Canucks and GM Ryan Johnson urged to stay patient in long rebuild

The Vancouver Canucks are heading into the 2026-27 NHL season with few illusions about where they stand. Under new management led by general manager Ryan Johnson, the organization is bracing for another difficult year and signalling that a deep rebuild, not a quick fix, is the priority.

Internally, there is recognition that the coming season will involve long stretches of losing and almost certainly no playoff hockey in British Columbia. In that context, the biggest risk for Vancouver would be chasing short-term improvement and slipping into the so-called “mushy middle” of the standings.

Avoiding the NHL’s dangerous middle ground

For the Canucks, becoming a middle-of-the-pack team would be the worst outcome: not strong enough to qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs, yet not weak enough to secure a premium position at the 2027 NHL Draft. That kind of limbo can stall a rebuild for years and leave a club without the elite talent needed to contend.

Johnson has been given a mandate to rebuild the roster and reset the franchise’s direction. That will demand significant patience from the fan base, as well as discipline from the front office to avoid trading futures for marginal upgrades that only delay necessary changes.

Sharks and Flames provide clear lessons

Two Pacific Division rivals, the San Jose Sharks and Calgary Flames, offer recent examples of how different approaches to rebuilding can play out. In San Jose, the process truly began when Mike Grier took over as GM in July 2022. Across his first three seasons, the Sharks finished either seventh or eighth in the division, fully accepting the short-term damage.

San Jose finally showed a major step forward in 2025-26, adding 19 wins to their total from the previous year. Even that surge was not enough to reach the playoffs, and the Sharks remain some distance from being a dominant team or a consistent contender. Still, their path shows the value of committing to a long rebuild without cutting corners.

Calgary’s route has been more uneven. Since Craig Conroy became GM in May 2023, the Flames initially chose a lighter reset. They climbed from fifth to fourth in the Pacific over his first two seasons, but still missed the post-season both times. Only last year, after Conroy stripped away a significant number of veteran players, did Calgary fully lean into a rebuild.

The Flames ended up seventh in the division and, despite having the league’s fourth-worst record, slipped to sixth overall in the draft order after the lottery. The message for Calgary now is to accept further short-term pain to assemble a core capable of matching the Pacific’s stronger clubs.

Why Vancouver must stay the course

Taken together, those cases underline what lies ahead for the Canucks. To build a long-term winner for a fan base that has waited a long time, Vancouver will need to emulate San Jose’s full commitment and Calgary’s eventual willingness to tear down, rather than chase quick solutions.

Lottery luck will always play a role, but for Johnson and the Canucks’ front office, constant tinkering and half measures are not viable options. If Vancouver has the resolve to endure several more tough seasons, the organization believes the eventual payoff could be a sustainably competitive team rather than another short-lived peak.