Halford & Brough in the Morning - Feeling Connected To The Canucks Again

Episode Date: May 15, 2026

In hour one, Mike & Jason look back at the previous day in sports, they give their thoughts on yesterday's Canucks press conference that introduced Henrik & Daniel Sedin as Co-Presidents of Hockey Ops, as well as Ryan Johnson as the new General Manager (3:00), plus the boys hear from Canucks Talk host & The Athletic Vancouver's Thomas Drance (27:40) on what he thought. This podcast is produced by Andy Cole and Greg Balloch. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

You're listening to HALFERN I'm I asked if they would take on co-presidents' roles of hockey operations. And I'm thrilled they said yes, and here we are today. Dev it off again, fire, scores. There it is his first Stanley Cup playoff goal. Mitch Marner, who's in, and he stops at home. Mitchell Marner. Ladies and gentlemen, the weekend.

Good morning, Vancouver, 601 on a Friday. Sweet, sweet Friday. Happy Friday, everybody. He's Halford and his Bradford and SportsNet 650. We are coming to live from the Kintech Studios in beautiful Mount Pleasant in Vancouver. Jason, good morning. Good morning. I'm feeling good.

Adog, good morning to you. Who is that guy? And Ladi, good morning to you as well. Hello, hello. Calford and Brough of the morning is brought to you by Sands and Associates. They're open seven days a week and open late to help you get debt free. With no judgment or upfront fees, visit them today at sands-trustee.com. We are an hour one of the program.

Hour 1 is brought to by North Star Metal Recycling. Vancouver's Premier Metal Recycler pays the highest prices on scrap metal. North Star Metal Recycling, they recycle you get paid. Visit them at 1170 Pall Street in Vancouver. We are coming to you live and happy from the Kintech Studio. Step strong with orthotics and footwear. from Kintech. If you want to text into the show today,

maybe you're in a good mood as well. You can text into the Dunbar Lumber text line at 650, 650, trusted by contractors and DIY champions across Metro Vancouver for generations. Find them at three convenient locations or visit Dunbar Lumber online today. All right, let's get to the guest list.

It's the Duick Morning Drive, brought to you by the Duick Auto Group. We are going Canucks Heavy with dare I say it, an all-star lineup of Canucks's guests on today's show. It begins at 6.30. Thomas Drance is going to join the program twice in his many days. Kodok's Central Athletic, Vancouver, you know him well.

The reason he's so happy, folks, is because Daniel and Henrik Sidene have been promoted to co-po-ho's, co-president of hockey operations. And Ryan Johnson, named the 13th general manager in franchise history, and their presser yesterday left everybody in very good spirits. We'll get to Drans's thoughts on it all at 630. 7 o'clock AJ from AJ's Pizza is going to join the program. A reminder to still ask us anything Friday.

A $100 gift card to AJ's goes to the best ask us anything. After AJ at 705, Dan Murphy's going to join the program. Canucks and Hockey Night Canada host. Murph covered the Sadeen and Sadiens and Johnson as players. Now he gets to cover them as the highest ranking executives in the Canucks organization. Murph is going to join us at 705. Then it's 730. Get this.

Daniel Sedin live in studio. We're going to spend most of this morning tidying up. Lots of questions. Yeah, he gets to see how we live. Yeah, I'm going to have a quick shower. Yeah. Why are there so many empty tins of tuna? Lots of questions to ask the newly minted co-po-ho.

What is that a smell? And there's going to be one big question that we want to ask Daniel Sidon. Why did you decide to do this? Why take this on? Daniel Sidene live in studio with us at 7.30 this morning. then at 8 o'clock Rick Dollywall is going to join the program. Intrepid Connects reporter Donnie and Dolly, Check TV. Rick did not text me what he's going to talk about.

You did not text me what Rick texted you what he was going to talk about. So I turned back over the classic brough, Bruff handler, Dollywall handler, Jason Brough. What is Rick going to talk about today? You just started out. Ask about the presser. Okay. Can do.

I think we might also, I know, it's in the past now. but we're going to find out maybe what happened in the talks with Evan Gold. So 8 o'clock, it's Dollywall, 7.30, Daniel Sedin live in studio. 7 o'clock, it's Murph, 6.30, it's Drans. It is a loaded Canucks show, almost exclusively Canucks talk today. Save a couple of asks us anything. So without further ado, Laddie, let's tell everybody what happened. Hey, did you guys see the game last night?

No. No. What happened? I missed all the action because I was. We know how busy your life can be. What happened? Miss it? You miss that?

