TSN: Brian Burke sit down interview w/ James Duthie (Burke Thread)

[GordieHoweHatTrick]

I hope he does well wherever he goes.

 

[Phaneuffan3]

He got a raw deal. I think we may live to regret the move. I'm also curious to hear the posters reasoning for why they think burkie will be back as our gm? What had given you that impression?

 

[SportsProsperity]

The interview with Duthie really highlights a few things about Burke.

First, he was absolutely in love with the celebrity aspect of being GM of the Leafs. In fact, that seemed to be the most important part of it for him.

Second, he doesn't have a filter between his brain and his mouth. He says things and then literally denies what he said seconds later.

It is truly bizarre.

He says it is humiliating to be fired in such a way. Then, Duthie restates what Burke has just said, and it dawns on Burke that what he has just said doesn't fit in with the blowhard image he works so hard to cultivate, so he withdraws it.

Then he says he is not professional. Dawns on the clown how bad that sounds and then seconds later claims he is the most professional person there is.

He is a loose-cannon, a buffoon and a clown. His mouth constantly got him in trouble during his time as GM, embarrassing himself and the team.

When presented with his own words, he would fly into a rage. And then he would make a new asinine pronouncement and the whole farce would start again.

There was no time for him to devote all his energies to the most important tasks of being a GM. He loved the spotlight, as proven by his post-firing round of interviews. He might just stick around Toronto and become a professional blowhard.

What a sad, sad spectacle he is making of himself. Luckily his sycophants in the media are trying to paint the board members as the unprofessional ones instead of the shrieking, bellowing, unprofessional buffoon who also happened to fail at putting together a winning team.

I would argue with every single point you made but it'll be pointless because you seem delusional. You obviously don't like Burke and there is nothing wrong with that but Burke isn't like what you just described.

 

[Johnny Canuck]

He made his own grave, by raising expectations. The Kessel trade put leafs back by years. The firing came at a poor timing, but was well deserved.

 

[7even]

He got a raw deal. I think we may live to regret the move. I'm also curious to hear the posters reasoning for why they think burkie will be back as our gm? What had given you that impression?

Poetic justice?

 

[RogerRoeper*]

He will be our GM again.

Book it

There is no chance he'll ever be our GM again. He'll be a GM of another soon within a year or so. But Nonis is going nowhere.

 

[The Apologist]

Burke is a good guy. I wish he was still GM, but given we had Nonis it's not a huge deal.

I believe it's as simple as the new owners didn't like him. Nonis is more of a quiet, corporate guy.

This. And MLSE is all about images

 

[go_leafs_go02]

im still in shock that he isn't our GM anymore. Id feel much better if Nonis was the guy and had burke back there behind the scenes or something.

#bringburkeback

"Bring Burke Back" would be a semi-reasonable chant for the Home Opener if you ask me.

 

[draeko17]

"Bring Burke Back" would be a semi-reasonable chant for the Home Opener if you ask me.

While I doubt that would happen, I would love it if it did. Not that it would change anything. But still. It would really be a nice compliment to a good man, however controversial and polarizing he may be.

 

[Confucius]

He made his own grave, by raising expectations. The Kessel trade put leafs back by years. The firing came at a poor timing, but was well deserved.

No, poor timing would have been just after he spent 50 million on one player and sending away picks or prospects to boot.

 

[Pyrophorus]

I just hope they continue the course of spending the most in player development and scouting.

 

[Durkin67]

He got a raw deal. I think we may live to regret the move. I'm also curious to hear the posters reasoning for why they think burkie will be back as our gm? What had given you that impression?

Bingo. In keeping with Toronto's legacy, it has once again shot itself in the ass with another bad decision at the executive level. No organization disrespects its assets more than Toronto. This equates to Ballard's failure to lock up a Don Cherry/Scotty Bowman coach and GM tandem, or Stavros vetoing Fletcher's deal to bring Gretzky in at 3 million a season. The list of personnel this franchise has disrespected is a along as it is shameful.

Burke will be back, but not downtown. When Markham gets its franchise, I sincerely think he has to be the front-runner for the GM gig.

 

[Durkin67]

No, poor timing would have been just after he spent 50 million on one player and sending away picks or prospects to boot.

It's been suggested that it wasn't Burke's desire to trade Luongo that led to this, but to the contrary, his unwillingness to over-pay and strip-mine the club of futures to get it done.

 

[achtungbaby]

It's been suggested that it wasn't Burke's desire to trade Luongo that led to this, but to the contrary, his unwillingness to over-pay and strip-mine the club of futures to get it done.

It's also been suggested that was bull plop.

 

[KuleminFan41]

No, poor timing would have been just after he spent 50 million on one player and sending away picks or prospects to boot.

What if it still happens and it had nothing to do with Burke?Who would you blame then?

 

[egd27]

Melnyk hires him as GM of the Sens at seasons end. Burke signs Getz and Perry on July 1st.
There is poetic justice.

 

[Confucius]

What if it still happens and it had nothing to do with Burke?Who would you blame then?

Apparently it was all set to happen and it didn't. However if it happens now I'd say MLSE is for that direction, so I would blame them. I can't see Rogers/ Bell being impatient they just bought the team.

 

[Durkin67]

It's also been suggested that was bull plop.

oh...Well, there you have it, then. "Bull plop" is about as conclusive at it gets. We'll see if and when the trade happens.

 

[thom]

Any chance they would bring in 79 yrs Scotty Bowman as an adviser?

 

[Confucius]

Any chance they would bring in 79 yrs Scotty Bowman as an adviser?

Nonis has quite a bit of experience, let him run with it.

 

[BillyD]

Melnyk hires him as GM of the Sens at seasons end. Burke signs Getz and Perry on July 1st.
There is poetic justice.

no players that have choices sign up to play in Ottawa, fortunately for us Getz and Perry have choices

 

[The Apologist]

no players that have choices sign up to play in Ottawa, fortunately for us Getz and Perry have choices

Apparently they don't sign here either

 

[Calacatz]

I am not a huge fan of Burke but didn't mind the guy.. The lawyer in him is great he has ppl in this city feeling sorry for him & making our ownership look bad but in the same breathe say I am not whinning.. like **** right off.... I payed thousands for tickets during his tenure and watched this team get wallpapered... then his talk I can make one trade and make the playoffs crap..

Here is where I defend him:
kessel trade - leafs underachieved should've never been 2nd overall but kessel brings 30-40 goals and is still yuong and on the rise.. plus he added Gardiner/Lupul for free by flipping his own UFA acq.. so those saying this sets us back are full of it.. Kessel/Gardiner =/> then Seguin/Hamilton the issue is we made Bruins better then needed..

The miss for burke is saying we only need a re-tool and by not landing the Sedins with Kessel or failing to get him that centre (Brad Richards) he failed to get the complimentary pieces that would have got us to postseason and def put Bos is worse draft pos..

Tired or the talk and legal answers.. all the best to the guy but not gonna q the move at all!

 

[Jerkini]

Melnyk hires him as GM of the Sens at seasons end. Burke signs Getz and Perry on July 1st.
There is poetic justice.

Could you imagine?

 

[DD03]

This. And MLSE is all about images

Really? Because the way they handled this and everything since they've owned this franchise as MLSE.. It's looked real good.