The behind-the-scenes video from the Canucks’ 2017 draft gave Canucks fans some intriguing insight into the draft process, as well as a lasting quote from Jim Benning: “Why isn’t anyone taking Kole Lind?”
Fans were clamouring for a similar video from the 2018 draft and the Canucks delivered on Thursday, putting up nearly four minutes of behind-the-scenes video from the Canucks’ table in Dallas.
There are some fun moments throughout the video, from little bursts of exuberance as the Canucks got the players they wanted, to Director of Amateur Scouting Judd Brackett enthusiastically offering someone on the other side of the table (Thomas Gradin?) a snack.
“Smartfood? You need some?” he said, then offered up a bag of the popcorn snack, which he named by its brand rather than its flavour, which, to me, is weird. I’m just saying I want to know if I’m getting Sweet & Salty or Jalapeno & Cheddar before I say yes.
The most interesting element of the video, however, is that it lets us know a couple of the trades the Canucks were offered during the draft that they didn’t take. The Canucks had a couple opportunities to trade down to gain additional draft picks, but turned down the offers in order to draft Jett Woo and Tyler Madden.
Let's run through the video and see if we can glean any insights.
The first big surprise comes right off the top. When asked whether he favours Filip Zadina or Quinn Hughes, Brackett didn’t hesitate to reply: “Hughes.”
That suggests that if the choice had come down to Zadina or Hughes, they would have gone with the defenceman. It’s likely a choice they didn’t anticipate they would have to make, as Zadina was projected to go third overall, but they still had Hughes higher on their list.
Passing on Zadina might have caused some controversy among Canucks fans had it come to that, so it’s fortunate for all concerned that the Canucks had an easier decision, gratefully selecting Hughes when he fell into their laps.
John Weisbrod had the biggest reaction when Detroit picked Zadina, visibly letting out a sigh of relief as he realized who they were picking, then giving a little fist pump in celebration. Weisbrod grew up with Jim Hughes, Quinn’s dad, and hired him as a coach with the Orlando Solar Bears when he was GM of the IHL team. Weisbrod has literally known Quinn since he was a baby.
“If it’s Quinn, I’d like to go up,” said Weisbrod when it was still in doubt. Otherwise he might have stayed at the table for the Canucks’ first pick, but he couldn’t resist being on stage to shake Quinn’s hand.
Benning could barely be contained in interviews after picking Hughes, and that goes for at the table as well, where he busted out an enthusiastic thumbs up, saying, “That was a home run.”
After that we get into the trade intrigue. Benning had a chat with Kyle Dubas, who traded down in the first round from 25th to 29th overall, but might have been interested in trading up in the second round.
“I just told him that we’re going to keep it,” said Benning a moment later. It’s unclear which pick he’s referring to and what the Leafs’ offer might have been, but it’s fairly safe to assume it was the 37th overall pick.
After that, Benning talked to Minnesota Wild GM Paul Fenton about trading the 37th pick for two third round picks: 63 and 86. After the phone call, Benning suggested the Canucks have three players in mind for that pick, but as the Canucks’ pick approached, Brackett made it a lot more clear: “If Woo goes, we make that trade.”
If a team ahead of the Canucks had taken Woo, then the Canucks likely would have traded down to 63rd and 86th overall with the Wild. Benning also took a phone call from Doug Armstrong, GM of the St. Louis Blues, but declined to even consider an offer.
“We got our guy,” said Benning as he clapped Brackett on the back, then gave an enthusiastic fist pump after Brackett deadpanned, “Yep.”
That means the Canucks were not very high on some of the players that slipped out of the first round, like Ryan McLeod, Bode Wilde, or Akil Thomas, that were picked after 37th overall. The Wild ended up keeping both their picks, selecting two-way power forward Jack McBain 63rd overall and skilled playmaking centre Alex Khovanov 86th overall. McBain and Khovanov were ranked 52nd and 87th by International Scouting Services.
There’s another neat moment as Benning announces the pick: you can see Brackett mouthing along, like he’s lip-syncing: “Jett Woo.” To be fair, it’s a really fun name to say.
