8 Jordie Benn D

Benn has cleared the COVID-19 protocols and joined his teammates for Wednesday's game-day skate, Ben Kuzma of the Vancouver Sun reports.

Benn will be eligible to play as soon as Wednesday's game against the Canadiens, though it remains to be seen whether he'll be in the lineup or if the Canucks will opt to give the veteran blueliner some more time to get up to speed before throwing Benn into game action.

Benn (COVID-19) won't play in the first four games of the season, Iain MacIntyre of Sportsnet reports.

Benn has been quarantining -- as has teammate J.T. Miller -- and both will sit out the first four contests of the season against Edmonton and Calgary. If the players are healthy after that, they'd presumably be lineup options for Jan. 20's contest against the visiting Canadiens.

Benn (undisclosed) was unable to practice with the team Monday, Brendan Batchelor of Sportsnet 650 reports.

Benn won't have much time to get healthy if he is going to be in the lineup against Edmonton for Wednesday's Opening Night. The 33-year-old blueliner could struggle for regular minutes this year even when he is available, making him a low-end fantasy option regardless of format.

Benn potted a goal on three shots and added two hits in Monday's 6-2 win over the Predators.

Benn entered Monday with just six assists through 39 appearances. The 32-year-old defenseman has now added 57 blocked shots, 55 shots on net and 37 hits this season. He plays mostly on the third pairing and isn't likely to help fantasy owners much.

Benn has appeared in just one of Vancouver's past 13 games.

Benn has lost his role on the bottom pairing to Oscar Fantenberg. He's appeared in 38 contests, collecting six assists along the way. With the Canucks on a three-game winning streak, it may be a while before Benn re-enters the lineup.

Benn was released from the press box for Thursday's loss in Florida.

Benn had been a healthy scratch for the past six contests, but entered the lineup as the Canucks needed to change things defensively after allowing nine goals to Tampa Tuesday night. Benn posted two hits, a block, and a minus-1 rating. With just six points in 38 outings, Benn doesn't offer much fantasy value.

Benn has been demoted to being the seventh defenseman for the Canucks.

Benn played in the first 37 games for Vancouver but has watched the most recent two from the press box. The Canucks defense is now fully healthy, and Oscar Fantenberg has surpassed Benn on the third pairing. Benn had limited value in having just six assists on the season. If you were relying on his 30 hits and 54 blocks, you may want to look elsewhere.

Benn practiced Tuesday after missing Monday's with an illness, Ben Kuzma of The Vancouver Province reports.

Benn should occupy a third-pairing role in Tuesday's game versus the Maple Leafs. The veteran defenseman has tallied six helpers in 30 games this season.

Benn (illness) didn't participate in Monday's practice, Brendan Batchelor of Sportsnet 650 reports.

Benn could miss his first game of the season if he's unable to feel better for Tuesday's matchup against the Maple Leafs. The veteran blueliner isn't a regular in the point column, but he's currently on a three-game point streak (three assists). If Benn's unable to go, Jalen Chatfield is slated to make his NHL debut.

Benn notched an assist and three shots on goal in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Senators.

Benn has posted helpers in consecutive games to raise his season output to five assists through 29 outings. The 32-year-old is up to 38 shots on goal and 26 hits as well.

Benn posted an assist and a game-high seven shots on goal in Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Oilers.

With Alexander Edler (upper body) out, Benn skated over 20 minutes for just the fifth time in 28 appearances. The 32-year-old has produced four assists, 40 blocked shots and 35 shots on goal this year. He's a mostly defensive player, and it's unlikely a temporarily expanded role will cause much growth in the offensive side of his game.

Benn registered an assist and a fighting major in Thursday's 4-2 loss to the Stars.

Benn was playing against his first NHL team and didn't hesitate to make an impact. He set up Troy Stecher's second-period goal and dropped the mitts with Denis Gurianov in the first period as well. Benn has just three assists in 20 games, to go with 19 hits, 25 blocked shots and 11 PIM.

Benn had two assists with one shot on goal and three blocks in Tuesday's 5-2 win over Detroit.

The points were Benn's first as a Canuck and helped buoy a third-period explosion for Vancouver, which rallied from a 2-0 deficit. The 32-year-old is a third-pairing defenseman for the Canucks after spending the past three seasons in Montreal. He had a career-high 22 points in 81 games last season but probably shouldn't be expected to replicate that in his current role.

Benn has gone scoreless in his first five games with Vancouver.

Benn isn't an offensive-minded blue liner, but he produced a respectable 22 points during the 2018-19 campaign. His main value comes from his peripherals, where he has seven hits and four blocks. Should he see more ice time than the 15:32 he's seeing on average so far, his numbers are bound to improve.

Benn signed a two-year, $4 million contract with the Canucks on Monday, Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reports.

With Vancouver opting not to tender a qualifying offer to Ben Hutton, Canucks GM Jim Benning has courted a 31-year-old left-shooting blueliner in Benn, who had a career year offensively with Montreal in 2018-19 -- he banked five goals and 17 assists to complement a robust plus-14 rating. There's still not much fantasy value to be extracted from Benn, but he figures to be an asset for the Canucks as a no-frills defender who can handle 18-odd minutes on a per-game basis.

Benn is slated to become a free agent July 1, rather than re-sign with Montreal, Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reports.

Benn set career highs in games played (81), goals (five), points (22) and hits (124), so it shouldn't come as a shock the defender wants to see what he can earn on the open market. Regardless of where he lands, the 31-year-old's ceiling is likely in the 20-25 point range, providing mid-range fantasy value at best.

Benn sent out two assists in Tuesday's win over the Lightning.

Benn's a rare contributor on the Habs' third defensive pairing, but he notched an assist on Nate Thompson's opening score and a secodary helper on Max Domi's insurance goal. This was Benn's second multi-point game of the season, and he now has secured a career-high 22 points on the season.

Benn scored Montreal's lone goal in Thursday's 2-1 loss to the Islanders.

The Habs were down 1-0 in the middle period when Benn beat Thomas Greiss through a screen to even things up. It's the defenseman's first goal in 24 games, dating back to Jan 12, and gives him 19 points through 70 games this season.

Benn had an assist and two shots in Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Blue Jackets.

Benn showed good patience after a pinch and feathered a beautiful pass to the stick of Tomas Tatar for Montreal's game-winner. The Canadiens snapped a four-game losing streak (0-3-1) with the much-needed win, keeping the pace for a wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. For Benn, it was the 15th point in 59 games; the 31-year-old blueliner had the same number of points over 77 games in 2017-18.

Benn recorded an assist in Tuesday's 5-1 win over Florida.

Benn's assist came in the third period on Jesperi Kotkaniemi's sixth goal of the season. The rugged blueliner has been on a roll offensively with seven points in his last 10 games. Against Florida, Benn, on top of notching his eighth assist of 2018-19, finished with three shots on goal and also three blocks. He currently ranks second on the team with a plus-11 rating through 47 games.