Whoa. So we begin with the news of the day and the press conference of the day. Yesterday, Daniel and Hendrik Sidene, as I mentioned, were promoted to co-presidents of hockey operations. And Ryan Johnson was named the 13th general manager in the history of the Vancouver Canucks. Also of note, Jim Rutherford officially sliding into a senior advisor role. But that's a footnote to this thing because it was all about the Cedines and Ryan Johnson yesterday. And that left a lot of people, including Jason. and Rob, feeling pretty good about the future of the Vancouver Canucks.

Halford, I don't know about you, but after watching that press conference yesterday, I know it was only a press conference, okay? Okay. But this is the most connected I've felt to the Canucks in years. I dare say, Alford, I might actually like them again. What? I will always love the Canucks, but I have not liked them for a while. and if you listen to this show,

you can probably tell I'm not very good at pretending to like something. I can't speak for all the listeners. Some of you may still be skeptical. Some of you may not have liked what you heard yesterday, but yesterday, me personally, I felt seen and heard as a Canucks fan. The Siddins and Ryan Johnson struck the perfect tone.

It was exactly what I wanted to hear, and I actually believed what they were saying. They need to be patient in order to build something special. They need to be process-oriented. They need to be better teammates, everyone. They need to foster a better environment. They need to get back out in the community more. There was a sense of humility and obligation that I have not associated with the Canucks their leaders especially in a long time.

There was no, woe was me, there was no sense of disdain for the people asking the questions, there was no promise of a quick fix, there was no spin. It was three earnest guys up there talking about the work they were going to put in and how they were going to do everything they could to return a franchise.

They clearly care about to respectability. I like that word earnest. I think it's very accurate, very apropos. Yeah, I mean, especially for us, like, we're sarcastic about everything. The opposite of earnest sometimes. But as I get older, I appreciate people that are just, like, earnestly want to do a good job. There's no too cool for school.

I'm a hard work, like, you know, like, that sounds lame, right? Like, culture, lame, right? Get those guys out of the organization. Okay? Now, don't get me wrong. The actions are going to speak louder than words. You don't need to tell me that. But to be perfectly honest, I didn't need to hear yesterday what they were going to do with the coaching staff or whether or not they'd be willing to trade heronic or if they're going to weaponize cap space or whatever.

All that stuff will play out in due course and we will judge it on a day-to-day basis. Okay, but just finally, at the risk of completely skewering my Hard-won reputation as a heartless jerk, yesterday I felt like the Canucks were in caring hands again. Aw. Isn't that nice? It is nice.

I'm seeing, here's the thing. I'm being really earnest there too, right? Like, they're carrying hands. This is weirding me out, really. I don't know how I feel about this. I've known him for a long time. So on the rare occasion that I've seen this, genuine, like, joy, happiness.

But also... It's like the Grinch thing where the camera zooms into the heart, the little black. Or how about, I've just called it, like, I've seen it for the last few years. We've gotten to this point. And I'm like, yes. No, I agree with you.

That's what I want to hear. I agree with you. There was never any faking that he liked it. And quite honestly, there shouldn't have been. Nothing in the organization gave them that sort of goodwill or good faith from the fans. The fans had a right to be upset with how everything went over the last few years. And yesterday, I heard a lot of things.

And when Bruff and I were talking off there, I classified it as vibes. Not that they were sending them out into the universe, but that everyone left with good vibes. And it wasn't just the Siddins. Ryan Johnson is very well spoken. But there were... I think he was the most impressive yesterday. But there were specifics from yesterday

where I pointed to them and I'm like, that is something that's important. That is something that they needed to recognize and they did. That is something that had to be said and it was. All of those things. Like, honestly, one of the funny things I thought was, I joked with a buddy amount, I'm like the percentage game. Ownership in its statement said that it was 100% committed to the rebuild.

And then when asked about autonomy, Daniel said he and Henrik have 100% autonomy. That's 200% right there. It's pretty impressive. That's a lot of percent. But again, the quotes that I thought were most important of the whole thing

were when Ryan Johnson and the Sadeans talked about patience because it's all that I wanted to hear. Yeah, when RJ said the rebuild will take as long as it takes, I was like, gave the Michael Scott,

thank you. That's all I wanted to hear. Johnson's quote was. Jim Rutherford came in. It was about two years, two years and a half. Step by step, unless we skip a couple,

and we go faster. Johnson's quote was, we're going to do this step by step and we're not going to race through it. Hendricks was a little bit more poetic. And he said, quote, to do this as fast as possible, we have to be very careful and go slow. What a line. What a slogan. To do this as fast as possible, we have to be very careful and go slow. The fastest way to get somewhere is to go slow is the perfect mantra for this. every time anybody wants to step on the accelerator in the next two years,

that should be the slang. That should be the phrase. That should be the quote uttered. Yeah, we'll go fast and we'll do it by taking it slow. Well, also, RJ on we bled together in the arena and we're here to do it again. Yeah, that could be on a little banner. That was all right. Okay, let's play some audio from yesterday.

