Yeah, it’s been a long time, hasn’t it?  (And yeah, I know I need to clean things up a bit around here.  I’m working on a new look for the site for next year.)

So, what have the Canucks done to improve themselves since we last talked?  Hmmm….

Jason LaBarbera decided to go play in Hamilton (er, Phoenix) for the next couple of years.  No dollar amounts were available.  Considering the stories about the Coyotes having a hard time making payroll, why would anyone want to go there?

Daniel and Henrik Sedin resigned right before the free-agency deadline for another five years, totaling $30.5M each.  Despite everything that’s been said about the twins in their time here, the Canucks would have been really screwed if they left.

Mattias Ohlund up and left town for the warm confines of Tampa Bay, signing a *7 year* deal (at age 32) for $26.25 million.  No offense to Ohlie, but does anyone still see him in the league at 39?  Ah well, best of luck, Matty.  You had a good run here, and Tampa will definitely benefit from your experience.

Aaron Rome decided to sign with the Canucks for a year and half a mill.  Guy has a Stanley Cup ring, but don’t expect another Alex Burrows here, okay?

Rick Rypien signed for another couple of years at the same rate as Rome.  If he can stay healthy, that’s not wasted money.

What’s left for Mike Gillis?  How about getting Roberto Luongo to sign an extension?  I have a feeling that something will be announced in the next week or so.  Rumours are circulating about $40M for another five years.  And what’s the deal with Mats Sundin?  If he tries to pull the same crap that he did last year, deciding sometime around Christmas that he feels like playing hockey again, let him go and forget about him.  He’s here at the start, or he’s not here at all.  And I wouldn’t count on $10 million being the offer that’s put on the table.

They also need to fill in the defence a bit, with only Sami Salo, Willie Mitchell, Alex Edler, and Kevin Bieksa confirmed for the upcoming year.  And since LaBarbera decided to leave, they need someone to sit on the bench and take the odd game when Luongo needs a night off.

Finally, they need some more scoring power up front (but you already knew this), with both second and third line centers required to fill things out. 

Some of the stuff that’s been floating around courtesy of the MSM (Gaborik bought a house in West Van!  That’s gotta mean something!) obviously went nowhere (and why would the Canucks want another fragile player here for big bucks?)  Would it be nice to get someone who’s going to come in here and score 40 goals?  Sure.  Is it likely?  No.  But if they could add a couple of 20+ goal scorers to the offense, it would be a pretty good improvement. 

I’ll check back in in a couple of days with more thoughts on what the Canucks do during the off-season.