Though nothing will be official until June 24, Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning appears to have an idea of who he wants to build his team around.
The Canucks entered the lottery Saturday with the third-highest chance at landing a top-three pick, but ultimately wound up fifth in the order.
The fall, admittedly, was tough to swallow for Benning.
"I won't lie, I was disappointed," he told TSN 1040 Vancouver.
Forwards Pierre-Luc Dubois and Matthew Tkachuk, as well as defensemen Jakob Chychrun and Olli Juolevi are projected to be the best fits at the No. 5 slot, and Benning revealed he's more enticed by adding a forward at this point.
"I think that sounds more realistic to me," Benning said when asked if he's leaning towards picking a forward such as Dubois or Tkachuk.
"I don't know if there's a true No. 1 defenseman in the draft," he added. "If you look through the league right now, there's maybe eight or 10 No. 1 defenseman in the whole league."
The talent level of defensemen, as well as the Canucks aging roster, contribute to Benning's reasoning.
"If we felt there was a true No. 1 defenseman ... then that's where our focus would be," he said. "But having said that, with Henrik Sedin getting older now, we have to look at the future, too."
The Edmonton Oilers' selection at No. 4 will likely have an impact on what Benning and the Canucks choose to do, as the Oilers are largely in the market for a blueliner, whether it be via the draft or a trade.
