[Article] Is Jim Benning the best GM in the NHL at the season's halfway mark?

[Elias Pettersson]

Just look at the drafting prior to 2014.  Only one player remains on the roster, BO.  Since 2014 when Benning took over we now have 6 players on the roster with 2 of those players being elite franchise game changers in Petey and Hughes.  Gaudette, Boeser, Virtanen and Demko are the other 4.  The trades for Miller and Pearson were incredible.  Stecher was a good free agent pickup and signing Beagle and Roussel for the bottom 2 lines was a good piece of business. 

 

Has Benning been perfect?  Of course not, even Scotty Bowman made mistakes.  But overall I think Benning has turned this team around into a legit playoff team.  And then you look at our prospect pool.  Podkolzin, Hoglander, Lind, Madden, Rathbone, Woo, Tryamkin, Juolevi, Brisebois, Rafferty, DiPietro.  The cupboard of prospects is so full the cabinet door can’t close.  

 

I believe Jim Benning is one of the better GM’s in the league right now.  Hopefully once playoff success comes to Vancouver he will be recognized as one of the best.  

[189lb enforcers?]

 

Aquaman’s chequebook is the real mastermind this year. 

JB did his part, but he spent his way out of the rebuild, which may or may not prove to be folly. I’m just glad he signed some spine. GM of the century, for that alone. 

 

Imagine what Francis, for instance, could have done with a cap-team budget on the rebuilding Canes rosters? 

 

Whatever, I’m not getting into a pissing contest over this. 

Edited January 28, 2020 by 189lb enforcers?

[Metal Face Doom]

Whether or not he's the best gm at the halfway mark doesn't matter.  What matters is he has done a fantastic job rebuilding this squad from the ground up.  This is his team.  He built this through the draft and signed the complimentary pieces needed to be where we are at today.  They weren't all homeruns, he had some questionable moves but all in all, he has done this the way he wanted from the start.   

[ShawnAntoski]

1 hour ago, Metal Face Doom said:

Whether or not he's the best gm at the halfway mark doesn't matter.  What matters is he has done a fantastic job rebuilding this squad from the ground up.  This is his team.  He built this through the draft and signed the complimentary pieces needed to be where we are at today.  They weren't all homeruns, he had some questionable moves but all in all, he has done this the way he wanted from the start.   

This is now his core and I hope he wins with them.  GCG !

[tas]

but when will he stop serving two masters and actually rebuild?

 

I mean, that first rounder in the miller deal could have turned out to be ANYTHING. it could even have been a heavy, two-way sniper with intangibles!

[Phat Fingers]

 

IDK if any GM could have come into the wake of the 2011 run and not been a lighting rod.  

 

Throw in Kesler's demand and the polarizing JV pick in his first few weeks on the job.... 

 

Let's say Benning drafted Larkin and Pastrnak.   He would have been run out of town and set the record for the shortest tenure of any GM in league history.  

 

2 years later he would have been venerated.  

 

Who could have done better?  His first year bandaid moves actually paid off with a trip to the playoffs.  That's what ownership wanted.... one last throw of the dice to see if there was a swan song left ot not.  

 

No one else was going to convince ownership to gut the club one year removed from a back to back presidents trophies and a game seven SCF.  

 

Really at that moment the twins still had life in them and their steep drop off, well it was a shock to a lot of us.  Some saw it coming.  

 

JB tired to split hairs verbally about a retool vs rebuild.  Yet now his first draft is paying real dividends and by next year could a real payoff if Tryamkin pans out.  

 

He quietly stole Brock and Gaudette in his second draft.  A ton of his early moves took time to mature, but in many ways he made correct moves and very smart moves and safe moves.  

 

He was a scout and it will always be his strong suit.  He made some big mistakes in his second and 3rd seasons. 

 

But to me the biggest mistakes he made are in the following order of significance.  

 

Not shipping out Hammer at the TDL.   

Many say we couldn't do that cause it would be a 'sign of weakness' can't be 'lowballed'.  Considering some of his early deals, Trader Jim was struggling thru a steep learning curve.  

 

We lost out on Mathews or Laine that year by 3 wins.  Without Hammer we would have easily dropped 3 games IMO. I like OJ, but where would we be with Mathews and Bo atm?  If the offer was a 3rd for Hammer, sell him to Nashville for a 4th.  That tells Dallas not to be assholes and tells the club and fan base we are going for Mathews.  Which would have been applauded.  

 

With Ep40 and Huggybear, well that doesn't sting anymore.

 

Not firing WD and bringing Green up during the season was a mistake IMO. 

 

It meant that in the twins last few years we had to watch Megna skate with them and score 2 goals.  That and the tigers alumni really didn't work out other than Dorsett.   It likely cost us Tryamkin's services for 3 years.  

 

Signing Eriksson. 

 

Can't fault him for Erikssons struggle to justify the salary, but even though I thought it was a good move, the term sucks.  

 

At that time the twins were done, playing out the string.  Still at least it wasn't Lucic!

 

His last big mistake was trading for Guddy.  I had always wanted Guddy so I liked the deal, but JB also completely redeemed the deal by trading Guddy.  

