The direction of the Vancouver Canucks has been nothing but a spinning compass ever since Jim Benning took over as general manager in 2014. Until now, that is.
In the first few years of Benning's tenure, the Canucks were a team that desperately needed to start a full-on rebuild, but refused to do so. He signed miscast veterans like Ryan Miller and Loui Eriksson in an effort to win now, instead of letting young talent play a more prominent role.
But that's all changed, as the Canucks - led by younger players who represent the future of the club - are off to a surprising 6-3-1 start this season. Here's why things are looking up:
The future is now
It is still awfully early, but Brock Boeser has come as advertised. After tearing up the NCAA over the past two years at the University of North Dakota, the 20-year-old has made a seamless transition to the NHL, leading the Canucks with nine points despite playing in only eight of the team's 10 games.
Both Sven Baertschi, 25, and Bo Horvat, 22, have also been key contributors offensively. The latter leads all Canucks forwards in ice time.
But perhaps the most telling sign that the future is now in Vancouver is that Henrik and Daniel Sedin rank eighth and ninth, respectively, among Canucks forwards in time on the ice.
Stacked prospect pipeline
For the first time in a long time, the Canucks have a loaded farm system.
In the crease, Thatcher Demko might be the NHL's best goaltending prospect. After a great career at Boston College, he struggled to begin his first AHL season, but sported a .913 save percentage across his last 26 appearances. This year, Demko has taken his game to a whole new level with a .960 save percentage and 1.26 goals-against average, albeit in just four games.
On the back end, Olli Juolevi, Vancouver's fifth overall pick in 2015, is coming off a somewhat disappointing season with the OHL's London Knights, but he's back home playing in Finland's top professional league, and is off to a strong start with four points in six games.
And Vancouver's most intriguing prospect might be its most recent first-round pick, Elias Pettersson. Also taken fifth overall by the Canucks, the 19-year-old currently sits fifth in SHL (Sweden's top professional league) scoring with five goals and 14 points in 12 games.
Cap flexibility on the way
The Canucks are tight against the cap right now, but that's about to change when the Sedins come off the books this offseason. Each brother carries a cap hit of $7 million, so Benning will have $14 million in additional flexibility to play with.
That opens up a whole host of options. Will the Canucks be in on the John Tavares sweepstakes? Will they make a push for Vancouver native Evander Kane? Will they look to add a much-needed top defenseman in the form of John Carlson? Or, will they simply save the money to lock up their young core when the time comes?
Benning has made his fair share of questionable decisions, but with emerging young talent, plenty of cap room, and what seems like a nice coaching hire in Travis Green, he has a great chance to right the ship.
(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)
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