Canucks Trade Rumors: F Jannik Hansen Submits 8-Team Trade List to GM Jim Benning

Vancouver Canucks GM Jim Benning may be preparing to make a splash at trade deadline, as he has received an approved trade list from Jannik Hansen.

Canucks management may be learning from past trade deadline mistakes.

Last season, general manager Jim Benning had two trade assets: Dan Hamhuis and Radim Vrbata. Trading either of them, particularly Vrbata, made all the sense in the world. But the trade deadline came and went, and neither was traded.

But this year might prove different. It looks like the Canucks’ GM is preparing to explore trade possibilities. Jannik Hansen, who is one of this year’s potential trade chips, has been asked to submit a list of teams he is willing to be traded to:

Now, getting a trade list from Hansen is no guarantee that he’ll be traded. However, for those who want the team to trade away some veteran players for younger assets, this is still a good sign.

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Earlier in the season, Benning stated outright that he wouldn’t ask players to waive their no-trade clauses, and would only trade those players if they came to him and requested it. But then, just this month, he seemed to change his mind — sort of — and say “we’ll look at where were at.”

Elliotte Friedman theorized that the GM is keeping his plans vague to keep the media at bay. If that’s true, it certainly make sense. In this market, every sentence that Benning utters is scrutinzed by fans and pundits. Not to mention, he was also fined by the NHL last year for answering a question about his trade deadline plans.

There’s plenty of reason for the GM to keep any trade plans to himself.

Getting Ready Ahead of Time

It’s not clear from Sekeres’ tweet whether Benning asked for the trade list, or Hansen gave it voluntarily (although it sounds like it was probably the former). But the trade deadline is on Mar. 1, giving the general manager a full week to explore trades.

That’s six days more than he gave himself last year. Vrbata was not asked for a trade list until Feb. 28, the day before the deadline. By then, it was too late to make anything happen.

Ryan Miller, by the way, submitted his own trade list before the season started, according to Pierre LeBrun. It consists of five teams, including the three California clubs. Miller has been linked to to both the Los Angeles Kings and the Anaheim Ducks in trade speculation.

All of this leads Darren Dreger to believe that the Canucks “are in position to get some business done over the next week.”

Next: Best Trade Fits for Hansen, Burrows, Miller

After standing pat at last year’s deadline, it looks like Jim Benning may be preparing to make a splash. That means Vancouver Canucks fan favorite Hansen could be on the move in the near future.