The Vancouver Canucks absolutely cleaned house Sunday evening.
General manager Jim Benning, AGM John Weisbrod, head coach Travis Green, and assistant coach Nolan Baumgartner have all been relieved of their duties with the Canucks.
Irfaan Gaffar of The Fourth Period had it first.
The firings come on the heels of fans chanting “Fire Benning” and booing the Canucks off the ice during the waning moments of the third period in Vancouver’s 4-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night. A jersey was also thrown onto the ice, as fans made their displeasure well known.
Benning has served as Canucks general manager for the last eight years, and the club found limited success during his tenure.
Green signed a two-year extension with the Canucks this past offseason. Bruce Boudreau is expected to take over as the Canucks’ bench boss in the wake of Green’s dismissal.
“Our search for new leadership is underway,” said Chairman and Governer Francesco Aquilini. “In the interim, Stan Smyl will lead our Hockey Operations team with the strong support of Ryan Johnson, Chris Gear, Daniel and Henrik Sedin, Doug Jarvis and others on the team to ensure day-to-day continuity. Stan has been a very loyal and committed member of our Hockey Operations Senior Management structure for many years and is someone whose experience and leadership we value greatly.”
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