You know the old adage, all good things must come to an end.
Really, they came to an end for the Canucks after the 2011 playoffs. If you’re really generous, perhaps it ended when Alain Vigneault was fired in 2013.
There was a time when Dan Hamhuis and Kevin Bieksa were the glue on our blueline, mixing responsible defensive play with physicality and tenacity. The effective pairing shutdown the other teams top line, while even chipping in some offence of their own.
Think of it this way, Alex Edler was even freed up to be a second-pairing defenceman in his prime.