Under Further Review – Douglas Smith with Editor Bill Morphy. Regular contributors include Jordan Moss, Rob Wagner, Howard Steiss, Ian MacPhee, Dave Kittle, Peter Hucul, Ted Tait, Bill and Glen Myles, Frank Sullivan, Mark Hughes and Iqbal Grewall.   

Spanning the digital ether to bring you the constant variety of sport… the thrill of victory… and the agony of defeat… the human drama of athletic competition… This is Under Further Review.

Cue the Rebuild – Four wins in a row. Guess the rebuild is over.

The beleaguered Canucks fan base is praying for the team to be lottery-bound. It would be just the Canucks to screw it up.

Canucks President of Hockey Operations Jim Rutherford believes the window for rebuilding is 2-3 years. Really? You can’t fast-track a rebuild. It might be prudent to adjust that timeline. It certainly won’t help if the Canucks continue on a heater and reduce their lottery odds significantly. What the team needs is a patient, disciplined rebuild. Stop chasing short-term competitiveness. If you need a blueprint, just look at the Montreal Canadiens.

The current front office has had four years to work things out. The rebuilding exercise does not need to be a Mike Keenan-like scorched-earth approach. We are a big proponent of maintaining a core group of veterans to make sure the right lessons are being passed along. Teaching young players how to be a pro and the right way to play.

The safest way to ensure a high lottery pick over the next few years would be to deal Thatcher Demko. When healthy, he’s a top-flight NHL goalie. Demko and Conor Garland have no-trade clauses in their newly-signed contracts that will click in next summer. Dealing both would be step one in our blueprint. Is the current management group prepared to do shop both players? That’s doubtful.

Next, move all the pending UFA’s including Keifer Sherwood, Evander Kane, Teddy Blueger, David Kampf and Derek Forbort. Grab what you can, while you can. Take the draft capital rather than warm bodies. The Canucks preference for acquiring young players has back-fired more than once. Attempting to rehabilitate players who have failed elsewhere is a poor strategy. The Reichel trade is a great example. Players are not going to blossom without the right opportunity. Podkolzin failed in Vancouver but has blossomed in Edmonton playing beside two of the best players in the world. That’s no coincidence. Build a war chest of extra draft picks and take a swing. Place a priority on size. The Canucks must get bigger and tougher to play against. And can we get more Canadians on the team, please?

Every player in the current lineup is expendable but there’s no need to dynamite the roster. If, over the next few years, there’s an opportunity move Elias Pettersson, then that’s a bonus. Fortunately, the Canucks are not starting at rock bottom. Last year’s second-round draft pick Alexsei Medvedev is tracking to be an elite NHL goaltender. Get lucky in this year’s draft and land Keaton Verheoff and you have an outstanding core of young defencemen along with Zeev Buium, Tom Willander and D-Petey. Start from the back end and work out. Put a checkmark beside Braeden Cootes as an important building block up front. Afford ice time to Liam Ohgren, Atu Raty and Linus Karlsson and see if they develop.

With Quinn Hughes in Minnesota, the Canucks are without a true generational talent and history shows you don’t win Cups without one or two superstar-level players. History also proves the best way to acquire them is at the top of the draft. It would be a disaster if the Canucks drop from top three in this year’s draft lottery to the 10-15 range. One benefit of the Hughes trade is the salary cap picture is improved. The Canucks are now under the cap and may have space at the deadline to take on a salary dump.

Rutherford will be 77 in February. Maybe it’s time to plan an exit strategy. Too many short-sighted decisions. We give Rutherford and the front office high marks for digging out of the salary cap mess. High marks for several draft picks, for improving player development and numerous low-cost free agent signings.

What’s still nagging is the lack of responsibility for what has transpired. Following the Hughes trade, GM Patrik Allvin was asked about the team’s culture. He acted like the departure of J.T. Miller, Rick Tocchet and Hughes was just a case of bad luck. An unfortunate set of circumstances. In reality, it was a monumental organizational failure. Make no mistake. These were self-inflicted wounds. Management’s own missteps toppled the team like a house of cards. There’s no excuse for the level of noise around the team each of the past two seasons. It’s going to take time to repair the damage. Vancouver is not exactly a desirable place to play right now.

