Rutherford Interview on July 27

[VanCan2023]

8 minutes ago, Jaimito said:

JB was "living day to day", trying to put out fires as they come up daily. 

LOL his "We ran out of time" will go down as one of the best/worst Canucks quotes ever. He'll never be beside Quinn on the ring of honour, but the crazy bastard did a few good things somehow. Kinda like Trump. You know 100% he is not the man for the job, however a little inside you wants him to stay for entertainment value. 

[ilduce39]

29 minutes ago, JamesB said:

 

 

Can't resist re-entering the arguments over Benning. Here are some additional points.

 

1. There a few really high-end teams (especially Colorado and Tampa) and a few really bad ones. But, aside from that there is a high level of parity.  This is what we expect given the way the draft and the cap work. A team that does badly enough to acquire a bunch of high draft picks (as the Canucks did) and spends to cap (as the Canucks do) and mortgages the future (as Benning did) normally can't help but be at least decent in the short run

 

2. But at the start of this year, Benning managed to put a team on the ice that was a long way short of the standard of being decent. That is after 7 years of supposedly re-tooling, re-setting, rebuilding or whatever. 

 

3. The aggregate 8 year performance of Benning was historically bad. I once did some calculations showing precisely that point. If you compare performance relative to salary expenditure, the 8 Benning years were among the worst of the cap era for any GM. It was certainly one of the worst in the NHL over the last 8 years (especially if you drop out the first Benning year when the team was mostly the holdover Gillis team). And at the end of it, the Canucks still had a very weak prospect pool and not even a full set of draft picks for the 2022 draft. 

 

4. Still, because of the league's natural parity, a few smart moves can move a team a long way and that is what happened. I think the moves made so far are big enough to make a significant difference. I like the Mikhayev, Lazar, Joshua, and Kuzmenko signings a lot. Those guys provide value that is under-priced in the market and were therefore smart moves. I also like the switch from Hamonic to Dermott -- a small move but helpful.  

 

5. JR is not focused on next year. He is trying to build a genuine Cup contender two or three years down the road. The Benning trajectory had no chance of developing a Cup contender. It was all about trying to "win now", hope to scrape into the playoffs and then "anything can happen". But that strategy doesn't work in today's NHL.  Benning was basically "all in" for last year. JR is trying to build for the future.

 

6. JR is following an established concept "First, do no harm" or "Don't do stupid sh**". He has not done a lot yet but he has a plan to build a Cup contender. You can't do that in one summer, especially if make mistakes due to impatience (as Benning did consistently).

 

7. Personally, I would have hoped for a Miller trade by now with good young players (or picks) coming in. But, as he has won three Cups, I am willing to assume that JR knows what he is doing. It is certainly too early to be critical. 

 

8.  I see a world of difference between Benning and JR, especially in intelligence as well as track record, but also in general approach. JR has not had time to make a lot of changes, but he has made enough to likely result in a significantly better performance next year relative to the final months of the Benning regime or the previous year. But the real test is two to four years down the road. 

Benning made a large amount of small / medium sized mistakes whose long term consequence is a lack of cap flexibility and a more depleted prospect pool than we should have considering the lack of playoff appearances. 
 

On the other hand, he had some of the biggest wins in franchise history.  Petey, Hughes and Demko could very realistically end their careers as the 3 best players drafted at their respective positions by the Canucks.  I’d say Hughes is pretty much already there. Boeser might be a top 5 winger but top 10 easily.  That’s ridiculous considering he never won a draft lottery. 
 

Miller is #7 all time points in a single season - 13 off the top.  A few behind a bunch of guys who have their jerseys retired and AlMo.  It wasn’t the fleecing of landing Naslund or the theatre of getting both twins but just an enormous win. 
 

To tie it back to the thread, that’s why Rutherford seems content to just sit back, add to the prospect pool and address secondary concerns around right handed C / pk specialists. It’s not a contender but it’s not a bad team.  The lack of cap space and prospect depth means there isn’t a lot of margin for error, but get it right and we could very well be contending in the 2-3 years I’ve heard thrown around.
 

 

[Jaimito]

 

10:17 mark. We live day to day. 

