Speculation: Who should be the new GM of the Washington Capitals?

[Langway]

Caps dodged a bullet.

I dunno. The combined LAK experience and a stated emphasis on analytics is a pretty solid place to begin. Not sure how they'll manage to overhaul some of their D and supporting cast up front but that appears to be an upgrade philosophically.

Columbus ought to continue to improve. NYI is young. Hard to say how Carolina changes. Overall this isn't a division that's so weak that ownership can just do whatever and expect that to mean they'll get back into the playoffs.

 

[RandyHolt]

I'm starting to question your stance on hairplugs

With him getting the job in Philly, I respectfully rescind my previous stances on said issues.

 

[RandyHolt]

Caps dodged a bullet.

The last GM i wanted was a filthy philly understudy of one Paul Holmgren, the mastermind behind being forced to pay Bryzgalov until the year 2027.

And of course, bailed out by the league for his stupidity, which could only entice plugs to learn he will be bailed out of botched deals himself. He has been watching Pauls every move from LA.

No thanks.

 

[Hivemind]

To be fair, Holmgren was pressured by Ed Snider a lot. In the respect that he's fulfilling his owners' wishes, he was a good GM. Snider's just an impatient AARP member desperate for a cup before he kicks the bucket, and forced his front office into overreacting every off-season.

 

[SimplySensational]

I hope the fact the Bruins are letting Benning talk to the Canucks, despite free agency being very close and Benning being their proscout, means he has a lot more control and they just want to push him to a western conference team over the Capitals.

 

[RandyHolt]

To be fair, Holmgren was pressured by Ed Snider a lot. In the respect that he's fulfilling his owners' wishes, he was a good GM. Snider's just an impatient AARP member desperate for a cup before he kicks the bucket, and forced his front office into overreacting every off-season.

Fair enough. My anti hextall stance has roots back to his playing days naturally. Of all the people on the planet, there simply has to be a better GM candidate.

Holmgren should stand up to Snider more often and gain back some respect of the league. It should be comical watching Hextall get blamed for all the upcoming bad moves.

 

[Capitlols]

Darren Dreger ‏@DarrenDreger
Hearing Boston's Jim Benning met with the Canucks yesterday. He's considered the frontrunner for the GM job in Van.

Darren Dreger ‏@DarrenDreger
Some believe Benning is getting the Canucks job and Linden is simply waiting until the conclusion of round 2 to make it official.

 

[PucktotheHead]

Only the Caps could finally change GM's and possibly end up in a worse position than if they kept the over tenured guy they had. lol

I am starting to wonder WTF is going on. How many people have they actually had come to DC and discuss a job?

 

[Langway]

Not surprising. So who is left that teams may want to keep until after the draft? Futa? Fenton? Everyone else typically mentioned ought to be available.

 

[fedfed]

Not surprising. So who is left that teams may want to keep until after the draft? Futa? Fenton? Everyone else typically mentioned ought to be available.

Fenton is available (Preds). Maybe Pens guy, Botterill?

 

[Langway]

Fenton is available (Preds). Maybe Pens guy, Botterill?

I meant in terms of being a longstanding draft presence for their current organization and that causing a delay in being allowed to move on. Benning has been for Boston but maybe that doesn't matter for them. Some teams might be prepared to go with their next in charge, some might not. Both LA and Nashville have either a Co-Director (LA) or Chief Scout (NSH) that should be able to help lead their drafts if need be.

Sweeney, Futa, Botterill and MacIver are all on teams still alive in the playoffs, which certainly might not make them fully available yet. If Boston has allowed Benning to interview hopefully others similarly oblige and the process doesn't get delayed.

 

[txpd]

yea...hadn't thought about this aspect. that teams are less happy about letting their personal walk away when under contract. particularly if it hurts them in the process.

So, permission to talk to an agm might be met with not until after the draft.

 

[txpd]

Only the Caps could finally change GM's and possibly end up in a worse position than if they kept the over tenured guy they had. lol

I am starting to wonder WTF is going on. How many people have they actually had come to DC and discuss a job?

personally, I don't think there is anything to get hyped about til we see what they do.
that said, a couple of us have been saying be careful what you wish for on the fire McPhee front. that getting that might feel good as the blood drains for the professional corpse of McPhee, but following that is no guarantee of things getting better while things getting worse becomes an option.

this again leads us back to not getting bent out of shape over something not done before we see what is eventually done.

 

[g00n]

personally, I don't think there is anything to get hyped about til we see what they do.
that said, a couple of us have been saying be careful what you wish for on the fire McPhee front. that getting that might feel good as the blood drains for the professional corpse of McPhee, but following that is no guarantee of things getting better while things getting worse becomes an option.

this again leads us back to not getting bent out of shape over something not done before we see what is eventually done.

I'm not wringing my hands over it. If it gets worse it gets worse. That's how life is. It was time to let GMGM go. There's never a guarantee of success in professional sports. There's no guarantee Ovechkin or the Caps will ever win a Cup. There's no guarantee keeping X player or hiring Y coach will pan out. The fact that the other guys are getting paid to try and beat you isn't just an excuse for failure, it's also a reason to refuse to cling to dead models. They're not guaranteed to produce dynasties, or anything for that matter, even if a really good salesmen tells you otherwise.

 

[kicksavedave]

Only the Caps could finally change GM's and possibly end up in a worse position than if they kept the over tenured guy they had. lol

I am starting to wonder WTF is going on. How many people have they actually had come to DC and discuss a job?

