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Vancouver Canucks: Top 5 Questionable Moves by Jim Benning

By Alex Hoegler

Jun 27, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning announces Jake Virtanen (not pictured) as the number six overall pick to the Vancouver Canucks in the first round of the 2014 NHL Draft at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 27, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning announces Jake Virtanen (not pictured) as the number six overall pick to the Vancouver Canucks in the first round of the 2014 NHL Draft at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Vancouver Canucks are struggling in every aspect this season, and part of it is because of missed opportunities from the front office.

A month into the season, and things haven’t gone according to plan for the Vancouver Canucks.

The team cannot score, the defence isn’t much more reliable than it was last season and the goaltending situation remains mediocre at best. This isn’t what GM Jim Benning and co. had in mind when they signed winger Loui Eriksson and traded for defenceman Erik Gudbranson. But right now, the Canucks are showing they could be worse than last season’s forgettable campaign.

The Canucks’ refusal to tear it all down and restart has come to hurt them. They’ve shown that rebuilding on the fly isn’t possible. You can’t get younger and stock up on prospects when you keep signing or trading for guys on the wrong side of 30.

The Detroit Red Wings have also tried the same model. Sure, they’ve found ways to keep their playoff streak in tact, but this team isn’t anywhere close to contention. Ken Holland traded away far too many first-round picks, and you can’t rely on finding late-round gems each season.

Until the Canucks finally commit to a full-on rebuild, there’s not much of a reason to think they’ll make noise in the playoffs.

Here are the five most questionable moves by Benning that left us wondering “why”?

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