Edited July 29, 2022 by Jaimito

[MrCanuck94]

7 hours ago, Provost said:

With how many decent players seem to be available just for cap space and how that is paralyzing the trade market... I am starting to think I wouldn't actually be at all opposed to trading a 2nd or 3rd round pick if it cleared enough cap space to then make another move.  If the price to move that cap space is a 1st, I don't do it... but if you can make a decent upgrade to the roster for a pick that is only a 25-30% chance of being an NHL regular, then it could easily be worth that.

A team with $5+ million in cap space right now and with actual dollars to spend would really be in the driver's seat for making some Erhoff level deals.  We likely missed the boat at the TDL for a move like this, as the prices for clearing cap are probably just too high right now. 

Fair point, but that's the difference between last regime and this regime.

 

This regime is focused on competing in 2-3 years, which means we need some good ELCs to put us over the top.

 

We need all the picks and prospects we can get to ensure our best shot at that.

 

Previous regime didn't leave us that opportunity to spend assets otherwise.

 

Like JR mentioned, he's not opposed to using assets to move cap, he did it with Fleury. But we're not in a position to do that right now.

[Coconuts]

51 minutes ago, Provost said:

I was a little on the fence at the actual deadline.  I still wanted to move players,  I also understood how badly that would be received by the room in the middle of their run.  No idea what the long term consequences of that could be, ripping away a season from what is a very short career or most players… it could have made re-signing players much harder.

 

That is why I was beating the drum for trades as soon as JR took over when the playoff odds were around 2%.  If he could have moved just a couple guys it would have cleared the deck a little for his GM hire to have some more options.

 

Marino and Bjorkstrand are solid players that fit into the top half of your roster and they were basically traded for cap space.

We were very much on the same page regarding trades, the lack of movement smarts a bit now. I'd have loved to have gotten Bjorkstrand for nothing. Marino too, though the cost was higher.

 

41 minutes ago, JamesB said:

 

 

Can't resist re-entering the arguments over Benning. Here are some additional points.

 

1. There a few really high-end teams (especially Colorado and Tampa) and a few really bad ones. But, aside from that there is a high level of parity.  This is what we expect given the way the draft and the cap work. A team that does badly enough to acquire a bunch of high draft picks (as the Canucks did) and spends to cap (as the Canucks do) and mortgages the future (as Benning did) normally can't help but be at least decent in the short run

 

2. But at the start of this year, Benning managed to put a team on the ice that was a long way short of the standard of being decent. That is after 7 years of supposedly re-tooling, re-setting, rebuilding or whatever. 

 

3. The aggregate 8 year performance of Benning was historically bad. I once did some calculations showing precisely that point. If you compare performance relative to salary expenditure, the 8 Benning years were among the worst of the cap era for any GM. It was certainly one of the worst in the NHL over the last 8 years (especially if you drop out the first Benning year when the team was mostly the holdover Gillis team). And at the end of it, the Canucks still had a very weak prospect pool and not even a full set of draft picks for the 2022 draft. 

 

4. Still, because of the league's natural parity, a few smart moves can move a team a long way and that is what happened. I think the moves made so far are big enough to make a significant difference. I like the Mikhayev, Lazar, Joshua, and Kuzmenko signings a lot. Those guys provide value that is under-priced in the market and were therefore smart moves. I also like the switch from Hamonic to Dermott -- a small move but helpful.  

 

5. JR is not focused on next year. He is trying to build a genuine Cup contender two or three years down the road. The Benning trajectory had no chance of developing a Cup contender. It was all about trying to "win now", hope to scrape into the playoffs and then "anything can happen". But that strategy doesn't work in today's NHL.  Benning was basically "all in" for last year. JR is trying to build for the future.

 

6. JR is following an established concept "First, do no harm" or "Don't do stupid sh**". He has not done a lot yet but he has a plan to build a Cup contender. You can't do that in one summer, especially if make mistakes due to impatience (as Benning did consistently).

 

7. Personally, I would have hoped for a Miller trade by now with good young players (or picks) coming in. But, as he has won three Cups, I am willing to assume that JR knows what he is doing. It is certainly too early to be critical. 

 

8.  I see a world of difference between Benning and JR, especially in intelligence as well as track record, but also in general approach. JR has not had time to make a lot of changes, but he has made enough to likely result in a significantly better performance next year relative to the final months of the Benning regime or the previous year. But the real test is two to four years down the road. 