The Mistakes –

• Constructing a roster with very few Canadian-born players.
• Rutherford picked the wrong guy when he shipped Bo Horvat to the New York Islanders. Horvat has blossomed on Long Island. Trading J.T. Miller instead would have avoided last year’s debacle.
• Too many trades where the team acquired future assets only to deal them away for short-term gains.
• Taking Filip Chytil from the Rangers as part of the deal for Miller. Everyone knew Chytil’s concussion history. His career may be over.
• Flipping the first-round pick received in the Miller deal for Marcus Pettersson. Extending Pettersson (5 years X $5.5 million) at 29 looks misguided now.
• Extending both goaltenders last season. Thatcher Demko (3 years X $8.5 million starting in 2026-2027) and Kevin Lankinen (5 years X $4.5 million) were gambles that will likely backfire.
• Signing Elias Pettersson to an eight-year, $92 million dollar extension.
• Overpaying Ilya Mikheyev in free agency, then jettisoning him to Chicago at the expense of a draft pick.
• Expending multiple draft picks to acquire Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadaorov, then permitting both to leave with nothing in return.
• The trade of Vasily Podkolzin to Edmonton for the meager price of a fourth-round draft pick. The trade of Arturs Silovs to Pittsburgh for the meager price of a fourth-round draft pick.
• The list of wasted draft picks is too long to chronicle. How about a fourth-round pick this season for Lukas Reichel? Reichel recently cleared waivers.
• The traded draft picks is a big reason why the minor league system lacks grade ‘A’ prospects.
• The selection of Adam Foote as head coach.
• Failure to build a new practice facility.

There’s a road to sustained success but it can’t be fast-tracked. Selecting at the top of the draft lottery is a must. Sell off enough assets to ensure you are picking high. Avoid the mushy middle at all costs. No more short-term fixes. Be disciplined and practice patience for a change. In two years, you might actually like what you see.

NHL Notebook – What took so long? The Buffalo Sabres finally woke up and fired general manager Kevyn Adams. The Sabres are in their 15th season without a post-season berth. Among many ill-advised moves orchestrated by Adams were trades involving Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart. Former Columbus GM Jarmo Kekalainen takes the reins. Bringing in Marc Bergevin as his assistant was an odd opening move.

The Athletic recently published their list of the worst general manager’s in NHL history.  It was no surprise that Adams landed at number three. Number one on the list was Mike Milbury who managed the Islanders from 1995 to 2006. Managed may be too strong a word. How Milbury lasted that long remains a mystery. Guess who was number two? Yes, indeed, it was the Canucks Jim Benning. Nine out of the ten GM’s never got a job with another team. The only active GM on the list was Seattle Kraken GM Ron Francis.

Does it not seem like more Canadian players are having career seasons than top U.S. players? Canada’s top two centres, Nathan MacKinnon and Connor McDavid, have combined for 117 points this season. The top pair for the Americans, Jack Eichel and Auston Matthews, have only 66 points. Big advantage for Canada.

Matthews is not the guy you want to captain your team. When speaking with the media, Matthews seems completely indifferent. This is the face of the franchise? Matthews is in the midst of the worst season of his career. He’s currently 105th in NHL scoring. There are 33 centres with more points. The scrutiny in Toronto is only going to increase. The Leafs should boot his punk-ass out of town and start fresh. Pity poor Craig Berube. They’re asking him to make a gourmet meal with Kraft dinner.

What more does Logan Thompson have to do to earn a spot on the Canadian Olympic team? He’s making a strong case be the starter in goal. Thompson is leading all NHL goaltenders in GAA (2.09) and save percentage (.924). Jordan Binnington may be the favourite of the management staff but you can’t ignore the numbers. Binnington has a GAA of 3.41 and a save percentage of .873. The goals against average ranks 71st. The save percentage ranks 39th. Doesn’t exactly inspire confidence.

Insiders seem to be quick to write off Connor Bedard’s chances of making the Canadian Olympic team following his recent shoulder injury. That should absolutely NOT be the case. Bedard had 44 points in 31 games when he was injured. Appeared as though his shoulder popped out. Sounds like he could be back early in the New Year.

Phillip Danault is headed back to Montreal. We were the first to report the Canadiens interest in reacquiring the veteran centre. The Habs held a pair of second-round picks so sending one to the Kings was an easy decision. Danault will slot in on the third line and should provide a boost on the Canadiens spotty penalty kill. He has one more year to go at $5.5 million. With Patrik Laine’s contract expiring after this season, it was a risk worth taking.