Ted made a point of stating during his post firing press conference that he was going to keep interviews secret, he was not going to update the media, because he felt that interviewees who are not hired get an unfair criticism as "losing" the job.

So don't expect our crack local hockey media to give us much in the way of leaks or leads... probably won't hear anything until a hiring is made, if Ted has his way. For all we know Ted could be interviewing Benning also.

 

[caps4cup]

If we don't hire a GM before the draft it will be a complete joke. If ones not hired before the draft, you'd think they'd still need to interview them after the draft. At that point we may not have a GM when free agency opens. IMO a GM needs to be hired well before the draft. Draft day is big for trades. There aren't that many appealing options hitting free agency so a trade might be the best bet to improve. And the GM needs to be fully prepared once FA opens. It's almost like not having a head coach once training camp starts. Just stupid. Has a team ever not had a GM on draft day?

 

[usiel]

All I know is GM coming into Caps situ has somewhat a bipolar approach. Either go all in on the next three years which means no current highly rated draft pick is untouchable and basically trade everything for NHL players.

Or conversely with this delayed second wave prospects coming in decide to reboot and trade AO for picks/prospects.

The one thing GMGM never did, which, IMHO partially his downfall...he didn't go all in on the premium free agents when it would be most beneficial. I understand the protect ur nuts and sometimes that is the way to go.

 

[caps4cup]

Don't know if it was posted here but some sportsnet guy tweeted the Caps are in on Benning but Vancouver seems like the front runner.

@gvalksportsnet: My source told me Linden met with Benning last week and the meeting went great. Caps are also in the mix so Linden better move quickly.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

All I know is GM coming into Caps situ has somewhat a bipolar approach. Either go all in on the next three years which means no current highly rated draft pick is untouchable and basically trade everything for NHL players.

Or conversely with this delayed second wave prospects coming in decide to reboot and trade AO for picks/prospects.

The one thing GMGM never did, which, IMHO partially his downfall...he didn't go all in on the premium free agents when it would be most beneficial. I understand the protect ur nuts and sometimes that is the way to go.

I think they have to go aggressive, unless a Cup when Ovy is 34 is what the new vision is. I'd like to see the franchise show a little killer instinct for a change. Be aggressive in the trade market and free agency and retool this team quickly.

 

[Langway]

I'm not sure the Caps have the cap space to be huge players in free agency (or that this is a year to do it...). Maybe if they make a few trades first but initially I would look for a new GM to be fairly subtle when making roster changes/upgrades. There's plenty of opportunity to tweak things at the edges to improve their depth, particularly at center and defense.

Big picture there's the Grabovski question and then the Green question given his contract status and declining role (last year anyway). Sorting those two out should be the first order of business. Beyond that I'm not sure it's feasible or worthwhile to move cheap prospects to accelerate their window. Maybe if they're doing well at the trade deadline and looking like a team again but I wouldn't radically mortgage the future this summer just to make a splash unless it's a special player. There's plenty that could be done in a responsible manner to just address chronic areas of neglect. Not sure that alone would make them contenders but it would at least strengthen their weakest links.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Trading Green, potentially targeting another 2C option opens a good amount of cap space to make two big pickups, either by UFA or trade.

 

[blokeyhighlander]

New GM should try to fill the glaring holes via FA, but their primary task will be assessing the team throughout next season. If this team is truly broken (as in it wasn't just Oates), mortgaging the future now may get us in the playoffs, but they won't do any damage.

I'm OK with not doing trades at the draft, but we desperately need a GM that's prepared and ready to go for the start of free agency.

 

[Langway]

@TSNBobMcKenzie: Scratch LA's Mike Futa as a candidate for any vacant NHL GM jobs, including VAN. Futa has a new deal/promotion to remain with the Kings.

 

[BobRouse]

I'm not sure the Caps have the cap space to be huge players in free agency (or that this is a year to do it...). Maybe if they make a few trades first but initially I would look for a new GM to be fairly subtle when making roster changes/upgrades. There's plenty of opportunity to tweak things at the edges to improve their depth, particularly at center and defense.

Big picture there's the Grabovski question and then the Green question given his contract status and declining role (last year anyway). Sorting those two out should be the first order of business. Beyond that I'm not sure it's feasible or worthwhile to move cheap prospects to accelerate their window. Maybe if they're doing well at the trade deadline and looking like a team again but I wouldn't radically mortgage the future this summer just to make a splash unless it's a special player. There's plenty that could be done in a responsible manner to just address chronic areas of neglect. Not sure that alone would make them contenders but it would at least strengthen their weakest links.

I'd go a step above.

The GM has to have a direction (offensive or defensive?), then hire a coach who follows that (2nd most important thing), and THEN address lineup issues after discussing with coach and evaluating.

The situations with Grabovski and Green will sort themselves out based on the above two.

If Trotz comes in then we should move Green.

If a competent proven playoff coach comes in with an offensive approach we should look to extend green.

In conclusion: Trotz sucks and I hope the new GM doesn't make him coach.

 

[Langway]

Sure, that's the way it ought to go. Timing could force personnel decisions to be made prior a coach being hired but, assuming no ownership meddling, a GM should still have a general sense of the type of style they're going to play before a hire is made anyway.

Evaluating Green is a tough one. He's a rare talent but is he salvageable? He could be someone that could net them multiple cheap young players perhaps but is ownership prepared to maybe weaken their roster for next year (at least with that one move)?

Not sure there's an actual proven playoff coach with an offensive approach out there now that Laviolette is gone.