I'm not arguing that Benning did a great job, simply stating that what we have in terms of a roster is still very much Benning's team. It'll take JR and Al a while to turn things over, it's just funny how attitudes have shifted so quickly regarding the same group.

 

Things were never going to overhauled in a single offseason, and while it's too early to be critical skepticism is still warranted. Aside from a few signings, overhauling areas of the organization, and a single draft we don't actually have a ton to go off yet. Lot of lip service and a lot of work yet to do.

 

Still hoping for that Miller trade, it's overdue imo. We'll see. Should have been done at the deadline, we'd be able to grab quality players via trade or free agency because of available cap space. I'd have moved him during that run, we were always a long shot.

[Guest]

2 hours ago, billabong said:

there are two things the new canucks management is finding out the hard way as well us canucks fans

 

1) the market value for wingers has just evaporated and what is the one asset the canucks have a surplus in? wingers  (side bar I am getting the sense the league views miller as a winger first, center second)

 

2) no one wants our players. In order to make the trade for the pieces we all dream of, another team has to REALLY want a miller, garland or Myers but everyone is kinda meh about what we are selling thus the offers have obviously been underwhelming 

 

look at Tkachuk for example. Florida altered the direction of their franchise to go after him and moved heaven and earth to achieve that goal

By my count, there are:

17 teams (including us) desperate to move out money 

10 teams that don't have extra space to take on any money 

5 teams that are able to take on cap  

 

I would imagine that the ask is astronomical in terms of value when it comes to shedding cap.  So yeah wingers have always taken the biggest hit in terms of their draft position and trade value, however I don't think that it's anything too serious other then just the third year of the flat cap that's starting to really bog everyone down.  

[Guest]

7 minutes ago, Jaimito said:

10:17 mark. We live day to day. 

No one ever accused Benning of being a good PR person.  I personally couldn't care less about that aspect of the GM job.  

 

People that cling onto those comments that he made (as well as "we ran out of time") remind me of playground insults.  

 

I have no idea why we're talking about Benning again here.  It was a great interview with JR and there's tons of points to discuss.  

[Dr. Crossbar]

14 minutes ago, VancouverHabitant said:

 

5 teams that are able to take on cap  

 

Those 5 teams are fielding daily calls from all the other teams like ...

 

[VanCan2023]

9 minutes ago, Coconuts said:

We were very much on the same page regarding trades, the lack of movement smarts a bit now. I'd have loved to have gotten Bjorkstrand for nothing. Marino too, though the cost was higher.

 

I'm not arguing that Benning did a great job, simply stating that what we have in terms of a roster is still very much Benning's team. It'll take JR and Al a while to turn things over, it's just funny how attitudes have shifted so quickly regarding the same group.

 

Things were never going to overhauled in a single offseason, and while it's too early to be critical skepticism is still warranted. Aside from a few signings, overhauling areas of the organization, and a single draft we don't actually have a ton to go off yet. Lot of lip service and a lot of work yet to do.

 

Still hoping for that Miller trade, it's overdue imo. We'll see. Should have been done at the deadline, we'd be able to grab quality players via trade or free agency because of available cap space. I'd have moved him during that run, we were always a long shot.

Odds are IF Miller is moved it will not be till the deadline next year. Lets just say by then we are 2-4 pt in a playoff spot, or 2-4 pts out. We trade Miller for what will likely be beneficial assets a few years later and likely another year of this... Crappy for team chemistry, moral, the fans, the city/prov, etc, etc. This one move can and may be the biggest move we've ever seen. Thats is why it is taking so long.  

[Coconuts]

3 minutes ago, VanCan2023 said:

Odds are IF Miller is moved it will not be till the deadline next year. Lets just say by then we are 2-4 pt in a playoff spot, or 2-4 pts out. We trade Miller for what will likely be beneficial assets a few years later and likely another year of this... Crappy for team chemistry, moral, the fans, the city/prov, etc, etc. This one move can and may be the biggest move we've ever seen. Thats is why it is taking so long.  

I don't think we're going to see the massive return that people are hoping for, which isn't to say it won't be a good return. I question whether a return closer to the deadline would really be all that much larger than what we could get this summer. 

