GM Benning the key to Canucks record

[Alan Jackson]

The Vancouver Canucks have been a success story through the first third of the 2014-15 NHL season. It is at least a little surprising, coming as it does on the heels of a disastrous 2013-14 campaign, and it suggests that this summer’s massive overhaul of the organization affected needed change.

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/gm-benning-the-key-to-canucks-record/

Click to read more...

 

[Jyrki21]

The poor grammar in the excerpt has discouraged me from clicking on the link.

Change gets effected, not affected, Sportsnet. Affect means change.

 

[Ryp37]

Yeah don't bother reading, it just recaps what happened in the summer and says Sbisa=Garrison with advanced stats but only uses Garrisons last year

Also Willie D is the reason for success

 

[Scurr]

*crickets*

 

[arsmaster*]

Seems like a piece full of fluff, why not give him credit for the Vrbata and Miller. Why no statistical analysis on Miller?

Why project the new guys numbers this year and not look at what Kesler and Garrison are doing for their new teams.

He's made moves, the team has a good early record.

 

[Burke's Evil Spirit]

I mean the article is about what Benning did on draft day, not in free agency. Willis is doing a series of articles examining.

The way he compared Sbisa to Garrison is definitely weird, though.

 

[Hollywood Burrows]

Willis is a smart writer, so it's interesting to hear his take, even if it just matches with most of the prevailing opinion on this forum over the past few weeks.

Although there's one major off-season move of Benning's that Willis doesn't mention. The one where he signed the overrated/over the hill "star" goalie. Benningtons doesn't come out looking quite as golden when we take that into consideration, although I still have a fairly positive view of his work so far.

 

[CherryToke]

Yeah don't bother reading, it just recaps what happened in the summer and says Sbisa=Garrison with advanced stats but only uses Garrisons last year

Also Willie D is the reason for success

who hired Willie D?

who fixed the glaring scoring depth problem?

Benning deserves a lot of credit.

 

[Pip]

Lol.

 

[Ryp37]

who hired Willie D?

who fixed the glaring scoring depth problem?

Benning deserves a lot of credit.

Trevor Linden

Not having a garbage system like Tortorellas

 

[VanJack]

Willis is a smart writer, so it's interesting to hear his take, even if it just matches with most of the prevailing opinion on this forum over the past few weeks.

Although there's one major off-season move of Benning's that Willis doesn't mention. The one where he signed the overrated/over the hill "star" goalie. Benningtons doesn't come out looking quite as golden when we take that into consideration, although I still have a fairly positive view of his work so far.

Interesting that he didn't include the FA signings in his piece....kudos for the Vrbata signing, but with all the cap space they saved with Kesler and Sbisa, they blew their brains out with Miller.

 

[IDJOTBOY]

Trevor Linden

Not having a garbage system like Tortorellas

Why are you so reluctant to give Benning credit? Like Moore Money said, he deserves a lot.

 

[DennisReynolds]

Garrison and Sbisa plays a similar role apparently. And I love how he says Sbisa is improving just because he's 24, and with no any other reasons to back it up.

Either way, why does no one mention his philosophy in drafting in the late rounds? Because drafting guys like Kyle Petit and Mackenzie Stewart is just laughable.

 

[Jay Cee]

Garrison and Sbisa plays a similar role apparently. And I love how he says Sbisa is improving just because he's 24, and with no any other reasons to back it up.

Either way, why does no one mention his philosophy in drafting in the late rounds? Because drafting guys like Kyle Petit and Mackenzie Stewart is just laughable.

We have drafted players like that in the later rounds since I have been following the Canucks, which is over 25 years. It is a big myth it is unique to this GM. Though I agree we could be drafting better players with these picks, someone has to change it.

 

[Ryp37]

Why are you so reluctant to give Benning credit? Like Moore Money said, he deserves a lot.

Because the credit he's getting is overboard

I do think he did do a good job, it's typical canuck fan base response where anything slightly good is "A+ amazing, the best etc" and anything bad is "garbage, fired, tank, etc"

 

[Diamonddog01]

Definitely a fluff piece but I agree with the article's premise. Benning has done a very good job here, regardless of the negativity of several posters on this site.

 

[Alan Jackson]

Either way, why does no one mention his philosophy in drafting in the late rounds? Because drafting guys like Kyle Petit and Mackenzie Stewart is just laughable.

Indeed. The previous regime made sure to draft guys of a higher pedigree like Morgan Clark or Sawyer Hannay.

 

[vanuck]

Indeed. The previous regime made sure to draft guys of a higher pedigree like Morgan Clark or Sawyer Hannay.

But with a guy like Benning's scouting pedigree - which is what everyone heard when he came here - he should know better than to draft these types, no?

 

[Lundface*]

Still waiting for someone to write an accurate article.

"The Tortorella/injury effect.Media completely wrong, Canucks players not over the hill."

