Canucks not rushing Zeev Buium’s development in sophomore season

PENTICTON — The patience the Vancouver Canucks are preaching for Zeev Buium obviously did not apply to the defenceman’s contract.

Having witnessed the revolution in National Hockey League player economics over the summer, Canucks general manager Ryan Johnson made a huge calculated bet two weeks ago when he signed Buium to an eight-year, $75-million-USD extension — about a million dollars for each of the 20-year-old’s 76 NHL games so far.

That contract is part of the league’s rapidly-changing financial landscape, although Buium was adamant on Friday that it doesn’t change him or his development path.

“I've said this a bunch: every guy in the NHL, every guy that plays professional sports, the most pressure comes from us — ourselves,” he said when asked if the heft of his new contract changes expectations. “I don't really think the pressure from the outside ever gets to me.

“You always want to outplay your contract, and whether you're making $15 million or $2 million, it doesn't matter. I think if I can play to my capabilities and come out every night feeling like, you know, I’ve played my best, I think I will like my results. It has nothing to do with my contract; I want to be the player I want to be.”

That attitude is partly why the Canucks were willing to go all-in on Buium, the centrepiece of the return from last December’s trade of Quinn Hughes to the Minnesota Wild.

When Buium’s contract was announced, Johnson told reporters: “This contract isn't about Zeev the player today or tomorrow. It's where we see him in three, four and five years. This is now a journey and we're going to support him.”

During the Canucks’ pre-training camp press conference this week, both Johnson and head coach Manny Malhotra re-iterated the new regime’s belief that patience is paramount to player development, and no prospect is going to be rushed to the NHL before he is ready.

But Buium is already in the NHL after splitting his rookie season between the Wild and the Canucks, and even in the final season of his original, entry-level contract, the defencemen’s development is going to be conducted in the best league in the world.

“We’ll treat him like we would any other guy,” Malhotra insisted Friday after the second day of camp here. “There’s obviously a great deal of patience that goes into helping a young player develop at the right pace. People will look at the contract and have certain expectations, whereas for us, we continue to talk about building the foundation.

“We recognize he will make mistakes like any other young guy in this league does.