 

I'd rather just have it done before training camp so everyone involved can move on, we'll see. 

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, VanCan2023 said:

Odds are IF Miller is moved it will not be till the deadline next year. Lets just say by then we are 2-4 pt in a playoff spot, or 2-4 pts out. We trade Miller for what will likely be beneficial assets a few years later and likely another year of this... Crappy for team chemistry, moral, the fans, the city/prov, etc, etc. This one move can and may be the biggest move we've ever seen. Thats is why it is taking so long.  

I mentioned this elsewhere, but wouldn't it make the most sense for Canucks and JT Miller to sign a one year extension and kick the can down the road?  

 

Rutherford described what we're all seeing anyways, a barren wasteland when it comes to free agents getting big deals.  

I can totally see JT Miller being willing to bet on himself, do a one year extension and then cash in more when every team gets an extra 4-5 million of cap space in two years. 

[MrCanuck94]

6 hours ago, Dazzle said:

We really need to re-examine the criticism of Benning.

 

For a GM that has been oddly praised by this fanbase as refreshing, JR/Allvin sure didn't do much (if at all) to improve the deficient roster.

 

Aside from a large staff shuffle and the signing of two free agents, neither of which I oppose, Allvin/JR sure hasn't addressed the defense. Remember how people criticized the defense being not good enough, now we suddenly see JR assessing that this defense is good enough. Poolman is a good solid defenseman, according to JR. In short, the defense is not the issue.

 

So what's wrong with Benning's roster? They say that Benning cornered himself with trades, even though the flat cap was also a factor in him being handcuffed. Suddenly JR is saying that the cap is preventing GMs such as himself from doing anything.

 

But wait, he could've traded Miller, could he have not? This not only would've freed cap space, but also allowed the team to improve the depth. Instead, we're basically getting a retooled version of last year's team which started out pretty bad under Green, but improved significantly when Boudreau was in.

 

So this begs the question - was Benning's assembled roster really as poor as this fanbase claims? JR certainly doesn't think it's crap because he didn't address much of the supposed weaknesses of this roster.

 

Secondly, is Allvin/JR really that much different than Benning from before?

 

There is an unacknowledged hypocrisy about criticizing last season's roster, but there's a muted response given the lack of changes. If defense was such a priority, they wouldn't have signed two Russian free agents, no?

 

Remember how the past GM was criticized for being too tight on the cap? JR/Allvin is doing nothing to relieve that. Something's gotta give with this roster and we are probably going to get a diminished return in exchange for cap space, if there's even such a thing as a return in this situation.

A lot of this is mistaking patience with ability.

 

JR and PA haven't done much because our hands are tied with the cap like they mentioned many times. JB created his own problems by signing bad contracts and making trades that didn't make sense to the team's timeline and diminishing our asset values. JR & PA are having difficulties fixing the issues that were put on them. That should show how bad our previous regime was at handling things. 

 

He didn't say the defence isn't an issue, that is the biggest issue according to our management, and that thought process has been consistent since day 1, especially to fix the right side. JR literally said in this interview that there weren't any quick fixes in FA so we will have to go the trade route. He said that, if Rathbone takes a step, with the improvement of our forward group and if Martin can handle the back up role close to the short sample size from last season, then we should be able to make playoffs. Not win as in we're ready to compete for the cup. The way he said the Poolman quote, I don't think he really called him a top 4 guy, but said he could play top 4 for us (which shouldn't be hard with our lack of depth lol).

 

JR said again in that podcast, we'll either sign Miller if he goes down on his ask or trade him before the next TDL, nothing has changed and we're not keeping him and losing him for free next offseason just to compete for a playoff spot.

 

Like I mentioned above, we can't make poor trades or trade assets to dump salary because we have a vision to compete in 2-3 years, and to do that, we need all the ELCs we can get on the roster to push us over the top. We have no capital to waste on staying competitive now.

 

Let's not sugarcoat the previous regime, it took 8 years and we still didn't have a team that could make the playoffs. We had no strategy, we had no direction, communication levels were poor, ex-Canuck players were pissed to the point life long Canucks were leaving the organization, our asset levels sucks, morale within the organization was low, and the Michael Buble interview about the players and previous regime was the cherry on top of it all.

