Welcome back to WDYTT, the only hockey column on the internet that doesn’t take a day off, except for the six days of the week it doesn’t publish.

Speaking of days off, we hope you’re enjoying at least a few around these holidays. The 2025-26 NHL season is still ongoing, but the 2025 calendar year is coming to a close – and for the Vancouver Canucks, it’s been a doozy.

The Year of 2025 saw the departures of JT Miller, Rick Tocchet, and Quinn Hughes, making it perhaps the most consequential year of exodus in team history. At the same time, it saw the arrival of several key young players like Zeev Buium, Braeden Cootes, and Liam Öhgren. It saw the NHL debuts of talents like Tom Willander and Elias Pettersson.

Within 2025, we got the first-ever Abbotsford Canucks championship. We (almost) got new seats in Rogers Arena. We heard the management finally, mercifully say the word “rebuild,” only to take it back moments later and muddy the waters with talk of a hybrid.

It’s been one hell of a year, in every sense of the word. But the holidays are not a time for griping, and the airing of grievances is only appropriate on Festivus. Instead, the holidays are best used as a time of gratitude – for being grateful that you survived another trip around the sun on this wildly spinning globe. And, yes, for being grateful that the Vancouver Canucks continue to be a part of your existence, for better or for worse.

We’re looking for a highlight today. From January 2025 to December 2025, we’re looking for a singular best moment – or, more specifically, a best thing to have happened to the team in that span.

This week, we’re asking:

Let it be known in the comment section.

You answered below! Many thanks to those who replied this week, and to all those who replied throughout the year. We will see you all back in 2026! (Note: We got a lot of responses this week, and had to cut a few for length. Apologies to all!)

I was pleasantly surprised by the return the Canucks received. If they had ONLY received Zeev Buium, it would have been a pretty good trade for the Canucks. Think about it – a player who made it clear he wasn’t going to re-sign in exchange for one of the top young defensemen in the NHL. Most GMs would make that trade. Rossi, Öhgren, and the first-round pick are all gravy.

If nothing else, I hope the Quinn saga has impressed upon ownership the cost of its shortsighted devotion to the idea of the playoffs. Treating this franchise as a business that needs to be cash flow positive every year has not only resulted in a tremendous loss of consumer confidence, but it has cost the Canucks one of the best to ever wear the jersey. The Quinn Hughes era can be characterized as a “death by a thousand cuts” experiment in which far more value was bled via draft picks and young assets than retained by an organization that so desperately needed talent to surround its young star.

Given this, management did an admirable job acquiring assets once it became clear that Quinn would not re-sign. It is my hope that this is the first in a multi-step process to build the level of talent that is required to truly compete, and that ownership defers all on-ice decisions to those that actually understand the process.

Thought Buium would have been top-five pick and not like his stock has dropped since. We get a top-three, at worst top-five, D prospect. Happy for the first so can plug another hole, Öhgren is a total wildcard you hope he can be a consistent 25 g and 25 a guy, but he should at very least play, but maybe on the 4th line. Not a big Rossi fan due to age and if we trade Pete, we are getting a nice young center in return, so I would have preferred Charlie Stramel who more than likely hits as a solid physical shut down 3C.

Next up, management and more importantly the failed ownership need to commit to a full-blown rebuild. We have lots of middling pieces in place but we need to draft top-five in the next three or four drafts to get the high-end talent to go with what we have now.

First reaction: mild shock (strong hints it was coming, but still hard to believe.)

How I feel now: relieved that the wait is over, and quite happy with the return.

I’ve heard a few pundits say that anytime you give up a player of Hughes’ status, you lose the trade. But given where the Canucks and Wild are in team structure/standings, the trade itself was a win for both. Or, to put it another way, the Canucks didn’t lose this trade – they lost the last two years.

This team is so far from contention that my reaction to the Quinn Hughes trade was “meh, whatever,” because it doesn’t matter either way whether Quinn Hughes is here or not. My thoughts have not changed since the trade.

1st impression – Who the hell are these guys?

Now – This Zeev guy is pretty good.

It all depends on their next few moves or lack thereof.

We are all waiting for this rebuild they spoke of.

Initially, I thought it was a good trade and I was impressed they got what they did for him. But if the rumors about what New Jersey was offering is true, then I’m not sure what to think. Apparently New Jersey was offering Mercer, Nemec, Anton Silayev (a 6’7 Zadorov 2.0), and a first round pick, but they couldn’t get it across the finish line because of salary cap reasons. I think Jersey’s offer would have been superior, but I’m still satisfied with what they got from Minnesota. I’d rather the Canucks flip Rossi ASAP though.

Hughes told Rutherford that he wasn’t going to re-sign with the Canucks, so Jim traded him to a team he was amenable to for a very good return, period, end of story.

