In this edition of the Vancouver Canucks News & Rumors, the organization naming Quinn Hughes as captain has become more likely. Also, Filip Hronek went through an impressive transformation over the offseason. Additionally, former general manager (GM) Brian Burke was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame.
Hughes to Become Next Captain
Both Rick Dhaliwal and Elliotte Friedman have stated Hughes will likely become the next captain for the Canucks. When completed, Hughes will be the 15th captain in organization history. The club traded their 14th captain, Bo Horvat, to the New York Islanders midway through last season. Since then, the captaincy has been vacant, while Hughes, Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller have emerged as the top candidates to receive the captaincy.
Hughes makes the most sense as he seems to bring a calm demeanour and is willing to speak up in the locker room and with the media. Additionally, he is a cornerstone player for the team, therefore, it only makes sense to name him captain. Also, head coach Rick Tocchet spoke highly of Hughes’ leadership.
“Huggy has really made that [upward] trajectory to be a captain. He’s done some things that are uncomfortable. He’s said some things that are uncomfortable that you have to do to say to teammates, or to a coach, or to put your balls on the line. That’s what captains do.
“It’s not just about organizing a team party. It’s about putting your teammates first and also being able to go into a coach’s office and say, ‘Hey man, Tocc, you gotta back off in practice, I’ve got this. I guarantee the next game, we’ll be ready to play.’ I love that about him.”
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If Hughes becomes captain, he will be the third defenceman in franchise history to do so and the first since Doug Lidster in 1990-91. He is coming off a career year, as he posted 76 points in 78 games. He broke his own record for the most points in a single season by a defenceman in Canucks history.
Hronek’s Transformation
Hronek’s trainer, Lukas Brozek, took to Instagram and showed the offseason transformation the defenceman made. It took 12 weeks of training in Czechia for the blueliner to make the change, and is a good sign that the defenceman has recovered from the shoulder injury which caused him to miss part of last season. Therefore, he should be ready for the 2023-24 season.
However, as impressive as Hronek’s transformation is, it seems to be a yearly thing for the defenceman. As Vancouver Is Awesome’s Daniel Wagner points out, Hronek went through the same transformation last season. The before picture shows how the regular season affects players, as most of them lose all the muscle they’ve gained during the offseason.
Burke Named to the US Hockey Hall of Fame
Former Canucks GM Burke was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame as a part of the class of 2023. Along with him, former NHL players Dustin Brown, Jamie Lagenbrunner, Olympic gold medalist Katie King Crowley and referee Brian Murphy are a part of the class. Burke was the GM of Team USA at the 2010 Winter Olympics, where the team won silver.
Burke first joined the Canucks in 1987 as the director of hockey operations. He played an important role during his first stint with the organization, drafting and bringing Pavel Bure to Vancouver. He left Vancouver to become the GM of the Hartford Whalers during the 1992-93 season before stepping down and becoming the NHL front office. Burke returned to Vancouver and helped build two important cores in Canucks history.
He constructed the West Coast Express as well as part of the core that led the team to their 2011 Stanley Cup Final. He drafted Henrik and Daniel Sedin in 1999 and Ryan Kesler in 2003. After leaving Vancouver, he won a Stanley Cup with the Anaheim Ducks in 2006-07 before joining the Toronto Maple Leafs as president in 2008. His last two stints in the NHL were as the president of hockey operations of both the Calgary Flames and the Pittsburgh Penguins.