 

We may have not done a lot on the player movement side, but it is night and day with this regime. All the facility upgrades, players are choosing to play here instead of other attractive markets, we have quality staff that literally chose this organization because of JR, communication levels within the organization and with media/fans is phenomenal, and the list goes on.

 

Let's have some patience, there's still a lot of off season left and I sure have great faith in this management group to get us to the next level.

Edited July 29, 2022 by MrCanuck94

[Coconuts]

Just now, VancouverHabitant said:

I mentioned this elsewhere, but wouldn't it make the most sense for Canucks and JT Miller to sign a one year extension and kick the can down the road?  

 

Rutherford described what we're all seeing anyways, a barren wasteland when it comes to free agents getting big deals.  

I can totally see JT Miller being willing to bet on himself, do a one year extension and then cash in more when every team gets an extra 4-5 million of cap space in two years. 

I just don't see it, particularly when there are likely clubs he's willing to extend with long-term. Why take that risk when you can cash in? It'd require getting a list of teams he'd be willing to extend with and talking to those teams, Calgary got the Tkachuk deal done in like a week. 

[Jaimito]

8 minutes ago, MrCanuck94 said:

A lot of this is mistaking patience with ability.

 

JR and PA haven't done much because our hands are tied with the cap like they mentioned many times. JB created his own problems by signing bad contracts and making trades that didn't make sense to the team's timeline and diminishing our asset values. JR & PA are having difficulties fixing the issues that were put on them. That should show how bad our previous regime was at handling things. 

 

He didn't say the defence isn't an issue, that is the biggest issue according to our management, and that thought process has been consistent since day 1, especially to fix the right side. He said that, if Rathbone takes a step, with the improvement of our forward group and if Martin can handle the back up role close to the short sample size from last season, then we should be able to make playoffs. The way he said the Poolman quote, I don't think he really called him a top 4 guy, but said he could play top 4 for us (which shouldn't be hard with our lack of depth lol).

 

JR said again in that podcast, we'll either sign Miller if he goes down on his ask or trade him before the next TDL, nothing has changed and we're not keeping him and losing him for free next offseason just to compete for a playoff spot.

 

Like I mentioned above, we can't make poor trades or trade assets to dump salary because we have a vision to compete in 2-3 years, and to do that, we need all the ELCs we can get on the roster to push us over the top. We have no capital to waste on staying competitive now.

 

Let's not sugarcoat the previous regime, it took 8 years and we still didn't have a team that could make the playoffs. We had no strategy, we had no direction, communication levels were poor, ex-Canuck players were pissed to the point life long Canucks were leaving the organization, our asset levels sucks, morale within the organization was low, and the Michael Buble interview about the players and previous regime was the cherry on top of it all.

 

We may have not done a lot on the player movement side, but it is night and day with this regime. All the facility upgrades, players are choosing to play here instead of other attractive markets, we have quality staff that literally chose this organization because of JR, communication levels within the organization and with media/fans is phenomenal, and the list goes on.

 

Let's have some patience, there's still a lot of off season left and I sure have great faith in this management group to get us to the next level.

Forgot about the Buble interview. I had to listen to it again. 

 

 

 

[VanCan2023]

5 minutes ago, Coconuts said:

I just don't see it, particularly when there are likely clubs he's willing to extend with long-term. Why take that risk when you can cash in? It'd require getting a list of teams he'd be willing to extend with and talking to those teams, Calgary got the Tkachuk deal done in like a week. 

Both Calgary and Panthers were desperate. Flames for obvious reasons, and Florida because they got humiliated by there provincial rivals in 4 games. Fla Management had to make a move just as quick as Calgary. Hollywood couldn't have wrote a better scenario. Unfortunately for the Van team, and the Miller team neither will hit a jackpot and ultimately both saying this was the worst year for this. 

[VanCan2023]

1 minute ago, VanCan2023 said:

Both Calgary and Panthers were desperate. Flames for obvious reasons, and Florida because they got humiliated by there provincial rivals in 4 games. Fla Management had to make a move just as quick as Calgary. Hollywood couldn't have wrote a better scenario. Unfortunately for the Van team, and the Miller team neither will hit a jackpot and ultimately both saying this was the worst year for this. 

