The Zermanator
In Yzerman We Trust
- Jan 21, 2013
- 3,581
- 1,670
There's obviously some people that take their dislike of Holland to irrational and exaggerated levels, but let's not pretend there aren't some very valid reasons for not wanting him anywhere near this team going forward.so would I. The hate for the guy is stupid and being brought back in a role similar to Bowman's after he retired would be nothing but a positive asset.
If I had to describe Holland's career over the last 10 years it would be stale. Guy just doesn't have it anymore, and the league has passed him by. He went from bad to worse over that time. First, he oversees a steady decline of the Wings to the bottom of the barrel. Bloated with bad contracts, empty cupboard, etc. "Oh but that was the price to pay for so many years of success and he also had orders from higher up to maintain the streak", you might say. It's a valid point, but that's also downplaying all the bad moves that couldn't be ascribed to those excuses. But we can just turn our attention to what he did next with a new team, where those factors weren't present.
So he takes over a team with the best player in the world by a wide margin, and another player who can almost keep pace with him. He's done absolutely nothing with it apart from more mostly stale moves and the team is in a terrible position now. And in their desperation to stop the bleeding and try to turn the ship around before those two unicorns bolt for greener pastures, they're rumoured to have taken their 1st rd pick off the table. Because apparently a 1st rounder is more important than using every possible avenue to take advantage of McDavid's prime years. Just utter mismanagement. Brings the word stale to mind again.
In a situation where Holland returns to the Wings in some advisory position, I have serious concerns about the effect it would have on Yzerman. Not that Yzerman isn't an assertive and independent person, but he obviously would look up to Holland and possibly even be somewhat deferential due to their personal history. Yzerman has proven himself to be a clever and shrewd GM who is not afraid to pull the trigger on a bold move. That has worked very well for the Wings thus far under Yzerman's watch, I don't want Holland's passive and ultra-conservative modus operandi weaving its way back in.
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