Jim Benning Draft Review: Part Two, 2015
Alex Rickman
December 10th, 2022
In this installment of the Jim Benning draft review series, we look back at the 2015 NHL draft, Benning’s second draft as Canucks GM. Benning made a strong first-round pick, but could he keep the hits going into the later rounds? Let’s take a look...
Round 1, pick 23- Brock Boeser
Late first-round picks can be hit or miss, but Boeser is about as much as most GMs would hope to get when picking 23rd. Injuries have been derailing Boeser’s career as of late, leading to a rise in fans calling for the team to move on from him. But, we also must remember that Brock finished second in Calder voting with 29 goals scored during his rookie season. While the injury struggles have been hard to ignore as of late, it would be unfair to call Boeser a bad pick, especially with him going as late in the round as he did.
Round 3, pick 66- Guillaume Brisebois
Selected with the pick acquired in a trade that sent fan favourite Eddie Lack to the Carolina Hurricanes, Brisebois has never been able to stick around in the NHL but has remained in the organization as an AHL player and common callup. A career as an injury replacement isn’t ideal for a 3rd round pick, but can’t be considered a failure in drafting either.
Round 4, pick 114- Dmitry Zhukenov
Zhukenov, a forward hailing from Omsk, Russia, was never able to reach the professional level in North America. After spending 2 seasons with the QMJHL’s Chicoutimi Sagueneens, Zhukenov returned to Russia, where he is currently playing for Gornyak-UGMK of the VHL. Zhukenov became another mid-late round pick from Benning not being able to crack an NHL roster. Which in a vacuum wouldn’t be an issue, but has so far seemed to be a common theme.
Round 5, pick 144- Carl Neill
A right-shot defenceman with good size, it’s no wonder the Canucks went with a player like Carl Neill in the 5th round. But, like so many other Benning picks, Neill never managed to get to the level needed to play in the NHL. Neill briefly played in the AHL for the Montreal-affiliated Laval Rocket, but didn’t stick around for long, and is now playing in Slovenia.
Round 5, pick 149- Adam Gaudette
Gaudette was no doubt a talented pickup who could become a difference-maker for the Canucks, but after having his development rushed, was never able to fully find his game. After struggling through the 2020-21 bubble season, he was sent to Chicago in the trade that saw Matthew Highmore become a Canuck. Fast forward two years and Gaudette is now playing for the Toronto Marlies of the AHL after a series of scenery changes via waivers. Gaudette had the potential to be one of the biggest positives in Benning’s draft portfolio, but, like many other prospects during Benning’s tenure, Gaudette had the ball dropped on his development and became a cautionary tale on rushing young talent.
Round 6, pick 174- Lukas Jasek
At one point it seemed like Jasek was destined to defy the odds and go from sixth-round pick to NHL player, but his development stalled, keeping Jasek from ever reaching the NHL. Since leaving the Canucks organization, Jasek has found some success playing overseas. But barring a miracle, Jasek will never play a game in the NHL.
Round 7, pick 210- Tate Olson
Olson, who now plays for the University of Saskatchewan, was drafted in hopes that he’d one day be able to help sure up the Canucks blue line. This never materialized, and Olson was never offered an entry-level contract by the team. But with Olson being considered a very steady, reliable defenceman in the WHL, it’s easy to see why a team would be willing to use a seventh-round pick on the Saskatoon native.
Conclusions
After going over Benning’s first 2 drafts as Canucks GM, there doesn’t seem to be too much evidence to back the claim that he was a good drafter. While choosing Demko and Boeser has worked out well for the team, talented players like Virtanen, McCann, Forsling, and Gaudette had their development botched. Ending with these solid prospects traded before they got a chance to prove themselves or simply being rushed to the league before they were ready. While we’re still very early in the series, early results have not gone in Benning’s favour.
In the next installment, we look to the 2016 draft, where Benning famously made one of the biggest mistakes of his Canucks tenure in the 1st round. Could the later rounds make up for this blunder, or would Benning have a third consecutive poor draft class to open his tenure as Canucks boss? Check out the next article in the series to find out.