And there's a bunch of clips we want to play. We'll probably have to play them throughout the show. Ryan Johnson, very well-spoken. And I was impressed with a lot of his answers, almost all of his answers, just because he seemed to understand all the answers and where they were coming from. And I've seen press conferences where media has asked Canucks leaders like, hey, you're going to do this. And it's something we've all discussed. And the GM or the president is like, I don't know what he's talking about. Yeah.

Right? Yep. Like you just got that sense that they were on the same wavelength. as a lot of the hardcore fans have been. This is Ryan Johnson on, and yeah, that word culture was used a few times, setting the culture. Well, I think anybody that has worked with me,

alongside me, players that have played with me, they understand there's some real non-negotiables. And before we talk about wins and losses are getting to that point, the environment will be first and foremost, and that'll be very clear. The expectation of the players, I always talk about the professionalism of how they approach every day and having a plan, but even more importantly, and probably guys that have played for me would tell you my biggest challenge of them every day is what is the quality of teammate

that you could be for each other today, and what is that, and what does that exist? Well, that is how you practice. It's how you push each other to be a better plan. player room awareness of who is in the room, how they're feeling that day. It's not about being the nicest guy. The quality of teammate is much harder than that. It's your line changes, paying attention to we might roll lines and roll and roll and roll and roll at the right times. And then finally somebody eats.

But those are all things that I'm not worried about wins and losses. The environment is something that I will establish now, as I'm talking to players, not in September. they'll be very aware that when they walk into this facility in September, that they've got to make a decision of who they want to be as a player, but who they want to be as a person and a teammate. And they'll know that. And we will establish that very, very quickly. And I think you'll see some shoulders back and some excitement of guys challenging each other

on how good they can be for each other. So I listen to that, and I don't hear a guy that is messing around, Were you shoulders back when you heard it? My shoulders go back anymore. Continually slumped forward. Lost the range of motion. Yeah, yeah. I just like, I don't even have any back muscles anymore.

Oh, Hans Moleman over now. Soon you'll have a mighty hump. But the thing listening to Ryan Johnson is, like, you can tell he is a nice guy. And he does have a lot of empathy. And he is going to listen to people. But he's also going to tell you what he expects. and maybe you'll be allowed a few slip-ups here and there, but if it becomes a problem, you're out.

So, okay, someone just texted in. I do want to address this right off the hop. And a lot of people have said this. Like, yesterday was a press conference and that's great. But unsigned textor writes in, I will believe in real change when I see action. Like veterans being shipped out in intelligent free agent signings. Right now, it's Lyndon slash Benning 2.0.

You know what, Texter? that is an absolutely fair thing to point out because right now words or words and talk or talk. I will push back though in that on day one of the job, you can't do anything other than control what you can control. And they made a point of saying yesterday that what they can control is the culture of this team,

how guys come to work and do their work, and what the standard is going to be. And I think Johnson did a really good job of saying the standard doesn't start when you were, for captain skates and preseason training in September. It starts now. Like, I'm going to make this abundantly clear not to guys in September, but two guys now. I thought that was a great bit of turn to phrase from him, making sure that everyone

understands that they're on the job. And the moment they get on the job, they're going to go about setting the things that they can control immediately. They can't trade Philip Horonick right now. They can't trade Elias Pederseran. They've been on the job for one day. Yeah. They can't go.

They can't even make the draft pick. We're not going to ask Daniel Sedan when we talked to him today. Like, what are you going to do here? What are you going to do there? I want to get a better understanding of why he took the job and what he's thought about over the last few years, along with his brother. Like, we're not going to get into, are you going to trade Ronick? That's going to come. Okay.

We're going to have a lot of days to ask those questions. The draft is coming up in June. obviously there's going to be a bunch of availability before then. Don't worry about that stuff. You're going to find out. But we are going to follow a process as well. And I want to talk more about what happened yesterday because player involvement in the community,

a lot of people sit there and they go, well, how's that going to lead to a Stanley Cup? And I think in a roundabout way, it helps. and I'm going to play this audio from the Siddines on player involvement in the community. They were asked directly, do you think player involvement in the community

has gone down since you were there? And I think the obvious answer is, yeah, it has, and that's going to change. I mean, just looking back 26 years ago, when we flew into the city, Brian Burke, told us that this was the number one organization in the league when it comes to community, And we need to get to that point.

