That Penguins article is a fascinating hit piece to dive into. It makes the Penguins new ownership look sound and on the same logical page as the fans, which is sort of the point of it. Whether the organizational mission changed and Hextall didn't know he was walking into shit is another conversation. But if we're to treat it at reasonably face value -- and frankly, Hextall's inadequacies are known (cloistering himself with his coterie, bad personal relationships, etc.) -- I think it's a perfect example of the hubris of HockeyGuys™, Hextall and beyond. "[Hextall] vented about being unable to oversee a rebuild, instead having to manage a retooling, and said
FSG didn’t know hockey like he and Pryor did." The thesis paper practically writes itself.
The idea of individual sports safeguarding secrets is dead. Smart people can cross-pollinate, with humility to know what they don't know and to identify the right people. Let me see in this article.....
The executives asked to see Morehouse’s and Hextall’s plans for the business and hockey departments, respectively. Morehouse detailed team finances and waning ticket revenue in a PowerPoint presentation, but Hextall was caught off-guard by the request and said the hockey plan was in his head. [...] Though unimpressed with Hextall’s lack of preparation, FSG officials didn’t feel comfortable enough about their hockey acumen to question his details — except one. Hextall’s plan included a 2022-23 season with Crosby but without Malkin and Letang.
So, an ownership group that "didn't know hockey" came in and said it was absurd (from a business, emotional, and on-ice perspective) to not ride off into the sunset with your nearly two decade winning core. FSG's business acumen is beyond reproach, and Hextall didn't even have any sort of framework to his master plan?
And growing in volume among Hextall’s complaints: Sullivan, who won the Cup twice in Pittsburgh, was too tight with FSG and had too much influence over Hextall’s decisions.
And then FSG identified who the best employees in their organization were, and surprise, it's the 2x Stanley Cup winning coach with his 8 year track record -- and seemingly great player relationships -- over mediocre dated GMs/Presidents.
[Hextall] clashed with FSG’s judgment that it couldn’t justify Miller’s massive contract extension from a business perspective. [...] Also, in January 2022, he re-signed Jeff Carter — a forward older than Malkin — to a two-year extension, with the premise being that Carter could assume Malkin’s role as No. 2 center for the 2022-23 season. By the time of the organizational meetings in Tampa in April 2022, FSG had determined its first big act as new owners shouldn’t be parting with two players who were cherished by Crosby, worshiped by fans and revered by sponsors.
And then identified what a boondoggle that Miller contract would be. That for all this magical acumen, moves like Carter and Granlund and so on were duds.
Let's see who they hire as GM, but shit like this is why the Flyers will be lapped. They're incapable of fresh perspective or savviness. They think toilet water is sanitary after you flush it.
