It’s been a heck of a few weeks, but we did it. The Canucks Army all-time team is done. It’s a blend of the past, the present, and, well, not the future, but at least the slightly ahead of the present. From the late 70’s to players that will be in the lineup in October, the all-team covers much of the history of everybody’s favourite hockey squadron.

Before we dive a little deeper into the history, including some looks back at guys who didn’t quite make the cut, we feel that it’s best to assemble the team as a whole and see what it looks like on paper. Let’s begin! 

“Morrison’s influence in the community cannot be forgotten either, as he was a vocal leader within the team, and with Canuck Place and other endeavours throughout the city. Though the team didn’t enjoy much playoff success in his tenure with Vancouver, he is remembered fondly for his time with the team, and he currently sits 12th on the Canucks all-time scoring list.” – Matt Henderson

“As one of the cornerstones of the ’94 team, McLean was nicknamed Captain Kirk, although he was never actually the captain of the team, because he is a goaltender and that would be stupid, right?” – Jeremy Davis

“Aside from his wonderful shooting ability, some of Salo’s most memorable moments came as a result of his unfortunate luck with injuries. Aside from famously taking a Duncan Keith slapshot to the testicles, Salo tore his achilles while playing floorball, took multiple blows to the face, and was bitten by the only poisonous snake in Finland.” – Grainne Downey

“When the dust has settled, I imagine a sizable chunk of Canucks lore will be occupied by the illegible shift disturber. Often the under-appreciated member of an electric first line, Burrows has been remarkably productive and versatile for the Canucks over the entirety of his career.” -J. D. Burke

“He was a playmaking Swedish centreman whose pass-first approach both wowed and occasionally frustrated fans. Though you knew he could score, shooting always seemed to be his last resort, even passing on the occasional breakaway. Even though everyone know he was looking to pass, his vision was such that defenders were often powerless to prevent him from finding linemates in prime scoring position. It was the 1980’s, and – wait a second, who the hell am I writing about?” – Jeremy Davis

“What few concerns the city had regarding their new Russian toy centered primarily on his shorter stature. If you think the NHL is reticent to give diminutive players a shot now, imagine the odds against a short and Russian player from the late 80’s. Fortunately for Vancouver and Larionov, his plus ability to think the game more than made up for this.” – J.D. Burke

“Bieksa’s legacy as a Canuck will extend well beyond his reach on the ice. Given his ability to anchor arguably one of the best pairings in the league over a two-year span, this is a compliment of the tallest order.” – J.D. Burke

“He quickly established himself as one of the Canucks better defenders and helped to form a deadly first pairing. His offensive instincts were always at the forefront, along with his plus ability to transition the puck from his own end and a decidedly violent mean streak – the guy could scrap and loved to.” – J.D. Burke

“One can only wonder what could have been accomplished with this elite talent, were he acquired in a more prosperous era in Canucks history. His offensive contributions were prolific and his defensive game was relatively sound, given his role.” – J.D. Burke

“Lidster was a good player on some bad Canuck teams. His entire Vancouver career fit snugly in between the Canucks’ first two Cup Final runs in 1982 and 1994. His best season came in 1986-87, in which he racked up 63 points (still a Canucks record among defencemen) on a team that produced only 26 wins.” – Jeremy Davis

“Quite frankly, if Smyl were a player today, he would fit in perfectly with Benning’s Canucks. Short on skill (compared to the elite players of his era), but motivated, hard-nosed and hard-working, Stan Smyl was the every-man during his playing days; the player you saw and said to yourself, “Well, if he can make it to the NHL, then so can I!” But you don’t score over 250 career goals and almost 700 points without having same great skill and innate talent.” – Cam Davie

“Edler’s on-ice legacy as a Canuck is yet to be determined, but the outlook is good. Off the ice he will likely always be remembered for his quiet demeanor and his ability to wear a pea coat.” – Grainne Downey

“Tanti moved back to the Vancouver area and has remained ever since. He runs a successful flooring business in Vancouver, and does make sporadic appearances at Canucks alumni events. But Canucks fans of the mid-80s will always remember Tanti for his curly mullet, that #9 jersey and his touch around the net. He left an indelible mark on the franchise and its fanbase as the Vancouver Canucks first elite goal scorer.” – Cam Davie

“His style of hockey was efficient, if simple and embodied all the virtues that we often associate with the more romantic aspects of the game. Like most Canucks stars during his stay in Vancouver, Kesler could score in bunches. What separated him from his more prolific peers was his bang and crash style and reckless abandon physically.” – J.D. Burke