*State rivals. 

[DeltaSwede]

Something that's been on my mind for quite some time now, is why we aren't testing Hughes on the right side. He's played there in the past, he's comfortable with it and has come out and said that he wouldn't mind playing on the right. 

 

There was some speculation that the Canucks want to move OEL over to the right but that doesn't make near as much sense as Hughes. 

 

OEL - Hughes

Dermott - Myers

Rathbone - Schenn

 

That doesn't look half bad to me. 

[iinatcc]

29 minutes ago, DeltaSwede said:

Something that's been on my mind for quite some time now, is why we aren't testing Hughes on the right side. He's played there in the past, he's comfortable with it and has come out and said that he wouldn't mind playing on the right. 

 

There was some speculation that the Canucks want to move OEL over to the right but that doesn't make near as much sense as Hughes. 

 

OEL - Hughes

Dermott - Myers

Rathbone - Schenn

 

That doesn't look half bad to me. 

Looks not good unless Rathbone takes a huge step forward. Which is too much to expect for him at this point in his career.

 

As for Hughes ... he's your best D-man so you want to put him in the position where his use is most optimal. So if that means playing him in the left side then that is where he should play.

 

 

Edited July 29, 2022 by iinatcc

[StanleyCupOneDay]

1 hour ago, MrCanuck94 said:

A lot of this is mistaking patience with ability.

 

JR and PA haven't done much because our hands are tied with the cap like they mentioned many times. JB created his own problems by signing bad contracts and making trades that didn't make sense to the team's timeline and diminishing our asset values. JR & PA are having difficulties fixing the issues that were put on them. That should show how bad our previous regime was at handling things. 

 

He didn't say the defence isn't an issue, that is the biggest issue according to our management, and that thought process has been consistent since day 1, especially to fix the right side. JR literally said in this interview that there weren't any quick fixes in FA so we will have to go the trade route. He said that, if Rathbone takes a step, with the improvement of our forward group and if Martin can handle the back up role close to the short sample size from last season, then we should be able to make playoffs. Not win as in we're ready to compete for the cup. The way he said the Poolman quote, I don't think he really called him a top 4 guy, but said he could play top 4 for us (which shouldn't be hard with our lack of depth lol).

 

JR said again in that podcast, we'll either sign Miller if he goes down on his ask or trade him before the next TDL, nothing has changed and we're not keeping him and losing him for free next offseason just to compete for a playoff spot.

 

Like I mentioned above, we can't make poor trades or trade assets to dump salary because we have a vision to compete in 2-3 years, and to do that, we need all the ELCs we can get on the roster to push us over the top. We have no capital to waste on staying competitive now.

 

Let's not sugarcoat the previous regime, it took 8 years and we still didn't have a team that could make the playoffs. We had no strategy, we had no direction, communication levels were poor, ex-Canuck players were pissed to the point life long Canucks were leaving the organization, our asset levels sucks, morale within the organization was low, and the Michael Buble interview about the players and previous regime was the cherry on top of it all.

 

We may have not done a lot on the player movement side, but it is night and day with this regime. All the facility upgrades, players are choosing to play here instead of other attractive markets, we have quality staff that literally chose this organization because of JR, communication levels within the organization and with media/fans is phenomenal, and the list goes on.

 

Let's have some patience, there's still a lot of off season left and I sure have great faith in this management group to get us to the next level.

I’ve had enough. @JamesB This is to you too and any other member of this club.
 

That is blatantly false. If Boudreau started last year we would have made the playoffs and likely had won a round or two. Then this board would be ecstatic over just how far Benning had got us. Obviously of course that mistake is and was on Benning for his loyalty to a guy obviously in way over his head. Wow a non-hater criticizing Benning, shocking I know (even though we do it often). I get that this forum seems to get a hard on in bashing Benning as a terrible GM in every single thread ad nauseam, but making up lies isn’t necessary to highlight his errors.
 

Has anyone who hates Benning actually read a post from those who don’t? Or do you just make up what others say in your head? Not one person says he was the perfect GM, not one. No one says he was a great GM either. The only time anyone ever talks about Benning in a positive way is at best a “he’s made mistakes, but he’s made some good moves too”. Yet the circle jerk brigade gets their knickers in a twist when anyone says anything positive and always has to chime in to argue that he’s actually the worst. Talk about letting a guy live rent free in your mind.
 