 

 

I have been a steady and consistent supporter of JB, from give him time, to this guy is the most underrated GM in the league.  

 

We are lucky to have a guy that can seem to do it all as our GM this year.  That's the rookie learning curve that Jake needed too. 

 

Good times.  

 

 

 

 

Edited January 28, 2020 by Phat Fingers

[tas]

the guy came in and said "I think we can turn things around quickly."

 

in spite of fans and media spending the first 4 years of his tenure shrieking about every little detail, how he said this but did THAT, yadda yadda yadda, all the guy did was:

 

-give the old core one last playoff shot

-do a complete teardown, including moving a bunch of immoveable contracts while having no high value assets

-do a complete rebuild through the draft

-supplement those picks with savvy trades for role players and complementary players without giving up anything of value

-create a new (should be) playoff team that leads their division at the end of January

 

in the span of six (6) seasons. 

 

someone find me a comparable scenario. 

 

Edited January 28, 2020 by tas

[Chris12345]

15 hours ago, Horvat is a Boss said:

Cap management (and Free Agency by extension) is the main thing holding him back. He's been below average at best in those two areas. 

His scouting appears to be grade A *other than OJ haha.

 

Contacts are not great. Seemed to do well with RFAs but poorly on UFAs.

 

Communication is atrocious. And despite what people think on here is critical. They guy sounds like he's boarding on grade 6.

 

I however thoroughly enjoy his drafting even though I would have passed on 40!!!! Turns out I was wrong.

 

 

[Ghostsof1915]

Benning is a builder, Pat Quinn was a trading genius. This fanbase has really only ever known wheeling and dealing GM's. The patient approach of building through the draft and actually having players who are bonnafide NHL'ers is something the fan base isn't used to.

But boy when your 5th round picks are getting 100 games. That is so refreshing for the years of 1st and 2nd round busts we've seen. 

[rawkdrummer]

it's a team effort top to bottom but YES

[IBatch]

3 hours ago, Chris12345 said:

His scouting appears to be grade A *other than OJ haha.

 

Contacts are not great. Seemed to do well with RFAs but poorly on UFAs.

 

Communication is atrocious. And despite what people think on here is critical. They guy sounds like he's boarding on grade 6.

 

I however thoroughly enjoy his drafting even though I would have passed on 40!!!! Turns out I was wrong.

 

 

Glad your not voting.   Be real.  His trading from the beginning right until present time is above average.   More importantly his trading has been great more recently.   As far as his persona goes - he's nothing like dead fish Gillis - quite refreshing actually, and burned bridges have been restored given he's liked and respected by his peers.   Get real again.   My guess is your a TO fan trolling a Canucks forum, you know because your forum sucks and all.   

 

JB isn't perfect, yet he's carving a legacy that could surpass both Burke and eventually even Quin.

 

No long time fan that also pays attention to the rest of the league and the cap era likely had high hopes with the next core.  Yet here we are.   Maybe EP, Edler and Hughes go down and scuttle our season (Canuck Luck,  long time fans are surely holding their breath ha ha).  

 

Communication is say what again?  That's hilarious- I'm betting you haven't even listened to one of his broadcasts with the media and are running on memes.  Which BTW is really an atrocious way to communicate unless it's a joke.  

 

Mathews sucks.  Marner is way overpaid (same with captain underpants).  Tavares is great but again nice- cap hit.  At least you have Nylander who is proving his worth... go back to your bridge.  What you said isn't much different then the PCs campaign against Chrétien that made fun of his face (Would you trust a face like that?).   Maybes it's a little funny - but again get real.  

Edited January 28, 2020 by IBatch

[Maginator]

16 hours ago, Gaudette Celly said:

More media clownage.  As if he was a complete incompetent for 4 years, then suddenly snapped into a Slim Jim super-GM in a single off-season.  Cuz there was no plan in place, but everything magically appeared instantly somehow.

 

Agree.

 

I always have liked and trusted JB. It was the direction of the team when he came on board to "re-tool" (hahaha...). He was handcuffed into doing that and signing Louie, Vrbata etc.

 

This guy is smart and rational. I trust he will protect our team and we will be competitive for years to come because he is not going to overpay anyone. He will do what is fair, and if the player isn't willing to do that.. they can hit the road. Team first players only, coming from Benning.

 

He didn't get the recognition he deserved in the past because our team was a bottom feeder.

[oldnews]

16 hours ago, Gaudette Celly said:

Quote

But we can say this: After a four-year reign of error, Benning has done more to rehabilitate his image and the image of his franchise than any other general manager this season.

 

 

Didn't read it - for that very reason.

You know it's going to come wrapped in the Province's patented chickencrap, apologist drivel.  Faux SNooze.

They rarely fail to take goldfishbowl myopia to elite levels.

 

Translation:  'we've made asshats of ourselves throughout the rething, but we were right all along, of course...'magic beans', what happened to DimJimzzzz?"

 

An entire roster driving the competitiveness of the franchise.

Not one pick from this year's draft in the lineup.