The Winnipeg Jets are awash in self-doubt and are looking more and more like a non-playoff team. Connor Hellebuyck is back but the losing continues. The Jets have no second line. Scoring is sporadic. The once bullet-proof defence is gonzo. The Jets are working the phones to try and add a top-six forward.

Just a hunch but the Tampa Lightning and the Florida Panthers don’t like each other. It’s turned into a blood feud. What can you say about Brad Marchand? He’s stepped-up big time with all the injuries. Marchand leads the Panthers with 20 goals.

St. Louis Blues GM Doug Armstrong has never been shy about making a deal. We’re surprised he hasn’t already pulled the trigger considering where the Blues sit in the standings. Armstrong referenced former NFL coach Bill Parcells when he said, “you are what your record says you are.” Outside of a few young players, you would have to think the entire Blues roster is available.

Wayne Gretzky scored his 1,000th point in his 424th career game. He was just 23 years old. Wrap your head around that for a moment.

Edmonton Oiler fans should think twice about buying 50/50 tickets. The only charity they are supporting is Oilers owner Daryl Katz. From 2021 to 2024, Oiler fans spent $318.7 million on 50/50 tickets. Of that, $159.3 million went to winners. Only $66.9 million or 20% was left to charity. A whopping $82.8 million went into licensing fees to a company called WIN50 owned by Katz. Pretty sad when fans think they are supporting their community but instead are filling the pockets of a sleezy owner.

Swede Inspiration – We’ve always questioned the Canucks infatuation with Swedish players. The organization often references a proud tradition of Swedish hockey players from Gradin to Ohlund to Edler and the Sedins. No question the Canucks have had some outstanding Swedes over the years.

But what have they won? El Zippo in Vancouver.

Since 1982, the Swedes have won one World Junior Hockey Championship. That was in 2012. They’ve captured one Olympic gold medal in Turin in 2006 behind the great Peter Forsberg. Canada did not ice their best lineup. Sweden’s last World Championship gold came in 2018. Since 2000, they’ve failed to medal at the World Championship 11 times. And the World Championships shouldn’t even count because it’s not best-on-best.

This is not to disparage Swedish hockey players. It’s just to point out, it might not be a great idea to build your team around Swedish players.

Seahawks Notebook – Epic. The Thursday night clash between the Seahawks and the L.A. Rams certainly lived up to its billing as the Game of the Year.

With the stirring overtime win, Seattle now sits atop the NFC West and holds the number one seed in the conference. Can they keep it? The Seahawks finish the season with road games at Carolina and San Francisco. It won’t be easy.

The narrative heading into Thursday night surrounded Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold. Can he orchestrate a big win or will he flop again when it counts? With 11 minutes to go in the game and fans streaming out of Lumen Field, the answer was definitive. Darnold had served up two more interceptions including another near pick six. The jury had made their decision. You can’t win with this guy! Yes, the Seahawks staged a wild comeback but did faith in Darnold suddenly return? Not really. It was not a case of redemption.

The Seahawks do appear to be learning how to win. Last week, it took six field goals. This week, it took three two-point conversions. Prior to Thursday night, Seattle was 0-172 lifetime when trailing in the fourth quarter by 15+ points. The Rams, for their part, became the first team in NFL history to have over 500 yards of offence with no sacks, no turnovers and a plus-3 turnover differential yet still manage to lose.

NFL Week 16 Takeaways – The AFC playoff picture is pretty well set. Denver, New England, Pittsburgh and Jacksonville are in position to nail down division titles. Buffalo, Houston and the L.A. Chargers hold the wildcard spots. The Indianapolis Colts and the Baltimore Ravens appear to be on the outside looking in.

Real statement win by the Jags in Denver. Trevor Lawrence is playing like the quarterback everyone thought he was going to be when he was selected first in the NFL draft.

In the NFC, Seattle, Philadelphia, Chicago and Carolina sit in first place in their respective divisions. The wildcards are the Rams, 49’ers and Green Bay. The Chicago Bears inched closer to the NFC North crown with a comeback win over the Packers. It was the Bears sixth win this season after trailing in the final two minutes. Chicago looks like a good bet to make their first trip to the postseason since 2020. In the NFC South, Carolina overtook Tampa Bay by virtue of their head-to-head victory on Sunday. The Panthers now hold a one game lead. It only heightens the importance of the Seahawks date in Carolina next Sunday.

Joe Burrow has to get the hell out of Cincinnati. He would be crazy to come back for more punishment. Burrow has missed nine games this season due to injury. He’s  been sacked more than 200 times in his career in just over 70 games, more times in fewer games than Andrew Luck and you know how his career went. Somebody should move heaven and earth to acquire the guy. The Bengals are the Buffalo Sabres of the NFL. Demand a trade, Joe!

