Confirmed with Link: Jim Benning named GM of Vancouver (MOD WARNING Post #274)

[Scouter]

Can't say I'm sold on that actually playing out. For instance, when Benning asks Linden what he thinks about Khokhlachev's compete level, and Linden replies, 'what's a Khokhlachev'? The dynamic could change pretty quickly. And if I had to bet, it will.

I'm not talking about every minute detail.

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

I'll try...

The darkness we see, is that we're being blinded by the light...

This room is full of stars!

Revved up like a deuce, another roller in the night?



---
RE: Town Hall Meeting in Coquitlam last night.

Trevor is certainly saying the right things to us fans, that's for sure. He seems like he has not a model in place per se but a moving system that utilizes the strengths of personnel rather than a fixed system that we had under Torts last year and Vigneault the years previous. Yikes. It's good to hear for me because Babcock says it best [paraphrasing] "You need to build a system around the players, not build the players into a system."

When you don't have the horses, you shouldn't be running a horse race. Trev seems to value character and personality a lot too, I think that's good. The team needs more of a winning attitude with gumption...he is pretty overrated but as far as character goes, I don't think there is a single captain you'd rather go to the trenches and fight with other than Toews.

Not that he's a golden boy and not that we'll be drafting Toews anytime soon, but that kind of character wins you lots of battles for the puck. That said, I have a fairly strong feeling that if we don't get a faller from the top 5 this year, our pick will be Nick Ritchie. Just the feeling I'm getting. Mark that down in your notebook.

 

[cc]

I think linden's plan is simply to surround himself with capable people and let them run the show.
Linden would have a general vision but would let others do their jobs and figure out the best way to implement it. Linden would run the business end and Benning would be entrusted to make the on ice personnel decisions. Of course there will be a good level of communication but a gm must have a certain degree of autonomy to be effective. If a gm can't be trusted with that autonomy, he shouldn't have been hired in the first place.

 

[Chubros]

It seems some people here still don't quite know what Linden's job actually is, so I'll say it again, he's the president of hockey operations, which means he will be very involved with the hockey decisions, if not have final sign off on everything Benning wants to do.

Is it set in stone that that's what a President of Hockey Operations has to do?

My feeling is that Linden is going to let the hockey guy he has hired make the day to day decisions, while he himself plays the role of executive. He will be the public face of the team and the conduit between management and ownership. I hope that in effect he will be able to act as sort of a buffer and dissuade ownership from being too hands-on.

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

Can't say I'm sold on that actually playing out. For instance, when Benning asks Linden what he thinks about Khokhlachev's compete level, and Linden replies, 'what's a Khokhlachev'? The dynamic could change pretty quickly. And if I had to bet, it will.

I get more of an absentee boss kind of deal, where Trev will have long talks with Benning when the situation warrants it and Trev stays out of it when he needs to be.

I think it'll be more like..."Hey Jim, do you like our powerplay?" "Not entirely Trevor." "I think we should have a more accurate shot be on the point." "Me too, but I think we should keep (player X) in his point spot because he covers odd-man rushes well and is a good distributor." "Yeah, you're right. But you can still find me a more accurate shot on the other point right?" "Absolutely, Trev."

 

[John Bender*]

I hope Trevor lets Jim do his job. Let's be honest here, Trevor has been out of the game for years, has no experience running a team, evaluating players, scouting, or anything beyond once being a player.

Benning has been completely invested in scouting, player evaluation, etc. for years now. If he decides that a certain coach will work best with his team, or a certain player should or should not be traded, I hope Linden lets him do what he wants.

 

[biturbo19]

I just think once the conversations start flowing about players around the NHL/AHL/CHL/college/Europe etc. Linden will realize how little he knows. Like someone else said, Trevor doesn't seem to have an ego. Would be surprised if he doesn't 'step aside' now that Benning is in Vancouver and ready to answer all the questions that are now being thrown at Linden.

