Jim Benning makes good impression on first day on job

Jim Benning did not look out of place as he spoke to a large media throng as a National Hockey League general manager for the first time Friday.
Although the Vancouver Canucks’ new GM is, technically, a rookie at his position, he appeared quite the opposite, exuding a quiet confidence. He was calm, relaxed and receptive to questions that his predecessor, the fired Mike Gillis, might have evaded or simply refused to answer. Benning even introduced himself to media types.
In other words, a decidedly different era has begun.
There was no slamming of core players that former coach John Tortorella called “stale” in his final news conference with the Canucks. Instead, Benning praised the club’s “high-character” and “quality” veterans who helped the Canucks come within a game of winning the Stanley Cup in 2011.
Benning displayed no swagger or bravado, and made no promises of a quick-fix. Contrary to what others might have done, the 51-year-old Edmonton native did not appear anxious to make a strong first impression. He displayed honesty and modesty that defied his position as the new No. 2 hockey executive behind president of hockey operations Trevor Linden, a former Canucks teammate.
But Benning did make an impression while clearly demonstrating that he is not a know-it-all.
“You don’t really know if you’re ready (to be a GM) until you actually do it,” he said. “But I’m going to work hard.”
One might recall that, upon arrival, Gillis said he wasn’t sure whether Daniel and Henrik Sedin were first-line players, and he asserted that the Canucks were “not close” to being Stanley Cup contenders.
On the other hand, Benning expressed optimism, which some might say was unfounded, that the Canucks can get back to their heydays with the same core – while also saying that the club would ask a veteran to waive his no-trade clause, if management feels that’s necessary.
“I believe in our core players,” Benning said. “They're high-character people … We are going to try and help them out by having more depth on our roster and playing four lines. We need to hire the right coach. That will be an important decision for us going forward.
"Some of the players, for whatever reason, just didn't have a good season last year. It's a good team, it's a talented team, and I feel confident that these guys are going to have a good year next year."
Obviously, Benning is aware that his first major decision – the hiring of a new coach – will be pivotal to take the Canucks “back in the right direction.” In Tortorella’s one and only season with the Canucks, he was, at times, comical, ludicrous, sad and baffling.
For details, see his pre-season comments about reporters with cell phones and players’ use of Twitter; his effort to “get” Calgary Flames coach Bob Hartley by storming their dressing room; the Canucks’ losing streaks; injuries to the Sedins and others; and the decision not to call a timeout while the New York Islanders were overcoming a 3-0 third-period lead en route to a miraculous one-sided comeback win. Also, check out Tortorella’s decision to bench former top goaltender Roberto Luongo for the Heritage Classic; and Vancouver’s absence from the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 2008.
Don’t expect the next Canucks coach to be as volatile or enigmatic.
“We want a coach that is firm, but fair, that has good communication skills so he can relate to the players,” said Benning. “We want a coach that is going to play a structured style of game when we don't have the puck, but give the players the freedom to skate and create when they do have the puck.”
You can expect no gong shows like the ones that occurred and longer practices than the short ones that Tortorella preferred. (Those sniffles you hear are from media types who had plenty of good quotes and story material.) The club’s style, which was often in question under Tortorella, should be more distinct under Benning and the new coach.
“We want to become a four-line team,” Benning said. “You watch the playoffs, the final four teams that are playing, they have four lines that contribute. We want our third and fourth lines to have a role in the team winning.
“We have some work to do there in getting to that point, but we want to be a four-line, (six-defencemen), complete team.”
He pledged to have third and fourth lines that have more physicality and grit, and can keep the puck in the offensive zone for a while and “take the heat off” the top two lines.
“We need to get back to what we're good at,” Benning said. “This organization needs to play an up-tempo, fast-skating, skilled game. Before last season this team had almost an attitude about them, a relentless attitude to skate and to wear teams down and to score. For whatever reason that didn't happen last year, but I am hoping with (Linden) we hire the right coach for this group and we can recapture that going forward.”
Whether Benning can get what he wants from within or outside the organization remains to be seen. This summer’s NHL draft, in which Vancouver has the sixth overall selection as its first pick, will also be crucial to the Canucks’ turnaround hopes. It could determine how long the process will take, pending the players chosen and trades that send draft choices the other way.
Benning’s skills as a scout should come in handy here.