The knee injury suffered by Chiefs quarterback Pat Mahomes was more extensive than first reported. Mahomes underwent surgery to repair both a torn ACL and torn UCL in his left knee. The damage to the UCL was the reason he underwent surgery immediately. Mahomes got a second opinion from the Dallas Cowboys team doctor who recommended surgery that evening. Looks like a nine-month recovery. Don’t rule out Mahomes being ready by the start of next season.

The Chiefs should consider some major roster surgery in the off-season. They are using 80% of their cap space on only eight players. Expect the Chiefs to rework Mahomes’ contract…again. His cap hit is $78 million. Don’t be surprised if the Chiefs release veteran defensive tackle Chris Jones. He’s scheduled to earn $45 million.

The Miami Dolphins would love to find a way to dump quarterback Tua Tagovailoa in the off-season. On Monday night, Tua showcased some of the worst quarterbacking you will ever witness. He was benched on Sunday in favour of rookie Quinn Ewers. It’s going to be next to impossible for the Dolphins to part ways. Tua will carry a $100 million dead cap hit if he’s cut in the off-season.

Who is Cam Newton’s wardrobe adviser? The ESPN mouthpiece and failed NFL quarterback dresses like a character in Alice in Wonderland. Nice hat collection. Did you get the Johnny Depp hand-me-downs?

College Football Playoff – It was the opening weekend of the U.S. College Football Playoff. A total of 12 teams came in with a crack at the national championship.

Alabama rallied from 17 points down to shock Oklahoma. The Crimson Tide now have a date with top-seeded Indiana in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day.

Ole Miss took out Tulane and will meet arch-rival Georgia in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans on January 1.

Miami held off Texas A&M at College Station. The Hurricanes meet No. 2 Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl on Dec. 31.

Oregon smothered James Madison. Next up for the Ducks is a date with Texas Tech in the other quarterfinal.

MLB Notebook – Take it to the bank. Major league baseball is headed for another work stoppage. The current Collective Bargaining Agreement runs out in a year, on December 31, 2026 to be precise, and you can bet the negotiations will be nasty. The owners want some sort of cost control and it may take another lockout to get it.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are making a mockery of competitive balance. Do they even have a budget? The Dodgers have been ordered to pay a record luxury tax bill of $169.4 million. That’s more than the entire payrolls of 16 teams. More than half the teams in major league baseball. The Blue Jays will pay a tax bill of $13.6 million.

There appears to be no limit to the Dodgers spending. Their 2025 payroll came in at $417.3 million. The two-time World Champions are now on the books for more than one billion dollars in deferred payments running through 2047. How is this good for baseball?

The deferred payment obligations will reach a high point in 2038 and 2039 when the total reaches $102.3 million. Closer Edwin Diaz, who just signed a free agent deal with the Dodgers, will receive deferred payments until 2047. Shohei Ohtani is due the bulk of the payments. He will receive $680 million between 2034 and 2043. Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Blake Snell, Will Smith, Tommy Edman, Tanner Scott and Teoscar Hernandez are also on the deferred payment list. How this has been allowed to happen just proves how much the system favours big spending teams.

Baseball’s Worst Contracts – The Athletic recently documented the worst contracts in major league baseball. Here’s their Top 10.

1.     Kris Bryant, Colorado Rockies – Original deal: 7 years, $182 million. Remaining years: 2026: $27 million, 2027: $27 million, 2028: $27 million

2.     Anthony Rendon, Los Angeles Angels – Original deal: 7 years, $245 million. Remaining years: 2026: $38 million

3.     Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels – Original deal: 12 years, $426 million. Remaining years: 2026: $37,116,666, 2027: $37,116,666, 2028: $37,116,666, 2029: $37,116,666, 2030: $37,116,666

4.     Anthony Santander, Blue Jays – Original deal: Five years, $92.5 million. Remaining years: 2026: $19.2, 2027: $19.2, 2028: $17.45, 2029: $15.45, 2030: $15,000,000

5.     Joc Pederson, Texas Rangers – Original deal: Two years, $37 million. Remaining years: 2026: $21.25 million, 2027: $18.5 million (mutual option)

6.     Nick Castellanos, Philadelphia Phillies – Original deal: Five years, $100 million. Remaining years: 2026: $20 million

