Mike Gillis - Cody Hodgson - Gary Roberts

[WestCoastJoe]

http://www.montrealgazette.com/sports/h ... story.html

Well the Canucks may be out of the playoffs, but the team is still making news ...

Gary Roberts, who trains Cody Hodgson in offseason, rips Canucks GM Mike Gillis character

'If anybody knew this kid . . . '

By Jim Jamieson, The ProvinceMay 1, 2012

When Mike Gillis took over as GM of the Canucks four years ago, one of the areas he wanted to improve was making the West Coast team as player-friendly as possible, to become the destination of choice for free agents and make it easier to re-sign others.

After Gary Roberts' comments on the weekend, you have to wonder if any of that reputation has been harmed. Roberts, a 22-year NHL veteran and current fitness guru to a number of young NHL stars including Steven Stamkos, came out firing at Gillis in defence of former Canuck Cody Hodgson - a player Roberts has trained the last two summers and will again this offseason.

In the Canucks' season-ending press conference last week, Gillis characterized Hodgson as a high-maintenance complainer and diminished his scoring impact, saying it was part of a plan by the club to deploy him often in offensive situations to pump up his stats so he could be a more valuable trade commodity.

At the Feb. 27 NHL trade dead-line, when Hodgson was essentially swapped to Buffalo for physical winger Zack Kassian, Gillis declined to elaborate on the non-hockey aspects of the deal. But he decided to offer some harsh words nearly two months later. Was it to justify a controversial deal for an admittedly young player who didn't make an immediate impact? Frustration at the second-guessing on the trade?

"I spent more time on Cody's issues than every other player combined on our team in the last three years," said Gillis. "We made a determination that he didn't want to be here. We built him into something we could move."

Roberts' fiery defence of Hodgson's character in his comments to the Buffalo News in Monday's editions was remarkable. At one point he said he'd like to tell Gillis he's a "moron" and a "dud."

"If anybody knew this kid, this young man, to know what he went through mentally and physically for two summers trying to find out what the heck was wrong with him - of course they dealt with his issues more than anybody else in the organization because he was injured and they couldn't figure out what was wrong with him," said Roberts.

Asked for a response, the Canucks organization declined comment on Monday. Hodgson didn't respond to a request for comment and his agent, Ritch Winter, declined - as both did last week after Gillis's statements. Roberts didn't return a phone message.

Gillis's first-ever draft pick was lauded for his character and intelligence when he was picked 10th over-all in 2008. But a back injury suffered in training in the summer of 2009 and its subsequent misdiagnosis - initially by the Canucks, but also by Hodgson's own doctors - dealt some damage to that relationship. So did comments from head coach Alain Vigneault dismissing Hodgson after the 2009 preseason as a player using an injury as an excuse.

This season, before which Hodgson had his first full summer of training in three years, he was named NHL rookie of the month in January. He had 16 goals and 33 points before the trade to Buffalo.

Gillis revealed last week that Hodgson was being showcased for a trade, by putting him in the best offensive situations they could and allowing him to take very few defensive zone faceoffs.

It should be noted, though, that in January, when Hodgson led the team in scoring, he played primarily with wingers Jannik Hansen and Mason Raymond. He also averaged just 12: 43 in ice time per game - which was a regular bone of contention between him and the Canucks. There are also reports that Hodgson had asked the Canucks for a trade.

Gillis indicated that he pulled the trigger at the deadline because a player of Kassian's potential doesn't become available very often.

But there's no question that the moves at the deadline - trading Hodgson and his offence and acquiring centre Samuel Pahlsson, to retool for a more defensive posture in the playoffs - blew up in the Canucks' faces. Kassian, 21, in his first professional season, wasn't ready to make an impact at this level and Marc-Andre Gragnani, the other player from Buffalo, didn't play. The Canucks managed to score just eight goals in their five-game opening round playoff loss to the Kings.

Would hanging on to Hodgson for the remainder of the season, then moving him in the summer, have made a difference?

That we'll never know.