After completing his playing career, the former Toronto Maple Leafs and Canucks defenceman went to work as a scout, initially on a part-time basis, with the Buffalo Sabres, where he spent 12 years. He rose to the post of director of amateur scouting with the Sabres and then moved on to the Boston Bruins for eight seasons and served as director of player personnel and assistant general manager.
He has worn a heavy coat and sipped hot beverages from on high in many frigid rinks. But, to his credit, he did not slag Vancouver’s beleaguered scouting crew. Head scout Ron Delorme and his cohorts have come under criticism after only one Gillis draft choice became an NHL regular. Ironically, Cody Hodgson was the former GM’s first-ever draft pick, but he now plays for Buffalo as a result of a trade that has worked heavily in the Sabres’ favour thus far.
Generally, Vancouver has had a poor draft record throughout its NHL existence. But there are some notable exceptions, including Linden, Pavel Bure and the Sedins. And, if you look closely, you will see that the bulk of the Canucks’ core was mined from the draft after being scouted by current top bird dogs.
What people tend to forget: Many teams have the same players on their lists and get access to other lists provided by NHL Central Scouting. At any rate, most scouts know who the best teenage players are and where – in the world – to find them. The challenge is to recognize other factors – namely, heart, desire, mental toughness and personal issues – and being able to forecast what most players will be like when they are supposedly ready for the NHL in about four years. The latter duty falls largely to senior management. Scouts are like waiters who serve appetizers during cocktail hour. However, with every team, the GM or, in today’s new front-office model, the GM and the president of hockey operations, investigate what is really underneath the top layer and then do the picking or the passing.
It has become increasingly evident that Gillis, Delorme and other scouts were not on the same wavelength at draft time and on many other occasions. How else do you explain the decision to draft under-sized centre Jordan Schroeder with the club’s first selection, ahead of David Perron, in 2010? Schroeder appears in danger of being let go as a restricted free agent this summer, although it should be noted that he has battled several injuries. How else do you explain other picks that have languished in the minors and not even been signed? How else do you explain the little heed paid to players from the Western Hockey League, which produces some of the league’s top players annually? These WHL players don’t just come from Canada. They also hail from the U.S. and Europe, because youngsters want to play in one of the top junior leagues in the world. What about several trades that did not work out or go as expected?
See Luongo and Schneider, Cory. Position: Goaltender.
In these matters, it was Gillis who had the final say.
To his credit, Benning did not slam Vancouver’s scouts, pledging to work with them instead.
“I come from a scouting background,” said Benning, who was drafted sixth overall by Toronto in 1981 after starring for the Portland Winterhawks of the WHL and went on to play 10 NHL seasons before concluding his career in the minors. “We are going to give these (scouts) direction. I'm going to communicate what we want, what we think a Vancouver Canuck player should be. And I'm going to work with them. I am going to get out and see games. I'm going to be part of that group and I am going to try and make that group better.”
The feeling here is that Benning’s cause will be aided if he also listens to his scouts and makes draft picks and trades based on their assessments and recommendations instead of ignoring their observations and advice. Considering that Benning used to make the recommendations and helped the Bruins make some excellent selections en route to their 2011 Stanley Cup victory, chances are that he will listen.
Again to his credit, Benning pledged to work with the management team that includes assistant general manager and salary cap specialist Laurence Gilman, who was passed for the GM’s post, and fellow assistant GM Lorne Henning and franchise icon Stan Smyl, who has the title of senior advisor to the general manager but should be called Canuck for life. Benning equated the management team to players in the dressing room who will work together and support each other.
The new GM stressed that he is not going to come in and make changes until he makes proper assessments. There was no mention of a sleep doctor or using “science” (a Gillis hallmark) to better the team, and analytics only came up briefly. In Benning’s view, they help when evaluating veteran NHLers, but not with amateurs who are still developing.
In other words, Benning is going to rebuild the Canucks in a methodical manner, largely on effort. He won’t blow up the building and start over. It remains to be seen whether that approach will appease Canuck fans, because there is considerable work to be done before the season starts. He has a coach to hire and the NHL scouting combine, draft, trades and contract matters to sort out. Not necessarily in that order.
However, if Benning’s first day on the job was any indication, he will give Canuck Nation reason to start believing in him – and his abilities – in the near future.