Trevor Linden's last stand: Will it be enough to save the Vancouver Canucks?
Hunched over his broken ribs, crouching with his back to the boards, his face the living embodiment of the "Leave it all on the ice" cliche, Trevor Linden struck the pose for one of the Vancouver Canucks most iconic images, moments after his super human two goal performance in game 7 of the 94' Stanley cup finals.
This was the moment he became immortal to the province of B.C, who for the first time in checkered history of NHL competition could point to one of their own and say: "Wow, I want to be more like THAT guy" that night he put the team of his back and swung for the fences." He didn't leave with the cup,but with a 1st-star performance with broken ribs to boot,he left Madison Square Garden with the respect of New Yorkers and Vancouverites alike, it was even discussed in NY media that the team should try and acquire him as he would clearly be a worthy successor the just beginning to age, mark Messier (If only they knew then what was coming...)
Now over 20 years later, the uber-credible Elliotte Friedman of HNIC is reporting rumors that Linen has considered stepping down as president of the Vancouver Canucks, and that he may once more be in a position where he has given the team everything he has, and fallen short.
One could speculate Linden]'s coming on board was more of a PR move to begin with, that he would be nothing more than a figurehead to reassure fans while the team executed it's now patented " Re-tool-on-the0-fly" but a couple of years into his tenure, that is clearly not been the case.
If his tenure was to be a fluff job only he would have left not too long after benning put his stamp on the team, there were many opportunities when the public was on the team's side and Linden could quietly exited stage right. It is highly unlikely he would have stuck around this long, travelled with the team, been in all the meetings he's been in' and done the work that has been rumored if this is just a PR gig, All signs point to the fact that he has indeed been overseeing the day to day operations of the club. In fact when he took the job it was stipulated that he WOULD have the power to oversee the coach and GM on all hockey matters and would answer only to the owners,
And THIS is where the problem starts,
I have been hearing anyone who ever claimed to have a connection to the team say that Linden has been at odds with Aqualinni for a long time now, that both Benning and Linden wanted to start the rebuild a LONG time ago and have basically had their jobs reduced to carrying out ownership directives that neither agree with.
This has to be really hard for him, he put his rep on the line for a personal friend (He and Aqua are buds outside of hockey)probably thinking he would make sure the team moved through a difficult time properly, then when things were heading in the right direction he would leave. Linden is a very "find the common ground negotiate, let's make this work", kind of guy, so having Aqua usurp his authority was probably something he thought they could work through.
But look at it from his perspective, he asks two guys Benning and WD one is an old teammate and probably a friend, the other is from his home town to risk thier first impression as NHL GM and coach repectivley, that's big because if you are branded a loser in either capacity then your first chance may be yiour last.
No, this is about one thing and one thing along, Linden has had enough.
If the reports are true and Linden's group have been at odds with Aualinni over the insane direction this team is headed in, then he must realize at some point you have to put yourself on the line to try and make something happen if it truly is important to you.
Over 20 years ago Canucks fans watched Trever Linden give them everything he had only to comes up short. Now it seems he is at a point with this team where he will say "Either this changes, or I leave" and making a spirited last stand for the team once again.
It's "Deja Vu all over again" people
lets hope Murry Craven doesn't hit the post
This was the moment he became immortal to the province of B.C, who for the first time in checkered history of NHL competition could point to one of their own and say: "Wow, I want to be more like THAT guy" that night he put the team of his back and swung for the fences." He didn't leave with the cup,but with a 1st-star performance with broken ribs to boot,he left Madison Square Garden with the respect of New Yorkers and Vancouverites alike, it was even discussed in NY media that the team should try and acquire him as he would clearly be a worthy successor the just beginning to age, mark Messier (If only they knew then what was coming...)
Now over 20 years later, the uber-credible Elliotte Friedman of HNIC is reporting rumors that Linen has considered stepping down as president of the Vancouver Canucks, and that he may once more be in a position where he has given the team everything he has, and fallen short.
One could speculate Linden]'s coming on board was more of a PR move to begin with, that he would be nothing more than a figurehead to reassure fans while the team executed it's now patented " Re-tool-on-the0-fly" but a couple of years into his tenure, that is clearly not been the case.
If his tenure was to be a fluff job only he would have left not too long after benning put his stamp on the team, there were many opportunities when the public was on the team's side and Linden could quietly exited stage right. It is highly unlikely he would have stuck around this long, travelled with the team, been in all the meetings he's been in' and done the work that has been rumored if this is just a PR gig, All signs point to the fact that he has indeed been overseeing the day to day operations of the club. In fact when he took the job it was stipulated that he WOULD have the power to oversee the coach and GM on all hockey matters and would answer only to the owners,
And THIS is where the problem starts,
I have been hearing anyone who ever claimed to have a connection to the team say that Linden has been at odds with Aqualinni for a long time now, that both Benning and Linden wanted to start the rebuild a LONG time ago and have basically had their jobs reduced to carrying out ownership directives that neither agree with.
This has to be really hard for him, he put his rep on the line for a personal friend (He and Aqua are buds outside of hockey)probably thinking he would make sure the team moved through a difficult time properly, then when things were heading in the right direction he would leave. Linden is a very "find the common ground negotiate, let's make this work", kind of guy, so having Aqua usurp his authority was probably something he thought they could work through.
But look at it from his perspective, he asks two guys Benning and WD one is an old teammate and probably a friend, the other is from his home town to risk thier first impression as NHL GM and coach repectivley, that's big because if you are branded a loser in either capacity then your first chance may be yiour last.
No, this is about one thing and one thing along, Linden has had enough.
If the reports are true and Linden's group have been at odds with Aualinni over the insane direction this team is headed in, then he must realize at some point you have to put yourself on the line to try and make something happen if it truly is important to you.
Over 20 years ago Canucks fans watched Trever Linden give them everything he had only to comes up short. Now it seems he is at a point with this team where he will say "Either this changes, or I leave" and making a spirited last stand for the team once again.
It's "Deja Vu all over again" people
lets hope Murry Craven doesn't hit the post
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