Tough choice for next GM
Will it be Mcguire, Bergevin, Brisebois, Loiselle, Savard, Brisson, Roy or Carrière?
NIt was the day
EW YORK – after the National Hockey League trading deadline and I was sitting in the press box in Tampa when I was approached by Pierre Gauthier.
“I know you couldn’t get to my press conference yesterday and I was wondering if you had any question, whether there was anything I could tell you,” Gauthier said.
I stifled the impulse to ask: “Who are you?”
Had the Canadiens general manager, whose attitude toward dispensing information can best be described as miserly, been taken over by some alien life form?
I suspect Gauthier had seen the writing on the wall and was looking for friends. There was brave talk about a late playoff run, but the reality was the Canadiens were finished and it was just a matter of time before Gauthier was fired.
The inevitable news came Thursday morning, starting with a tweet from the Canadiens, and the focus quickly shifted to who comes next.
Team president Geoff Molson said the search is on for the best possible candidate, although he did say the ability to speak French would be an asset. But former general manager Serge Savard appeared to narrow the field a bit when he assured the media that the new GM would speak French. That would indicate Savard either has a leading candidate in mind who speaks French, or the organization isn’t interested in casting the widest net.
Fortunately, finding a GM who speaks French will be easier than finding a head coach with the proper linguistic skills.
Here, in no particular order, are some of the GM candidates:
Pierre Mcguire: If TSN Radio 990 listeners are making the call, McGuire is a shoo-in. I think he’d be crazy to leave the security of his current gig at NBC, but he’s a passionate Montreal guy and he’s been lusting after this job for years. I like Mcguire, and I’ll concede that he knows more about hockey than most people on this planet, but I have some concerns. He earned his Stanley Cup rings as an assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins 20 years ago, his work in the NHL has centred around coaching and scouting, and he hasn’t been employed by an NHL team since before the lockout. The big question is how quickly can he fill in the gaps in his resumé and does he have the patience to see this team through what could be a painful rebuilding job?
Marc Bergevin: The Montreal native played 1,191 games with eight NHL teams, and he was Chicago’s director of player personnel leading up to the team’s 2010 Stanley Cup win. He knows how to spot talent, and his reputation for practical jokes will help to lighten the mood.
Julien Brisebois: He cut his teeth in the Canadiens’ organization as the salary capologist, before moving on to Tampa Bay as the assistant general manager. He has the legal and business smarts to do the job, but has he absorbed enough about the game and what it takes to win? And, while he’s familiar with the organization, his ties to the previous regime may not be viewed as an asset. Claude Loiselle: He has a solid resumé. He played in the league, has a law degree, worked for the NHL, and has experience as an assistant GM in Tampa and Toronto. André Savard: He has been here before and, in retrospect, he did a better job than he gets credit for. He has solid hockey credentials, but will need help on the business side. The biggest drawback is his honesty – he’s never learned to lie. Pat Brisson: Can the prospect of running an iconic franchise lure the Valleyfield native away from his career negotiating contracts for iconic players? Mike Gillis, Pierre Lacroix and Brian Burke have made the transition from agent to GM, but Los Angeles-based Brisson might be too entrenched in California Dreamin’. Patrick Roy: It would be fun to see him behind the bench, but he would be out of his element as a GM. Larry Carrière: The current assistant GM has a wealth of hockey knowledge, but his value down the line will be his ability to evaluate talent.
If the Canadiens can get past the language issue, the best candidate for the job would be Jim Nill, who is Ken Holland’s right-hand man in
If the Canadiens
can get past the language issue, the best candidate would be Jim Nill.
Detroit. But Nill is the highest-paid assistant GM in the NHL and has spurned previous offers to move.
The new GM’S first task will be to hire a new coach – even if he spoke French, Randy Cunny-worth hasn’t done enough to retain his position – and the Canadiens should look internally and bring back Jacques Martin, who is still under contract.
When assessing Gauthier’s body of work, people will forget that he brought in free-agent Erik Cole or that he shored up the power play last season by trading for James Wisniewski.
They will remember his mistakes. Trading for Tomas Kaberle and his burdensome contract. Not waiting to see if he could get more for Michael Cammalleri. Overpaying Chris Campoli.
But the biggest mistake Gauthier made was firing Martin, who got the most out of a small, injury-decimated team in two playoff appearances. He deserves another kick at the can.