from Pierre LeBrun of ESPN,

It was just over three years ago -- on Nov. 1, 2013 -- that Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin signed matching four-year contract extensions with the Vancouver Canucks.

The did so with a clear, shared thought in mind: that by the time those contracts expired and the twins were 37 years old, they would have helped the next generation of core Canucks players take over the team and could each enjoy their last few years in supporting roles.

That certainly remains the plan, although I would argue the clock is ticking on said plan.

"That's what we're hoping for, it's what we've said all along," Henrik, the team's captain, told ESPN.com on Friday. "No one would be happier if someone came in and we were second-liners when this ended. That would be great, because that would mean we were a very competitive team. We're not going to give it to them. We're going to fight the best we can to be the leading guys [because] it's where we want to be and we feel like we still have it in us.''

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