The Vancouver Canucks' five-game losing streak is the talk of the town this morning.

Last night, the team blew a 2-1 lead in the third period, losing to the Colorado Avalanche 4-2.

Late in the third period, fans even started chanting "Fire Benning".

This morning, general manager Jim Benning answered a question about this in a briefing with the media.

He admitted that it was "really upsetting" to hear fans calling for him to be replaced.

"As a management team these seven-plus years, we've worked really hard to draft well [and] develop our players properly," Benning said. "I think it's wearing on all of us."

He also acknowledged that the fans are frustrated and that he gets that.

"My whole career is based on trying to figure things out—to help build teams that are competitive, that are successful," he said.

Benning said that he's not going to worry about his own future, saying that's up to "ownership".

"Obviously, ownership is not happy with the start of the season," he stated.

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The general manager emphasized that he still believes in his group of players. And he acknowledged that not having Brandon Sutter and Tyler Motte with the team from the start of the year has been a "big loss".

"They're great penalty killers," Benning said.

The Canucks have the worst penalty-killing record in the NHL.

The team is in seventh place in the Pacific Division with 12 points, only ranking ahead of the Seattle Kraken.

Benning noted that some players, including centre Elias Pettersson, need to regain their confidence.

"He's coming off a tough injury," the general manager stated. "He hasn't played in a long time."

In 17 games, Pettersson has posted three goals and six assists. Right winger Brock Boeser has four goals and four assists in 14 games. Each of these players is at -3 in the plus-minus category.

One reporter asked Benning about the future of head coach Travis Green.

"We're looking at everything," Benning replied. "We're trying to find solutions to our problem. Travis and his staff are working hard. This is wearing on them. This is wearing on all of us."

He also revealed that defencemen Travis Hamonic has finally received his second vaccination against COVID-19. That means Hamonic will be eligible in a couple of weeks to travel with the team to the United States.