I was/am happy the QH soap opera has drawn to a close, come to an end, finished, concluded. May it rest in peace.

Bummed about Hughes. Trading away a franchise player in their prime is never a good idea. The fourth-worst moment in Canucks history…Stanley Cup Game 7s and the Bure trade are the other three. TSN did a great analysis on this…where would we be now if Demko was healthy the last two seasons and EP40 didn’t become a third line Center after inking his $90M contract?

Saw the headline and immediately felt anxiety. Looked at the return, checked player stats, ages, and contracts, and read some player profiles and thought things would be fine. Watched Buium play and am quite pleased with the trade.

To become a good team you need a good PP quarterback. Hughes was certainly that. Buium looks awesome.

The constant deferral to Hughes and his poor shooting had grown tiresome and ineffective. The relentless noise about Hughes future had become a big distraction. The team needed a big shakeup and not many things would shake harder than trading Hughes.

It’s ok, except for Rossi. He’s too small. We should have asked for Yurov. Rossi was on the fourth line in the last playoff. We don’t need him for this rebuild. I prefer the offer from the Devils if it’s true. Mercer, Nemec, Silayev, and a first. If we take a part of salary, maybe we could have their 2027 first round pick, too.

My first reaction was surprise and delight that Canucks had made a big move.

On further reflection, I could see the clear plan: trade Hughes who has fewer good years ahead of him than behind him for a dynamic defenseman six years younger.

Got a centre who can play now and in the future, got a potential winger, and a first round pick to find a better than average future player.

Four first rounders for Hughes…good.

I was initially surprised that they pulled off a trade well before the deadline. And I didn’t know much about any of the players in return, except for the fact that there had been interest in Rossi. I had never heard of Buium.

But as I dug into the details and learned more about the three players in return (all former first round selections), I thought that the team did about as good as it could in the marketplace.

In hindsight, the team became too dependent of Hughes spinning his magic every time he stepped on the ice. This is particularly evident on the power play. Everyone is stationary waiting for Hughes to weave his magic. Now with Buium running the point, we are starting to see more movement and more creativity because they don’t want to put excess pressure on the young D man.

I will also say that you never got the sense that Hughes played the game with a sense of joy or even a bit of fun. I can’t recall the last time I saw him crack a smile. It’s a business but it’s also a sport that they have invested their entire life in pursuing excellence. Maybe getting in the younger guys with more upbeat energy and positivity is what the team needs.

First thought was that although there were numerous hints that Hughes was going to go, it was still a shock when it happened suddenly. But it also seemed to flush the toilet, clear the fog, and retroactively define or confirm the reality that the greatest this iteration of the team would be was two years ago. Why that is is still a mystery.

Knew who Rossi and Öhgren were due to both being discussed as potential draft candidates for the Canucks in their draft years, but had never heard of Buium. Now that we’ve seen a couple of games, Buium stands out and my overall perspective is that this is another big trade in which the Canucks came out better than expected. After the disaster of the last 12 years expectations are not very high, mind you. So call it a Canuck’s level of enthusiasm for the trade.

My initial reaction to the trade was utter horror. I had been reading other NHL team forums and people had been defaming Hughes for days as not even worth two pieces – insane! So, I was discussing the VCR history of being under duress when trading out superstars and how that rarely has gone well, as opposed to teams that trade out on strength or no longer needing that star.

1) Now that it has been a few days, I really think Buium was probably the best blue-chip D available other than Nemec, and therefore worthy as a core piece. I also think he has a more team-friendly attitude.

2) The first was inadequate and will become worse as they climb. Was there a better first available, not without the guarantee of an extension? No, but perhaps a team would eventually surface if it were the summertime?

3) Öhgren is the guy I wanted over Lekkerimäki and I believe he is a good depth piece if he can remain in the lineup this year, but I believe Yurov is who they should’ve pushed for – but if you’re Minny, no-go territory.

4) I also wanted Rossi in his draft year and is good value on contract for a centreman but does not solve the-size, speed, toughness problem.

In a vacuum, I’d say B to B+, long term C+, and perhaps had they been patient and considered more offers over the potential 1.5 years. I’d give a C for a generational Dman that is a top-five player in the league.

Crushed. And still crushed. I’ve been waking up every morning an hour or two before my alarm this week. I wake and the first thought in my head is the realization that he’s actually gone. I usually then think of something specific that he used to do that was really special that I hadn’t thought of recently and how I’ll never get to see him do that thing again for the Canucks. Then I lie in bed sad.

Initial reaction was: how do you pronounce that guy’s name?

Upon learning about the players I think they did alright, as best as they could.

Now I’m over it. Already tired of talking and reading about it, even though I know we’ll be talking and reading about it for the next decade.