ALOUETTES’ NEW CEO HAS A TOUGH JOB AHEAD
The new president and chief executive officer of the Alouettes attended exactly one game last season. Of course, while this team was wetting the bed under Jim Popp, its former general manager and head coach, was there really any reason to venture to Molson Stadium?
“You can follow (a team) without necessarily going to the games. I don’t think I necessarily had to be a super fan to take this job,” said Patrick Boivin on Wednesday afternoon during a news conference in the ballroom of a downtown Montreal hotel that eventually deteriorated into a witch-hunt and free-for-all.
We all knew Kavis Reed, who has no experience as a general manager, would replace Popp in that role. It has been the worstkept secret since late last week. And that interim head coach Jacques Chapdelaine would have the interim title expunged from his record after winning four of the team’s final six games.
No, the bombshell on this day was the appointment of Boivin, a 38-year-old best known for being the son of a former Canadiens president. And the departure of the man he replaces, Mark Weightman, who has been the president or CEO the last four years, but who was associated with the franchise the full 21 years it has been in Montreal.
Although Andrew Wetenhall, the team’s lead governor, and part of the ownership group, did his best to convince everyone the decision was Weightman’s, he probably jumped before he was pushed. Coincidentally, Weightman played an active role in the interview of GM candidates, although Boivin was hired about two weeks ago.
This once storied franchise has missed the Canadian Football League playoffs two consecutive seasons and hasn’t been to a Grey Cup since 2010 — the longest drought of any team. That’s not Weightman’s fault. But the Als’ attendance has been mediocre recently. Indeed, it took the promotion of Chapdelaine last September for the team to finally sell out its venue. And as hard as Weightman tried to make the Als visible in the community, they’ve been supplanted by the Impact, who had a glorious run to the final four in Major League Soccer.
Weightman attempted to make each home game a unique experience, which will be Boivin’s mandate as well. It’s not complicated: Put bums in the seats and improve the visibility. At least he understands the scope of the task with which he’s faced. He said they’ll review their marketing and sales strategies, while implementing creative approaches that reach a broader range of audiences, specifically the younger generation.
“Re-engaging the fan base. You can get engagement without it being directly linked to tickets,” said Boivin, who comes to the Als following three years at Concordia University, where he was the director of recreation and athletics.
But Boivin’s best known for holding marketing positions with the Canadiens from 2002-08. He returned in July 2010 as the director of hockey operations.
“I think (sports fans) have an appetite for successful sports franchises. It starts by winning on the field,” Boivin said. “If the team’s winning and we’re doing the underlying work ... from a marketing and sales standpoint, things will come. That’s how you reverse the cycle.
“We have to take the box, empty it out and start with a blank sheet and figure out exactly what’s needed to be done to reverse the cycle.”
We’ve heard this message before, the same catchphrases. Weightman said them, as did his predecessor, Ray Lalonde. Lalonde, too, came from the Canadiens, where he was the vice-president of marketing for 10 years. He quickly rubbed people the wrong way in his new job — and was fired after one year.
Just as Lalonde arrived with less-than-glowing endorsements from those who had worked under him, so have some questioned Boivin’s hiring, suggesting he capitalized on nepotism with the Canadiens, a link that quickly disappeared with the departure of his father. At Concordia, he forced basketball coach John Dore into retirement and removed hockey coach Kevin Figsby. Boivin’s work ethic also was questioned.
But that matters little, for now. He has a ringing endorsement from Wetenhall, who repeatedly sang his praises, claiming Boivin’s the man to lead the Als from the abyss.
“Thoughtfulness. What an incredibly thoughtful candidate,” Wetenhall said. “He’s a very impressive man. He brought a wide range of skills we placed value on.”
Similarly, Wetenhall has no reservations hiring a rookie GM, knowing Reed has 21 years’ experience as a player and coach in the CFL. Reed, hired 10 days ago, said it was his decision on Saturday to retain Chapdelaine.
But as much as this should have been a feel-good story for the triumvirate, all roads seemingly reverted back to Danny Maciocia, the Université de Montréal head coach who interviewed for GM, only to be offered an executive job in which he would have had no football input.
Maciocia claimed the job was the president of football operations. Wetenhall simply used the word president, reporting to CEO Boivin. But with each question about Maciocia, Wetenhall clearly grew more exasperated.
And should Reed fail, how many times do you think the name of Danny Maciocia will be thrown into Wetenhall’s face?