Organizational Moves (Front Office & Scouting)

[The Zetterberg Era]

Strange way of putting him leaving for Edmonton but okay. I appreciate a lot of what he did in the early build. I am excited for Draper to take over.

Also feel like merging this with the other thread with the existing front office change thread once I am not stuck looking at this on my phone.... fair warning to those posting though in terms of later tonight.

 

[obey86]

The only solid picks on there we know are Zadina and Larkin. The rest are pretty much misses or borderline no matter how you spin it, with maybe Cholo still uncertain.

This is incorrect.

 

[obey86]

Not a top 10 pick.

Of course he's made dozens and dozens of picks, but I think the Ras one is really the embodiment of his draft philosophy and whether he pans out as top 10 worthy is a metric we'll note.

So? And?

 

[Zetterberg4Captain]

Gotta think he was left out if alot if the draft day decisions.

No way the organization would let him do his job as he had been, knowing full well they didn't want him around(and the players he would pick would be)

My guess is his voice was not well heard at the draft

 

[Michael Brand Eggs]

Isn't the Director of Amateur Scouting tied to every pick during their tenure? I know Stevie had more time available than a usual GM because of stepping down from TB, but I imagine that dwarfs in comparison to the hours put in by Detroit's scouting staff. Wright was the guy overseeing those efforts until the time he left. At that point the work was already put in, so it would be stupid not to defer to him whether he intended on keeping him around or not.

The rumor right after the draft was that the staff wanted Podkolzin, but Yzerman wanted Seider. I dunno if there's anything to verify that, but I remember reading it a couple of times.

And, just... watching the draft, I'll never forget the looks on the faces at that table. The scouts looked checked out, like they had just gotten torn a new one and didn't want to say another word. Yzerman looked like he was about to melt down. That looked like a table where almost everyone was about to be fired, and knew it.

 

[Pavels Dog]

Wright's drafting looks like a mixed bag, which is a pretty good result in terms of drafting. Larkin was obviously a homerun, and I still think the jury is out on a lot of other players that COULD significantly improve Wright's status around here. Most notably Cholowski, Rasmussen, Lindstrom, and even Svechnikov who I'm fairly sure would have become a legit player if not for injuries (and still could get his career back on track).

The drafting hasn't been so good that we should be afraid of change though, and it's overall a good thing that Yzerman is shaking things up. Makes it clear that it's a new era, and whatever the results are, good or bad, it's on Stevie now.

There was a very vocal group here, much larger than 10%, that was all in on Necas. I haven't seen anything yet to make me think we were wrong about that.

Well.. not much to prove you were right either. I mean I would have been fine picking Necas, but I'm not gonna give up on a kid who was somewhat forced to play in the NHL at 19 and still did an okay job. Honestly I wouldn't be surprised if we have our own version of Necas in the pipeline with Veleno, with Rasmussen filling a different type of role that is also important for a team. Really unless Necas/Vilardi turns into superstar caliber player on a much higher tier than Ras, it won't look so bad.

 

[Ezekial]

First line:
Yzerman-Verbeek (management)

Second line:
Draper (scouting)

Third line:
Horcoff-Cleary (player development)

Funny how this goes.

Lol I told my buddy about Drapes and he said "when's Maltby coming back?".... He is already back, he's a pro scout for us.

This "Old Boys Club" has got to go!

 

[Bench]

So? And?

But? Or?

 

[Frk It]

The rumor right after the draft was that the staff wanted Podkolzin, but Yzerman wanted Seider. I dunno if there's anything to verify that, but I remember reading it a couple of times.

Was there any kind of source to this? Literally don't recall seeing this anywhere.

 

[Lil Sebastian Cossa]

There was a very vocal group here, much larger than 10%, that was all in on Necas. I haven't seen anything yet to make me think we were wrong about that.

That is reasonable. I was just more referring to Gabe Vilardi and the sheer volume of angst about not taking him. Necas would have probably been a better pick than Ras, but the Rasmussen pick is not one I can kill Tyler Wright over. Ras is still looking like he's going to be a viable NHL player. While Necas might be better or end up better... I don't see the difference between them as being bad enough that Wright should have lost his job over it.

 

[Michael Brand Eggs]

Was there any kind of source to this? Literally don't recall seeing this anywhere.

I have no idea. There were so many random twitter posts with "insider" information that it's tough to say now. At the minimum, it's something the media isn't speculating on right now.

 

[Lil Sebastian Cossa]

Link

HF never disappoints...

Wow, just just just wow.

 

[cjeagle]

It is nice to see that Stevie kept his old teammates Pat Verbeek, Kris Draper, Jiri Fischer and Kirk Maltby around. He did the same thing when he went to Tampa Bay bringing Pat Verbeek, Stacey Roest, and Jamie Pushor along with him. That seemed to have worked well for him there, so hopefully keeping Verbeek, Draper and Maltby around will bear fruit as well.

Anyway as long as Hakan remains in the fold, I am okay with any changes Yzerman makes to the scouting staff. Besides I like how Draper always makes good insights on our prospects during interviews so having both Anderson and Draper looks like a good combination.

Peter from Winging in Motion in one of his posts also says that Draper is forward thinking in terms of incorporating data into their scouting umbrella.

