Vancouver Canucks roundtable: Thoughts on the Jim Benning extension
The Vancouver Canucks gave general manager Jim Benning an extension Friday afternoon. Here are our thoughts on it.
The Vancouver Canucks caught everyone off guard by signing general manager Jim Benning to a reported contract extension Friday afternoon. Here are The Canuck Way staff’s thoughts on it. Fire up the roundtable.
David Quadrelli
I already gave my initial thoughts on the deal when it was first signed. Do I like Jim Benning as a general manager? Yes. Do I think he is deserving of a contract extension before we have seen what his new-look Canucks can accomplish? No.
To me, the timing just seems strange for this deal. I would have liked to see an extension get signed during the season after we have seen what the team he has assembled can accomplish. Make no mistake, either, this is Jim Benning’s team.
It has his mistakes, such as Brandon Sutter and Loui Eriksson on it, and it has his home runs, such as Elias Pettersson, Quinn Hughes, and Brock Boeser on it as well. I like Benning, I just think the timing is a tad strange for the extension.
Alex Hoegler
I’m surprised at how much backlash the Canucks are getting for this. Benning has made his mistakes, but so has every other general manager. To me, the good outweighs the bad.
More from The Canuck Way
- Which team won the Bo Horvat trade?
- What to expect from newcomers Anthony Beauvillier, Aatu Räty
- Back to the future: How the skate uniforms became a regular Canucks’ feature night
- Canucks kick off 2023 with disappointing 6-2 loss to Islanders
- 2nd period penalty trouble sinks Canucks in 4-2 loss against Winnipeg
Benning hasn’t had any horrible trades or drafts that sunk this franchise. Even if you don’t like the Sutter and Eriksson contracts, it’s only money. It’s not as though he traded away future superstars for fading veterans.
It’s taken a while, but Benning has built a Vancouver team that’s in prime position to contend for Stanley Cups over the next decade. Rebuilds take time, and I can’t credit ownership enough for sticking by Benning.
They like his vision, and no matter how you feel about Benning, you can’t say he’s failed to build up the next great core here on the west coast. You’ll be thanking him soon for the job he’s done.
Trevor Taylor
The timing of the extension is odd. No doubt that Benning made better moves this offseason than previous years but the team hasn’t played a game yet. What if the new additions have terrible chemistry and the seasons a complete bust?
The Canucks miss the playoffs 5 years in a row and the same guy is managing the organization. How this man managed to get an extension after four losing seasons is ridiculous. Benning should have gotten an extension if the Canucks make the playoffs this year. No playoffs, no extension.
Rick Warman
I am very pleased with the contract extension of general manager Jim Benning by the Vancouver Canucks. Although not all of his moves have worked out, the team has never had the prospect cupboard as full as it is now. The Canucks were recently ranked by EP Rinkside.com as having the #4 ranked prospect pool.
Whereas, from the 38 players who attended the Canucks 2013 Prospects Summer Development Camp, one year before Benning’s arrival, Bo Horvat is the only one still with the organization. The club is now trending in the right direction and by extending Benning, I feel it adds the necessary stability to continue that journey.
Brayden Ursel
I, myself am a big supporter of Jim Benning. He was brought in for his ability to scout and draft quality players. In just five seasons he’s assembled a core consisting of Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser, Quinn Hughes and Thatcher Demko.
Benning has also drafted a top-tier supporting cast of young players including Jake Virtanen, Adam Gaudette, Olli Juolevi and Vasily Podkolzin. Although Benning has had a couple of bad signings in the past like Loui Eriksson and Brandon Sutter, he’s also got some good value extensions in Bo Horvat, Alex Edler and Troy Stecher.
Finally, Benning had an A+ off-season in my books landing two twenty goal scorers in Micheal Ferland and J.T. Miller as well as landing big boy Tyler Myers and gritty local Jordie Benn on the back end. Benning hands down earned himself a contract extension with the Vancouver Canucks. He has a clear vision, best the team keeps it that way.
Joshua Rey
First of all, I find the timing of this extension quite odd because I was thinking Francesco Aquilini would see how the upcoming season played out before making a decision on Benning. I am particularly not a fan of this move.
Sure, Jim Benning’s drafting has been great and he has given the Canucks nice young talent in Pettersson, Boeser and Hughes. However, it is the other things that I don’t like. Benning has made some questionable trades and free-agent signings. He hasn’t committed to a rebuild or had any sense of direction.
Some of his moves have set the team back and they would be in a better spot if Benning had just stuck to the rebuild. Benning’s time in Vancouver hasn’t been horrible but it hasn’t been great either. Who knows, maybe his moves will finally pay off and the Canucks will be back in the playoffs next year.
Matthew Zator
I honestly do not have any issues with the extension of Jim Benning. The rumoured three-year term is a little long, but it does create stability. The worst thing would have been having a lame-duck GM during the season.
Despite a few bad signings and trades, Benning has done a good job of restocking the prospect cupboard. He has also made some significant improvements to the roster this past offseason. In my opinion, he deserves some time to see this rebuild come to fruition.
Jacob Calvert
The Canucks have arguably the most exciting young core in franchise history and that comes during the reign of current GM Jim Benning. There are many other intangibles that make up the creation of this new core, Benning should not receive all nor most of the credit.
The role of a general manager is one that requires fast action, and Jim Benning has made the decision that he thinks this group is ready to win in the near future without holding out for anymore losing seasons. If Jim Benning had done anything to damage the window for this group after making that J.T Miller deal I don’t think that this would have been the right decision.
But Jim Benning has stayed the course and as long as we have a general manager who has his eye focused on what he wants for the club I think this is a good move. As long as Jim Benning keeps making smart moves to surround this amazing core with the correct supporting cast, I think his job is safe. But don’t mortgage the entire future to do it!
Sean Warren
I am personally indifferent to Jim Benning’s extension because it doesn’t represent any change and eliminates what would’ve been a great distraction throughout the season. Benning has had a heavily scrutinized tenure thus far yet there’s no one that isn’t happy with the overall direction of the organization despite several hiccups and growing pains along the way.
I don’t feel that this changes much of anything for the Benning era Canucks that need to make the playoffs this season in order to be deemed a success. If they fall short, the seat will still get very hot under Jim Benning, with or without this new extension.
There are some of The Canuck Way staff’s thoughts on the Benning extension. Let us know how you feel about the extension in the comments section below!