GM search thread - all news and discussion here

[EDM]

Well, one person understood that point of my somewhat controversial statement about a female GM. That is, for the first female GM, all media coverage would be about her as a female, not about the substance of the team and how her actions would affect the team. Stories would focus upon how she interact with male GM's, whether her draft picks reflect a female perspective, is that perspective different than a male's, etc. I was not intending to comment upon potential competence as much as the fact that all media would speculate upon her personal status rather than the state of the team.

 

[Iron Balls McGinty]

Same Florida team that we all made fun of their attendance for years ? Amazing how quickly a narrative and perception of a franchise can change when you win in the playoffs … Reading your post , logically it may make sense .. but people develop relationships / life experiences .. you never know what makes a person tick .. plus they would have been offering an expanded role

I'm sure people also remember the empty Igloo and the Penguins almost moving to Kansas City. Then Lemieux saves them, Crosby, Fleury and Malkin arrive and its suddenly a different story.

Winning fixes just about everything. let's not pretend Pittsburgh is as desirable of a city as Ft. Lauderdale.

 

[Monk]

Well, one person understood that point of my somewhat controversial statement about a female GM. That is, for the first female GM, all media coverage would be about her as a female, not about the substance of the team and how her actions would affect the team. Stories would focus upon how she interact with male GM's, whether her draft picks reflect a female perspective, is that perspective different than a male's, etc. I was not intending to comment upon potential competence as much as the fact that all media would speculate upon her personal status rather than the state of the team.

So in this scenario you'd quit being a fan of the team because of how the media covers it? Odd.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

I think he would have found a team willing to pay more than Columbus if he wanted to leave Florida. It’s not like we are going to win a bidding war with any team except the stingiest owners in the NHL. But he has a great situation in Florida so I don’t think he was looking to leave at this point in time. Win a Cup and he could name his price with an O6 or big market team.

Let us not have the false narrative out there that we were ever close to having Zito come here.

It’s not just about money. It’s about connections. We gave Zito his in to the NHL as an executive. He has to feel some amount of gratitude for that.

Do I think he was ever close to coming here or even close to considering it? No. But do I think we flirted with him and maybe he was open to it? Yes. There’s no other explanation to him getting an extension and promotion at the time he did

Zito doesn’t matter anymore and we can look by him.

 

[KJ Dangler]

Well, one person understood that point of my somewhat controversial statement about a female GM. That is, for the first female GM, all media coverage would be about her as a female, not about the substance of the team and how her actions would affect the team. Stories would focus upon how she interact with male GM's, whether her draft picks reflect a female perspective, is that perspective different than a male's, etc. I was not intending to comment upon potential competence as much as the fact that all media would speculate upon her personal status rather than the state of the team.

I got what you are saying … we aren’t in a position to take the risk .. there’s really no to little track record of success in major pro sports to cite. The cbj franchise is at a cross roads, they have to get this hire right .. we just saw Arizona move .. eventually fans give up if your franchise consistently loses….

People have opinions .. some feel there is more respect given to those who played in the league.. because they have a better understanding of the players , like an instant credibility thing .

 

[GoJackets1]

If there are women who have equivalent qualifications to male candidates, they should in theory be given equal consideration, and there is no inherent risk involved. If their qualifications are the same, then that is the end of it. Just my two cents.

 

[cbjthrowaway]

Sunday Dispatch suggests that CBJ can 'make history" by hiring the first female GM. I am sorry, but if they do this, I am done as a fan. I mean no disrepect women, but I am tired of the the CBJ as a kind of carnival freak show.

castonguay is absolutely one of the better candidates (AGM in an org that had a major turnaround this season, has experience as an agent, etc) if they are looking to hire an up-and-coming, new-school GM rather than a dinosaur. which, imo, they should.

i'll also go one further and say, regardless of who the GM is, that if they fire the coaching staff (god i hope so) that nadine muzzerall should be on their shortlist.

you say hiring women would be a 'carnival freak show' – i say hiring the best woman available for the job instead of the 50th best man is good business and taking advantage of a market inefficiency.

