Vancouver Canucks sign president Jim Rutherford to 3-year extension

The Vancouver Canucks have signed president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford to a three-year extension.

Rutherford, 74, presides over a team that he said needed 'major surgery' a year ago; Canucks now top of NHL

Nick Wells · The Canadian Press · Posted: Jan 19, 2024 3:11 PM EST | Last Updated: January 19

An older white man wearing glasses and a dark suit sits next to a man wearing glasses and a black suit. — Jim Rutherford, 74, has been handed a three-year extension as president of the Vancouver Canucks after presiding over a rapid turnaround for the city's NHL franchise. Sitting next to him is team owner Francesco Aquilini. (Ben Nelms/CBC)

Jim Rutherford has a simple answer on how he stays motivated to work in hockey well into his 70s.

"What else am I going to do? This is my 42nd year in the National Hockey League," the Canucks' president of hockey operations said to laughs Friday as he spoke to media about his new three-year contract extension.

Rutherford was named president of hockey operations and interim general manager on Dec. 9, 2021, four days after general manager Jim Benning was fired. Patrik Allvin was hired as general manager on Jan. 26, 2022.

The front office has presided over a major turnaround for the Canucks (30-11-4) who entered Friday first overall in the NHL standings, one point ahead of the Boston Bruins. The Canucks have quickly evolved from playoff outsider to league leader since Rutherford and Allvin have come aboard.

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"We've had a good first half [of the season] but it'll be very challenging in the second half," Rutherford said "But I believe our team is going to be up for that challenge."

Rutherford, a 74-year-old native of Beeton, Ont., was general manager for the Pittsburgh Penguins from 2014 to 2021 and led the team to back-to-back championships in 2016 and '17.

He was also Carolina's GM for 20 years, and saw the Hurricanes win the Cup in 2006.

A former NHL goaltender, Rutherford was named the league's general manager of the year in 2016 and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in the builder category in 2019.

A white man with black hair and wearing glasses and a black suit stares into the camera. An older white man speaks behind him. — Vancouver Canucks’ owner Francesco Aquilini says Rutherford's results speak for themselves. (Ben Nelms/CBC)

Canucks chairman Francesco Aquilini announced Rutherford's extension at a Friday morning press conference.

"We wanted to get this done," Aquilini said. "Jim's record speaks for itself. Three Stanley Cups, the Hall of Fame, definitely his experience and knowledge of the game is second to none in my opinion."

President surprised by turnaround

A year ago, Rutherford had warned the team needed "major surgery" to start winning again. The Canucks had made the playoffs just once in eight seasons heading into 2023-24.

The veteran hockey executive admits he's been surprised by the turnaround in the Canucks' fortune after replacing former head coach Bruce Boudreau with Rick Tocchet.

"When I first came here, one of the things I said was I think that we had some players that were better than people think," he said on Friday. "We had a lot of very good players but we didn't have a team. Now we have a team."

A group of hockey players, wearing white jerseys with green and blue trimmings, celebrate on the ice. — Vancouver Canucks center Dakota Joshua, second right, celebrates with teammates after scoring an empty-net goal against the New York Islanders earlier this month. The Canucks went into Friday at the top of the league. (Adam Hunger/The Associated Press)

Vancouver's surprising improvement in form this season has coincided with Quinn Hughes' surge in offensive output, with the blueliner sitting tied for first for points by a defenceman.

"This is what we say in meetings: this group of players and coaches deserve the best opportunity they can to compete going forward," Rutherford said.

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Rutherford and Aquilini also discussed the contract fate of Swedish forward Elias Pettersson.

The star centre has 59 points (24 goals, 35 assists) in 45 games for the Canucks this season.

A white hockey player wears a jersey with rainbow lettering on it on the ice. — Elias Pettersson has been one of the Canucks' stars this season, having made the all-star game. Both the team president and owner say they want to extend his contract. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press)

"We can wait," said Rutherford about the pressure of signing Pettersson to a contract extension. "We really want him to stay, he's a very special player."

Aquilini agreed, saying that from an ownership perspective they want Pettersson to stay in Vancouver.

The Canucks play the second of a five-game homestand on Saturday when they host the Toronto Maple Leafs.