[WestCoastJoe]

http://www.vancouversun.com/opinion/Cod ... story.html

Cody Hodgson an unhappy problem solved

By Iain MacIntyre, Vancouver Sun columnistMay 1, 2012 10:27 AM

VANCOUVER — We love name-calling as much as the next reporter or nine-year-old, although, to be honest, people in Grade 3 generally are above that kind of thing these days.

While it was amusing to read Gary Roberts, both the Hans and the Franz of hockey conditioning, call Mike Gillis a moron nearly a week after the Vancouver general manager was brutally critical of ex-Canuck Cody Hodgson, the snickering it caused further clouds the issue at the root of the player’s February trade: Hodgson didn’t want to play here.

Given Gillis’ success at enhancing the work environment and making the Canucks one of the most desirable teams for whom to play — to the point that every core player has accepted less than market value to stay in Vancouver — the GM should have known better than to voluntarily divulge that Hodgson was so high-maintenance that Gillis “spent more time on Cody’s issues than every other player on our team combined over the last three years.”

It’s bad form to speak that way of the dead or the departed. Gillis should know better.

But, so too, should Roberts, the fitness freak who not only trains Hodgson during the summer but was hired two years ago by the Dallas Stars as a player-development consultant.

Roberts correctly pointed out for the Buffalo News that the Canucks’ failure to properly diagnose a back injury suffered by Hodgson while lifting weights three summers ago caused his client’s “issues.” So what about the last two seasons, when Hodgson’s back was fine?

The bottom line is Hodgson and his camp made it clear he was unhappy playing behind centres Ryan Kesler and Henrik Sedin, so the Canucks made what they felt was the best deal they could and traded Hodgson for Zack Kassian before the relationship with Gillis’ first draft pick deteriorated further.

It seems Gillis’ fault with Hodgson was in selecting him 10th overall in 2008, given the GM’s stated ideals about character and leadership.

His harsh remarks last week were probably a reflection of Gillis’ exasperation with the theory that jettisoning Hodgson contributed to the Canucks’ first-round playoff exit.

Hodgson contributed only three goals, eight points and a minus-seven rating in 20 games after his trade, despite averaging 17:16 of ice time for a Sabres team that went 12-5-3 down the stretch. Including his final 13 games as a Canuck, Hodgson managed only five goals and 11 points in his final 33 games.

So, naturally, he would have outplayed Anze Kopitar, Mike Richards or Jarret Stoll head-to-head in the Canucks’ playoff series against the Los Angeles Kings.

Gillis was so concerned about Hodgson’s defensive liabilities he traded for veteran Samuel Pahlsson before he made the deal for Kassian. Pahlsson would have been the third-line centre the rest of the way even had the Sabres not taken Hodgson

[WestCoastJoe]

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2012/05/ ... lis_moron/

Sportsnet Staff | May 1, 2012, 2:22 pm

Roberts apologizes for calling Gillis a moron

Retired NHL forward Gary Roberts apologized for calling Vancouver Canucks general manager Mike Gillis a moron after coming to the defence of Buffalo Sabres forward Cody Hodgson.

"I absolutely apologize for using that word. I should not have used that word," Roberts told HOCKEY CENTRAL at Noon on Sportsnet 590 The Fan Tuesday.

"Emotion was part of my game (when I played) and sometimes I always didn't make the right choice, and you can see I'm still not making the right choices in maybe that word selection."

There had been reports questioning Hodgson's attitude along with rumours that his camp asked for a trade out of Vancouver. During the Canucks' season-ending press conference last week Gillis explained he had no regrets dealing Hodgson to the Sabres on Trade Deadline Day in February.

"I spent more time on Cody's issues than every other player combined on our team the last three years," Gillis said.

Roberts, who helps train Hodgson in the off-season, felt he needed to vouch for the 21-year-old.

"I felt the time that I've spent with Cody Hodgson these last three years, to see the type of person he is and the commitment he's made to getting healthy and being the player that everybody expected him to be, I really felt strongly to make a stand for that young man the other day," Roberts said.

"I didn't mean to cause anybody any grief other than the fact I didn't even refer to that word to be honest with you. It was kind of taken (out of context). 'I'd like to be the guy to say that, but really that's not doing anybody any good,' is how I phrased it.

The exact quote from the BuffaloNews.com report was: "For me, I'd like to be the guy that looks at Mike Gillis and says, 'You're a moron.'"

