Jim Rutherford Announces Major Update on Vancouver Canucks' New Practice Facility
Photo credit: Vancouver Canucks
The wait for the Vancouver Canucks to have their own practice facility continues following comments from President of Hockey Operations Jim Rutherford on Monday.
Jim Rutherford, Vancouver Canucks President of Hockey Operations and Patrik Allvin, the team's General Manager, met with reporters on Monday for their season-ending media availability and there was a lot that was discussed.
Among the topics of discussion yesterday included Quinn Hughes' future beyond the 2026-27 campaign, Rick Tocchet's future as head coach, the rising cost of ticket prices and the team's plans for a practice facility.
Jim Rutherford unsure of when practice facility will be built
As crazy as this sounds, the Vancouver Canucks are the only team in the National Hockey League that either doesn't have a practice facility or plans to build one in the years ahead.
It's been a big talking point in Vancouver among the fans and media, for good reason and on Monday, Jim Rutherford was asked if there was any updates or plans for a practice facility, but the Canucks' President of Hockey Operations wasn't sure when something will get done.
Rutherford said that they will and want to get a practice facility done for the players, adding that he's not sure if he'll be with the organization or even still alive when it comes to fruition.
"I assure you, we're going to get this done, maybe long after I'm here, maybe long after I'm even on this earth but it'll get done," Rutherford said according to Daily Hive's Noah Strang.
Rutherford said that plans to partner with local rinks for the Canucks to have a practice facility have fallen through, which leaves them with the building one of their own as the only remaining option.
"We need 20,000 square feet where we can build a dressing room onto a rink somewhere and just use the ice," Rutherford said.
He added, "We've tried three or four [rinks] and for different reasons it didn't work out."
He added, "We've tried three or four [rinks] and for different reasons it didn't work out."
It shouldn't be this hard for the organization to find a location, especially when you look around the league and see how easy it was for other teams, including Utah Hockey Club, who moved from Arizona in April 2024 and will have their own practice facility ready to go in September ahead of training camp.
The organization hasn't been able to find a good spot for a new practice facility and it's something they've been "looking for" and talking about for the past 15 years.
For next season and the not-so-distant future, the team will continue to use Rogers Arena and UBC to hold practices. With Rogers Arena aging and no practice facility of their own, it could make unrestricted free agents rethink the possibility of signing in Vancouver.
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 22 | 561 ANSWERS Jim Rutherford Announces Major Update on Vancouver Canucks' New Practice Facility Do you think the Vancouver Canucks will have their own practice facility in the next three years? | ||
| Yes | 296 | 52.8 % |
| No | 265 | 47.2 % |
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