What Sedins said about Canucks' disappointing start to the season
When Daniel and Henrik Sedin took over as the Vancouver Canucks’ co-presidents of hockey operations, they talked a lot about being more open and transparent with fans and the media.
On Thursday, they attempted to follow through on that openness and transparency with a pseudo State of the Union a quarter of the way through the 2026-27 season.
It’s a season that hasn’t exactly gone to plan — or has it?
‘Tired of being mediocre’
Twenty games into the season, the Canucks have just three wins, and they’re on pace for the worst season in the salary cap era.
“We said we weren’t going to look at wins and losses,” said Henrik. “But we also have to learn how to win games. That’s the toughest part. It’s a big difference from being in games and being on the winning side of games.
“It’s the same as when you miss the playoffs: it’s easy to be close to making the playoffs year after year, but it’s a big difference to making the playoffs year after year.”
That speaks to why the Sedins took the job in the first place: they didn’t want to see their beloved Canucks constantly on the playoff bubble.
“We took this role for two reasons,” said Henrik. “We care about this organization and the city, and we’re also tired of being mediocre. We want to be part of building a team that can continuously make the playoffs.”
That’s a quote that will likely resonate with Canucks fans, who have also been “tired of being mediocre” over the past decade-plus.
The goal for the Sedins in their role as co-presidents is to get the Canucks to a state of constant contention.
‘We could have sold the hope of making the playoffs this year’
Daniel Wagner/Daily Hive
Both Sedins reiterated the importance of patience, implicitly drawing a distinction between their approach and those of previous management groups.
“I mean, we could have sold the hope of making the playoffs this year and then done a retool and be sitting here again being on the outside looking in,” said Henrik. “It’s hard. When you miss the playoffs year after year, it’s hard to get back in; that’s just the way it is. It’s mentally hard.”
In other words, the Canucks could have done the same thing that Jim Benning and Patrik Allvin did, selling a quick retool. Instead, they went another route.
At the same time, they said something a little more concerning about their approach to the trade market and acquiring draft picks.
“You can’t just add picks,” said Henrik. “You’ve got to be able to build your team with players as well. There’s a constant dialogue between us and [Ryan Johnson] and the staff: we’re looking daily at improving our team, there’s no question.”
“We’re not going to trade great players just to get more draft picks,” he added. “Because in the end, you do need to put a better product on the ice and add players to support our young guys coming in.”
That may ring some alarm bells among Canucks fans who believe the team should be selling off every asset available to add picks and prospects. But the Sedins clearly believe that they need to have some veteran support in the lineup for the young players.
Who those veterans will be, however, is an open question.
‘We don’t want to be here again’
While the Sedins showed clear disappointment with how the season has gone — “You come home from games, and you’re not sleeping well” — they also pointed out that there’s value in going through these struggles.
“Our belief is that our players are going to look at every day as an opportunity to get better because they don’t want to be in this situation again,” said Daniel. “That’s how we think every day too: we don’t want to be here again.”
“If they shy away from that, then they shouldn’t be here,” he added. “We need players who push through adversity and become mentally strong.”
That’s a key part of this process: finding out who doesn’t fit the Canucks’ vision for the future, because they’re not able to fight through these dog days and continue to put in a good effort.
“We’ve said that from day one,” said Henrik. “We need to evaluate our players daily. The hardest part of winning in this league is doing those things that Manny talks about consistently. It’s hard when you’re a young player; it’s hard when you’re an old player.”
The Sedins emphasized how much support is being provided for the players as they go through these struggles, but that there’s a limit to the amount of hand-holding they can provide.
“You need to go through it yourself to learn how to deal with it,” said Daniel.