The 2011 connection
None of the top ten players from 1999 were playing for the Canucks during the infamous 2011 final, this means that the core from 1999 was too old to last 11 years, we went through two cores between 1999 and 2011.
We now have a new young shiny core, and even in the horrific event that it takes us 11 years to make it to the Stanley cup final, Pettersson would be 30, Horvat would be 35, Brock Boeser would be 33, Hughes would be 29. This is without my magic looking glass to see what out next core will look like.
By the numbers
The numbers (According to hockeydb.com) of the top ten scorers are very similar, and taking into consideration the potential additions/subtractions into next season the horizon is looking much brighter than that of 1999, especially with no Y2K on our calendars.
Why is this relevant?
After that season the Canucks went on to make the playoffs 12 out of the next 14 years, of course, they added key pieces such as legends Henrik and Daniel Sedin, some key pieces in Alex Burrows, Ryan Kesler, etc. Unfortunately, during that run, the drafting was not up to par.
With drafting as Benning has done with later first round picks like Boeser or undrafted free agents in Troy Stecher, we have someone in our front office who has the ability to pick us some players who can continue to add to the core if and when they do make their climb up the standings.
While History does tend to repeat itself, we also learn from our mistakes, if we can pursue the on-ice success that the Canucks had during the Gillis era to compliment the drafting success that they have had with Benning that is the recipe for success.