Not giving credit for Hughes, Petey, Demko and Podkolzin or for building the team that had one of the best NHL records after removing the clueless coach while criticizing every mistake he’s made (there’s quite a few to choose from, no doubt) is pure biased bs. Either everything done during a GM’s tenure is on the GM both good and bad or you have an agenda to drive. It’s that simple.
 

You may not like “sugar coating” or actually being realistic and objective about Benning’s performance here, but $&!# coating everything isn’t all that accurate either.

Edited July 29, 2022 by StanleyCupOneDay

[Dazzle]

3 hours ago, MrCanuck94 said:

A lot of this is mistaking patience with ability.

 

JR and PA haven't done much because our hands are tied with the cap like they mentioned many times. JB created his own problems by signing bad contracts and making trades that didn't make sense to the team's timeline and diminishing our asset values. JR & PA are having difficulties fixing the issues that were put on them. That should show how bad our previous regime was at handling things. 

 

He didn't say the defence isn't an issue, that is the biggest issue according to our management, and that thought process has been consistent since day 1, especially to fix the right side. JR literally said in this interview that there weren't any quick fixes in FA so we will have to go the trade route. He said that, if Rathbone takes a step, with the improvement of our forward group and if Martin can handle the back up role close to the short sample size from last season, then we should be able to make playoffs. Not win as in we're ready to compete for the cup. The way he said the Poolman quote, I don't think he really called him a top 4 guy, but said he could play top 4 for us (which shouldn't be hard with our lack of depth lol).

 

JR said again in that podcast, we'll either sign Miller if he goes down on his ask or trade him before the next TDL, nothing has changed and we're not keeping him and losing him for free next offseason just to compete for a playoff spot.

 

Like I mentioned above, we can't make poor trades or trade assets to dump salary because we have a vision to compete in 2-3 years, and to do that, we need all the ELCs we can get on the roster to push us over the top. We have no capital to waste on staying competitive now.

 

Let's not sugarcoat the previous regime, it took 8 years and we still didn't have a team that could make the playoffs. We had no strategy, we had no direction, communication levels were poor, ex-Canuck players were pissed to the point life long Canucks were leaving the organization, our asset levels sucks, morale within the organization was low, and the Michael Buble interview about the players and previous regime was the cherry on top of it all.

 

We may have not done a lot on the player movement side, but it is night and day with this regime. All the facility upgrades, players are choosing to play here instead of other attractive markets, we have quality staff that literally chose this organization because of JR, communication levels within the organization and with media/fans is phenomenal, and the list goes on.

 

Let's have some patience, there's still a lot of off season left and I sure have great faith in this management group to get us to the next level.

This is such a silly excuse. EVERYONE has been tied to the cap. What did JR/Allvin do with the cap that they did have? They signed a free agent. It's not a horrible signing and I do think it'll be one to watch for next season in a good way.

 

That being said... we keep saying that there's a vision to compete in 2-3 years. Guess what? Benning's rosters were under the exact same assumption. All this talk about Benning not assembling good rosters, etc, apparently has been validated by JR, one that has been praised way too quickly by this fanbase, despite doing zilch to the roster.

 

I'm not sugarcoating the previous regime. I'm saying it's hypocritical to say JR/Allvin are so amazing because they have done so little to the EXACT SAME ROSTER that has been deemed problematic by the fanbase when Benning was still around.

 

You say people are choosing to play here under JR, but we had people CHOOSING to play in Vancouver under Benning too (i.e. OEL, quite literally the best example considering he ONLY waived his NTC for Vancouver or Boston). Therefore, this narrative that JR is making hockey enjoyable in Vancouver is just a confirmation bias.

 

How exactly is it "night and day"? The only difference was cleaning out the staff. There's been no movement with regards to trades, and EVEN JR has acknowledged the defense was good enough as it is. 

 

Huh? I thought the narrative was that the defensive core was poorly constructed when Benning was around? Keep in mind, NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE so far to change the roster from last season. Are we now making excuses just because we want to praise the new GM?