Elmo on Jun 19, 2010 9:04 PM PDT up reply actions
Good year to be a D going into free agency: fewer of them than there are goalies! But overpaying is part of the price for a position of need, and if we don’t have Big Willie then we need.
Think he might do better with seasoning, or is it a bit of the Richard Park syndrome (all the tools, no box to put ’em in)?
For the past few years I’ve thought “next year he will be able to put it together after another year of experience.” But it’s not like he’s some new commodity. He’s 27 and has played over 400 games. So at this point I think it’s a “what you see is what you get” type deal. He’s a good 5-6 D man that can fill in as a 2nd pairing guy when needed. But I don’t think he’s a player that a Stanley Cup contending team should have on its second pair.
And I think he’ll just be too expensive for a team to hold on its 3rd pair.
I'm gonna pain you dearly Woodhouse, when I peel all your skin off with a flensing knife, sew it into Woodhouse pajamas, and then set those pajamas on fire.
by Steckel Me Elmo on Jun 20, 2010 1:55 PM PDT up reply actions
If I was going for cheap third pair guys I’d be going for Jay McKee, who sounds like a solid positional guy and a career +55 , Mike Weaver, small but a former Canuck! or Freddy Meyer who sounds gritty and with a decent stick in his own zone.
McKee was, too – kind of. (He was a trade pick that went to Buffalo for Mogilny.) I could see him coming back, but he does have a long, long history of injuries. Meyer may have gotten over his groin issues, but that’s a concern, too.
I liked Weaver when he was here, but I’ve got a soft spot for undersized defensemen. Last year was his first full one in the NHL, and he did pretty well – a +10 on that team isn’t bad at all. Hmm… Led the defence in blocks… even got a face off win! All in 17 minutes of ice time. I don’t think he’ll get that much ice here, but at that price he’s certainly worth re-acquiring.
Um… 3-4 would just allow us to stay afloat with perhaps a slight improvement. If that’s all we can get, that’s all we can get. A top 2 who plays 25-30 min a game, though, and solidly so, is I think the ingredient that would put us over the top. Which is another way of saying it’s what we need.
by Beantown Canuck on Jun 19, 2010 9:52 PM PDT up reply actions
I disagree
I have no problem with Edler being that guy. There are two (2) UFA defensemen capable of what you want, and neither want to leave the teams they are currently playing for. Anything else is a trade, and whatever depth we’ve got will be gone in one of those.
I think the player gap between the second and third lines is a far more important hole to fill.
Great to hear this.
I missed Willie and his big stick (cue innuendos from eightyseven, Sean, Section, etc…).
If he’d like to come back that would be great, but he’d have to take a discount. And Gillis would have to have a top 2 D-man already signed just in case the shit hits the fan and him and Salo get injured.
MIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITCH!
To remind you all of Mitch awesomeness: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLbLiGXqHIA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meMTwsPrzEU
"But yeah…like CC…I harbour no ill will." - VancityDan
"One time I was invited to come to a social gathering. I was paid a handsome amount of money, and I brought a shotgun and a bottle of Tanqueray and showed those people the best f***ing time they’ve ever seen." - Kenny Powers
by Chuckles Canuckles on Jun 19, 2010 5:59 PM PDT reply actions
So glad to hear he is back on track health wise! The Canucks were straight up a better team with Willie in the lineup, their goals per game allowed went up significantly after he was injured.
If Gillis passes on Mitchell I think he is giving up a good opportunity to sign a good defenseman for a team friendly price/cap-hit. The defensive market is thin in terms of UFA’s meaning to get a Volchenkov or possibly a Hamhuis will mean overpaying and possibly taking a bad contract.
After Naslund left Mitchell was my hands down choice for captain, he’s a leader, he’s tough, he plays tough minutes, and those fights he’s had with Jarome Iginla just ooze of captain material. That and wouldn’t it be nice to have BC boy as captain?