In the midst of all that scuppered wheeling and dealing, Benning and Weisbrod took a moment to appreciate one of the best plays from last season. It’s clear that Benning was somehow seeing John Tavares battled through Sean Coutourier for the very first time, as he gasped in amazement when Tavares escaped Coutourier and set up Josh Bailey.
There are a couple takeaways from that: one is that Benning simply loves the game of hockey. The other is that he must not have a lot of time to watch even highlights from non-Canucks games. That highlight was everywhere last season.
Then it’s on to the third round, where the debate centred around Tyler Madden. Brackett brought up the possibility of drafting the number one goaltender on their list, but Benning shot him down.
“If we had multiple thirds,” said Benning, “but I’m not taking a goalie. We’ve got two good goalies.”
The Canucks have a lot of belief in Thatcher Demko and Michael DiPietro, enough to avoid drafting another goaltender as high as the third round. Instead, they waited until the seventh round, adding MJHL goaltender Matthew Thiessen, who they talk about later in the video.
“I always feel better taking goalies that are going to college,” said Weisbrod before the Thiessen pick, and Brackett quickly agrees: “You need time. When does a CHL goalie late pan out? Other than Murray?”
Matt Murray wasn’t really a late pick; coincidentally, he was taken in the third round, where the Canucks determined they weren’t going to pick a goaltender.
It’s just interesting watching this all shake down, like the proverbial butterfly causing a hurricane halfway around the world. If Detroit had selected Jett Woo 36th overall instead of Jared McIsaac, the Canucks could have traded down to get two third round picks. That would have given them the “multiple thirds” that Benning mentioned, so they might have used one of those picks on a goaltender, perhaps Jakub Skarek, Jesper Eliasson, or Lukas Dostal, all of whom were selected in the third round. And, if the Canucks had selected a goaltender in the third round, they likely wouldn’t have taken Thiessen in the seventh round.
But back to Tyler Madden. It’s clear that Brackett is high on Madden, as he talked him up quite a bit with Benning prior to the pick.
“Lots of skill, determination, going to school, has some time,” said Brackett, then responded to Benning asking about his school by pointing out that he could very well take Adam Gaudette’s spot in the lineup at Northeastern University. That will give him plenty of opportunity to prove Brackett right and ease the minds of anyone concerned that the Canucks picked Madden over Jake Wise.
Before the Canucks could make the pick, however, Rob Blake, the GM of the Los Angeles Kings, offered a trade: 4th and 5th round picks for the Canucks’ pick at 68th overall. That would be 113th and 144th overall, and Brackett quickly made it clear that he’d rather have Madden than those two picks.
The Canucks counter-offer, asking for the 82nd pick rather than 113th — “If they do 82, I would do it,” said Brackett — but Blake opted to keep the third-round pick. The Kings used the 82nd pick on wild card Bulat Shafigullin, who lit up the Russian junior league, but didn’t appear at any international tournaments, so was a bit under the radar. The Kings picked 5’8” forward Aidan Dudas at 113 and over-age goaltender David Hrenak at 144.
Madden was one of the Canucks picks that was a bit of a head-scratcher — he had limited production in the USHL for a highly-skilled forward — but seeing how high Brackett is on him should put Canucks’ minds at ease. Brackett has a fairly solid track record with the USHL.
After that, there was just one more trade call, as Brian “Mac” MacLellan offered two 6th round picks, this year’s and next year’s, for the Canucks’ sixth round pick. Benning took a quick straw poll and looked to Jonathan Wall, the Canucks’ Senior Director of Hockey Operations and Analytics, who confirms that they would get good value in the trade, but deferred to Brackett in case there was a player he wanted at 161st overall.
“I would do it,” said Brackett, and the deal was done.
Washington picked a player out of the Canucks’ backyard with the pick, selecting Vancouver Giants defenceman Alex Kannok-Leipert. With the lower pick in the sixth round, the Canucks went with the tiny, but undeniably skilled, Artyom Manukyan, about whom both Brackett and Weisbrod were excited.
Overall, it’s a fun look behind the scenes. Seeing the actual trade offers and the process of confirming or declining the trade is the highlight, though it makes me wonder how the other GMs feel about their trade offers being broadcast.