Yeah. Pretty much. Given Linden's lack of familiarity with not only the guys outside of organization, prospects, free agents, trade targets, etc., but frankly even our own organization that he is now ultimately in charge of...hopefully he has the good sense to take a step back and let those in the know take the reins. Chiming in where he can and where he feels it's necessary, but as a sounding board and extra set of eyes, not as "Lord Linden who decideth all things".

 

[RandV]

So you're pretty much hoping for some Brian Burke-esque public boorishness?

No, that part you can keep that behind close doors. Set your grounds to the bosses at the start and then that's that. Linden doesn't have the experience to be questioning Benning, and Aquilini should have learned to the tune of several million dollars to keep out of the way and let the hockey guys do their job.

The bosses get to step in when things are going poorly.

 

[Scouter]

It's kind of disrespectful to Trev, to say he will just be a figurehead, fact is he won't, he's a very passionate hockey guy and will be quite involved as he already has been, if he was just going to be a figurehead he would not have taken the job, he's in the business of hockey, not the normal kind.

I think some people here still think of the hockey setup as being traditional with the GM doing all the hockey things, fact is it's a new age and it's not like that anymore.

 

[biturbo19]

It's kind of disrespectful to Trev, to say he will just be a figurehead, fact is he won't, he's a very passionate hockey guy and will be quite involved as he already has been, if he was just going to be a figurehead he would not have taken the job, he's in the business of hockey, not the normal kind.

I think some people here still think of the hockey setup as being traditional with the GM doing all the hockey things, fact is it's a new age and it's not like that anymore.

It's really not disrespectful at all. Everyone knows Trevor is a passionate hockey guy, loves the game, and hopefully has plenty of valuable insights to share withing that management group.

But the reality is, he's a guy who has been out of the hockey world for quite a few years now. He's been in the restaurant business, the real estate business, the casual fan business, not in the business of tracking thousands of players and prospects all around the world and following every detail and nuance of this Canucks hockey team and all of the others around the league. That hasn't been his job...and it's become pretty clear that Linden has followed the NHL and amateur leagues less closely than a lot of hfboards posters in recent years.

In time, i'm sure Linden will expand his familiarity with this organization and players within it, and those players outside of our organization with other teams and on the amateur side of things. But that's going to take time...you don't just build up this knowledge overnight. There is a huge amount on his plate right now, and not just on the hockey side of things that he has to deal with. He's going to be working off information from other people in the organization for a good while before he gets a really solid grasp on everything.

 

[Fat Tony]

It's kind of disrespectful to Trev, to say he will just be a figurehead, fact is he won't, he's a very passionate hockey guy and will be quite involved as he already has been, if he was just going to be a figurehead he would not have taken the job, he's in the business of hockey, not the normal kind.

I think some people here still think of the hockey setup as being traditional with the GM doing all the hockey things, fact is it's a new age and it's not like that anymore.

Unless someone here is on the inside, none of us can speak to their arrangement with any certainty, including you.

 

[Scouter]

Unless someone here is on the inside, none of us can speak to their arrangement with any certainty, including you.

Well we can speak to their arrangement based on what they have said it will be, to twist, speculate or try and change what they have said here, well it speaks for itself.

We will probably find out more tomorrow.

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

Unless someone here is on the inside, none of us can speak to their arrangement with any certainty, including you.

This is true. Rumours are good for controversy and discussion, but give me good hard facts over a juicy rumour any day.

 

[Johnny LaRue]

Jack Edwards are you kidding me?

What an idiot. What does terrorism have to do with hockey?

 

[Wisp]

Well we can speak to their arrangement based on what they have said it will be, to twist, speculate or try and change what they have said here, well it speaks for itself.

We will probably find out more tomorrow.

What they say to a camera doesn't mean anything, especially when they're currently trying to sell a brand that's taken a beating. It's naivete to take it face value.

What actions they actually take will be telling.

From my perspective, it's in everyone's best interest for him to sit back and rely on his staff to do what he's appointed them to do.

