u/barelyincollege

The difference between how the Canucks handled the Adam Foote situation and the Bruce Boudreau firing is pretty telling.

With Foote, Manny being in line made it obvious something was coming, but Johnson didn’t hang the season on him. They made the move quickly, didn’t deny change was coming, and at least framed it in a way that didn’t publicly throw him under the bus (in fact, they went out of their way to say that it wasn't fully his fault.)

The Boudreau situation under Rutherford and Allvin was the opposite. It dragged on for weeks, everyone knew what was happening, and Boudreau was left in a weird public limbo before Tocchet arrived. Even if the hockey decision made sense, it was a completely avoidable PR debacle, and also fit their broader tendency to be far too open to the media and air organizational dirty laundry in public.

At last week’s presser, they talked about changing the culture and making people proud to be Canucks fans again - I think this is the kind of thing that actually matters for that. The on-ice results are one thing, but I'm encouraged that the new regime seems to understand the importance of building an organization that embodies professionalism and treating others with respect.

For all of the phenomenal work that Axel does on the footballing side, I haven't been impressed with how he's managed this relocation saga from a PR perspective:

• PavCo gives the Whitecaps a net-zero deal for this season? "It's a step, but it's not good enough. We need 30 or 40 more of these."
• Potential investors have been interested? "We've had 100 groups reach out and not a single one has proceeded."
• The province and city signal their openness to having the Whitecaps manage BC Place? "A bridge deal is great, but it won't solve everything."
• A new stadium seems like a possibility? "It's hard even with a new stadium because we have to figure out sponsors, naming rights, revenue partners, etc."

I don't know if it's because he's German and stereotypically blunt to a fault, but he's done nothing but dump cold water on every possible solution to the point where he's now coming off as somewhat dismissive.

Does the club not have a communications person who can be a little bit more neutral and even-handed?