The Vancouver Canucks are often critiqued for passing over homegrown talent, not scouting the players that grow up playing in the area around the city. With many minor hockey programs and multiple Western Hockey League teams in the area, Canucks fans have watched young hockey talents such as Milan Lucic and Brendan Gallagher excel for local teams. However, when it came to the draft, such players were passed over by the Canucks.
This pressure may have been a contributing factor in the decision to draft local kid Jake Virtanen in 2014 ahead of other higher-ranked players.