Canucks' Green has wish list heading to July 1st Since the season ended on April 9th and with oodles of organizational money to spend, Vancouver Canucks head coach Travis Green admits he’s spent the past few weeks pouring over lists of potential players he’d like the hockey club to pursue when National Hockey League free agency begins on July 1st.

VANCOUVER – There’s an adage in hockey that coaches coach and managers manage. And for the most part, that’s the way the Vancouver Canucks operate. But with plenty of time on his hands since the season ended on April 9th and with oodles of organizational money to spend, head coach Travis Green admits he’s spent the past few weeks poring over lists of potential players he’d like the hockey club to pursue when National Hockey League free agency begins on July 1st.

With a laugh, Green says he makes those desires abundantly clear to GM Jim Benning on an almost daily basis.

“Jim and I have a really good relationship that way,” the coach tells tsn1040.ca in a telephone interview from his off-season home in Southern California. “I talk to Jim every day and we’re going through players every day. I go through the list and he goes through the list. I feel lucky I get to work with a guy who is ‘on’ 24/7. We’ve got a good relationship that way and we can be open and honest about players and what we like and what we don’t.”

While Green refused to name names or get into specifics about the kinds of players the Canucks may be seeking when this year’s signing window opens (tampering comes with a hefty fine as the Canucks found out at the draft two years ago in Buffalo), the coach believes there are players at varying price points that meet the needs of a hockey club with plenty of holes to fill.

According to capfriendly.com, the Canucks have $22 million in available cap space for the coming season although they still have five of their own restricted free agents to deal with: Sven Baertschi, Markus Granlund, Jake Virtanen, Derrick Pouliot and Troy Stecher. Even with modest raises for that group, the Canucks will wade into the free agent waters with plenty of money to spend if they so choose.

Green knows the challenge for a hockey club trying to rebuild is to resist the temptation to overspend on free agents. It’s equally important that the Canucks don’t add veteran players who might stunt the growth of emerging prospects like Brock Boeser, Elias Pettersson, Adam Gaudette and possibly Jonathan Dahlen.

“With the Sedins gone you look at our lineup, I think we have only seven guys in our lineup who were drafted (by the Canucks) and within a couple of years that number could be up to 14,” Green says.” And that’s what you need to win Stanley Cups. We’re obviously looking at free agency and seeing how we can tweak it and see if there’s something that works. It’s easier said than done to just add a free agent in today’s world.”

While his job is to coach, Green feels he’s in a much better position this summer to offer opinions on potential free agents than he was a year ago when he took the job behind the Canucks bench. At that point, he’d been in Utica for four years at an arm’s length from the NHL and without the working knowledge of players around the league that he has now.

Not only does he better understand the needs of his own team, he believes he knows the types and tendencies of players available that could help the Canucks next season and beyond.

“For sure, it has definitely helped,” he says of his first season as an NHL head coach. “It’s like anything – you watch from a far and then you get there, I just feel like I know the league better. I feel better prepared this year than last year.”

Last year on July 1st, somewhat surprisingly, the Canucks emerged as one of the busiest teams in the league adding Sam Gagner, Michael Del Zotto, Anders Nilsson, Alexander Burmistrov and Patrick Wiercioch. On September 1st, they added Thomas Vanek in what proved to be their most-prudent foray into the free agent market.

With nearly a year to reflect on the actions of the hockey club, Green liked a lot of what management did in free agency last summer, a notion not embraced by many in the Canucks' fan-base.

“I think a lot of people think maybe we didn’t do that well, but we needed to get some players on our team,” the coach explains. “You saw how many players deep we went on the roster during the season. You have to put a lineup on the ice. Vanek brought a great veteran presence, timely goal-scoring and probably helped Brock along the way. Hey, he helped me along the way. I really enjoyed coaching Vanek.”

“I don’t think Gagner had the year he wanted, but I was glad he got it going a little bit at the end of the year. He’s a guy who has been in the league a while and he’ll be able to help a lot of our young guys through some tough times.”

“And Del Zotto was a great example for some of our young guys off the ice as far as working out and being a real pro. After looking at, I thought it was a pretty good year in free agency for us.”

The coach may have liked last year’s additions and what they brought to the organization off the ice, but games aren’t won in the weight room and mentorship doesn’t score many goals. The Canucks need to be strategic in their free agent signings this year and try to find value on the market rather than writing blank cheques.

Reading between the lines, Travis Green doesn’t sound like the Canucks will be chasing the biggest fish swimming in this year’s free agent waters. They may leave their lines in a little longer and hope to get a nibble from players they feel can help them address specific needs.

“I think you can add players in free agency that are going to help you in certain areas,” he says. “You’re not always going to just sign big-name players who are going to come in and be 30-goal scorers and top players for you. A lot of times, those guys don’t make it to free agency these days. Sometimes you’re looking to add character to your group or mentorship. We have lots of things to consider as we move to July 1st. Every year, it’s an exciting time, and I’m confident Jim is going to do a great job again.”

It’s only three weeks now until the Canucks, and their fans, will get the answers they’re looking for.