The Canuck Way
Fansided

Five general manager candidates for the Canucks

By Tanjot Purewal

VANCOUVER, BC - MARCH 9: Vancouver Canucks owner Francesco Aquilini (R) Vancouver Canucks listens to a question during a press conference announcing Trevor Linden as the new President Hockey Operations, April 09, 2014 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Rich Lam/Getty Images)
VANCOUVER, BC - MARCH 9: Vancouver Canucks owner Francesco Aquilini (R) Vancouver Canucks listens to a question during a press conference announcing Trevor Linden as the new President Hockey Operations, April 09, 2014 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Rich Lam/Getty Images) /
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VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – JUNE 22: (L-R) Brendan Shanahan and Laurence Gilman of the Toronto Maple Leafs attend the 2019 NHL Draft at Rogers Arena on June 22, 2019 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – JUNE 22: (L-R) Brendan Shanahan and Laurence Gilman of the Toronto Maple Leafs attend the 2019 NHL Draft at Rogers Arena on June 22, 2019 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Chris MacFarland

MacFarland is possibly the worst kept secret regarding future NHL general managers in the NHL. MacFarland has been Joe Sakic’s right-hand man for the past seven years, having a significant voice in their hockey operations department. Whenever there is an opening, MacFarland’s name jumps to the top of the list of candidates, but the Avalanche have done an incredible job in keeping him comfortable in Colorado.

It would likely take an incredible offer and the perfect situation for MacFarland to leave his cushy confines. The Canucks GM position may just be attractive enough for MacFarland to make the jump to leading his own NHL front office instead of being the number two man.

MacFarland has been the engineer behind the maneuvering of the Avalanche salary cap, something the Canucks have struggled with. The Avalanche have been one of the model franchises in the past few years, having a star-studded roster, being on the cusp of a Stanley Cup championship, and simultaneously having one of the best prospect pools in the NHL that MacFarland has had a big hand in. Along with Tulsky, you won’t find a better candidate than MacFarland.

Laurence Gilman

Laurence Gilman is a familiar name to Canucks fans; he served as the assistant general manager for the Canucks for seven seasons. Gilman currently works for the Toronto Maple Leafs and has held the assistant general manager title there for the past five seasons, and has successfully managed the Marlies to being the class of the AHL.

Gilman, who’s known for his cap management and wizardry, wrote the playbook on LTIR use to their advantage, the same playbook that the Tampa Bay Lightning used on their way to two Stanley Cups.

Gilman comes in with the advantage of being familiar with the market and knowing how the current ownership group functions. Not to mention he was part of the regime of the most successful era of Canucks hockey, which took an assembled core and refined it into a Stanley Cup contender.

If the Canucks are looking for a forward-thinking general manager with ample experience, then look no further than Gilman. According to Darren Dreger of TSN,Gilman is in the mix for the Canucks GM job.

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