After Jim Benning was dismissed by the Vancouver Canucks in December 2021, Jim Rutherford was hired in part to lead the search for the team’s next GM. One name that surfaced almost immediately was Patrik Allvin.

Allvin wasn’t the most talked-about candidate when the search began, but week by week his name inched closer to the forefront. This, of course, stemmed from the Swedish executive’s strong working relationship with Rutherford from Pittsburgh.

Allvin wasn’t all that well known, or even necessarily the most successful on the shortlist. But he was Rutherford’s guy.

When Rutherford took over hockey operations shortly after Stan Smyl’s impassioned and memorable press conference as interim GM, it was clear from the outset that this wouldn’t be a typical hiring cycle.

This wasn’t about landing a high-profile, recycled general manager. Instead, Vancouver applied specific criteria to its search, focusing on first-time GMs and emerging executives from strong organizations.

In the final stages, the Canucks had a shortlist including Mathieu Darche, Scott Mellanby, and Sean Burke.

There were also internal considerations. Ryan Johnson — much like internal names being discussed around the league today — was viewed as a legitimate option given his familiarity with the organization in the transition from Benning to Rutherford.

But Allvin’s edge came from two key areas. One, his direct working relationship with Rutherford in Pittsburgh. And two, his pro scouting background, which aligned with Vancouver’s immediate need to reshape its NHL roster.

The Canucks weren’t building from scratch as they are now. They were trying to pivot quickly around core players like Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes.

This was a controlled search that narrowed quickly to a small group of finalists outlined below.

Before the shortlist crystallized, Jason Botterill was one of the most heavily linked names.

A former Buffalo Sabres GM and then assistant GM in Seattle, Botterill checked many of the same boxes as Allvin — most notably his connection to Rutherford from their time in Pittsburgh.

That familiarity made him a logical early favourite.

Along similar lines, Jason Karmanos — another executive tied to Rutherford’s extended network — was also believed to be part of the broader candidate pool.

Both represented clear themes of trusted voices from winning environments, but while also being connected to Rutherford’s past.

Scott Mellanby was one of the more traditional candidates in the mix.

Once thought to be Marc Bergevin’s successor in Montreal, Mellanby had been a candidate in several GM searches around the league, including the Chicago Blackhawks, San Jose Sharks, and Philadelphia Flyers.

With a wealth of executive experience and a long NHL playing career, Mellanby brought credibility and a conventional management background from multiple franchises.

Sean Burke was one of the more intriguing up-and-comers being explored at the time.

At that point, Burke was in the Montreal Canadiens front office. He later won a Stanley Cup with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2023 as their director of goaltending after the Knights acquired Adin Hill at the trade deadline.

Burke’s résumé included both playing and international executive experience. He took home a bronze medal as GM of Team Canada at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, as well as multiple golds at the Spengler Cup.

If there was a candidate who rivalled Allvin most closely at the finish line, it was Mathieu Darche.

Darche came from one of the NHL’s gold-standard organizations in Tampa Bay, where he was part of a front office known for cap efficiency, depth building, and sustained success.

Based on the Lightning’s overwhelming success at the time, Darche was a fan favourite to land the job.

But the Canucks’ focus was on reshaping the team through pro scouting, rather than a longer-term, analytics-driven approach, leading them to select Allvin.

In the end, the Canucks’ 2022 GM search featured a small sample of credible options, but the pool was slightly deeper than the retread candidates typically seen across the league.

But in a process said to be defined by alignment, familiarity, and urgency, Allvin separated himself in the ways that mattered most.

What do you think Canucks fans? How wide will the Canucks cast their net in the next GM search? Let us know in the comments!