Did Benning magically take players like the Sedins, Burrows, Edler, Hansen, Matthias and make them play better? Or could it maybe have been the laughable deployment of these players mixed with several injuries to key players?

Benning wasn't handed even close as bad a hand as the media is trying to force feed the public into thinking. I had this team in the 4-8 region in the conference before the season and stick to it now. it's the same team basically, with the changes being:

Kesler for Bonino. At best it's a saw off. Thank Kesler for asking to leave, because his cancerous attitude wasn't helping.

Luongo for Miller. Luongo is performing better right now, but thank the Panthers for agreeing to take another cancer off the Canucks hands. Problem is, Benning may have replaced one headache with a more expensive one.

Garrison for Sbisa. Leading the Lightning with 16 points as a defencemen, and Van's best being 9 from Edler, Garrison ( like the Sedins, Burrows, Hansen, Edler) was a victim of Tortorella's deployment. Sbisa with 4 points and a minus 2 being compared to a 16 point and +10 Garrison is laughable, and I can see why posters think the new GM is god when they get their opinion from the online articles.

Vrbata has been great, but he also publicly stated he was looking to play with the Sedins when his contract was up and there was 15 million to work with.

The biggest difference has been getting rid of Tortorella and being relatively healthy (might be in trouble soon with Hamhuis, Kassian and Matthias out).

If there is one guy that deserves credit it's Dejardins. I'll be ready to give him more credit if the team maintains it's play if these injuries continue to occur...because if you remember, even Tortorella got good results using the same players until injuries and over usage came into play.

 

[me2]

Willie is awesome. I don't see last years team plus Willie missing the playoffs. Throw in a free Vrbata (any fool could get that right with the cap space inherited). Credit for Willie though.

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

The poor grammar in the excerpt has discouraged me from clicking on the link.

Change gets effected, not affected, Sportsnet. Affect means change.

10,000 English and Journalism students just cringed at this blurb.

 

[Scurr]

Still waiting for someone to write an accurate article.

"The Tortorella/injury effect.Media completely wrong, Canucks players not over the hill."

Did Benning magically take players like the Sedins, Burrows, Edler, Hansen, Matthias and make them play better? Or could it maybe have been the laughable deployment of these players mixed with several injuries to key players?

Benning wasn't handed even close as bad a hand as the media is trying to force feed the public into thinking. I had this team in the 4-8 region in the conference before the season and stick to it now. it's the same team basically, with the changes being:

Kesler for Bonino. At best it's a saw off. Thank Kesler for asking to leave, because his cancerous attitude wasn't helping.

Luongo for Miller. Luongo is performing better right now, but thank the Panthers for agreeing to take another cancer off the Canucks hands. Problem is, Benning may have replaced one headache with a more expensive one.

Garrison for Sbisa. Leading the Lightning with 16 points as a defencemen, and Van's best being 9 from Edler, Garrison ( like the Sedins, Burrows, Hansen, Edler) was a victim of Tortorella's deployment. Sbisa with 4 points and a minus 2 being compared to a 16 point and +10 Garrison is laughable, and I can see why posters think the new GM is god when they get their opinion from the online articles.

Vrbata has been great, but he also publicly stated he was looking to play with the Sedins when his contract was up and there was 15 million to work with.

The biggest difference has been getting rid of Tortorella and being relatively healthy (might be in trouble soon with Hamhuis, Kassian and Matthias out).

If there is one guy that deserves credit it's Dejardins. I'll be ready to give him more credit if the team maintains it's play if these injuries continue to occur...because if you remember, even Tortorella got good results using the same players until injuries and over usage came into play.

Even the late AV teams were starting to struggle, though. This team has had trouble scoring goals for years. I didn't like the makeup of those teams, especially down the middle. Benning deserves credit.

 

[Jay Cee]

But with a guy like Benning's scouting pedigree - which is what everyone heard when he came here - he should know better than to draft these types, no?

Sure in theory- I have expected when GMs keep saying the drafting will get better then it will. I have been waiting a long time. But that's not how the argument was presented.

 

[Lundface*]

Even the late AV teams were starting to struggle, though. This team has had trouble scoring goals for years. I didn't like the makeup of those teams, especially down the middle. Benning deserves credit.

Bonino over Kesler i think helps the teams offensive game I'm with you there. But they are sacrificing defensively to score goals. I like it, even if this teams isn't a real contender once the league changes the rules in the playoffs, but they are doing it at the cost of goals against.

 

[skyo]

Although there's one major off-season move of Benning's that Willis doesn't mention. The one where he signed the overrated/over the hill "star" goalie. Benningtons doesn't come out looking quite as golden when we take that into consideration, although I still have a fairly positive view of his work so far.

3rd in the league in wins isn't too shabby, for the most part Miller is the calming influence to our team, yes when he has an off game it's a real stinker, but that's not the norm at all.