"It came out differently, so I apologize for that word, it should not have been used," Roberts added. "I think people need to recognize the kind of person Cody Hodgson is and he's absolutely the furthest thing in the world than how he is perceived right now."

The 41-year-old currently runs the Gary Roberts High Performance Centre in North York, Ont., where he trains players like Hodgson, Steven Stamkos and Jeff Skinner in addition to groups of youth hockey players from the Greater Toronto Area.

[WestCoastJoe]

http://digitaljournal.com/article/323678

Did Canucks GM Mike Gillies say Cody Hodgson is high maintenance?

By Marcus Hondro Apr 25, 2012 in Sports

Most guys have had a girlfriend who earned the epithet high maintenance, and doubtless there are women with stories about guys who earned it. But can a hockey player earn it? Eric Lindros comes to mind, he earned it. And now Cody Hodgson.

"There clearly were issues that were ongoing," Canucks GM Mike Gillis said of Hodgson at his season ending press conference on April 24. "I spent more time on Cody's issues than every other player combined on our team the last three years."

Ouch. If you're Cody Hodgson that has gotta hurt more than a little. But what could a player be so needy about that the general manager has to spend so much time trying to sort out? There was talk from players, jokingly, that Hodgson had to be shown how to dress as a professional hockey player, which suggests something lacking, though, again, it seemed more in fun.

Gillis on Hodgson: "He didn't want to be here"

Eric Lindros and Bobby Clarke made up at the Winter Classic in Philly in 2011 but there's a case of an NHL general manager finding his player to be high maintenance, egged on by his parents. There's no indication Hodgson's parents had anything to do with taking up Gillis' time, however. His father, Chris, was a member of the Conservative provincial government in Ontario, and was a cabinet minister. His most unsavory claim to fame was an offensive remark concerning first nations people, a remark he denied during a court proceeding.

It's likely some of what Gillis had to spend time on with regard Cody Hodgson had to do with the 10th pick overall in the 2008 entry draft not wanting to be in Vancouver, which he denied in his exit interview with the Vancouver media when dealt to Buffalo for Zach Kassian and Marc-Andre Gragnani at the trade deadline. But Gillis tells a different story.

At the press conference, Gillis brought it up when he talked about how the deal was done. "We made a determination that he didn't want to be here (so) we built him into something we could move," Gillis said. "There were six young players that I would have traded him for if any of them were ever made available. One was made available at the trade deadline and it was Zack."

The offensive Cody Hodgson

And how did they build Hodgson into "something we could move."? It seems they shielded him from the kind of defensive responsibilities most centers are expected to take on, new to the league or not, and placed him into roles where he could succeed offensively.

"We put Cody on the ice in every offensive situation we possibly could," the GM said. "I don't think he took more than five or six defensive zone faceoffs, and that was by design." So they helped him to put up decent numbers for a young player, 16 goals, 17 assists and 33 points in 63 games a plus 8 rating. How did he do in Buffalo? In 20 games he managed 3 goals, 5 assists and 8 points, with a minus7 rating. Sounds like there may be truth to that part of the story....
But we still wonder about all the need for high maintenance.

[WestCoastJoe]

http://vansunsportsblogs.com/2012/04/24 ... this-year/

The Canucks gave Cody Hodgson two makeovers this year

Harrison Mooney, on April 24, 2012

Considering when news of Cody Hodgson’s trade to Buffalo broke — at around 12:30 PST, well after the trade deadline had passed — you could be forgiven for thinking it was a last-minute deal, like the one that brought Chris Higgins to the team at the 2011 cutoff. And, after Hodgson’s agent Ritch Winter claimed in the aftermath that he and Hodgson had met with the Canucks the weekend prior about icetime, you might even think it was a kneejerk move.

But on Tuesday morning at Mike Gillis’s season wrap-up presser, the Canucks’ GM had some interesting things to say about the circumstances surrounding Hodgson’s departure. Most notably, while he never quite said it, it’s apparent that even if Buffalo didn’t get onboard until later, the team had been working on a Hodgson deal since December at least.