We should be the number one organization in the NERSEL when it comes to community involvement. And we're going to ask our players to do a lot. I think it's so important for us as players, and we did those things. I think it puts perspective in life. I think fans with respect there. You might have a bad game here and there,

but if you're out, you do the work in the community. you do the work in the community, I think they can certainly buy into what we're trying to be. That's a big part of the connected piece as well. We're going to bring that back and surely, I mean, just to have the

people in the city and this province to be proud to be proud to be proud to be proud to be a Kinnock fans again and that's part of it. Proud to be Kinnock's fans again. I mean, that's an acknowledgement right there. And when he talked about when you go out in the community,

and maybe you're going to visit some sick kids in the hospital gives you perspective on life. How many times over the last few years have we watched the Canucks, the players moping around, looking so hard done by, and the fans watching them are like, you're in the NHL. I realize it's hard.

I realize there are challenges, but you are living out a dream. And it would be nice if you looked appreciative. And it would be nice if you looked happy to be there. Because the fans want to connect with you. And I think when you go out and you do a lot of community work and you learn that perspective and you become a better person, you become more empathetic, you're not just in your bubble

as a pretty privileged NHL player. That's also going to like provide some goodwill so that maybe when you do have a bad game, not everyone's hammering you for it. I think it all goes to the room they're trying to build. Yes. Right? I mean, that's what it comes down to.

Like, it's great from a community involvement perspective, without saying when you're more involved in the community. But it was very clear that what they were talking about, especially the line, all it took for me for Sadine to sell that line was it gives you perspective. And I think a lot of the current players across the board in the National Hockey League, quite frankly, sometimes lacked that perspective. Someone texted this in.

It's funny enough because I saw it as well yesterday. Max Lapierre, their former teammate in 2011, was on a podcast. He was talking about kind of nuanced specifics about what made them so great and what made that room so great. And he said, they would go around, the Siddins would, and would thank the guys that were playing six or seven minutes a night for the role that they were playing, because they understood that this was a team thing.

And, you know, if everyone eats or nobody eats, that's how it worked. And he said, those were the little things. And that only comes from perspective. Yeah. Because if you don't have that understanding, or you don't appreciate that there's a collective working, or that it goes beyond your contributions. And that's a big thing.

That's what we're talking about. It goes beyond what you're talking about. It goes beyond what you're doing, and as you put it in your bubble, then you'll never really understand how many people it takes to make this thing work. Rich Texan, I am not saying that it won't happen, but brough. Didn't everybody four years ago have that amazing feeling that Rutherford, Alvin, and wow, look at all those coaches on the ice, finally, and then smash crash, it was over again.

I hope this works out, but right now it's just words. Alfred, I'm going to ask you, did I have the same feeling four years ago? though. No, because one thing Rutherford and Alveen never said, and quite frankly, couldn't say, because they weren't in a position to do so, was to give the sense that they were willing to put the pride back into the crest because they once wore it. I mean, that's not even close. I also think there were comments from Rutherford. I was excited. You know, talking about like, it's only going to take a couple of years, et cetera, et cetera. And it's like you, I don't think you're, I don't think you're connecting with us right now. I don't think you understand us as a family.

base. But I, you know, admittedly, this is my perspective. Maybe it's not yours. I was excited when they came aboard because I liked the idea of having outsiders and fresh eyes and new perspectives and someone who hadn't been around because I thought they had gone down that road already. But ultimately, some of that proved to be their undoing. And Rutherford acknowledged it several times that he misread the market from a media perspective, from a pressure pressure perspective, whatever. And I'm not sure Rutherford or Alvin ever truly appreciated what Canucks hockey and the market and the crest meant. I think at times there was a lot of, I wish we were doing things the way we were doing them in Pittsburgh.

And that's fine. But it never translated because Pittsburgh was Pittsburgh and Vancouver is Vancouver. In this situation, you have three guys that know exactly what this market can bring when it's really good. And based on last year, what this market can be when it's at its lowest. That is a unique perspective that only those three guys can bring. Mike Texin, talking about the Siddines and RJ, they are all class, humble, hardworking, sincere human beings. I've gone from hating the team yesterday to being proud of the team today. So I'm going to let you in on a little confession.

For the last few years, obviously I've not liked this team. And, you know, I thought, man, like, this isn't good. you know, this is my job and I don't really like this team anymore. And I'll say, like, I'm always going to love the Canucks, right? You're a big part of my life, big part of my work. You know, I go out and talk with my friends and we talk about the Canucks. But I did wonder, and I think I had this conversation with you off the air a few times. I'm like, how is it going to turn?