 

[MikeyDee]

Just to change things up a bit:

Maybe, Yzerman is making changes not based souly on performance, but who he's comfortable working with. Maybe, he doesn't necessarily like the way Wright does his job or what/how he makes his priorities. Either way, I "trust in Steve" as he has a good track record so, far with the Lightning.

 

[obey86]

But? Or?

I don't understand why Wright's tenure would be remembered by the #9 pick, but not a #15 pick. Can you explain further?

 

[Bench]

Wow, just just just wow.

Take heart the first reply asks if the thread is a joke and has over 40 likes... So Oiler fans are being reasonable outside of a handful of these fun folks all fanbases have.

 

[sabresEH]

Was there any kind of source to this? Literally don't recall seeing this anywhere.

I have no idea. There were so many random twitter posts with "insider" information that it's tough to say now. At the minimum, it's something the media isn't speculating on right now.

If you guys DM me I’ll let you know what I heard. I messaged with two Detroit posters before the draft about the possibility of Seider at 6. They didn’t want to believe me but messaged me after saying good call

 

[Henkka]

Haha seriously?

It's a joke thread for the summer... they are bored.

 

[Henkka]

The 2017 draft was painful for me, but even still overall I would say Wright did at least an OK/solid job.

Mostly I am cool with this move because I am optimistic Draper can do better.

Also think Wright was lucky with Larkin, but unlucky with Svechnikov.

That's how the things go.

He has done good job, but I want to see PHENOMENAL JOB from our scouting director.

Being the BEST in the BUSINESS.

Slamming others on the ground. Hope Kris Draper will be it.

Or, at least he will turn us around like Boston scouting department.

 

[Bench]

I don't understand why Wright's tenure would be remembered by the #9 pick, but not a #15 pick. Can you explain further?

Thank you. I mean that.

The higher the pick the bigger the spotlight. Top 10 picks come with expectations that are far less by pick 15.

And because Rasmussen embodies the Wright mentality of size and character above pure skill. So...

It's a high profile pick. It's symbolic of his draft philosophy. And it was largely unpopular. Thus, years from now, that pick will reflect in the general collective consciousness of his era.

That isn't to be confused for the whole picture or if it's fair to him. It may be neither of those things. But the father you get from an event, the more nuance is lost and the big moments become the story. So I believe if Rasmussen is a hit, we will look back favorably upon his time. If Rasmussen is a dud, so too shall the overall feeling for Wright's tenure.

 

[Lil Sebastian Cossa]

Him being let go already tells you what you need to know about the Ras pick...

No? The fact that a new GM came in that wants his own guy in that position tells you why he was let go.

 

[Henkka]

And if Babcock owned the Wings Abby would be on the first line

Who knows how great Abby will be on the management scale...

 

[ricky0034]

Thank you. I mean that.

The higher the pick the bigger the spotlight. Top 10 picks come with expectations that are far less by pick 15.

And because Rasmussen embodies the Wright mentality of size and character above pure skill. So...

It's a high profile pick. It's symbolic of his draft philosophy. And it was largely unpopular. Thus, years from now, that pick will reflect in the general collective consciousness of his era.

That isn't to be confused for the whole picture or if it's fair to him. It may be neither of those things. But the father you get from an event, the more nuance is lost and the big moments become the story. So I believe if Rasmussen is a hit, we will look back favorably upon his time. If Rasmussen is a dud, so too shall the overall feeling for Wright's tenure.

I also think it's worth pointing out that the team was in a very different spot in the Larkin draft compared to the Rasmussen one

in 2014 this was still a Playoff team that despite many of us wanting them to was showing no interest at all in rebuilding and wouldn't for multiple years afterwards either(and was in fact still actively adding players at the deadline both that year and the next)

just way less of a feeling of importance to nailing that draft choice that in my opinion actually even dwarfs what the 6 spot difference would normally say

 

[Steve Yzerlland]

No? The fact that a new GM came in that wants his own guy in that position tells you why he was let go.

He was let go because Yzerman doesn't like his work. If his picks were great he would still be here. Just like we aren't trading Larkin just because Yzerman didn't draft him... Wright was dropped because Yzerman doesn't think much of him and values Draper more period.

 

[Frk It]

Thank you. I mean that.

The higher the pick the bigger the spotlight. Top 10 picks come with expectations that are far less by pick 15.

And because Rasmussen embodies the Wright mentality of size and character above pure skill. So...

It's a high profile pick. It's symbolic of his draft philosophy. And it was largely unpopular. Thus, years from now, that pick will reflect in the general collective consciousness of his era.

That isn't to be confused for the whole picture or if it's fair to him. It may be neither of those things. But the father you get from an event, the more nuance is lost and the big moments become the story. So I believe if Rasmussen is a hit, we will look back favorably upon his time. If Rasmussen is a dud, so too shall the overall feeling for Wright's tenure.

Is Yzerman defined by missing on Koekkok... or hitting on Kucherov? I don't really think it works like this. People will forget about your misses as long as you get (bigger) hits.

If Larkin continues to be a 1C and Hronek develops into a legitimate defenseman, even if that 2017 draft flames out I don't think it should define him. And I say this as probably the most vocal detractor of that 2017 draft on this board.