One UFA signing who has been a M.A.S.H. regular, another who's lost his job to Fantenburg.

Myers was supposed to be a collosal mistake - and still, not many people creditting him for improving the blueline, let alone turning the franchise around.

Are we supposed to believe that one J.T. Miller trade is all it takes to shine an alleged franchise-sized turd?

Please.

What a crock of shizzz.  Never change Van media.  But hey, it's Willes - what do you expect?

 

Anyhow, congrats to Benning - imo he deserves to climb a few spots in those rankings, either him or Burnaby Joe.

[Chris12345]

50 minutes ago, IBatch said:

Glad your not voting.   Be real.  His trading from the beginning right until present time is above average.   More importantly his trading has been great more recently.   As far as his persona goes - he's nothing like dead fish Gillis - quite refreshing actually, and burned bridges have been restored given he's liked and respected by his peers.   Get real again.   My guess is your a TO fan trolling a Canucks forum, you know because your forum sucks and all.   

 

JB isn't perfect, yet he's carving a legacy that could surpass both Burke and eventually even Quin.

 

No long time fan that also pays attention to the rest of the league and the cap era likely had high hopes with the next core.  Yet here we are.   Maybe EP, Edler and Hughes go down and scuttle our season (Canuck Luck,  long time fans are surely holding their breath ha ha).  

 

Communication is say what again?  That's hilarious- I'm betting you haven't even listened to one of his broadcasts with the media and are running on memes.  Which BTW is really an atrocious way to communicate unless it's a joke.  

 

Mathews sucks.  Marner is way overpaid (same with captain underpants).  Tavares is great but again nice- cap hit.  At least you have Nylander who is proving his worth... go back to your bridge.  What you said isn't much different then the PCs campaign against Chrétien that made fun of his face (Would you trust a face like that?).   Maybes it's a little funny - but again get real.  

Not sure where I mentioned his trading as I didn't discuss it but since you brought it up....I agree with you.

 

On the Toronto front, I didn't mention Marner or Mathews. In my mind not talking Leafs is a win so please don't bring them up.

 

Communication "Canucks fined $50k for GM's comments about Stamkos, Subban".

 

Not sure what a meme is? 

[IBatch]

45 minutes ago, Chris12345 said:

Not sure where I mentioned his trading as I didn't discuss it but since you brought it up....I agree with you.

 

On the Toronto front, I didn't mention Marner or Mathews. In my mind not talking Leafs is a win so please don't bring them up.

 

Communication "Canucks fined $50k for GM's comments about Stamkos, Subban".

 

Not sure what a meme is? 

Apologies all around.  Just checking I guess glad your not a leaf fan trolling this forum.  I will take your word for it - you had me on what is a meme ha ha.  If you don't like his communication I guess to each his own.  Personally I find him a breath of fresh air after Gillis - he seems genuine, and approachable.    Overall his tenure isnt black and white - but nobodies is.  Perhaps the drafting has saved him - don't mind his signings with the exception of empty net LE, but who doesn't like that...since he traded Burrows things have gone in the right direction - a lot of work left to do with the ED looming and some important signings.  I've also questioned some of his moves and a lot of his draft picks - only to bow in later in his predilection for making a fair or right move ...    

[Rob_Zepp]

13 hours ago, 189lb enforcers? said:

Whatever, I’m not getting into a pissing contest over this. 

[oldnews]

[oldnews]

Remember that Ed Wiles article - and thread - about the Canuck rebuild lagging behind the Leafs.....?

 

Fun times.

 

 

[PhillipBlunt]

2 hours ago, oldnews said:

Didn't read it - for that very reason.

You know it's going to come wrapped in the Province's patented chickencrap, apologist drivel.  Faux SNooze.

They rarely fail to take goldfishbowl myopia to elite levels.

 

Translation:  'we've made asshats of ourselves throughout the rething, but we were right all along, of course...'magic beans', what happened to DimJimzzzz?"

 

An entire roster driving the competitiveness of the franchise.

Not one pick from this year's draft in the lineup.

One UFA signing who has been a M.A.S.H. regular, another who's lost his job to Fantenburg.

Myers was supposed to be a collosal mistake - and still, not many people creditting him for improving the blueline, let alone turning the franchise around.

Are we supposed to believe that one J.T. Miller trade is all it takes to shine an alleged franchise-sized turd?

Please.

What a crock of shizzz.  Never change Van media.  But hey, it's Willes - what do you expect?

 

Anyhow, congrats to Benning - imo he deserves to climb a few spots in those rankings, either him or Burnaby Joe.

Willes is such a stool sample. His writing is garbage, but that voice of his could drive people to death!

[Monteeun]

7 hours ago, Chris12345 said:

His scouting appears to be grade A *other than OJ haha.

 

Contacts are not great. Seemed to do well with RFAs but poorly on UFAs.

 

Communication is atrocious. And despite what people think on here is critical. They guy sounds like he's boarding on grade 6.

 

I however thoroughly enjoy his drafting even though I would have passed on 40!!!! Turns out I was wrong.

 

 

OJ is doing fine. Give your head a shake.