Like, because at some point I hope I like this team again. You had, you did say that. Like how and what's going to be what's going to be that point where I'm like watching the games and cheering for them and not laughing when bad things happened to them. I'm sorry, but that's what I would do. And I think a lot of people probably did too. You know, like they just became so, you know, not numb, but just like, you know, like screw you guys. if you're not going to play, if you're not going to, if you're not going to be a team, then, you know, I'm, I'm, I'm going to make this toxic.

Do you know what I mean? Like, and, you know, I, I, my job is to call it like I see it and to provide opinion on what I see. And I haven't liked what I've seen. Even that playoff run, even that playoff run, I remember when they lost to the Oilers, I was like, eh, I don't have to cancel my golf trip now. I wasn't that upset.

I really wasn't because I didn't believe in them. And there was stuff going on on that team that you could tell was weird and was going to lead somewhere bad. And it did. And yesterday, I felt

like again, I felt like they were in the right hands again. is this guaranteeing a Stanley Cup? No. But I just want to cheer for this team again. And I think it's going to, I think, I think it's going to start now. Well said, my friend.

Kay, we're going to go to break. When we come back, Thomas Drance from the Athletic is going to join the program. That's right. Twice in as many days. You know, it's a special time when we call on the Drans for back-to-back hits. But we're going to get all his thoughts from yesterday's introductory presser. Daniel and Hendrick Sidiener in as the co-president. of Hockey Ops, and Ryan Johnson has been named the 13th general manager in Vancouver

Canucks franchise history. Thomas Drenz is coming up next. You're listening to the Halford and Breff Show on SportsNet 650. It's Canucks Central on SportsNet 650. From exclusive interviews to insider scoops and post-game breakdowns, we've got it all. Tune in weekdays, 4 to 6 p.m. on radio and on demand through your favorite podcast app. What we just have to call Thomas Dran's erotica. Thomas Transerotica Corcy Thomas Transeratica

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Thomas Dranerotica PEDI Thomas Transerotica 632 on a Friday. Happy Friday, everybody. Sweet, sweet Friday. What a Friday it is. Fives high. Dare I say immaculate. Dunbar lumber text message in basket popping. Reminder, get your Ask Us Anything's in. A.J. is going to join us at seven. The best Ask Us Anything

today gets a $100 gift card to AJ's pizza on East Broadway. You are listening to the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650. Halford and Brough of the morning is brought to by Sands and Associates. They're ready to give you the financial fresh start you deserve with no judgment or front fees. Visit them today at sands dash trustee.com. We're an hour one of the program. Thomas Durant is going to join us in just a moment here. Hour one is brought to by North Star Metal Recycling. Vancouver's

Premier Metal Recycler pays the highest prices on scrap metal. North Star Metal Recycling, they recycle you get paid. Visit them at 1170 Powell Street in Vancouver. To the able auctions hotline we go. Our next guest Connect Stock, Athletic Vancouver. Twice in as many days here on the Halford

and Breft Show. Thomas Drance joins us now on Sports 960. What up, Dranser. Gentlemen, good morning. Are you as pleased and optimistic and quite frankly happy as specifically Jason, but Jason and I are in the wake of that press conference yesterday, introducing Daniel and Hendrik Siddine as co-presidents of HockeyOps, and Ryan Johnson is general manager.

Probably not. Oh, Dranser. No. You're the best, buddy. Listen, I mean, it's entirely reasonable. In fact, it's only reasonable to be cynical about the Vancouver Canucks. Sure. It is absolutely impossible to be cynical about Henrik and Daniel City.

Also sure. It's just absolutely impossible. And, you know, I thought the main takeaway that I came away from yesterday's press conference with was, like, man, these guys are in this with good intentions. Yes. Good Lord. Like, these guys really have a bone. deep understanding of what this franchise is, what it means, and what it can represent in this community.

Like, these guys care about it. They get it. They know what it means. And they think it's important to try and get their hands dirty and help realize the potential that the Vancouver Canucks have because they've lived it. And there's no way not. like it's impossible to watch that and really feel that because you feel it.

It's not just words. It's not just an impression, right? It's like, that's real to them. They communicate it so clearly and in such a compelling way that it's impossible to watch that and not, you know, be rooting for them personally, right?

To like just be like, finally, right? Like these guys get it on a totally different level. And so I totally understand and having the optimistic reaction to it. The feeling that this is a new day, that these are guys who get it in charge, that they're in it for the right reasons. Feels like there's a butt coming.

There's a huge butt coming. All right, let's hear it. I felt the exact same way. One time in the last five years. I'm curious if Jason can guess it. Please don't say it was when Rutherford and Alvin got introduced. Hmm? It's not that.

