The 5 best and 5 worst moves of Jim Benning’s tenure as Canucks GM
No. 4 Best: Canucks sign Radim Vrbata
Everyone knew the Sedin era was starting to wind down when Benning took over, but there was still enough in the tank to salvage. Radim Vrbata came in on a two-year deal and promptly made the All-Star game and posted a career-high 63 points.
He regressed the following year and then Benning of course failed to trade him, but for a year, Vrbata was a bargain and worked wonders with the Twins.
No. 4 Worst: Canucks acquire Erik Gudbranson and a fifth for Jared McCann, a second and a fourth
The reason this is not higher is because there were a lot of bad moves and because there was some understanding to this idea. The Canucks wanted to get tougher on the back end, and Erik Gudbranson was certainly going to be that.
That was all Gudbranson was though. He was well-known for being poor defensively and providing zero offense. Those qualities were evident during his entire tenure, as in 139 games he totaled 19 points and was a -48.
What makes all of this worse is the massive contract Benning gave him at four million per year. Then of course there’s the part where McCann, who was mishandled by the organization, has emerged as a quality top nine forward. His 11 goals so far this year would lead the Canucks.
No. 3 Best: Thatcher Demko’s extension
Benning may have bungled the Quinn Hughes and Elias Pettersson contract talks, but he locked up Thatcher Demko before the 2021 season even concluded. The term and price were favorable for Vancouver and Demko has responded by doing what he always does. Standing on his head, and keeping the Canucks in games.
His .917 save percentage and 2.66 goals against average may not jump off the page, but anyone who has watched the Canucks knows how good Demko has been. He’s become a workhorse, starting 24 of the Canucks 29 games and leading the league in saves and shots against.
No. 3 Worst: The Tyler Myers contract
So many parts of this contract are awful. The term, the money, the flat cap aspect of it. Oh, and there’s also the part about Myers being a walking disaster. As Wyatt Arndt of the Athletic has dubbed him, Tyler Myers is the “Chaos Giraffe.”
Funny anecdotes aside, Myers has been exactly what everyone knew he would be. An often-penalized, inconsistent defenseman with no ability to start a breakout, defend a rush or consistently make good decisions.
His length is valuable and he occasionally chips in offense, but the bad outweighs the good in this situation. The money still owed to Myers makes him essentially untradeable, meaning the Canucks will have to let the rest of his albatross contract play out.
No. 2 Best: Vancouver acquires Tanner Pearson from Pittsburgh for Erik Gudbranson
Yes, Tanner Pearson’s offensive play has regressed this year and yes, Benning gave him a bad contract. But there was a point last year where Pearson led Vancouver in even strength goals since his acquisition.
Add in the fact that Benning shed Gudbranson and that Pearson has remained defensively responsible, and this trade has worked out well for Vancouver. His chemistry with Bo Horvat is just an added bonus.
No. 2 Worst: Vancouver acquires Linus Karlsson from San Jose for Jonathan Dahlen
As bad as the McCann trade was, Gudbranson at least gave the Canucks NHL games. Plus there was some reasoning behind it, as misguided as it may have been.
This trade was doomed from the start. The Canucks had soured on Jonathan Dahlen for whatever reason and just decided to dump him, because nothing says good asset management like giving up on a prospect at 21 years old.
Dahlen has broken into the NHL this year, and his 0.58 points per game would be third amongst Canuck forwards, behind only Conor Garland and J.T. Miller. Karlsson is now 22 and may not ever play North American hockey.
No. 1 Best: Vancouver acquires J.T. Miller for Marek Mazanec, first round pick and a third round pick
Are his temper tantrums and occasional defensive lapses frustrating? Yes. Has he also been the Canucks best forward the last three seasons? Yes. Miller has done nothing but produce since being acquired by the Canucks.
Timing of the deal aside, Vancouver got a bonafide top-line forward in this deal and one that has lived up to the expectations and the price of the deal. His name has been brought up in trade rumours, but Miller is the type of player you keep, not ship off.
No. 1 Worst: Vancouver acquires Adam Clendening from Chicago for Gustav Forsling
This trade is so infuriating because it was so utterly pointless. Adam Clendening was a 22-year old that had played 25 NHL games. Gustav Forsling was coming off a huge World Juniors performance in which he turned a lot of heads.
Clendening gave the Canucks 17 games. Forsling has played 189 games with the Blackhawks and Panthers and has emerged as one of the best puck moving defensemen in the league last year. He’s taken a slight step back but is still an analytical darling. Above all else, he’s a legitimate top four defenseman, something Vancouver barely has right now.
The Canucks would be a better team, plain and simple with Forsling. Instead, they got 17 uneventful games of Clendening, who hasn’t played in the NHL in almost three years.
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