Remember how Hodgson’s teammates gave him an off-ice makeover? Turns out the coaching staff gave him one too.

In case it’s not yet clear, Hodgson’s camp was difficult to please. For years, we heard that there were problems with the way the Canucks were handling the young centre, and even if there weren’t, Hodgson’s camp strongly felt otherwise. After remaining mum about the subject at the deadline, Gillis finally elaborated on that Tuesday:


There’s a lot that goes into that. At the end of the day, I chose not to speak about what happened behind the scenes because I expect our players to come in and have the opportunity to speak to me without it being made public. There clearly were issues that were ongoing. I spent more time with Cody’s issues than every other player combined for the last 3 years. We made a determination that he didn’t want to be here.

But just when did the Canucks make this determination? I’d argue that it was sometime in December.

You may recall Hodgson’s monster January, a streak during which he put up 6 goals and 4 assists, picked up an “NHL Rookie of the Month” Award, briefly waded into the Calder trophy discussion, and won the hearts of nearly the entire Vancouver fanbase in the process. It was his coming-out party, the month Canuck nation decided that, not only was this Hodgson kid was going to work out after all, but he was going to be an absolute stud.

You may also recall that Thomas Drance took a very close look at Hodgson’s numbers and determined that they were inflated based on some curious changes to his usage. Quietly, his icetime spiked by 2 minutes and his offensive zone start percentage went from 33% in December to 83% in January — a higher rate than even the Sedins, the league leaders in offensive zone deployment.

As it turns out, this deployment wasn’t just done to capitalize on Hodgson’s offensive abilities and get him away from his defensive weaknesses. It done to make him look attractive to potential buyers, the hockey equivalent of staging a home. Gillis again:


We built him into something we could move. We put Cody on the ice in every offensive situation we could, I don’t think he took more than 5 or 6 defensive zone faceoffs. That was by design. I don’t regret that move and I’d do it again.

Sure enough, Hodgson’s value skyrocketed, to the point where the Canucks were able to get one of the 6 players they had determined some time ago they would swap for Hodgson if he ever became available. That was Zack Kassian.

We know the Canucks use advanced statistics, but this adds a very intriguing dimension to how they use them and what they use them for. From Canucks Army:


So now we know something else, and it’s something very interesting. Not only do the Canucks use advanced stats when thinking about what personnel to add, but they consider how they can use their “edge” in understanding, to inflate player value on the trade market.

Considering what Kassian contributed to the Canucks this year (to wit: nothing, apart from this badass photo), all of this is likely to make many roll their eyes. The Canucks inflated Hodgson’s value so they could get Zack Kassian? That’s a lark. But keep in mind that your high opinion of Hodgson is informed largely by his illusory January. Tasked with playing at both ends of the ice in Buffalo, Hodgson struggled mightily down the stretch.

And let’s not give up on Kassian just yet. Power forwards take longer to develop, and Kassian’s 2011-12 season was his first taste of hockey at the NHL level. Consider Hodgson’s mediocre showings in 2010-11, after which many Canuck fans called the centre a bust. Now many of those same fans are leading the uproar over his trade. Kassian has plenty of time to grow into a contributor, especially with his first full season as a Canuck lying ahead.

If he can, fans may stop bemoaning what the Canucks did in February and start appreciating what they did in January.

[WestCoastJoe]

http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/sabre ... 834441.ece

Sabres' Hodgson fighting a bum rap

Misdiagnosed injury hurts prospect's reputation

By John Vogl

News Sports Reporter

Updated: April 30, 2012, 9:19 AM

Gary Roberts knows Cody Hodgson well. The retired 22-year veteran of the NHL has seen Hodgson try to train through a debilitating injury. Roberts has seen his young son take to Hodgson, and he watched the center respond by having daily lunches with the 4-year-old boy on Roberts' patio. Roberts has seen the drive and desire Hodgson has to be a successful hockey player.

With all Roberts has seen, he couldn't believe his ears.

While recapping the trade that made Hodgson a member of the Buffalo Sabres, Vancouver General Manager Mike Gillis essentially said last week he was glad to be rid of the center.

"I spent more time on Cody's issues than every other player combined on our team the last three years," Gillis said.