Okay. was it when Stan Smil did something? I don't know. Yeah, it was when Stan Smil did that whole like, we started finger pointing speech. Yeah. Right? When he was named interim general manager and it lasted four days. Right? Like and then I got, but he was the interim. Okay. But the point is he was the interim, but he'd already been shot in the back. He just didn't even know it. Yeah. Like, you know, they put him out there with the best of intentions. He communicated to this fan base. He didn't even know. that what he'd been asked to do was build like was hold the bridge together for four days. They had no compunction about using his brand to sell credibility in a down moment and disposing of him in less than a week.

Like that happened. That's what this organization has done to people, right? Yeah. And the icons, franchise icons. And by the way, like, Smil got a promotion out of it. I'm sure he's not as annoyed by it as I am. Um, well, no, you know what? I'm sure at the moment he was, but I'm sure he's over it. Whereas I continue to look at it as like, man, what are these guys doing?

The Linden experience, you know, also stands out to me as a cautionary tale. And so I'm really hopeful that the twins' overall goodness, their work ethic, you know, I think they're bright. Their intelligence can win the day here. I believe that they've made a really smart pick for general manager and Ryan Johnson. Like, I think that was a really good pick. I want to talk more about RJ, actually, because I was really impressed with him yesterday. We'll get into it. Okay.

I'm not convinced of two things, basically. I'm not convinced that these guys can avoid the fate that everyone else who's worked for this organization across the last 15 years has ultimately run into, which is to get steamrolled. Right? I'm not convinced to that yet. That I'm going to need to be one over on, even though I'm completely sold on the character and integrity and intelligence of these three gentlemen.

And the second part of it is, I'm really curious to see if this team's going to spend. Like, I'm really curious to see if this team's going to spend. And I think we're going to start to find out about that quickly because, you know, you guys, and I'm sure a lot of people in this market saw or are aware that like Mani Mahotra's name already dropped in Toronto as a potential candidate. Yeah. Whether the Leafs are really interested in like actually making him the head coach or just interested in talking to him, that opening and his name being associated with it, that prominently, that's leverage, right? Like that's the sort of stuff that makes a $1 million rookie coach, a too much.

million dollar rookie coach right like that that's how this business works and the connects have a decision to make on Adam foot so right off the hop I think we're going to start to see because of the dynamics here like how serious is this organization right about supporting the three gentlemen that they've just installed that you know with the sorts of resources they're going to need to win and and you're going to need to win at some point pretty quickly on a far more expedited timeline than people want to admit if you're going to avoid, you know, the sort of stuff that creeps into this organization that ultimately leads to executives and franchise legends getting steamrolled.

Okay. So, Jancer, the coaching staff is one area where you could spend and maybe you'd have to bite the bullet if you want to move on from Adam Foote and keep Mani Mahalchra, for example, in the organization. where else where else will spending be important? Man, there's a lot of places. First of all, you know, I think you're going to need to round out this staff, right?

Like, I think Ryan Johnson and the twins are impressive. They outlined an impressive vision. Again, I think they're all really bright. But there's a different type of skill set that's going to be required here too in terms of high level strategy legal compliance overseeing R&D

and look maybe the guy is internal right maybe this is we can empower Aiden Fox I saw that he was name checked by Ryan Johnson I think there's a pretty good working relationship there Fox has also had good working relationships with a variety of Canucks coaches over the years you know green talket

and company I think he's a very sharp dude So maybe you have a partial skill set internally, but if you're building out your R&D department, like going out and getting, you know, one of those new age type thinkers, right? The super nerd that this front office needs.

I think that's going to be necessary. Like let's make no mistake. What the Canucks are trying to do has effectively not been done. You know, this is going to be the first time we've seen a team try to rebuild in an era of cap growth ever. Like honestly, ever.

Like, we kind of haven't seen it because the NHL hasn't had sustained cap growth for any prolonged period over the last 20 years. It's always been interrupted by currency fluctuations or a recession or lockouts or work stoppages or pandemics. We're going to be in for, you know, certainly four years on the other side of this of September 15th when the new CBA kicks in. Like, we're going to be in for four years of cap growth. And, I mean, this is already a league in which parity has, frankly, died, completely died as we get ready to watch Vegas and Colorado contest the Western Conference final. Let's just say, there is no parody. It's a lie. Anything cannot happen. And so how do you get better? How do you catch up in a league where teams are going to have

more flexibility to keep their guys than ever before, right? Like, you need integrity, culture, they're necessary. They're also insufficient to turn this around. I don't think anyone debates that. I don't think anyone debates that it's going to be really difficult and it's a massive challenge

and it's going to take a long time because I see it the same way as you do and that the Canucks right now, they have nothing. You know? Nothing. You know, you can talk about Booiam or Coots if you want, I think. If you're rounding down are rounding up, you would round down to nothing.

