Since Benning took over - a breakdown

[Nathancanuck]

2014 Offseason:

- Jason Garrison for a 2nd

- Ryan Kesler for a 1st, Nick Bonino, Luca Sbisa

- 2nd for Linden Vey

- 3rd for Derek Dorsett

- Drafted Jake Virtanen, Jared McCann, Thatcher Demko, Nikita Tryamkin, Gustav Forsling, Kyle Pettit, Mackanze Stewart

Conclusion: Very good draft for JB except for Jake Virtanen (as of now, but could still turn out to be a solid pick). He got

handcuffed in the Kesler trade and wasted a 2nd for Vey.

Grade B-

 

2014/15

- Signed UFA's Ryan Miller 3x6 and Radim Vrbata 2x5

- 3rd for Andrey Pedan

- Gustav Forsling for Adam Clendening

- 2nd for Sven Baertschi

- Eddie Lack for a 3rd and a 7th

- Patrick McNally for a 7th

- Did not trade UFA's such as Mathias, Richardson

- Drafted Brock Boeser, Guillaume Brisebois, Dimitri Zhukenov, Carl Neil, Adam Gaudette, Lukas Jasek, Tate Olson 

Conclusion: Made the Playoffs as 2nd seed in the Pacific, so it is kinda understandable that we didn't trade Mathias

and Richardson for a 2nd and 3rd and maybe miss the Playoffs. UFA signings were good. Acquiring Baertschi for a

2nd was good. Too early to tell but it looks like it was another strong draft from JB.

Grade B

 

2015/16

- Kevin Bieksa for a 2nd

- Zack Kassian + 5th for Brendan Prust

- Nick Bonino, Adam Clendening + 2nd for Brendan Sutter + 3rd

- Nicklas Jensen + 6th for Emerson Etem

- Hunter Shinkaruk for Markus Granlund

- 5th for Philip Larsen

- Jared McCann + 2nd + 4th for Erik Gudbranson + 5th

- Did not trade UFA's Vrbata and Hamhius

- Drafted Olli Juolevi, William Lockwood, Cole Candella, Jakob Stukel, Rodrigo Abols, Brett McKenzie

Conclusion: Bad season due to injuries and missing depth. JB made a couple of solid moves with

Granlund, Sutter, Gudbranson (remember McCann never wanted to be in Vancouver), Bieksa... He got

handcuffed by Vrbata and no good offer for Hamhuis at the TDL, so not much he could have done..

Got &^@#ed by the draft lottery but passed on Tkachuk which might turn out or not. Might have found

some good later round picks but too early to tell. Only thing I will never understand is the Kassian trade.

Grade B-

 

2016/17

- Signed UFA Loui Eriksson for 6x6 

- Signed Troy Stecher

 

I would say JB has done a great job overall so far, hope he gets us a new coach for next season though.

I think in 2018 the retool/rebuild will be finished when the Sedins retire and we won't have anyone on the

roster from 2011 (maybe Hansen) anymore.

 

 

 

 

[Alflives]

And how good will we be in two or three years?  IMHAO it's an average young group JB is building.  Unless Boeser, Gaudette, and Juiolevi break their ceilings and become elite stars, we get stuck in the middle.

[Silky mitts]

7 minutes ago, Alflives said:

And how good will we be in two or three years?  IMHAO it's an average young group JB is building.  Unless Boeser, Gaudette, and Juiolevi break their ceilings and become elite stars, we get stuck in the middle.

The good part is we will suck enough for continuous high picks for awhile hopefully.

[Angry Goose]

8 minutes ago, Alflives said:

And how good will we be in two or three years?  IMHAO it's an average young group JB is building.  Unless Boeser, Gaudette, and Juiolevi break their ceilings and become elite stars, we get stuck in the middle.

 

People thought the same thing about BOS before their 2011 run, it was a team built on balance.  JB seems to be building a very similar structure of players here too.  You're right though, VAN cannot afford to not have Boeser/Juolevi/Virtanen not work out.  The only way this team can turn around is for JB to nail his draft picks and for them to develop accordingly.  

[on the cycle]

I like Gaudette, heard scouts saying he could be a 2nd line center....not bad...not bad at all for a 5th round pick.

[xereau]

Have said this a few times.

 

Benning's legacy will defined by his dismantling of Mike Gillis' new age money ball country club jamboree.

 

He has been adept at identifying raw talent and getting it into the line up.

 

He has not been afraid to cut ties on hard luck cases.

 

He values character highly.

 

He fleeced Calgary.  Twice.

 

GMJB is all about meat and potatoes hockey.

[Alflives]

4 minutes ago, xereau said:

Have said this a few times.

 

Benning's legacy will defined by his dismantling of Mike Gillis' new age money ball country club jamboree.

 

He has been adept at identifying raw talent and getting it into the line up.

 

He has not been afraid to cut ties on hard luck cases.

 

He values character highly.

 

He fleeced Calgary.  Twice.

 

GMJB is all about meat and potatoes hockey.

You are right on all accounts.  I do have one question.  If JB values character so highly, please explain his first pick with us?

