It's been 7 years of "next year will be better". Benning's entire GM career is based on what will be achieved the year following the current year. What Benning's Canucks will do next year is always better than what Benning's Canucks are doing, or have done. But next year's Canucks are only better than this year's Canucks because time hasn't yet caught up to next year. Every year, there have been opportunities to start climbing out of the hole, but every year, the opportunity to climb is missed, and the hole gets dug deeper...
7 years? yea, ill agree its been a rough 7 years. but then you can also look at what really happened.
ownership pushed for competitiveness while Sedins were around. so many picks and half-assed ufsasignings/trades to catch lightning in a bottle to satisfy ownership's delusional vision.
in an attempt to please ownership, yes, Benning screwed up here many times. But what people need to realize is that no matter who was the gm, they would have been doing the same things because in the end they would have only gotten hired for agreeing, and proceeding with what ownership wanted.
this is also why Benning got an extension from Aquilini, because he stuck to ownerships wants of trying to be competitive with the Sedins around.
you mention there have been opportunities to get out of this, but really has there been?
I'm assuming this is going to revolve around things like not signing a Sutter extension/Roussel/Beagle/Myers. which I agree, in the current situation do look bad.
yet if you really think about it, the canucks had nothing when these players were signed.
Who did the canucks have on their roster/"NHL" ready prospect going into the Sedins last year (note this is prior to Pettersson break out in SHL).?Boeser and Horvat, maybe Guance?/
they had nothing in their pipeline from the years of being competitive before. no one knew how Pettersson would do in the NHL, no one knew we would end up with Hughes, no one knew we could acquire Miller at his price, or Pearson would be gotten for Gudbranson. Juolevi, Rathbone were unknowns still. regularly these prospects would not be ready for years. which would line up to Eriksson last year of his contract, or the year after.
the best part of these contracts is that besides Myers, the rest are done when Eriksson is.
What else could it be? Skipping on Markstrom/Toffoli/Tanev? Yes they would have made us better this year, but they would become the next Eriksson, Beagle, Roussel contracts, and blocked the young players who have matured in the AHL and can now help on cheap contracts.
Benning has obviously done many things wrong, but if you cant see how good this team is going into next season/end of next season(cap wise/prospect wise/talent wise), I think you've dug the benning cant do anything right hole too deep
