Canucks sign GM Benning to 3-year extension

The Vancouver Canucks have signed general manager Jim Benning to a three-year contract extension, the team announced Tuesday.

Benning was heading into the final year of his previous deal, so the extension will keep him in Vancouver through the 2022-23 season.

The Canucks made the postseason in Benning's first year at the helm during the 2014-15 campaign, but they've missed the playoffs in the four years since.

Benning is responsible for rebuilding the organization's farm system by drafting the likes of Brock Boeser, Elias Pettersson, and Quinn Hughes. However, he's drawn criticism from the fanbase for certain signings, such as Loui Eriksson's six-year, $36-million deal in 2016, and Jay Beagle and Antoine Roussel's matching four-year, $12-million pacts in 2018.

The GM was busy this summer, as he acquired J.T. Miller via trade and Tyler Myers, Micheal Ferland, and Jordie Benn through free agency.