 

[F A N]

RE: Town Hall Meeting in Coquitlam last night.

Trevor is certainly saying the right things to us fans, that's for sure. He seems like he has not a model in place per se but a moving system that utilizes the strengths of personnel rather than a fixed system that we had under Torts last year and Vigneault the years previous. Yikes. It's good to hear for me because Babcock says it best [paraphrasing] "You need to build a system around the players, not build the players into a system."

When you don't have the horses, you shouldn't be running a horse race.

I think you're thinking in terms of what a coach should do rather than what management should do. I think it's important for management to have a blueprint and you hear Trevor talk about that. There is a certain way to play the game that Trevor believes in and Trevor even talks about a coach having a distinct style of play. Gone are the days where you change the style of play by changing your coach. You come up with a blueprint, try to acquire players that fit your blueprint, and you hire a coach who shares the same ideals and can come up with a system that fits the desired style of play. For example, when Gillis got hired he forced AV to change his system.

Speaking of Mike Babcock, he continued what Scotty Bowman started in Detroit. Did Babcock adapt his system to his players? Ya. When Lidstrom retired and the makeup of the defense changed, Babcock reigned in his defense and had them make shorter passes. Did that mean the Red Wings stopped playing Red Wings hockey? No.

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

Speaking of Mike Babcock, he continued what Scotty Bowman started in Detroit. Did Babcock adapt his system to his players? Ya. When Lidstrom retired and the makeup of the defense changed, Babcock reigned in his defense and had them make shorter passes. Did that mean the Red Wings stopped playing Red Wings hockey? No.

I think you are right on point with me here, except that I focus on the point that Linden has to recognize what he's given (Coach X) to work with. And I agree, no **** Detroit's system changed with Lidstrom gone, and Linden and yourself (rightfully) pointed that out. You need to adjust your style of play with what you've got and we really haven't had that for awhile.

It remains to be seen if Gillis firing was in the right (I'm on the fence about it) I'm not exactly about to call out the new boss though because my guy was (IMO) wrongfully terminated. I'm not conjuring stories up about Last boss vs the new boss because I thought the last boss was fired injustly. It's about the now. I think Benning is a good hire, I thought Linden was an OK/cheesy hire, but I'm ready to get behind him.

I feel some confuse that with outright support. I'm not ready to give the guy a pass or nothing, I'm just free with giving him the rope he chose to swim with. The guy has done a bang-up job so far, firing Torts and hiring Benning. So I don't see what this fuss is about. Give him a shorter leash if he signs a big FA player to a ridiculous contract. And let us eat cake if we were wrong.

You can micro-analyze Linden to how he wore his hair on August 11, 2015, but all that matters to most is that winning percentage which has been dismal trying to meet fan expectation that past 2 years.

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

Jack Edwards are you kidding me?

I won't dispute how wrong he is in this quote and how misplaced I think it is, and ironical even that he'd compare it like that, but the guy is excited about the team he does PbP for winning. And he's quite a good PbP man at that. The only problem I have with him is that he's so passionate that a lot of the time he is willing to put the blinders on for the B's.

 

[Lundface*]

Revved up like a deuce, another roller in the night?



---
RE: Town Hall Meeting in Coquitlam last night.

Trevor is certainly saying the right things to us fans, that's for sure. He seems like he has not a model in place per se but a moving system that utilizes the strengths of personnel rather than a fixed system that we had under Torts last year and Vigneault the years previous. Yikes. It's good to hear for me because Babcock says it best [paraphrasing] "You need to build a system around the players, not build the players into a system."

When you don't have the horses, you shouldn't be running a horse race. Trev seems to value character and personality a lot too, I think that's good. The team needs more of a winning attitude with gumption...he is pretty overrated but as far as character goes, I don't think there is a single captain you'd rather go to the trenches and fight with other than Toews.