“While there’s been no shortage of physically apt players since his hay days in Vancouver, none have possessed the ability to bully their opponents to even half the extent Bertuzzi could. Physically imposing doesn’t do justice.” – J.D. Burke

“Mattias Ohlund didn’t truly have one career-defining moment as a Canuck. But he was a stable presence on the Canucks backend for 11 seasons.” -Matt Henderson

“While he wasn’t one of those guys who spent 90% of his career here, Lumme still spent over half his career in Vancouver, and had his best years wearing the flying skate. Nobody worth their salt would associate him with any other team.” – Jeff Veillette

“The impact of having a Vancouver Canuck win the Hart Trophy was breathtaking, as most people perceive an east coast bias in voting for the league end awards. And the image of watching Henrik with the Clarence Campbell Trophy will forever live in the photographs around Rogers Arena, and etched in the minds of Canucks fans.” – Matt Henderson

“Daniel has long been differentiated from Henrik by the fact that he is known as the goal scorer. He is slightly faster than Henrik, somewhat more aggressive, and his shot has more mustard on it. However, he’s gained most of his points but simply being in the right place at the right time. Daniel Sedin is particularly adept at finding open ice, and nobody in the game of hockey can find another player like Henrik finds Daniel.” – Jeremy Davis

“It’s a shame that the team never truly made a run with Naslund at the helm, but at the end of the day, he’s still one of the best players to ever wear the jersey, and set up the generation that followed for an even greater opportunity.” – Jeff Veillette

“In younger fans, there is a tendency to remember more the Trevor Linden of the mid-2000’s, a veteran role player playing a depth role on a mid-level team. But summating Linden’s career based on what happened at the end of it is to ignore some of the greatest performances this town has seen.” – Jeremy Davis

“But he was more than just that guy who scored a lot of breakaway goals. He was always buzzing around the ice looking for ways to contribute to the play; zone coverage, scrambles on the corner, maybe an elbow if the referee wasn’t looking; he was possibly the best two-way forward in the history of one dimensional floaters. More than anything, though, Bure was one of the most exciting players to ever lace up the skates, and when he was his best, he did it while wearing the flying skate of the Vancouver Canucks on his chest.” – Jeff Veillette

“At the end of the day, Cory Schneider was drafted with a hope that he could become the best goaltender in Canucks history. The good news was that they weren’t wrong about him; he’s well on his way to being one of the better goaltenders of this mini-era in the NHL.” -Jeff Veillette

“The greatest goaltender in franchise history banner can be proudly hung in Luongo’s honour. It’s a highly debated topic if he will ever get his #1 retired by the Canucks, due to their abundance of retired numbers and their lack of Stanley Cup victories. At the least, you can expect to see his name in the ring of honour one day, well deserved and will be well celebrated.” -Matt Henderson

Daniel Sedin – Henrik Sedin (A) – Tony Tanti

Pavel Bure – Igor Larionov – Alexander Mogilny

Markus Naslund (A) – Brendan Morrison – Todd Bertuzzi

Ryan Kesler – Trevor Linden (C) – Alexandre Burrows

Tomas Gradin, Stan Smyl (A)

Mattias Ohlund – Alexander Edler

Sami Salo – Kevin Bieksa

Doug Lidster – Jyrki Lumme

Ed Jovanovski

Roberto Luongo (who can wear his C mask, because, whatever)

Kirk McLean

Cory Schneider

General Manager: Mike Gillis

Assistant General Manger: Brian Burke

Head Coach: Alain Vigneault

Assistant Coaches: Pat Quinn, Marc Crawford, Roger Neilson

Here’s a bit from J.D. Burke on the men in charge:

A decidedly top-heavy coaching staff, this group combined for 751 wins behind Vancouver’s bench – more than half of these coming from Crawford and Vigneault. Where the other two made up ground was in their ability to leave an indelible mark throughout the entirety of the league in their all-too-brief tenures with the Canucks. 

A commonality throughout this staff would be the persistent drive towards innovation. For Rodger Neilson this meant implementing game tape analysis into his coaching – earning him the nickname “Captain Video”. 

Where Quinn is concerned, he brought with him a wave of Russian talent that helped to set the course for a generation of Eastern stars. Pavel Bure, Igor Larionov, Vladimir Krutov and Alexander Mogilny highlight this list and, for the most part, contributed to the better years of Canucks hockey in the 90’s. Not unlike Quinn, Vigneault employed a series of extreme deployments with his forward lines at both directions of the ice. The ripple effect of this is still being felt, with teams like the Chicago Blackhawks employing players in highly specialized zone-starts themselves.