Vancouver Canucks: Jim Benning wins first day of free agency

Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning hit the jackpot after adding a trio of blueliners on the first day of free agency.

The Vancouver Canucks had two key tasks this offseason — find another top six forward and make some much-needed changes to the blue line.

Mission accomplished. General manager Jim Benning acquired Tampa Bay Lightning forward J.T. Miller during day two of the NHL entry draft. Up next, Benning knew he had to add some new bodies on a blue line that has struggled big time over the last five years.

When free agency opened up on Monday, Benning wasted no time adding more pieces to a team hoping to make a playoff push in 2020. He signed Tyler Myers to a five-year deal worth $30 million, Jordie Benn to a two-year pact worth $4 million and Oscar Fantenberg to a one-year deal.

With that, Benning has three new faces on the blue line. Derrick Pouliot and Luke Schenn are gone after signing with the St. Louis Blues and Tampa Bay Lightning, respectively. Changes were necessary on defence, and Benning wasn’t afraid to make them.

Fantenberg is a simple depth signing here, as he’s played 88 games over two seasons (split with the Calgary Flames and Los Angeles Kings). There’s no risk here.

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Yes, there is reason to worry about the Myers contract. The advanced stats show how big of a liability he is at his own end of the ice. Myers plays a physical style that could wear him out well before his contract end.

It’s unlikely that Myers will fully live up to his contract, but he’ll be able to chew up key top-four minutes, and the man can produce in the special teams department.

Adding a top-four blueliner was never going to be cheap., but maybe Myers will fit in better with the Canucks after a rough ending in Winnipeg.

Benn should be quite the difference maker on Vancouver’s blue line here. He owns a career Corsi For percentage of 51.0, but it was a respectable 53.4 this season.

Benn has five seasons of 100-plus blocked shots on his resume, and he dished out a career-high 124 hits this season for the Montreal Canadiens. This is the type of play Vancouver needed on their blue line: A physical, do-it-all workhorse who plays responsibly in his own end of the ice.

Benning didn’t need to worry about adding another forward here in free agency, and it wouldn’t make sense to overpay for an ageing veteran. He added Miller and supplied the top six with another reliable scoring winger.

Now? Benning has taken care of business by adding more depth pieces and stability to the Vancouver blue line. Maybe these guys will work out, maybe not. But it was clear that changes were needed on defence. Now, the Canucks have Myers, Benn and Fantenberg joining a group that already consists of Alexander Edler, Chris Tanev, Troy Stecher and Quinn Hughes.

With that, the Canucks’ blue line looks like one of the NHL’s deepest, at least on paper. There’s a nice mix of youth and veteran talents. Some are puck-movers with offensive upside, while others are better off playing more defensively and physically in the defensive zone. Indeed, Benning and the Canucks were a major winner in free agency after addressing their biggest weakness.