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stuff99 · 06-25-2010, 08:00 PM

Gillis on Ballard trade: Bernier and Grabner were redundant

By Botchford Fri, Jun 25 2010 COMMENTS(0) The White Towel

Filed under: gillis ballard

Canucks GM Mike Gillis comments after Ballard deal:

On trading the first round pick (after Tinordi and Bennett were gone):

"We didn't feel there were players there who would be able to help us for a number of years.
"We waited a long time to see if a couple players were going to be there, when they weren't there and we got to that point, we made the decision this was something we really had to do. There wasn't a player who could step in and help our team. We know Keith Ballard can step in to our team and play big minutes and make a real contribution."

If Tinordi or Bennett were there?

"We would have traded our first pick next year."

On his defence:

"It's still a need we feel we have to continue to address to add more depth. Last year in the playoffs our Achilles heel seemed to be the fact we had defencemen get hurt and we didn't have enough depth to continue to compete at the level we wanted to. If we're going to get past the second round and into the conference finals, we're going to have to have more defencemen."

On July 1

"We're going to be active. There are still areas we want to address.
"We have lots of cap space and lots of opportunity."

Letting go of Michael Grabner

"It was really difficult. But you have to include quality if you want quality in return, that's the nature of the NHL right now. We have a defenceman who is signed long term and signed through his key period and that was vital for us.
"This was a unique opportunity to improve our team and not be at risk.
"With Mason Raymond's emergence, with our lineup, it would have been very difficult for Michael to get in. If Mason continues to advance and gets into the 30-goal category, our third line can't be constituted with guys who are goal scoring players. We were fortunate to have that kind of redundancy so we could look at trade like this.
"Grabner is a really good player with big upside. But you're not going to get an NHL defenceman without giving up a player like that."

On the third line

"Look at the playoffs. Chicago beat us. We have to change the dynamic of our third line. We have to have bigger players and we have to have a different look."

On Ballard

"He brings a real edge. He's a puck-moving, skilled defenceman. He plays real hard. He can play on the power play. When we brought in Christian Ehrhoff, he really exploded offensively. If that happens it will be terrific. But another 30-40 point season would be really good.

Could you have found someone like Ballard after July 1?

"Last year we couldn't. We had to make a trade late in the summer to get someone we considered a top-four defenceman. It was a much deeper free agency group last year then it's going to be this year. I was uneasy about going into that with that real need without some form of guarantee."

Are you looking to get into the second round?

"We're trying right now. If I wasn't sitting here, I'd be on the phone."

Are you disappointed in Bernier?

"No, we had to fill holes when I got here and we filled a hole. We filled a need and he played well.
"We thought initially he might be able to play with the twins then Alex Burrows emerged as the perfect guy to play with them. So again, you have that redundancy and we were able to take advantage of it."

Have you been waiting a while to acquire enough assets to make a deal like this?

"Yes, absolutely. We had situations where we could have given up assets before. We chose not to. We stuck with out plan and this is another part of the plan. We wanted to get stronger defensively and we wanted to get players who are under 30 years old to add to our team."

06-25-2010, 08:00 PM	#577
stuff99 I subscribe to the Fight Club ONLY Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Vancouver Posts: 7,316 Thanked 212 Times in 79 Posts Failed 35 Times in 23 Posts	Gillis on Ballard trade: Bernier and Grabner were redundant By Botchford Fri, Jun 25 2010 COMMENTS(0) The White Towel Filed under: gillis ballard Canucks GM Mike Gillis comments after Ballard deal: On trading the first round pick (after Tinordi and Bennett were gone): "We didn't feel there were players there who would be able to help us for a number of years. "We waited a long time to see if a couple players were going to be there, when they weren't there and we got to that point, we made the decision this was something we really had to do. There wasn't a player who could step in and help our team. We know Keith Ballard can step in to our team and play big minutes and make a real contribution." If Tinordi or Bennett were there? "We would have traded our first pick next year." On his defence: "It's still a need we feel we have to continue to address to add more depth. Last year in the playoffs our Achilles heel seemed to be the fact we had defencemen get hurt and we didn't have enough depth to continue to compete at the level we wanted to. If we're going to get past the second round and into the conference finals, we're going to have to have more defencemen." On July 1 "We're going to be active. There are still areas we want to address. "We have lots of cap space and lots of opportunity." Letting go of Michael Grabner "It was really difficult. But you have to include quality if you want quality in return, that's the nature of the NHL right now. We have a defenceman who is signed long term and signed through his key period and that was vital for us. "This was a unique opportunity to improve our team and not be at risk. "With Mason Raymond's emergence, with our lineup, it would have been very difficult for Michael to get in. If Mason continues to advance and gets into the 30-goal category, our third line can't be constituted with guys who are goal scoring players. We were fortunate to have that kind of redundancy so we could look at trade like this. "Grabner is a really good player with big upside. But you're not going to get an NHL defenceman without giving up a player like that." On the third line "Look at the playoffs. Chicago beat us. We have to change the dynamic of our third line. We have to have bigger players and we have to have a different look." On Ballard "He brings a real edge. He's a puck-moving, skilled defenceman. He plays real hard. He can play on the power play. When we brought in Christian Ehrhoff, he really exploded offensively. If that happens it will be terrific. But another 30-40 point season would be really good. Could you have found someone like Ballard after July 1? "Last year we couldn't. We had to make a trade late in the summer to get someone we considered a top-four defenceman. It was a much deeper free agency group last year then it's going to be this year. I was uneasy about going into that with that real need without some form of guarantee." Are you looking to get into the second round? "We're trying right now. If I wasn't sitting here, I'd be on the phone." Are you disappointed in Bernier? "No, we had to fill holes when I got here and we filled a hole. We filled a need and he played well. "We thought initially he might be able to play with the twins then Alex Burrows emerged as the perfect guy to play with them. So again, you have that redundancy and we were able to take advantage of it." Have you been waiting a while to acquire enough assets to make a deal like this? "Yes, absolutely. We had situations where we could have given up assets before. We chose not to. We stuck with out plan and this is another part of the plan. We wanted to get stronger defensively and we wanted to get players who are under 30 years old to add to our team." __________________ ....