The hockey world never really rests. Oh sure, some general managers try to schedule downtime for a few weeks in August, but even then they’re never really far from their phones. In the case of the Vancouver Canucks, with a new front office taking over in late May, there is a long list of items that requires attention before the team plays its first game next season. Here are 10 things on the Canucks’ off-season to do list:

ROUND OUT THE BENCH STAFF

The Canucks have a new head coach, but at the moment, he has no assistants to work with. So the team needs to figure out what it is looking for in the way of help for Manny Malhotra. The club will need to compile a list of candidates, conduct the interview process and ultimately make its decisions. While there is no firm timeline on making all of this happen, it would benefit all involved if the Canucks had the coaching staff in place by mid-July to give the group time to come together and to develop plans for next season.

ADDRESS OPENINGS IN ABBOTSFORD

While much of the front office’s focus will be on the big league team, after promoting from within, the Canucks have roles to fill in the Fraser Valley. Ryan Johnson has spoken at length about finding his own replacement to oversee the minor league program while Manny Malhotra’s promotion leaves a key opening behind the bench in Abbotsford. Usually, the minor league staff conducts the team’s summer development camp with help from the player development department. We’ll see how all that shakes down with development camp set for Abbotsford starting immediately following this month’s NHL Draft. So time is ticking on this file.

BE ONE OF THE BIG WINNERS AT THE DRAFT

With the third overall pick, two selections in the first round, four in the top 41 and 10 picks overall, the Canucks need to have a spectacular weekend on June 26th and 27th. When pundits review the work of all 32 teams, the new front office needs to rank highly. A mediocre draft simply won’t cut it. This is such an important draft for a team in the early stages of its rebuild.

PUT THE FUTURE ON FULL DISPLAY

It’ll be interesting to see who is included in development camp at the end of the month. With so many young players logging significant NHL minutes last season, will any of them be on the development camp roster or will they be excused? Last year’s first rounder Braeden Cootes should be there along with last season’s second round pick Alexei Medvedev. Beyond that, with the possibility of 10 new prospects being added to the stable, we’ll see how many of the new draft picks hit the ice days after being drafted. With the World Cup taking over the area around Rogers Arena, the franchise is taking its development camp to the Fraser Valley. What kind of off-ice activities will the participants be involved with? Will they find them a mountain to hike to replace the Grouse Grind?

FINALIZE MAIN TRAINING CAMP DETAILS

The Canucks have been to Penticton for training camp the last two seasons. Will they make it three in a row? The facilities in the South Okanagan are just about perfect. There is now a familiarity with the arena and the surrounding area. It was mid-July last year before the Canucks announced their training camp plans, so we’ll see when word comes down this time around. If not Penticton, could the club return to Victoria? Would they consider going back to Whistler? Or might they explore other options?

DEVELOP A GOALTENDING PLAN

For the second straight summer, the Canucks have to figure out what they want to do with their third string goalie. Last year, they peddled Arturs Silovs to Pittsburgh rather than lose him on waivers. This time around, a decision needs to be made on Nikita Tolopilo who is no longer waiver exempt. Complicating matters is the fact that there is so much uncertainty around Thatcher Demko coming off hip surgery. The Canucks need to formulate a comprehensive plan for their goaltending, deciding how many goalies they plan to carry on their NHL roster and how many starts each of their netminders should get.

DECIDE WHAT THEY WANT TO DO WITH EP40

Ryan Johnson has spoken repeatedly about identifying players that want to be Vancouver Canucks and weeding out ones that don’t want to be here. The new management group needs to figure out whether the veteran centre is part of their grand plan moving forward. With a lack of available centres around the league, the Canucks may be able to find teams interested in acquiring Pettersson. Are they looking to get out from the final six years of his onerous contract? Or does the new regime and the new coaching staff believe it can get Pettersson back to a level much closer to the one he played at before he signed his hefty contract extension?

MOVE OUT AT LEAST ONE VETERAN TO MAKE ROOM FOR YOUTH

It feels like the Canucks need to make at least one significant trade this offseason. Otherwise, they are changing the coach but not really touching a roster that delivered a last-place finish. Jake DeBrusk’s name has been floated repeatedly as a veteran who would likely embrace an opportunity to play for a more competitive team. This management group has to sort through its options, get a feel for the trade market and pull the trigger on the best deal possible.

CLOSE THE DEAL ON A PRACTICE FACILITY

It’s become a bit of a punchline in this market, but the practice facility saga continues to linger. Despite promising updates from Jim Rutherford on his way out the door and the Sedins as they took over, there has still been no formal announcement and certainly no shovels in the ground. If ownership and this new management group want to signal that this is truly a new era in Vancouver Canucks hockey, just get the deal done. No one wants to hear how close the team is to finalizing something. Figure out a way to put pen to paper and push this story across the finish line.

SHOW OFF THE NEW THREADS

With reports that all 32 NHL teams will be wearing something called Hometown Remix jerseys next season, let the fans see what that means for the Canucks. There have been mock-ups and speculative designs posted online, but nothing official yet. At some point, the club will have to unveil its new look. How often will they wear the Hometown Remix and what will that mean for the club’s plans for its black skate alternate jersey? The team didn’t give home fans much to cheer about with just nine wins at Rogers Arena last season, but maybe this year a new look will be enough to distract fans from the on ice product.