Things change quickly in life, and that\u2019s especially true in the NHL.<\/p>\n
Barely two years ago, Patrik Allvin was a buyer on the trade market, adding players like Nikita Zadorov and Elias Lindholm to one of the best teams in the NHL.<\/p>\n
Now? He\u2019s selling off veterans with term as the Canucks embark on their first true rebuild this century.<\/p>\n
But should Allvin and President Jim Rutherford be the ones to oversee the operation?<\/p>\n
While they\u2019ve clearly been a level above the Jim Benning-led Canucks, there are reasons for skepticism about whether they should be trusted to lead Vancouver back to contention.<\/p>\n
Rutherford is one of the most experienced hockey executives in the business, although it\u2019s been a while since he\u2019s overseen a full-fledged rebuild.<\/p>\n
He does deserve credit for eventually leading the Carolina Hurricanes to a Stanley Cup in 2006.<\/p>\n
By the time he left the Hurricanes, however, the team was cratering. They missed the playoffs for five consecutive seasons before he left, and they wound up missing for another four years after his departure.<\/p>\n
Fears that he may leave the Canucks in a similar state might be justified.<\/p>\n
At the end of his tenure in Carolina, the team was bad, but it wasn\u2019t like Rutherford truly sold off veterans and tried to stockpile future assets.<\/p>\n
The Allvin and Rutherford tandem does deserve some credit for selling veterans with term left on their contracts, like Tyler Myers and Conor Garland, before the trade deadline.<\/p>\n
But are they fully committed to a rebuild<\/a>?<\/p>\n They are certainly hamstrung by underperforming veterans on long-term contracts, like Elias Pettersson, Jake DeBrusk, and Brock Boeser. However, the blame for that falls with them, since they signed those deals in the first place.<\/p>\n And if they were truly serious about a rebuild, wouldn\u2019t they consider shopping a guy like Filip Hronek, who\u2019s by far the most valuable veteran asset the organization has left?<\/p>\n Even though the Canucks are applauding Hronek\u2019s leadership abilities<\/a>, he\u2019s a 28-year-old defenceman in his prime. By the time the Canucks are relevant again, his value will likely be diminished.<\/p>\n There have been other signs that perhaps this management team isn\u2019t as serious about a rebuild as it should be.<\/p>\n Allvin has certainly backtracked<\/a> from his \u201cretool it a little bit with a hybrid form\u201d statement, but what he said didn\u2019t seem like a mistake, considering he mentioned it after the Canucks had ripped off a couple of wins in a row following the Quinn Hughes trade.<\/p>\n Even Rutherford seemed overly optimistic about the Canucks rebuild timeline.<\/p>\n \u201cAs far as getting to be a contender, I believe it\u2019s going to be two to three years,\u201d Rutherford said to The Globe and Mail\u2019s Gary Mason<\/a> back in January.<\/p>\n Canucks fans have certainly heard that before.<\/p>\n \u201cIn two years\u2019 time, we\u2019re going to be real competitive and have a chance to compete for the Cup,\u201d former GM Jim Benning<\/a> said back in 2021.<\/p>\n True rebuilds have normally taken longer than that. Not only that, but the Canucks are already behind teams like the Calgary Flames and Chicago Blackhawks in terms of future assets accumulated.<\/p>\n Of course, it\u2019s hard to get ahead when you\u2019re not fully committed to the rebuild.<\/p>\n But, whether fans like it or not, it certainly sounds like a return from Allvin and Rutherford is on the horizon.<\/p>\n