- Ryan Johnson wants the Canucks judged on habits before wins in his first year as GM
- Vancouver finished last in the NHL at 25-49-8 and handed the bench to Manny Malhotra
- Read below for what Johnson said about Elias Pettersson, Thatcher Demko and the rebuild
Ryan Johnson is not starting with the scoreboard.
The new Canucks general manager talked about the standards he wants reset before wins enter the conversation, and the line he gave Kevin Woodley of NHL.com has nothing to do with game nights.
“We will be a 7 a.m. group. When we do that then you can start talking about 7 p.m. But we’re going to work on those things first.”
Vancouver earned that kind of reset. The Canucks finished last in the NHL with 58 points (25-49-8), ranked 32nd in goals against (314) and 32nd on the penalty kill at 71.5 percent.
They replaced Patrik Allvin with Johnson on May 14 and fired coach Adam Foote five days later. Manny Malhotra moved up from Abbotsford, where he won a Calder Cup in 2024.
Johnson wants a straighter style out of that group. “We’ll play north, we’ll play fast and we’ll attack in the offensive zone,” he said. “There isn’t a lot of east/west.”
Three veterans arrived this summer to hold the room to it. Brendan Gallagher came over from Montreal on June 29, and Jamie Oleksiak and Luke Schenn signed on July 1.
Johnson was asked about the Gallagher trade that day and did not hide what sold him. “Is there anybody that checks the boxes more than this guy?” he said.
Watch Johnson explain the Gallagher deal:
Elias Pettersson is the biggest swing on the roster. He has 30 goals and 96 points combined across the past two seasons after piling up 102 points by himself in 2022-23.
Johnson described his offseason conversations with Pettersson, and the answer was about pressure rather than production.
“What I’m stressing with (Pettersson) is I want to give him an environment that supports him, that allows him to be himself and not feel that he’s got to be anything other than himself.”
The club is already leaning on him, right down to a countdown clock built around his number:
Thatcher Demko is the other unknown. He played 20 games last season and had hip surgery in January, and Johnson has refused to put a date on his return, which is part of why Vancouver brought Chris Driedger in on a tryout.
The long view showed up again when Johnson discussed Caleb Malhotra, the No. 3 pick in June and the coach’s son, who is headed to Boston University this season.
“We’ll make decisions with him and his team with the thinking of not the next 12 months, but the next 12 years,” Johnson said.
