from Cam Cole of the Vancouver Sun,

Hamhuis is not the bad guy here. He exercised the rights given to him by the six-year, $27-million contract Mike Gillis signed him to in 2010-11.

The 33-year-old never wanted, still doesn’t want to leave Vancouver. Loves the city. His family is rooted in the community. Hopes to re-sign with the Canucks come the summer.

But in the meantime, the team has missed the chance to get whatever return might have been had for a solid citizen who could be a good team’s No. 4 defenceman on a playoff run. Surely that was worth something, to somebody. Benning couldn’t find it.

The Canucks, as an organization, didn’t move quickly enough, clinging to their playoff pipe dream too long. And Hamhuis didn’t move quickly enough, deciding too late that it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world to chase a Cup for a couple of months instead of plodding along here for the next six weeks with the walking dead.

At heart, even with nothing to look forward to this spring, he wanted to stay a Canuck.

We used to admire guys who didn’t want to leave. Now, we think they must have a character flaw.

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