Vancouver Canucks fans just haven’t had a lot to cheer about over the years. It all started with seeing this team constantly fail to bring home a Stanley Cup. Then came the slow and painful transition of a rebuild.
Then the draft lottery kept screwing them over, and the Canucks missed out on Auston Matthews, Patrik Laine, Nico Hischier and Nolan Patrick.
And though general manager Jim Benning deserves some credit for finding great value in free agency — including power play specialist Sam Gagner, veteran sniper Thomas Vanek and second-pairing blueliner Michael Del Zotto — these signings make the Canucks a lot better on paper and defeat the purpose of tanking.