Right? They are starting at scratch. And if you look at some teams around them, Anaheim, San Jose, they have a lot. And they're going to get more, too. Like San Jose's got the second overall pick. You know, and you look at Calgary, who the Canucks are kind of in a rebuild race with. I think Calgary's ahead right now in terms of assets, right? Yeah.

But I think, you know, we'll get to that stuff. And I think we're all going into this knowing how difficult this is going to be. What I saw yesterday and what I want to emphasize is a team that I wanted to root for. And I think that's important. Like, Dr. Anthony, I don't know if the connects are ever going to win the Stanley Cup in my lifetime. And I want to see it. but these last few years have made me realize that watching the games is an important part of being a Canucks fan as well, right? Like that sounds obvious, but, you know, it's going through the day to day of watching the games and there's something to be said for cheering for your team and wanting the best for them.

and you know me and I think I don't think I'm alone where our fandom has been and I know you're going to say I'm not a fan I'm a journalist right but I'm talking about my friends like our fandom has been deeply and negatively affected

from the last few years of this team and I want to get that back and I felt like I got it back yesterday just seeing those guys up there and I think that they have the curiosity to get better. I think they have the humility that they don't know everything and they're going to need help. But I do agree with you that in order to help, to get the help, ownership is going to have to provide the resources.

And like you, I am hopeful that they do that, but I'm wondering if they will. Does that make sense all that? 100%. You know what? I agree with you. Like I would love for this organization to start to carry itself the right way in everything they do, including on the ice. You know, I just, I don't know, right?

Like there's still signs to me that there are going to be major governance issues. I mean, Dolly Wall is reporting a three-year term for Ryan Johnson. How does that make sense? Yeah. Like, how does that make sense? It's impossible. you know, the Canucks ownership making a statement but not answering questions. And I get it, not wanting to be on the dais, but do a brief scrum off camera afterwards, right?

Like, don't in any way overshadow this, right? And then you get a chance to say the line that's like, you know, at the end of the day, like at the end of the search, you know, we talk to the twins and believe firmly, right? that these are the guys, right? Like, then you have an additional line more spontaneous unscripted from ownership. He doesn't like to do that, Drans. He doesn't like to do that. And he's not good at it.

You know, like, not everyone's good at public speaking. And that was clearly coordinated and orchestrated so that he would not have to face questions. Okay, but it's part of leadership. Like, if you don't want to do it, then empower someone who can speak for you and spend the time and pay the salary to, build up a president of of business operations who can speak for ownership. I agree with that. That's fine. It's totally fine. You don't want to

speak? I get it. There's ways around that. There's ways to invest in having someone be able to do that for you, organizationally. You know, like that exists. That's totally, totally doable. So yeah, I mean,

again, I just there's so many things that I remain skeptical of. And like, if we get to point in three weeks, because this is going to happen quickly. There's stuff that's going to happen quickly here. If we get to a point in three weeks where this organization's like extended Teddy Bluger for culture reasons and has retained Adam Foote because Mani Mahotra is too expensive, whether or not Mani Mahotra moves on to Toronto, I'm going to say that's the same old

Canucks. Like it's same old Canucks with a friendlier, more compelling veneer on it. And, you know, as much as I like these three gentlemen and I'm hoping to have success, that's not going to be good enough for me. And so what we saw yesterday, I agree with you, was like a tonal shift that was such a relief that allowed you to dream again on what this franchise could represent. But I just need to see more before I'm going to get to a point of being like really optimistic, right?

You said the games matter, right? Yeah. I would take an organization that makes a lot of, the sorts of moves, for example, where whether you actually think you're going to get to the summit or not, you at least have like a patent of real hope that you might. That like they're doing the sorts of things that could credibly get you there, right? I haven't covered a team that does that and I've been back in Vancouver for seven years. Like there's been no point at which my guts not dropping after press releases or where, you know, the team's having success, but I know that it's fake.

Like I know that Even in the statement yesterday from Francesco Aquini This idea that like We were on the right track Thanks to Jim until You know Unforeseen player personnel issues

Scuttled it And it's like no No you weren't on the right track That team ran Hotter than any team has ever run for 50 games Yeah And it looked And then the engine blue

And they played simple One Reed hockey Right Designed to hide the fact That they couldn't defend the rest with their defense corps. And, like, it was boring. Like, it was really boring.

