No plans to fill Linden’s role, says Canucks’ GM

The Vancouver Canucks’ top brass say everyone is on the same page when it comes to re-building the team for the future.

General manager Jim Benning said the club still wants to draft good players, develop them and then support them when they’re ready for the NHL.

“That’s been our plan for awhile and that hasn’t changed,” Benning told media on a conference call Thursday.

His comments come after the Canucks announced in a release Wednesday that they were “amicably” parting ways with Trevor Linden, the team’s president of hockey operations since 2014.

The Canucks added that Linden was leaving to pursue “other endeavours,” while the team’s former captain said in a separate statement that he plans to “step back from the spotlight” and enjoy time with his family.

Benning said he doesn’t know what prompted the split.

The news caught some within the Canucks organization off guard, head coach Travis Green said on the conference call.

“Everyone’s surprised that it happened,” he said. “We don’t really know the specifics.”

Canucks owner Francesco Aquilini said on Twitter that Benning is slated to take over hockey operations.

The general manager said he expects to hold the new role for the foreseeable future.

“(Aquilini) said he’s not looking to hire someone as the president of hockey operations,” Benning said.