 

[cbjthrowaway]

MacFarland was credited with doing a lot of the work to build that loaded roster while Sakic was the GM.

i'm fine with any number of GM hires but if this saga doesn't end with macfarland replacing john davidson as the president of hockey ops, i'll be disappointed.

maybe that's my problem for buying into the speculation and getting my hopes up, but they clearly need a new voice atop the department and macfarland would be a clear upgrade.

pairing macfarland with a new school up-and-coming GM from an org that has found success (whether that's tulsky, darche, castonguay, etc) seems like the best approach.

 

[Crede777]

I would want to see Nadine Muzerall be an assistant coach or the Monsters' head coach first. Same with David Carle.

 

[squashmaple]

To give EDM the benefit of the doubt, I suspect he meant that it would cause a "carnival freak show" in terms of media attention, not that Castonguay herself would be a freakshow, but it is a very inelegant way of saying that. There were definitely better ways to word it, and I actually don't disagree with the general sentiment. This franchise has been under a microscope for over a year, constantly finding ways to make itself the subject of negative attention and brunt of jokes. The next GM hire has to be perfect, and I don't know that any of the up-and-coming women fit that description yet in their careers. I hate to say it, but the Jackets need a quiet few years, and no matter how good Castonguay or Granato might be, hiring one of them guarantees that the media will not be a quiet.

I was only a nominal fan in 2013, so I'm not sure what kind of freakout there was when Columbus hired the NHL's first Euro GM. Was it a bit of a frenzy then?

 

[KJ Dangler]

My current faith in JD .. the Babcock situation .. if they hire Hunter , it’s with the plan he’s a stop gap that would step into JDs position as he retires , and they are biding time to get Rick Nash ready for the GM role . Fair or unfair .. that’s my faith in this front office . I’m not saying Nash can’t be a good gm in a couple years .. but that the whole move is made with that being the plan … Is that me being Paranoid ?

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

My current faith in JD .. the Babcock situation .. if they hire Hunter , it’s with the plan he’s a stop gap that would step into JDs position as he retires , and they are biding time to get Rick Nash ready for the GM role . Fair or unfair .. that’s my faith in this front office . I’m not saying Nash can’t be a good gm in a couple years .. but that the whole move is made with that being the plan … Is that me being Paranoid ?

Not sure what the plan is with Nash but if what you're saying here is you don't have faith in JD to get this right, I can sympathize.

 

[Iron Balls McGinty]

I would want to see Nadine Muzerall be an assistant coach or the Monsters' head coach first. Same with David Carle.

Seems lke a logical next step. She's a fantastic coach. I know they brought her in for development camp last summer and seemed to get rave reviews from everyone there.

 

[Xoggz22]

I really don't care about the gender, sexual orientation, color, religion...or anything else. If CBJ is hiring for any other reason than to get the best option for this franchise, they should be chastised. Hiring for publicity would be an atrocious misstep. Hiring because someone earns the job... bingo. Just get someone in here with a new vision, new plan and someone that can execute said plan/vision. That's it from me on this topic. Are you qualified? Yes or No... period.

 

[cbjthrowaway]

Hiring for publicity would be an atrocious misstep.

Are you qualified? Yes or No... period.

therein lies the problem that any "first woman to ______" faces, though.

the blue jackets could conclude, decisively, that castonguay is the best candidate for GM, or that muzzerall is the best candidate for head coach. but there will still be a horde of barstool bros in oakley wrap-around shades who can't read a children's book without moving their lips causing a ruckus because the jackets had the audacity to consider a woman for the role.

the truth is that any woman who warrants consideration for this type of role has to be overqualified – not just because of the systemic biases in the industry, but because they have to be emphatically 'worth the headache' that the worst people out there would inevitably cause.

i know the "idc if they hire a woman, as long as she's qualified!" stuff comes from a good place, but it still implies that there would be a question of whether or not the first woman GM would have actually earned it, when in reality they will likely be absurdly overqualified.

