The Vancouver Canucks have announced the hiring of Jim Rutherford as President of Hockey Ops and interim General Manager, the team announced via Twitter. The deal is reportedly for three years.
Introducing our new President, Hockey Operations: Jim Rutherford.
Welcome to Vancouver, Jim.DETAILS | https://t.co/iIXe4qJMow pic.twitter.com/TWw8gvcZIE
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) December 9, 2021
Jim Rutherford Hired As Canucks President, Interim GM
Rutherford, 72, was previously General Manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins. He held the position from 2014 to January 2021, where he abruptly resigned. During his tenure, the Penguins won back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2016 and 2017.
Before his stint as Pittsburgh GM, Rutherford spent nearly two decades with the Hartford Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes. After the team moved to Carolina in 1997, Rutherford guided the team to three Eastern Conference Finals appearances in 2002, 2006, and 2009. The team won the Stanley Cup in 2006 in an exciting seven-game series against the Edmonton Oilers.
What It Means For Vancouver
Vancouver cleaned house earlier this week, relieving long-time GM Jim Benning of his duties, along with assistant GM John Weisbrod. The same night the Canucks fired head coach Travis Green, but immediately replaced him with Bruce Boudreau. “It is time for a new vision and a new leader who will set a path forward for this team,” Canucks owner Francesco Aquilini said in a statement. Rutherford will continue the search for a full-time GM.
Rutherford brings a winning pedigree as well as decades of experience to a Canucks team that has seemed to have lost their way of late. The goal is for Rutherford to lend a stabilizing hand to an organization that was in chaos just a week ago.
He inherits a young core that includes centre Elias Pettersson, defenceman Quinn Hughes, and goaltender Thatcher Demko, a solid foundation to build a team around. However, the Canucks are bogged down financially by the bloated contracts of under-performing defencemen Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Tyler Myers. Both players carry huge cap hits for several more years.
There is a lot of pressure and years of disappointment built up in Vancouver. It is known as one of the most passionate markets in the NHL. A change was needed to give an increasingly disenchanted fanbase hope. In the hiring of Jim Rutherford as well as Boudreau, the Canucks may have finally provided that hope.
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