Canucks Making Big Front Office Changes

There were rumblings out of Sweden overnight, then it was confirmed very early in the morning, B.C. time: The Vancouver Canucks are moving on from general manager Patrik Allvin.

Jim Rutherford, President, Hockey Operations, announced today that Patrik Allvin has been relieved of his duties as General Manager.
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) April 17, 2026

The Canucks had a disastrous 2025-26 season, finishing with the worst record in the NHL by 14 points, and were forced to trade superstar defenseman Quinn Hughes. They were also named the poorest-run club in the league by players' agents in a poll released earlier this week.

President of hockey operations Jim Rutherford made the announcement about relieving Allvin of his duties. The Swedish GM had been on the job for just over four years.

Rutherford says he has given Patrik Allvin the opportunity to stay with the organization in a different capacity, while adding that he had many 'sleepless nights' before making the final decision to fire Allvin.

“I would like to thank Patrik for all his hard work over the past four seasons,” said Rutherford. “Under his guidance, we have accumulated a lot of good young talent, and he has helped us lay the foundation of our rebuild. This season was disappointing for everyone in the organization, and we understand how frustrating it was for those who care about the team. Moving forward, our goal will be to continue to bring in younger players who can grow together with our current group and form our next competitive core.”

Successor for Allvin may already be in-house

Rutherford said at his afternoon press conference that he thinks very highly of their own in-house candidate AGM Ryan Johnson. The Canucks notably rejected one team's request to speak with Johnson earlier this month about their own vacant GM job, which is a clear sign of how confident they are in Johnson.

"We have a very good candidate within the organization, Ryan Johnson, who I have a lot time and a lot of respect for," said Rutherford. "He built a championship team in Abbotsford... He's been a great guy to work with."

But in his typical, totally honest, transparent way, Rutherford admitted that maybe they'll find something else out there that he likes better.

"We also felt it was important that we don't limit (the search) to one person, and that we go out into the market and open it up... And maybe we're gonna see something different and make a different choice."

Rutherford said he'll start Zoom calls next week, and he'll be compiling a list of names over the weekend.

As for head coach Adam Foote, that will be "the decision of the new GM."

Vancouver finished the season with a 25-49-8 record for 58 points, their worst finish of this century.