We’re aiming for Cup, says first Las Vegas GM

Guelph’s George McPhee, 58, has been tabbed as the first general manager of the National Hockey League’s expansion Las Vegas franchise.

McPhee hopes to build an entertaining team that can compete sooner rather than later.

Owner Bill Foley picked McPhee out of seven candidates based on his extensive experience. It’s up to McPhee to build Las Vegas from scratch when it begins play in 2017-18, a task he knows won’t be easy.

“Our mission here is clear: We’re going to build an organization and a team that people in Nevada and Las Vegas will be proud of, and we’re going to do it quickly and we’re aiming at the Stanley Cup,” McPhee said Wednesday. “It’s that simple.”

McPhee most recently served as special adviser to New York Islanders GM Garth Snow and before that spent 16 seasons as GM of the Washington Capitals. As the Capitals’ GM, McPhee oversaw a complete rebuild around star winger Alex Ovechkin that led to the team making six consecutive playoff appearances before he was fired in 2014. McPhee played seven seasons in the NHL.