<p>VANCOUVER, British Columbia &mdash; The Vancouver Canucks gave coach Travis Green a vote of confidence Friday, signing him to a multiyear contract extension after a season in which the team was battered by the coronavirus and finished last in its division. </p>
<p>Green was in the final year of his contract after being hired in April 2017 to replace Willie Desjardins. General manager Jim Benning said in a statement that Green is the right coach to develop the team’s young core.</p>
<p>The Canucks were sidelined for long stretches by COVID-19. The outbreak started in late March and included 21 players and four coaches, including Green. Canucks games were put on hold for more than two weeks. </p>
<p>Vancouver had a record this year of 23-29-4 in the North Division. Green has a 125-132-32 record over 289 regular-season games.</p>
<hr />
<p>More AP NHL coverage: <a href="https://apnews.com/hub/NHL">https://apnews.com/hub/NHL</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/AP_Sports">https://twitter.com/AP_Sports</a></p>