Roberts was flabbergasted.

"I listened to Mike Gillis the other day," Roberts said by phone over the weekend, "and my impression was, 'Are you kidding me?'

"If anybody knew this kid, this young man, to know what he went through mentally and physically for two summers trying to find out what the heck was wrong with him -- of course they dealt with his issues more than anybody else in the organization because he was injured and they couldn't figure out what was wrong with him.

"It almost was like they thought he didn't want to work. Well, I can tell you that this kid out of all the kids that I train, he's up there in the [Steven] Stamkos group as far as commitment and determination. What I tell him, he does, so I know he's coachable and I love working with him."

Roberts, obviously, was fired up by Gillis' comments. Not surprisingly, Hodgson seems to have brushed them off.

Since joining the Sabres two months ago, the 22-year-old has repeatedly declined to look back at his time in the Canucks organization. He doesn't want to dwell on a stint filled with a misdiagnosed back injury, questions about his commitment and attitude, disagreements regarding playing time and, possibly, a trade request.

"I talked to Cody after this came out with Gillis," Roberts said. "I know he's on vacation, and I said, 'Hey, I know you went through a lot of stress. How are you feeling about some of those comments?' He said, 'Gary, I've dealt with a lot of stuff there in the last three years, and I'm just going to take the high road.'

"For me, I'd like to be the guy that looks at Mike Gillis and says, 'You're a moron.' It doesn't really do anybody any good other than the fact that Mike Gillis looks like, as they say on TSN, a dud."

Roberts is certain Hodgson will be anything but a dud. Hodgson is preparing for his third summer training under Roberts, and the fitness guru with a Stanley Cup and Masterton Trophy on his resume says this offseason will be the best of Hodgson's life.

"I'm looking forward to this year really being an opportunity for him to really explode as far as his conditioning goes," Roberts said.

Hodgson's ability to work out is what gives Roberts his confidence. For too long, Hodgson wasn't able to do much.

The center hurt his back in the summer of 2009. The convoluted chain of events following the injury is the main reason the 10th overall pick in the 2009 draft is in Buffalo and Zack Kassian, the 13th pick in 2009, is Vancouver.

Doctors diagnosed Hodgson's injury as a bulging disc that shouldn't be much trouble. When it was, there was surprise, disappointment and mocking, including disparaging remarks from Canucks coach Alain Vigneault.

Hodgson struggled through 2009-10. He failed to make the Canucks out of training camp and played just 24 games for his junior team. When he tried to join Vancouver's minor-league team for the playoffs, doctors wouldn't clear him to play.

That summer, Hodgson went to Roberts.

"Just watching him move in the gym, I said, 'Cody, something's not right,'" Roberts said. "He wasn't getting better. He could do some things, but as soon as you loaded him at all he had issues. Fortunate enough, we found a tear in his multifidus muscle in his back, which is really your major back stabilizer muscle, and that was really where things, I think, turned around for him."

Hodgson put up 30 points in 52 minor-league games in 2010-11. He played another 20 games with Vancouver, including 12 in the playoffs.

This season, as a rookie, he took off. Hodgson had 16 goals and 33 points in 63 games with the Canucks, then had three goals and eight points in 20 games with the Sabres.

"It's a real honor to play in this league, and to play a full season is obviously something you dream of as a kid," Hodgson said. "It was a good year. I just wish I could have done more to help Buffalo get in the playoffs."

The Sabres are counting on Hodgson to help them get there next season.

"It's exciting because Cody Hodgson has been a good addition, is going to fit in very well with a group of players," Buffalo GM Darcy Regier said. "Not just the team as a whole but even a younger subset whether it's Tyler Myers, [Tyler] Ennis, [Drew] Stafford, and I think that that is a positive."

If Hodgson's growth curve mirrors that of Roberts' other well-known pupils, he will be the No. 1 center the Sabres need. Tampa Bay's Stamkos works with Roberts and has grown into a 60-goal scorer and MVP finalist. Pittsburgh's James Neal scored 40 times. Florida's Stephen Weiss has turned into a perennial 20-goal scorer. Carolina's Jeff Skinner was the 2011 Rookie of the Year.