[10pavelbure96]

How can you not understand the Kassian trade? the canucks privately put him in stage 1 of the nhl's substance abuse program.  He clearly was not showing any improvements as he got into that impaired accident in Montreal and then was placed in stage 2 of that program before being traded to Edmonton. We were just the step before rock bottom for Kass and now he has finally turned it around.

 

Prust actually looked like a solid pick up early in that season before fizzling out halfway through.

 

So JB got a pretty solid half season for a player who was never gonna figure it out here. 

 

Could be worse.

[Nucker 67]

I really like what Benning's done so far. Unfortunately for him, his hands are tied. The owners, and probably Linden, want playoffs. They need to wake up and realize the Canucks are not good enough right now. Get as many high picks over the next few years as you can and develop. Canucks fans will still show up if the young prospects and players are getting a chance and they put out the effort. At least that way we'd have some sort of hope down the road with the high picks developing. Right now it's tough to say what they'll have in 2 years when the Sedins are gone. Heck, we don't even know if Boeser is truly committed to signing with Vancouver. Let's hope Benning hits another home run like he did with Tryamkin and Stecher. And I feel good with his drafting, so maybe he'll find a gem or two there as well.        

[Sedintwinpowersactivate]

The Kassian move shocked me as well at the time.  Although there was underlying circumstances that we were not privy to.  I still wish we kept him and helped him work through his substance abuse issues.  Unfortunately those players don't grow on trees and I thought his presence helped even out our soft forward group.  Oh well.  The other move I would have done is Ehlers over Virtanen, but maybe Benning recognized our soft forward group (since he got rid of Kassian) and was looking for that power forward.  So far that looks like the wrong move.  Benning has been great late in the draft but his top ten picks have been questionable.  I agree with you all that we will have to just wait on Virtanen and Juolevi to see if they were the right picks.  I will have patience.  But if he missed on those 2 picks it could set the team's rebuild back years.

[xereau]

Just now, Alflives said:

You are right on all accounts.  I do have one question.  If JB values character so highly, please explain his first pick with us?

I am guessing that Jake put on quite the intervieww, he did score 100+ goals in his last 2 seasons in Calgary. And he is from greater Vancouver.  A marketing dream.

 

It became quickly apparent that he wasn't ready for full time NHL duties.  Then he didn't do very well at the WJC.  And the media, and fans all piled on.  Then the rumors of him being a little sh*t started, none of which I have ever seen corroborated.  Have they?  Really?

All we have to go on is his performance.  It was subpar, and Utica is the perfect place for him.  Win again for Benning, doing the right thing, the hard thing.

 

Jake has been doing a good job in Utica.  He is really playing defense, showing it in his numbers.  He is not lighting it up score wise, but he hasn't been a liability either, he is only minus 2 since 6 games into his stint, he had a rough start (as of a couple days ago when I checked).   That's minus two in a little over half a season.  I expect him to make the Canucks next season, and, don't be surprised if he gets called up at some point this year even.

[Nathancanuck]

8 minutes ago, 10pavelbure96 said:

How can you not understand the Kassian trade? the canucks privately put him in stage 1 of the nhl's substance abuse program.  He clearly was not showing any improvements as he got into that impaired accident in Montreal and then was placed in stage 2 of that program before being traded to Edmonton. We were just the step before rock bottom for Kass and now he has finally turned it around.

 

Prust actually looked like a solid pick up early in that season before fizzling out halfway through.

 

So JB got a pretty solid half season for a player who was never gonna figure it out here. 

 

Could be worse.

I know about that but still I don't get the trade. At that time he was still a young power forward with upside and substance issues.

He has shown, that he can be a dominant player at times (second half of the Torts season and over stretches in 2014/15)

Then he had games where he was completely invisible, I know... But overall I like what Kassian brought to the team, he was tough

and unpredictable.. I think a guy like Kassian could have handled Ferland in the playoffs.

But what I don't get, even if you want to get rid of him badly why not put him on waivers instead of paying for it? 

[Nathancanuck]

49 minutes ago, Alflives said:

And how good will we be in two or three years?  IMHAO it's an average young group JB is building.  Unless Boeser, Gaudette, and Juiolevi break their ceilings and become elite stars, we get stuck in the middle.

Better than now even if they don't become elite stars.. then we can still trade for a top 6 forward and we will have a pretty high pick this year..

Plus we can hope some of our later round picks work out well

[Angry Goose]

27 minutes ago, Alflives said:

You are right on all accounts.  I do have one question.  If JB values character so highly, please explain his first pick with us?

He's a young guy Alf.  Not everyone is like Bo where they are basically a pro off the ice at such a young age.  Jake has the talent and is a very unique player.  Be patient with the kid and let him find his way (hopefully)

[Iced Canucks]

4 minutes ago, Nathancanuck said:

Better than now even if they don't become elite stars.. then we can still trade for a top 6 forward and we will have a pretty high pick this year..

