The Vancouver Canucks have had a terrible start to the regular season. Not only has the team delivered several embarrassing performances on the ice, but the backlash from their fans on social media has been vocal with #FireBenning trending several times over the last week in reference to general manager Jim Benning.
Perhaps their ugliest performance to date came over the weekend when they faced off against the Toronto Maple Leafs and were soundly defeated by a score of 5 - 1. The first period had not reached its conclusion before #FireBenning once again trended, and the game even caught the ire of legendary National Hockey League broadcaster Don Cherry.
Cherry was asked about the Canucks on his most recent podcast and his comments can only be described as a scathing critique of most the men in the Vancouver Canucks locker room.
"I thought they had a 5 minute major at the start," said Cherry on his most recent podcast. "It was pathetic."
Unfortunately for the Vancouver Canucks the criticism did not stop there. Cherry went so far as to question what was really going on with the players on the ice, suggesting that they looked like players trying to get rid of their coach.
"I hate to say it but I've seen it before, they played last night like they wanted the coach fire," said Cherry. "[Travis] Green is a good coach, I predicted he would coach in the National Hockey League."
"Nobody can play that bad and the shots, I have to laugh at the shots. There's nobody standing in front."
Speaking of not standing in front of the net, Cherry seemed to put most of the blame on the players in front of Braden Holtby while sparing the veteran netminder from the worst of his barbs.
"I saw Holtby looking at the bench saying 'What is going on? I thought I was coming to a good club?"
Cherry didn't really single out anyone on the Canucks roster, but he did mention some names when briefly discussing players for Vancouver vanishing on the ice.
"Guys disappear. Pettersson and Horvat, those guys," said Cherry in conclusion.