Not that he's a golden boy and not that we'll be drafting Toews anytime soon, but that kind of character wins you lots of battles for the puck. That said, I have a fairly strong feeling that if we don't get a faller from the top 5 this year, our pick will be Nick Ritchie. Just the feeling I'm getting. Mark that down in your notebook.

It's interesting to see just how much people can make of the fluff Linden coughs up.

The owners were right in hiring him. He has such a strong and loyal following that he'll be able to draw the attention of his teary eyed brigade away from anything that's actually going on.

In the end its touching. Just hope you the warm fuzzy feeling doesn't turn into rage when someone criticizes him.

 

[DCantheDDad]

I get more of an absentee boss kind of deal, where Trev will have long talks with Benning when the situation warrants it and Trev stays out of it when he needs to be.

I think it'll be more like..."Hey Jim, do you like our powerplay?" "Not entirely Trevor." "I think we should have a more accurate shot be on the point." "Me too, but I think we should keep (player X) in his point spot because he covers odd-man rushes well and is a good distributor." "Yeah, you're right. But you can still find me a more accurate shot on the other point right?" "Absolutely, Trev."

Absolutely. And even if Linden has the final say, that does not mean he will simply veto good ideas to show he is in charge. I'm sure Benning's vision for this team is very similar to Linden's, or Linden would not have hired him.

I work in an organization where just cause my boss has final say, doesn't mean he wont listen to me when I am talking about something I know more about than him. There has to be trust there and I am sure there will be.

IMO, there will be lots of discussions and a "team" approach to making decisions regarding the overall direction of the franchise. When it comes to specific details, Benning will have more pull in the discussion.

 

[Puckerz]

Linden is my fav Canuck and I didn't like the Dir H Ops title as to me it signaled that FAQ was involved way too much and was doing anything he could to cover his ass - clearly Torts was his hire and that was a mess but the thing I hated the most was FAQ in the TDL war room in Phoenix. That just can't happen in a well-run organization.

Having said that, I have full confidence that Linden is smart enough to carefully pick his spots in regards to actual hockey decisions and will pretty much let the guys he hires do their jobs. If he can keep FAQ out of things it will be a huge benefit so that is prob one of his most important jobs.

 

[b in vancouver]

Might be a bit of tough sledding the next few years but it's hard not think the organization isn't headed in the right direction.
A few of you are a bit fixated on draft picks but what boston has done very well over the past while is development. Identifying which prospects fit, not rushing them into the line up and moving others out.
Boston, like Vancouver has been drafting late and traded a lot of picks and prospects for rentals but have still been able to bring in an influx of young talent.

This should also spell the end of the soap operas gillis seemed so fond of.

 

[b in vancouver]

Quick question also...
Wondering how much weight the Rumour that gillis held up the deadline day trades with Pitts and Boston had to do with his firing?

 

[Canucker]

It's kind of disrespectful to Trev, to say he will just be a figurehead, fact is he won't, he's a very passionate hockey guy and will be quite involved as he already has been, if he was just going to be a figurehead he would not have taken the job, he's in the business of hockey, not the normal kind.

I think some people here still think of the hockey setup as being traditional with the GM doing all the hockey things, fact is it's a new age and it's not like that anymore.

His job is virtually that of a figurehead...he's going to be just like Joe Sakic in Colorado. He's going to hire a GM who shares the same hockey philosophies, then he's going to disappear into the periphery until its time he's needed to pacify an upset fan base if things go bad, or if he's needed to help sell more season tickets. I'd be willing to bet that Benning will have almost complete autonomy as GM, unless he were to make franchise altering decisions (ie trade the Sedins).

 

[carlweezer*]

Lmfao I can't believe some people here think Linden will actually have a say in player personnel. Linder was strictly a public relations hire simple as that, he was hired to sell more tickets and to get season ticket holders to renew. How is it even reasonable for someone out of the sport for 6 yrs be allowed to make hockey desicions ...simple he isnt. He is here to shakehands w. Ppl and smile for the camera w. Babies.