Plus we can hope some of our later round picks work out well

No need to trade for this top six forward, keep searching in the draft, the more picks the better! These 'elite' players are found in the upper portion of the draft, why trade when you can draft them 

[Nuxfanabroad]

There are so many what-ifs?..Example:

 

Virt hits the ground running. As do a couple other young prospects. They rush cross a short bridge & suddenly you have to overpay a set of costly young fwds. Then through mismanagement(poor negotiating) you might end up with a hollow, unbalanced roster similar to Colorado today, or Edm of the last few yrs. So you have a short stint of middling-finish(& middling-picks), then start trawling the bottom-floor again, just a few seasons after that modest improvement.

 

Of course there are more variables here..& I'm just slapping on some paint with a broad brush, mostly for varied discussion-angles.

 

With the above in mind^, might it be ideal if our first wave of youth develop gradually, then we draft a star or two in these current yrs? By the time our last 5 or 6 souvenir-vets move on, we have a decent base of 21~26 yo, exp'd kids, & a whack of cap space? If it takes an extra yr or two, we can use that space either to A) target UFA's; or B), take on a bad contract or two, acquiring more youth & picks?

 

We've puttered along like a tugboat on the Fraser..mostly staying respectable in our efforts. At least we haven't deliberately sunk to the bottom, like a few unmentionable acts.

 

Look at Carolina today(for comparison's sake). Essentially where we are, pts wise, with lots of youth worth tracking. EXCEPT, they have about 15~20 Mill in cap available. They COULD improve that team in a jiffy, if they had the ownership to spend. We COULD be exactly in this place, summer 2018.

[iceman64]

Just now, Alflives said:

And how good will we be in two or three years?  IMHAO it's an average young group JB is building.  Unless Boeser, Gaudette, and Juiolevi break their ceilings and become elite stars, we get stuck in the middle.

Well Mr Furball..  i think it comes down to more than that, the elite part needs to happen when Miller's and the Sedins cap space.

 

In Markstrom we have a really good number 1 and he's still getting better and better, and Demko is in the mix and having Melanson coaching then we're ok.

 

Defence is improving in the SIZE department with Train and Gud (which we needed)

 

Forwards?  Well we need to get bigger faster and meaner and that's where the cap comes in..  That's the Benning factor that will pay off since he knows how badly that is needed and you never saw the Bruins (while he was there) over matched in size and skill and that's what he wants here.   If we get 2-3 physically BIG Elite players with the cap space plus we have the players to compliment that now and some are gaining important experience this year

[stawns]

29 minutes ago, NUCKER67 said:

I really like what Benning's done so far. Unfortunately for him, his hands are tied. The owners, and probably Linden, want playoffs. They need to wake up and realize the Canucks are not good enough right now. Get as many high picks over the next few years as you can and develop. Canucks fans will still show up if the young prospects and players are getting a chance and they put out the effort. At least that way we'd have some sort of hope down the road with the high picks developing. Right now it's tough to say what they'll have in 2 years when the Sedins are gone. Heck, we don't even know if Boeser is truly committed to signing with Vancouver. Let's hope Benning hits another home run like he did with Tryamkin and Stecher. And I feel good with his drafting, so maybe he'll find a gem or two there as well.        

Everyone, with even an ounce of pride and competitive spirit, wants the playoffs.

[-AJ-]

JB has legitimately surprised me and proven time and time again he knows better than I. 

 

His drafting is quite solid, though that was somewhat expected.

 

But I've been proven wrong on three separate occasions regarding my snap judgements of his decisions. 

 

1) Benning trades a 2nd for Baertschi. This was a risky move in my mind for a guy I figured was already a bust. I was wrong here.

2) Benning signs Sbisa for $3.6M per. At the time, this deal was insane, but Sbisa improved greatly in his first year of that deal and has continued to improve this year to the point where he's now worth his contract. Maybe Benning saw potential where I didn't?

3) Trading Shinkaruk for Granlund. I thought this was a massive loss, but Granlund has proven that he's more than a player destined to be a struggling 3rd liner and has shown potential as a middle six player.

 

Not to mention the signing of Stecher, which was a big one.

 

Where I previously doubted, I now have some faith with Benning.

 

 

[IBatch]

30 minutes ago, xereau said:

I am guessing that Jake put on quite the intervieww, he did score 100+ goals in his last 2 seasons in Calgary. And he is from greater Vancouver.  A marketing dream.

 

It became quickly apparent that he wasn't ready for full time NHL duties.  Then he didn't do very well at the WJC.  And the media, and fans all piled on.  Then the rumors of him being a little sh*t started, none of which I have ever seen corroborated.  Have they?  Really?

All we have to go on is his performance.  It was subpar, and Utica is the perfect place for him.  Win again for Benning, doing the right thing, the hard thing.

 

Jake has been doing a good job in Utica.  He is really playing defense, showing it in his numbers.  He is not lighting it up score wise, but he hasn't been a liability either, he is only minus 2 since 6 games into his stint, he had a rough start (as of a couple days ago when I checked).   That's minus two in a little over half a season.  I expect him to make the Canucks next season, and, don't be surprised if he gets called up at some point this year even.

I think we may see Jake back in the line up late in the season once the playoffs slip out of reach.  Hope he's ready to prove he belongs and turns things around.