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Vancouver Canucks General Manager Jim Benning Talks Draft, Offseason Plans |
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Farhan Lalji of TSN sat down with Canucks general manager Jim Benning on Friday for a wide-ranging Q&A session about the team's plans for the draft and the rest of the summer.
The interview is more than 10 minutes long and is worth watching in its entirety.
Benning gets specific on a few topics that inquiring minds want to know about.
• He says that he has fielded calls for the fifth pick in the draft, and that the level of intrigue surrounding those calls is picking up. Some new names are being mentioned that he hasn't heard before, and he thinks even more possibilities will be in play as the draft draws closer.
• He's not looking to move the No. 5 pick, but will listen to every call he receives.
• He says he likes the fifth spot, because there are six players that he likes. Essentially, he is saying that the pick guarantees one of those six players. He talks about how that group of six includes both forwards and defencemen, so the possibility of picking up a blueliner is still in play.
• He's noncommittal when Farhan asks if he thinks he'll get a player who can step into the NHL right away. It sounds like the expectation is that unless the player absolutely blows them away in training camp, he'll go back to junior. The inference, of course, is that they will be picking a player from the CHL—not the college ranks, and not an international player.
• He says that they're hoping to make the Canucks competitive next year by adding two players through free agency: someone who can score 20-30 goals and a good two-way player. That's more specific than we've heard before.
• He sounds bullish when describing both Matthew Tkachuk and Pierre-Luc Dubois, the highest-ranked players that are likely to be available with the fifth pick.
• He says Tkachuk's strength lies below the face-off dots and that his playing style is a lot like that of his father, Keith Tkachuk. Benning says Matthew isn't as big as his dad, but he believes Matthew makes up for his smaller size with better vision.
• He sees Dubois as more of a two-way player. He can play all forward positions but long term, projects as a centre. Adapts well to any type of game.
• Benning says the team hasn't made a decision yet on whether to buy out Alex Burrows or Chris Higgins. Says he'll have to wait and see what happens through draft weekend and how things look like they'll shake down with free agency.
• When asked about whether a player's history with the team would come into play when making a buyout decision, Benning is quick to acknowledge what an important player Burrows has been for the Canucks organization, and how much he means to fans here in Vancouver. He sounds like he'd be very reluctant to make the buyout move—but doesn't rule it out.
• On the opportunity to trade Ryan Miller last summer, Benning starts by saying that Miller has a limited no-trade clause in his contract. After the draft, Miller submitted his list of teams that he'd be willing to go to. One of the teams called and expressed interest in him, and that was as far as it went. "Maybe if we'd pursued it, we could have moved him," says Benning. "But I'm not looking to trade Ryan Miller now. I think goaltending is one of the strengths of our team."
Benning says he wants to continue with the tandem of Miller and Markstrom again in 2016-17. He says he wants Markstrom to be the No. 1 goalie going forward, and that Miller will be a good mentor for him.
My guess is that the team that inquired that would have been on Miller's list was probably the San Jose Sharks. They acquired Martin Jones from Boston on June 30, after the draft—and given how well that deal worked out for them, I would assume that Jones was their preferred target, with Miller a possible back-up plan. Even if Benning had been willing to try to pursue a deal, I doubt anything would have come of it, as San Jose got their first choice in Jones.
Secondly—Benning is pretty cut-and-dry about how he sees the goalies' roles next season. Should we be looking for at least a 50-50 split between Markstrom and Miller—and will Miller be okay with that?
"My philosophy is, whoever deserves to play, should play. It's about winning hockey games," says Benning, though he admits the final decision on player usage will belong to coach Willie Desjardins.
Benning won't be in a rush to trade Miller this year, either. He thinks, with the team's travel schedule, that both goalies will be needed if the club is going to be competitive.
Finally, when asked specifically about acquiring Milan Lucic or Loui Eriksson through free-agency, he says that talks with players' agents will start on June 25th and "whether it's those guys or other names, we're going to be able to work towards getting somebody like that signed."
My biggest takeaway here is probably the part about the goaltending—confirmation that Markstrom and Miller will be battling each other for ice time next season.
Beyond that, Matthew Tkachuk gets a louder endorsement than I think we've heard up to this point, a defenceman could still be the pick at five, trading the draft pick is unlikely, and we should be watching for two UFA signings—and not necessarily Lucic or Eriksson.
At this point, Benning seems like he has his ducks in a row.
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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