7.     Javier Báez, Detroit Tigers – Original deal: Six years, $140 million. Remaining years: 2026: $24 million, 2027: $24 million

8.     Giancarlo Stanton, New York Yankees – Original deal: 13 years, $325 million. Remaining years: 2026: $29 million, 2027: $25 million,2028: $25 million (club option)

9.     Yu Darvish, San Diego Padres – Original deal: Six years, $108 million. Remaining years: 2026: $16 million, 2027: $15 million, 2028: $15 million

10.Tanner Scott, Los Angeles Dodgers – Original deal: Four years, $72 million. Remaining years: 2026: $16 million, 2027: $20 million, 2028: $20 million

Golf Notebook – Looks like there will be strong Canadian content on the PGA Tour this season.

The big story from a local standpoint is the arrival of Coquitlam’s A.J. Ewart. The 26-year-old earned Tour status after medalist honours at the final stage of the PGA Tour’s Qualifying School. He earned one of five available PGA Tour cards. You may be familiar with Ewart if you attended this year’s Times Colonist Victoria Open at Uplands Golf Club. He finished second at the tournament. Surrey’s Adam Svensson regained his Tour privileges by capturing another of the five qualifying spots.

Ewart and Svensson will join Corey Conners, Nick Taylor, Taylor Pendrith, Mackenzie Hughes, and Sudarshan Yellamaraju on Tour this season. Yellamaraju earned his Tour card after a strong year on the Korn Ferry Tour.

The Name Game – We will be adding Jizzle James, a junior guard with the Cincinnati Bearcats, to the list of great sports names. Jizzle is the son of former NFL running back and Hall of Famer Edgerrin James. Was he named after his father’s sperm count?

Biff Poggi replaced Sherrone Moore as interim head coach of the Michigan Wolverines. Poggi now has the distinction of being the fattest coach in football. Biff should be asking Santa for a Man-siere this Christmas.

Trivia Time – Name the six teams in the four major professional sports leagues in North America who share the same team names? Answers at the end of this week’s column.

Random Leftovers – Congratulations to the Vancouver Canadians. The Blue Jays’ high-A affiliate was named a winner of Baseball America’s Bob Freitas Award, which honours the top clubs across each level of minor league baseball.  The Canadians led the Northwest League in attendance for the fourth straight season drawing 277,990 fans to Nat Bailey Stadium. It just seems wrong that the Canadians are the only remaining affiliated minor-league team left in Canada.

Who is Nikola Markovic you ask? The Gatineau, Quebec native was selected first overall in the MLS SuperDraft by D.C. United. The North Carolina State defender became only the second Canadian to go No. 1 in the MLS draft. Cyle Larin went first in 2015. Markovic is just 21 and will certainly be on the radar for Team Canada.

John Daly should consider a post-golf career as Santa Claus. Have you seen this guy lately? His challenge would be learning how to go down the chimney rather than smoking like one.

YouTube Music Videos of the Week – Norah Jones celebrated the release of her album, ‘I Dream of Christmas’ with a live performance from the top of the Empire State Building. Click below and get into the Christmas spirit. Scan past the timer to see the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eMdp6OCS-E&list=RD9eMdp6OCS-E&start_radio=1

My Dark Hour – In May 1969, after an argument between the four Beatles at London’s Olympic recording studios, three left and went home. Paul McCartney stayed, where he encountered Steve Miller, and together they recorded “My Dark Hour.” Paul played drums on the track as well as bass, guitar and backing vocals.

McCartney said the encounter helped him release all his anger from the argument. “Steve Miller happened to be there recording, late at night, and he just breezed in. ‘Hey, what’s happening, man? Can I use the studio?’ ‘Yeah!’ I said. ‘Can I drum for you? I just had a fucking unholy argument with the guys there.’ I explained it to him, took ten minutes to get it off my chest. So, I did a track, he and I stayed that night and did a track of his called My Dark Hour. I thrashed everything out on the drums. There’s a surfeit of aggressive drum fills, that’s all I can say about that. We stayed up until late. I played bass, guitar and drums and sang backing vocals. It’s actually a pretty good track. It was a very strange time in my life and I swear I got my first grey hairs that month. I saw them appearing. I looked in the mirror, I thought, I can see you. You’re all coming now. Welcome.”

Trivia Answer –

1. Cardinals
2. Jets
3. Giants
4. Rangers
5. Panthers
6. Kings

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays Everyone!!!

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