"A lot of people think it's just pushing the weights and doing the workouts and stuff, but it's more than that," Hodgson said. "It's about vitamins. It's about taking care of yourself not just in the gym or on the ice, but away from the ice, too, getting the proper rest, nutrition, doctors, soft tissue guys, chiropractors -- take care of yourself throughout the year so you're not missing games and you're always feeling at your peak."

Said Roberts: "Last summer, we trained him the way he should be trained. That was one summer of training in three he was really able to do what he needed to do.

"He's a pretty strong kid, but it's his speed and power that we're really going to focus on this summer. Now that he's healthy I have a pretty good feeling that he will be a faster and more powerful guy in September, which will help him develop into the player that he should have been two years ago if he would have been healthy."

A second full summer of training combined with a full season getting accustomed to the Sabres has Hodgson eager to show he belongs, no matter what anyone at his previous home says.

"I think about myself as a Buffalo Sabre now," Hodgson said. "I think we have a really good team, and I think next year coming back hopefully we'll be even stronger. I'm excited to see what we can do."

So is Roberts.

"I totally respect what he's gone through," Roberts said. "I think Buffalo's got not only a great player but a really good young man who's going to be there hopefully a long time."

[Toppy Vann]

If Cody is taking the high road, he isn't being helped to keep on the path by his trainer.

This is not an advised way of saying your client is a good guy and not a problem for a team. Gary Roberts apparently is doing a good job of training his clients but he needs to respect his clients too and say nothing that can harm then or inflame a situation. He has given the story legs. He could have said he respects the client and clarified the injury situation and not attacked Mike Gillis who now might be less inclined to have one of Roberts clients on his team.

Let his agent (not personal trainer) speak for his guy is my advice here.

If I were Mike Gillis, I'd not have made the comments he did either as no useful purpose was served by that either.

[WestCoastJoe]

If Cody is taking the high road, he isn't being helped to keep on the path by his trainer.

This is not an advised way of saying your client is a good guy and not a problem for a team. Gary Roberts apparently is doing a good job of training his clients but he needs to respect his clients too and say nothing that can harm then or inflame a situation. He has given the story legs. He could have said he respects the client and clarified the injury situation and not attacked Mike Gillis who now might be less inclined to have one of Roberts clients on his team.

Let his agent (not personal trainer) speak for his guy is my advice here.

If I were Mike Gillis, I'd not have made the comments he did either as no useful purpose was served by that either.

Roberts apologized and said he has always been a bit of a hot head in his reactions to situations.

It was unusual for Mike Gillis to throw Cody Hodgson under the bus in his season ending press conference. Partly exasperation. Partly frustration. Partly a message to Cody's many Vancouver fans (high maintenance)?

With the delay in Gillis' meeting with Aquilini, it is no sure thing Gillis is back with the Canucks. If Aquilini wants to get rid of Vigneault, Gillis might want to leave at that time also.

I was happy to have Cody drafted here. It was unfortunate he got injured in early training. It does seem to me though that his Camp is highly involved with his teams, much moreso than other athletes. Teams do not like "high maintenance" situations with athletes or their people. It even happens in amateur sports or school sports. Playing time. Position. Even strategies seem fair game to some parents.

Eric Lindros seemed to fit the bill of a high maintenance athlete/family/camp. And IMO that kind of stuff is not good for the athlete nor the team. Way too early to see if Cody's group is of that nature. But there have been some indications (Three different agents. Trainer/Dietician Roberts name calling a league GM. Trainer and doctors at odds with the team, et cetera) ... Could be misleading. Or he could settle down and be a great team guy as he seemed to be in junior.

It seems clear Cody has definite playmaking and scoring ability. Speed. Strength. Faceoffs. Defensive work. Not so much. It seems he was a pain to Mike Gillis and Alain Vigneault. Will he be that way for the Sabres? Dunno ...

I wish Cody well in Buffalo. It seems clear he wanted out of Vancouver.

And I believe there is reason to expect Zack Kassian to be a very productive player for us as well.

[TheLionKing]

Zack Kassian needs a couple of years in the minors. He's not ready for the NHL right now

[TheLionKing]

[sj-roc]

Ted Nugent would probably approve.