Yeah. You know, like, you made it as far in terms of rounds as talk it made in Philadelphia with that roster. Like, he even dropped that we made it a game away from the conference final. It's like, guys, you got outscored 8 to 1 at the pointy end of that series across five periods, eight to one. You weren't close. And they still believe it, right?

And it's like, they just don't get it, man. At the highest levels of this organization, they just don't get what it takes to win. But do you think the Siddins and Johnson do? Well, I don't know. Like, at the end of the day, I don't know. At the end of the day, I think they get what it takes to win as players. I think Johnson knows what it takes to win at the American League level.

I think they understand and will do an excellent job on the, player development side on the culture side. But, you know, Daniel talking about being excited about the last 20 games and some of the days that he was going home from the rink because it felt special and it felt like they were building a culture. It's like, you know what? I saw some of that too. There were nights like, I think about their win over Florida where Florida kind of tried to punk them

and they pushed back and they won that game, right? There were moments to be genuinely excited about what this team maybe was building. but if the takeaway ends up from that being like and that's why philiparonics mentorship is essential and so is teddy blugers then you don't get what you're doing here like so you know are they able to make that leap because there's some really simple litmus tests that will show us you know whether or not the wisdom of daniel and henrik personally as as human beings um and and of ryan johnson as a leader can translate into a moment moment in time in which all the Canucks do that actually matters is add value in every move they do, right? And it's like make bets that have a chance to add value. And some of them

exponential value, especially at the NHL draft, like are they able to shift their thinking and do that? Because that's going to be far more determinative of where this franchise ends up in three to four years, you know, than the usual hockey stuff or the environment in the room or the caliber of mentorship in that locker room. And if you don't see that, And if you're not able to really accept and sit with and live with and understand that, then no, I don't think you're going to have what it takes to win. What's the first tell for you? Is it who becomes the coach or who stays as the coach, I guess?

Yeah. And look, I don't like to do this. I mean, I think Adam Foote's a really talented assistant coach. I think he's a lovely guy. I just don't see the case for returning him and his staff. Like, it just wasn't good enough. you know, I think it was at a very low, I think it was substandard to a very obvious degree.

So I'm curious to see how that shakes out. Like this team, I think, needs a change behind the bench. I, you know, I don't know what else to say. Like, I think it's really straightforward. So, you know, are they able to make that call simply? Are they able to do it on an expedited timeline? Are they able to retain Malhotra, given his leverage? and do it in a relatively straightforward fashion

without drama or without risk. You know, does this organization have the sense to carry itself like an organization that's not, you know, going to be like, oh, no, you know, we can't. He's a first year coach.

We got a Pam like a first year coach, even though Toronto's interested. Or, you know, can they settle this quickly and do it the right way and get the right guy? Because I do think, man, he's the right bet to make at this point in the organizations.

history too. You know, that for me is going to be the first big tell. And like honestly, if they navigate that and it's straightforward and it's simple and it's done in the next, like it's done before the NHL draft combine, which is June 1st, so two weeks, two week timeline. If that all proceeds normally, I think that'll be a big sort of, okay, we're off and running. Like I want to see them get out of the gates. And I think the coaching situations of a tap-in, right?

like what they had doesn't work and has a very low chance of succeeding, not even in terms of wins and losses, but in terms of just like looking organized night to night. And setting the right environment, which they talk about. They want to set the right environment. A lot of that starts with the coach.

Trance are out of time, buddy. Yep, cheers, buddy. Okay, see you, Paul. Thomas Trance from the Athletic Vancouver here on the Halford & Brough show on Sports 9-650. Speaking of the Halford & Brough show, the Duick Auto Group is the official automotive sponsor of Halford and Brough.

Find out when nobody beats a do-Dooke deal why nobody has since 1926. Visit Duick Jammerin Drive. Visit them downtown. Visit them in Richmond. Visit them online at the Duicado Group.com. I love this text unsigned. Thank goodness for this Drans hit. I almost felt optimism for a second there. Folks. Folks. He's a good counterweight. There are enough people that have weighed in throughout the course of the morning

that are skeptical. Yeah. Thomas Drance is not the only one. And by the way, if it is that damaging to hear both sides, of what is a debate and what is a totally open conversation. I think you need to look inward and maybe not necessarily focus on those voices outside. There's some deep thinking for the morning, eh? Yeah.

Think about it. We've got to go to break. Examine. Not the Canucks, but yourself. AJ's going to join us at 7. Murph's going to join us at 705. Daniel Cedine in studio at 7.30. It's a big second hour.

And it's on the horizon. You're listening to the Halford and Breft. show on Sportsnet 650.