 

[NotWendell]

therein lies the problem that any "first woman to ______" faces, though.

the blue jackets could conclude, decisively, that castonguay is the best candidate for GM, or that muzzerall is the best candidate for head coach. but there will still be a horde of barstool bros in oakley wrap-around shades who can't read a children's book without moving their lips causing a ruckus because the jackets had the audacity to consider a woman for the role.

the truth is that any woman who warrants consideration for this type of role has to be overqualified – not just because of the systemic biases in the industry, but because they have to be emphatically 'worth the headache' that the worst people out there would inevitably cause.

i know the "idc if they hire a woman, as long as she's qualified!" stuff comes from a good place, but it still implies that there would be a question of whether or not the first woman GM would have actually earned it, when in reality they will likely be absurdly overqualified.

That GM would also have to deal with the backchatter of "those stupid Blue Jackets are at it again. Worst front office in the league. Why didn't they just hire...?"

Come to think of it, everyone is going to do that anyway.

 

[CannonFire1]

If looking for organizations to emulate, the Stars under Jim Nill's watch would be a good choice. Scott White (AGM) could be an interesting candidate.

 

[I3LI3]

so… if you had to guess.. how much longer until we all think we announce the hiring of the new GM?

 

[ClevelandJacketFan]

so… if you had to guess.. how much longer until we all think we announce the hiring of the new GM?

Seems pretty clear that we are waiting for the Canes, Avs or London Knights to be finished.

I'd feel that if the Avs and Canes get eliminated and we don't immediately hire MacFarland or Tulsky within 72 hrs, you can write Mark Hunter's name down in pen.

 

[Cyclones Rock]

I honestly do not understand the MacFarland support here except for the fact that he worked for the organization.

Sakic built the Stanley Cup winner in Colorado and MacFarland really hasn't done much from what I can see. Not that there was much to do except "hold the fort" given the roster that he inherited. What would be essential to know about him is what his input in key decisions while he was with the CBJ was and whether he was correct more often than incorrect in his assessments. Only CBJ insiders would know this.

He would be a "safe hire" in that the principals who are making the GM hiring decision know him well. But given the history of those doing the hiring, that is probably not be a good thing

the truth is that any woman who warrants consideration for this type of role has to be overqualified – not just because of the systemic biases in the industry, but because they have to be emphatically 'worth the headache' that the worst people out there would inevitably cause.

Maybe. Maybe not.

Plenty of governmental and corporate hires are hired almost exclusively to meet gender/race quotas. Even those who don't need to move their lips while reading a children's book would have to recognize this in this day and age.

 

[KJ Dangler]

If looking for organizations to emulate, the Stars under Jim Nill's watch would be a good choice. Scott White (AGM) could be an interesting candidate.

Stars are head and shoulders above what anyone else in the league is doing . Absolutely remarkable the talent they identify and develop. You want to change the culture , I would certainly be looking there

so… if you had to guess.. how much longer until we all think we announce the hiring of the new GM?

When’s the draft ? Bobby Mac said yesterday that they will have the new gm in place prior to the draft . I agree with him , you have to have the new gm in place by the draft .

 

[Twain]

If looking for organizations to emulate, the Stars under Jim Nill's watch would be a good choice. Scott White (AGM) could be an interesting candidate.

Another option from the Stars could be Steve Greeley. He got 2nd interview from the Pens before they went with Dubas. So he has been in the running for some GM jobs. He has been director of strategy / scouting with the Stars. His name has disappeared from Stars website though, so no idea what’s going on there.

 

[cbjthrowaway]

Plenty of governmental and corporate hires are hired almost exclusively to meet gender/race quotas. Even those who don't need to move their lips while reading a children's book would have to recognize this in this day and age.

and that would apply, specifically, to the blue jackets GM job how, exactly?

 

[CBJWerenski8]

 

[GoJackets1]

Jesus Christ. Alright, someone take the reins from JD. Time to put him out to pasture. In terms of actual rumors we’ve seen nothing but old boys club guys.

Bergevin is going to be the guy to instill a solid, winning culture? Seriously? Move forwards, not backwards.