Ownership situation

[Snatcher Demko]

I thought it might be wise to have a separate thread that focuses solely on Canucks ownership.

There is a big story here that is not being fully investigated by our local media and journalists.

In every past season, FA and his group had no issues impatiently spending to the moon, throwing bad money deals around like never before.

Now that the revenue flow has temporarily dried up, it seems the Aquilini either have no cash flow or funds available, or the willingness to even complete a no-brainer signing of Ian Clark. WHY?

They seem to be unwilling to pay Benning severance, essentially keeping a dead duck on the job out of pure cheapness.

No contract offer to Green (he deserves to be fired anyways). But nothing on that front.

Players seem to be confused, frustrated. Demko's public plea to bring Clark back was unprecedented.

Surely they see that players are upset and that they are spiraling into western version of the Buffalo Sabres, alienating fans, destroying the goodwill and value created by Quinn, Burke and Gillis. They are now tanking the value of the franchise itself.

Click to read more...

 

[Fatass]

Where are the FA Tweets now?

 

[DustyMartellaughs]

It is mind blowing that the Aquilinis seem to behave as if they’re both broke and tone deaf.
Ian Clark accepting a contract offer now, after being slighted and ignored, would surprise me.
It’s likely both Benning and Green return. Ugh.
I fear this team is going to be a laughingstock and AHL-NHL tweener until someone heretofore quiet steps up and buys the team.

 

[rypper]

It was mentioned by Drance on the Vancast, but ownership also left the team's scouting staff and other front office employees flapping in the wind just like Green and the coaching staff. They've only recently been informed their contracts will be renewed but that's a lot of peole left wondering if they were going to have a job anymore, for a long time.

 

[Bettman Returnz]

I’d love to hear from FA... please step up and answer some questions or provide your reasoning...

 

[Hollywood Burrows]

It's been speculated here and on twitter that the family is embroiled in some succession-esque infighting that's left the canucks front office paralyzed. I'm not sure how else to explain the contract stuff with the coaching staff. The one thing we know about francesco is that he's a dumbass superfan; it makes no sense that he wouldn't have the club busy doing things like locking up the coaching staff for next season. If the rest of the family really is trying to sideline francesco (kendall roy with no charisma or intelligence) that would be by far the most positive thing to come out of this period.

It's so frustrating that there's no legitimate reporter in this shitty province that's actually writing about this. The sports media hacks are lucky to have jobs and they know it, and none of them have the reporting chops to investigate the business side of the aquilini family anyway. We all know the standards the NHL sets for it's owners (if you write the cheques you're in, sometimes even if you can't) so there's no hope there. The media back east doesn't care about anything that happens out here. We're screwed! Maybe Defector will write a post about it someday.

 

[DCantheDDad]

I am so confused by this organization. Everyone, and I mean everyone can see this is dysfunctional and doomed for continued failure, yet the Aquilinis seem to feel content to look around at this tire fire and say that it is fine.

 

[Diversification]

It's been speculated here and on twitter that the family is embroiled in some succession-esque infighting that's left the canucks front office paralyzed. I'm not sure how else to explain the contract stuff with the coaching staff. The one thing we know about francesco is that he's a dumbass superfan; it makes no sense that he wouldn't have the club busy doing things like locking up the coaching staff for next season. If the rest of the family really is trying to sideline francesco (kendall roy with no charisma or intelligence) that would be by far the most positive thing to come out of this period.

It's so frustrating that there's no legitimate reporter in this shitty province that's actually writing about this. The sports media hacks are lucky to have jobs and they know it, and none of them have the reporting chops to investigate the business side of the aquilini family anyway. We all know the standards the NHL sets for it's owners (if you write the cheques you're in, sometimes even if you can't) so there's no hope there. The media back east doesn't care about anything that happens out here. We're screwed! Maybe Defector will write a post about it someday.

Francesco is Roman in this analogy. The Canucks are the satellite Roman was in charge of launching.

 

[Snatcher Demko]

It's been speculated here and on twitter that the family is embroiled in some succession-esque infighting that's left the canucks front office paralyzed. I'm not sure how else to explain the contract stuff with the coaching staff. The one thing we know about francesco is that he's a dumbass superfan; it makes no sense that he wouldn't have the club busy doing things like locking up the coaching staff for next season. If the rest of the family really is trying to sideline francesco (kendall roy with no charisma or intelligence) that would be by far the most positive thing to come out of this period.

It's so frustrating that there's no legitimate reporter in this shitty province that's actually writing about this. The sports media hacks are lucky to have jobs and they know it, and none of them have the reporting chops to investigate the business side of the aquilini family anyway. We all know the standards the NHL sets for it's owners (if you write the cheques you're in, sometimes even if you can't) so there's no hope there. The media back east doesn't care about anything that happens out here. We're screwed! Maybe Defector will write a post about it someday.

This makes a lot of sense to me. There could certainly be a power struggle at the top, in terms of others wanting to wrest away control from FA and him fighting to keep it. There could be legalities involved and it would not only take time to resolve, it will get ugly as well.

I think ownership is sensitive to fan sentiment and I doubt they are sitting around thinking "this is fine".

Rather - something big has ground operations to a halt, and a power struggle fits the bill.

 

[Diversification]

Re-posting what I wrote in another thread:

*dons tinfoil cap*

Okay, here's my take on what's happening: There's an internal power struggle in the family and the Canucks Organization is a pawn in all of this. They can all see that FA is overly meddlesome and it's tanked franchise value and fan interest. But that's a feature, not a bug. To the extent that they can hang the Canucks' failures around FA's neck is the extent that they can sideline him in terms of the family business. It works because it plays to FA's ego and his need to be at the center of a public spectacle.

So the 2019 assessment by Courtnall, the follow up assessment just now, it's all just a matter of creating a paper trail; All of it to build the case that FA should not ultimately assume the mantle.

Regardless, I fear the other Aquilini siblings are all too happy to watch this team burn to the ground if it means more power for them down the road.

Or maybe I've just binge watched too many episodes of Succession.

 

[Izzy Goodenough]

I think ownership is insensitive to fan sentiment and I bet they are sitting around thinking "this is fine".

There I have fixed it for you so it reflects reality.

 

[Jyrki21]