Vancouver Canucks President, Hockey Operations Trevor Linden confirmed tonight that Jim Benning has been named General Manager of the Vancouver Canucks. Linden personally delivered the news to over 200 ticket members attending a Canucks’ Town Hall Meeting in Coquitlam.
Benning will be introduced to Season Ticket Members and fans on Friday, May 23 during a live webcast on Canucks.com at 11:15 AM. He’ll meet the media immediately after at 12:00 noon.
“Jim brings a wealth of hockey experience as a builder and talent evaluator that will benefit this team for years to come,” said Trevor Linden, President, Hockey Operations, Canucks Sports & Entertainment. “We are aligned on how we want to build this team and Jim’s level of commitment to building a championship team is exciting. I look forward to re-introducing him to Vancouver on Friday.”
Benning, 51, becomes the 11th General Manager in club history. He joins Vancouver after serving in the capacity of the Boston Bruins Assistant General Manager for the past seven years. In that role he acted as an advisor to General Manager Peter Chiarelli on all matters pertaining to player evaluation, trades and free agent signings, in addition to assisting the General Manager in overseeing all individuals in their specific duties for the Bruins. Benning initially joined the Bruins as Director of Player Personnel in 2006.
The Edmonton, Alberta native also previously held a 12-year tenure with the Buffalo Sabres. For eight of those seasons, Benning served as the team's Director of Amateur Scouting. In that position, he oversaw the club's scouting staff and led the team at the annual NHL Entry Draft, in addition to scouting prospects at the high school, college and junior hockey levels as well as in Europe.
A former defenceman, Benning was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs with their first pick, sixth overall, in the 1981 NHL Entry Draft and played nine seasons in the National Hockey League with the Maple Leafs and Vancouver Canucks. Benning accumulated 243 points (52-191-243) and 461 penalty minutes in 610 career games. He played one season in Europe before retiring as a player in 1992 and attended college for one year before joining the Anaheim organization as an amateur scout.
Benning and his wife Rhonda have four children, sons Brandon and Nicholas and daughters Danica and Isabella.
