Vancouver Canucks News & Rumours: Fix-Wolansky’s Chance & the Sedins Building It Right – The Hockey Writers – Vancouver Canucks

There are a couple of interesting things happening around the Vancouver Canucks right now that don’t necessarily scream “big news.” Trey Fix-Wolansky trying to make the roster isn’t going to generate the same attention as a blockbuster trade, and Henrik and Daniel Sedin talking about taking their time with the rebuild isn’t exactly the stuff that gets everybody excited on social media. But maybe that’s the point. Vancouver is entering a different kind of season, and some of the more important stories may be about people being given a chance rather than expectations of instant results.

Fix-Wolansky is fighting for a job at the bottom of the lineup, while the Sedins are helping guide what could be a much longer project at the top of the organization. Those things might seem unrelated, but they actually fit together nicely. Vancouver has a chance to find out what it has, who belongs and who can help. And for perhaps the first time in a while, there doesn’t seem to be quite as much pressure to pretend the answers have to come immediately.

Trey Fix-Wolansky Might Be Exactly the Kind of Gamble the Canucks Need

Trey Fix-Wolansky probably isn’t the name most Canucks fans had circled on their training-camp bingo card. At 5-foot-7, he isn’t exactly going to intimidate anybody walking through the dressing-room door. But there is something interesting about a player who has spent most of his career being told, in one way or another, that he isn’t quite big enough or fortunate enough to stick in the NHL. At some point, that becomes more than an obstacle. It becomes motivation.

Former Canucks prospect Brendan Gaunce described Fix-Wolansky as having the same kind of chip on his shoulder that helped players such as Troy Stecher and Conor Garland carve out NHL careers despite their size. That’s an interesting comparison because neither Stecher nor Garland ever let their size decide what kind of NHL player they could become.

Fix-Wolansky is 27 now. He’s already played NHL games with Columbus and scored in his very first one. More recently, he put up 31 goals in the AHL with Hartford. He also brings something Vancouver could use: energy. Gaunce says the winger loves hockey, loves competing, loves scoring and can change a game with one shift. I like that kind of player on a rebuilding team.

There is no guarantee Fix-Wolansky makes the opening-night roster. Filip Chytil’s return and competition from players such as Paul Cotter and Max Sasson could make that difficult. But maybe that’s precisely why he is worth watching.

The Canucks don’t have to hand him a top-six job. Give him a legitimate chance to earn a fourth-line or 13th-forward role and see what happens. Sometimes rebuilding teams spend too much time protecting potential and not enough time feeding hunger. Fix-Wolansky has spent years waiting for somebody to give him a real opportunity. Vancouver might be the place where that opportunity finally arrives.

The Sedins Finally Have the Kind of Canucks Rebuild They Wanted

That brings me to the Sedins. Henrik recently talked about why they were willing to take on a larger leadership role with the Canucks, and one thing stood out. They weren’t looking for a quick fix. If ownership had told them the plan was to take over and win next year, Henrik suggested the decision would have been much more difficult. What convinced them was the longer-term vision. The message was essentially: build it properly.

For two players who spent their entire careers in Vancouver, that distinction matters. There have been rebuilds before. There has also been the temptation to speed things up, patch a few holes and convince everybody that the playoffs are just around the corner.

Henrik doesn’t sound particularly interested in that game. He talked about drafting, development, support and allowing young players to become the foundation of the organization. That’s a lot less exciting than announcing a blockbuster trade, but it might be considerably more important.

The tricky part is making sure “rebuild” doesn’t become an excuse. Henrik understands that, too. He pointed to teams such as Detroit, Buffalo and Chicago and acknowledged that rebuilding can drag on for years if the foundation isn’t right.

That’s where the Sedins could become especially valuable. They know what a successful Vancouver team looks and feels like. They also know that building it doesn’t happen overnight. Tom Willander, Zeev Buium, Liam Öhgren and the other young players coming through the organization need time, coaching and support. The Sedins seem willing to give them that time—but not forever.

And maybe that’s the most encouraging part of this whole process. The Canucks aren’t promising they’ll be back in the playoffs next season. They’re saying something a little more important: they’re going to try to build a team that has a chance to stay there when it finally gets back.

Vancouver Might Finally Be Thinking Beyond Next Season

Here’s why I find these two stories interesting together. Fix-Wolansky represents the small gamble Vancouver can afford to take right now. Maybe he makes the roster. Maybe he doesn’t. But there is little downside to finding out whether a 27-year-old who has spent years fighting to prove people wrong can help. The Sedins represent the much bigger gamble: trusting the process long enough to let the organization find out what it has.

Those are different decisions, but they’re built around the same idea. Give people a chance. Develop them properly. Don’t rush the answer. For years, the Canucks have seemed caught between rebuilding and trying to remain competitive. Now there is at least some evidence that the organization is prepared to choose a direction and live with it.

That’s not going to make September any more exciting. But it might make the next few years a lot more interesting.