Yeah, it’s nice to see BC boys who want to represent the Canucks and its fans, unlike a certain other BC boy who’s all buddy-buddy with Zan.
by Beantown Canuck on Jun 20, 2010 9:07 AM PDT up reply actions
lots of scrutiny here. He doesn’t necessarily like that. Many players don’t. They prefer privacy and obscurity
by Sean Zandberg on Jun 20, 2010 2:18 PM PDT up reply actions
Oh he’s entitled to not like the scrutiny and avoid it. And I’m entitled to call him a gutless turncoat for doing so!
“I make millions of dollars because I do something that has no value except that it entertains people, but I don’t really like entertaining people, so I want to be able to make that ridiculous amount of money where people care the least about the entertainment I provide”
That’s fine. I don’t respect it.
by Beantown Canuck on Jun 20, 2010 6:41 PM PDT up reply actions
Click this (make sure your audio is on). It links back to the NM main page, but with a twist :P
redarmyline told me to check it out over at Japer’s…..
Nucks Misconduct contributor.
Also on Twitter.
Still waiting for the Canucks to win the Stanley Cup.....
LOL
That was lulz-worthy.
"But yeah…like CC…I harbour no ill will." - VancityDan
"One time I was invited to come to a social gathering. I was paid a handsome amount of money, and I brought a shotgun and a bottle of Tanqueray and showed those people the best f***ing time they’ve ever seen." - Kenny Powers
by Chuckles Canuckles on Jun 20, 2010 1:51 PM PDT up reply actions
That just makes me think of this.
I'm gonna pain you dearly Woodhouse, when I peel all your skin off with a flensing knife, sew it into Woodhouse pajamas, and then set those pajamas on fire.
by Steckel Me Elmo on Jun 20, 2010 3:39 PM PDT up reply actions
That and “”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6i2WRreARo&feature=related" target="new">all the best moments" video…
He is fantastic
in Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans. Best movie Ive seen him in.
"But yeah…like CC…I harbour no ill will." - VancityDan
"One time I was invited to come to a social gathering. I was paid a handsome amount of money, and I brought a shotgun and a bottle of Tanqueray and showed those people the best f***ing time they’ve ever seen." - Kenny Powers
by Chuckles Canuckles on Jun 20, 2010 11:57 PM PDT up reply actions
Bringing out the Dead…ok that was good. What’s that Vegas movie where he’s drinking himself to death?
by Sean Zandberg on Jun 21, 2010 11:12 AM PDT up reply actions
Isn’t that Leaving Las Vegas? Just guessing based on the tile because I never saw it. His best film by far is Adaptation!!!!
by Beantown Canuck on Jun 21, 2010 11:51 AM PDT up reply actions
No
Bad Lieutenant is the best.
"But yeah…like CC…I harbour no ill will." - VancityDan
"One time I was invited to come to a social gathering. I was paid a handsome amount of money, and I brought a shotgun and a bottle of Tanqueray and showed those people the best f***ing time they’ve ever seen." - Kenny Powers
by Chuckles Canuckles on Jun 21, 2010 12:22 PM PDT up reply actions
BLASPHEMY
"But yeah…like CC…I harbour no ill will." - VancityDan
"One time I was invited to come to a social gathering. I was paid a handsome amount of money, and I brought a shotgun and a bottle of Tanqueray and showed those people the best f***ing time they’ve ever seen." - Kenny Powers
by Chuckles Canuckles on Jun 21, 2010 2:05 PM PDT up reply actions
But he’s actually good in the movie. And it’s an awesome movie!
by Beantown Canuck on Jun 21, 2010 8:43 PM PDT up reply actions
Cage
needs a cage. No, really: when he has a strong director who has a definite vision and can hold him to it, Cage can be very good. If he’s left to his own devices, you end up with Ghost Rider.
Which I saw in theatres.
Yes, it was glorious!
Kick Ass
was pretty good.
"But yeah…like CC…I harbour no ill will." - VancityDan
"One time I was invited to come to a social gathering. I was paid a handsome amount of money, and I brought a shotgun and a bottle of Tanqueray and showed those people the best f***ing time they’ve ever seen." - Kenny Powers
by Chuckles Canuckles on Jun 21, 2010 2:05 PM PDT up reply actions
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