The Vancouver Canucks brand has taken a hit in recent years, and not just because of their putrid play on the ice.<\/p>\n
The team has left a lot to be desired off the ice as well.<\/p>\n
Infighting within their own dressing room, prickly attitudes in front of reporters, and a diminishing level of community involvement have all proven that.<\/p>\n
The Sedins and Ryan Johnson have admitted as much in the past two days, as they\u2019ve conducted their media tours following their appointments in Canucks hockey operations.<\/p>\n
\u201cLooking back, 26 years ago, when we flew into the city, Brian Burke told us that this was the No. 1 organization in the league when it comes to community involvement. We need to get to that point,\u201d Daniel Sedin said during Thursday\u2019s press conference.<\/p>\n
Undoubtedly, that commitment has slipped.<\/p>\n
Take the team\u2019s annual visit to BC Children\u2019s Hospital. When the Sedins played, the whole team showed up.<\/p>\n
Where is the leadership group?<\/p>\n
\u2014 FireAllvin (@nucksfan79_) November 25, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe should be the No. 1 organization in the NHL when it comes to community involvement. We\u2019re going to ask our players to do a lot. I think it\u2019s so important for us as players when we did those things. I think it puts perspective in life. I think fans will respect that. You might have a bad game here and there, but if you\u2019re out, you do the work in the community, I think they can certainly buy into what we are trying to be.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe gotta bring that back,\u201d Henrik agreed. \u201cJust to have the people in the city and this province to be proud to be Canucks fans again. And that\u2019s part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n They\u2019re right.<\/p>\n Vancouver can be a tough media market, but players have to stop viewing reporters as if they\u2019re just out to get them.<\/p>\n Easy to forget now, but the Sedins were once whipping boys in this market with both fans and media. They overcame it.<\/p>\n Who better than them to provide advice for the next generation?<\/p>\n \u201cAs individuals, be honest about your effort. If you\u2019re fair to the media and you treat them with respect, I think they\u2019re going to treat you with respect, too,\u201d Daniel Sedin said in a Friday morning interview on Sportsnet 650<\/a>. \u201cYou have to understand that when things go well, they\u2019re going to build you up to something that you\u2019re probably not. And when you\u2019re playing bad, they\u2019re going to push you down to something that you\u2019re not.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s so important to stay even-keeled. That\u2019s where I think the environment comes into it, too. You need to trust your coaches. You need to trust your teammates. If they think you\u2019re doing ok, that\u2019s all that matters. If the coach doesn\u2019t like your game right now, he\u2019s going to tell you, and that\u2019s all that matters.\u201d<\/p>\n The Canucks became increasingly adversarial with the media during Jim Rutherford\u2019s tenure as president of hockey operations.<\/p>\n Perhaps that\u2019ll change going forward.<\/p>\n \u201cAs far as the media, we would like to be more transparent and accessible,\u201d Johnson said in a television interview with Jason Pires on Global BC. \u201cBreak down a little bit of a wall that has been between the team and the media. Be more accessible, take responsibility for what we\u2019re doing, but be ok to talk about it and own it.\u201d<\/p>\n New @canucks<\/a> GM Ryan Johnson on first priorities, head coaching situation, team culture, the rebuild, local media, community connection, and if he plans to join his bosses for the Grouse Grind this summer. @GlobalBC<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/pkqTtTsaew<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Jason Pires (@JPiresGlobal) May 15, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Social media versus reality<\/p>\n Social media is something Daniel and Henrik didn\u2019t have to deal with early on in their careers, but they acknowledged the challenge it can present to today\u2019s players.<\/p>\n