Well, Friedman and Marek discussed at several points that Spezza may need to be hired by FSG and then assigned to the Penguins to get around potential contractual sticking points with Toronto. I'm guessing a promotion helps with that.
Bro, he helped the Leafs pass the 1st round for the 1st time in close to 20 years!!!
That’s why it’s gonna be someone who worked under him in Toronto…they’ll have no complaints there lol
They were wrong then…
theathletic.com
Orgs can still block hires after a resignation for the remaining term of a contract. Apparently a promotion overrides the block, though.That’s why it’s gonna be someone who worked under him in Toronto…they’ll have no complaints there lol
They were wrong then…
Jason Spezza leaves Maple Leafs after Dubas' exit
Jason Spezza resigned on the same Friday morning that GM Kyle Dubas and the Leafs parted ways.
Spezza had term on his deal when he resigned. That's why there was thought that Toronto could block him. It was a theory. It's entirely possible Toronto opted not to block him at all.That’s why it’s gonna be someone who worked under him in Toronto…they’ll have no complaints there lol
They were wrong then…
Jason Spezza leaves Maple Leafs after Dubas' exit
Jason Spezza resigned on the same Friday morning that GM Kyle Dubas and the Leafs parted ways.
I know it was never going to be Tulsky after the Dubas hire, but I’m really hoping we get someone with a fresh perspective that can come up with a tangible, objective way to value players beyond an “eye test”.
Even if he had a longer contract, I’m not sure they can do that to someone who was only a special assistant to the GM…usually only contracts for higher management positions contain those provisions re if they leave with term on the contract, they can’t take a similar position with someone else…Spezza was a really low level employee
again, generally not for low level employees, which Spezza was…
Spezza's been around the game for decades, he's got connections because of that. He knows the game well enough to be able to scout guys and look for things that may help the team.
i was thinking about you when i read the news. make sure you stay hydrated
this isn't like the US presidency or something. If Dubas dies, there's no law in place that says Spezza is the next in line. It'll be OK.
I don’t think anyone said it won’t be ok. I said I didn’t like the hire. Please don’t minimize my opinion by insinuating my response is overreacting when I’m simply giving support as to why I don’t like the hire.
I don’t think it’s too much to ask for the organization to make smart business decisions rather than continuing to hire retired hockey players when there are way better options out there, though.Who cares how long he's been in a FO position?
I'm not saying Spezza is some FO executive gem in the making, but people really put way too much emphasis on what sorta savvy goes into being a GM or AGM. As long as the person isn't an outright f***ing imbecile like JR or Hextall (and even JR blindly hit some absolute homeruns), I don't think it takes a genius or some visionary to come in and shift the paradigm of how things are viewed. *Especially* for where this team's at. All you really need is a FO who is gonna keep up the bullshit appearance of contending (lol) without f***ing things up for themselves now or moving forward.
I don’t know how low or high Spezza’s position was considered with the team, so I can’t speak to that. But I thought Elliott and Friedman had exactly this conversation regarding Spezza and Pridham(?)
Yeah, Pridham would definitely require a higher job position and approval from Toronto to come here…doubt Spezza would which is why he’s already been hired…
There are coaches and FO execs who have been involved in hockey for decades who suck absolute shit at their jobs.
Yzerman hopped into FO work and immediately made significant impacts to a team that would go on to make three consecutive Finals and win back to back Cups. He hasn't even done anything yet, good or bad. Dubas is gonna be running the ship, imo, regardless of who the GM or AGM are.In any other industry, this would be an eyebrow-raising move. 1 year of experience in any corporate position isn’t nearly enough to qualify someone for a senior position like this. But in the NHL, front offices continue to value athletic performance over a completely different set of qualifications required to be proficient in a completely different role.There are coaches and FO execs who have been involved in hockey for decades who suck absolute shit at their jobs.
Seniority doesn't mean anything, imo. I'm not gonna pretend to know how good or bad Spezza's gonna be, but I do not think the fact that he's relatively new to FO work is a bad thing. It's probably a good thing, tbh, because he won't have fallen into the pitfalls that seemingly all NHL people end up falling for with an over emphasis on muckers and grinders who don't do anything but slow the game down.
Taking issue with Spezza and noting "smart business decisions" seems like making a mountain out of a molehill. He was announced an hour ago.
yeah they should hire some other unnamed guy we also know nothing about. he's here to be dubas's friend who cares
Yeah, if the unnamed guy is qualified, they should hire him.
There's a reason hockey players often land coaching or FO jobs. They've been around the game their entire lives and know it better than some businessperson who jumps into the hockey world based on their financial acumen or whatever. What's your preferred avenue then? It's an assistant GM role. Dude's just gonna be a guy in the room who is like third or fourth on the chain of command when it comes to making decisions or proposing ideas.
