Trading Brian Burke

A few weeks back I was on the phone with a sports reporter talking about the MLG Time Capsule. Rather unexpectedly, he asked me the following question: Of the Canadian NHL teams, which GM would I rank 4th best.

The question made me laugh. It’s a great question as the top and the bottom are pretty easily defined. But the middle? That’s fertile ground.

To get to number four, I wasn’t sure if I should start with the worst GM (Tambellinni) or the best (Gillis?).

In the end, I used a pincer method of sorts going with Tambellinni at 7, Gauthier at 6, and Feaster at 5. From the top end, Gillis is in at 1 and Burke at 2. That left Bryan Murray or whoever the GM of the Jets is (Kevin Cheveldayoff – had to google it) for the number four slot.

I was stumped as to who should get the number four ranking. Murray’s Senators aren’t any great shakes but at that point in the season they were certainly outperforming their expected pace. On the other hand, I can’t name a single move or decision made by Cheveldayoff.

Due to this perception of inactivity, I gave the number four spot to the Jets GM by default. An answer I’m pretty sure the reporter on the other end of the phone anticipated. Don’t know that he agreed with it though.

* * *

I’m reading a wonderful book about Stoke’s first season in the Premiership. It’s a game-by-game accounting of their inaugural year by a great writer and committed fan who travels to (just about) every game.

On one of the many road trips between his home in Norwich and wherever the hell Stoke are playing, he and his travel companions debate which general managers in the Premiership they’d trade Stoke’s GM Tony Pulis for.

This got me thinking about my recent call with the sports reporter, the matter of the 4th best Canadian teams’ GM, and the ranking of Brian Burke.

I like Burke. I think he’s a passionate GM who is dedicated to winning in Toronto. I get the feeling he hates losing more than we fans do - something I wouldn't have thought possible a few years ago.

I also think Burke's passion for winning is matched by his bluster and hot air. He’s got a terrible blind spot about goalies and his scouts have struck out at the draft more often than not.

That said, how many NHL GMs would I actually swap Burke for? Lets add it up…

Bob Murray, Anaheim
This is the guy who traded for Jason Blake and Vesa Toskala. On the brighter side, he traded Toskala before he ever played a game in Anaheim. I don’t follow the Ducks very closely, but he seems to be in that dangerous netherworld where the team isn’t competing and isn’t rebuilding either.
Pass

Peter Chiarelli, Boston
In a heartbeat. He was assistant GM to the Sens when they were ascendant and has built a fantastic team with loads of depth and a hard identity in Boston. Chiarelli and his assistants have done a masterful job managing the Bs cap, even with a few questionable contracts. Would love to see what he could do in Toronto.
Yes.

Darcy Regier, Buffalo
His team seems to have a real knack for developing talent. If it weren’t for massive injuries to the Sabres blue line, they likely would have won the Cup in 2006. This has always made me wonder what Regier would be capable of doing if given the resources of a deep pocketed owner. Turns out it involves massive over-pays for the likes of Ville Leino and Christian Erhoff. The Sabres have the highest salary commitment in the NHL and will miss the playoffs.
Pass.

Jay Feaster, Calgary
Anyone who can spell NHL knows that the Flames need a serious rebuild. Jay Feaster has not yet recognized this.
Pass.

Jim Rutherford, Carolina
Rutherford swings some interesting deals, drafts pretty well, and has a Stanley Cup ring. That said, his teams seem to oscillate between being somewhat decent and absolutely horrid. He also seems to randomly hire and fire Paul Maurice, a coach I can’t abide. He seems to GM like my kids play board games, sure there’s an occasional win, but there doesn’t seem to be much strategy or forethought.
Pass.

Stan Bowman, Chicago
Bowman’s not even two years into his tenure. He took over a pretty stacked club and landed a Stanley Cup. I would think his surname alone would buy him a few year’s media grace in Toronto. As for the more important parts of his C.V. I’d say the jury is still out.
I’ll call this one a push.

Greg Sherman, Colorado
Of the 30 GMs in the NHL, this was the only one I had to google. Had no idea who was running the show in Denver. (Full disclosure, I had to google Cheveldayoff a few weeks ago). The fact that I can name 28 NHL GMs and not this guy does not bode well. According to ESPN, he made just 9 roster moves in all of 2010. Yikes.
Pass

Scott Howson, Columbus
Anyone that thinks starting a season with Steve Mason and Curtis Sanford is welcome to join my hockey pool. Run the NHL team I cheer for? Not a chance.
Pass

Joe Niewendyk, Dallas
How ugly was that James Neal and Matt Niskanen deal for Alex Goligoski? That said, every time he botched a deal like that in Toronto, they could probably cue up a highlight real on the scoreboard culminating in those ugly playoff goals on Lalime and we’d all be enthralled again for another few weeks. I think Joe’s too junior to be Leafs GM yet.
Pass

Ken Holland, Detroit
Yes.

Steve Tambellini, Edmonton
Quite possibly the worst GM in the NHL. If he had to organize my kid’s grade one class trip to the ROM, they’d end up in Waterloo at RIM.
Pass

Dale Tallon, Florida
He pretty much built the roster that won the Hawks the Cup, but he also screwed up the RFA offers that led to many pieces of the Cup-winning team being moved. In Florida, he re-aquired Brian Campbell’s over-sized contract and inexplicably moved-out the very serviceable David Booth for the old and damaged Mikael Samuelsson and Marco Sturm. And what’s up with those glasses?
Pass

Garth Snow, New York Islanders
I like a lot of the moves Snow has made as GM of the Islanders (Parenteau, Moulson, Grabner, Neilsen). Unfairly, I can’t shake the feeling that his tenure in New York is some type of performance art. It doesn’t seem quite legit.
Pass

Dean Lombardi, LA Kings
I was a big fan of how Lombardi built the Kings. He had patience, he assembled the right pieces, he avoided overpaying free agents, but it’s not looking like all of that patience and planning is going to pay off. Thinking of where the Leafs are in their development cycle and Lombardi’s (to date) failure to get the Kings to the next level, I’m starting to have my doubts. I’m on the fence, but I wouldn’t be in knots if he got the nod…er, um…let’s say Yes.

Chuck Fletcher, Minnesota
This is like trying to decide how you want to eat your tofu. No matter how you dress it up, it’s still kind of a boring, indescribable meh. And this particular tofu has missed the playoffs three years running (looking like a fourth).
Pass

Pierre Gauthier, Montreal
Pass/Passer

David Poile, Nashville
I’m sure the detractors will point to the Forsberg deal or the awful Rinne contract, but this is the guy I was hoping the Leafs would land when they were searching for a GM to replace JFJ. With limited resources and a no-name roster, Poile somehow builds teams that compete year after year.
Yes

Lou Lamoriello, New Jersey
Lou will be 70 later this year.
Pass

Glen Sather, New York Rangers
Has any executive in any industry ridden out 18 year old success like Slats? Pre-lockout, he assembled some awful teams with huge payrolls. Post-lockout, his best moves have been burying his own mistakes. The Rangers are looking good this year, but I’m thinking there window closes soon. I don’t think Slats has the jam to get that team where it needs to go.
Pass

Bryan Murray, Ottawa
How Murray has survived the purges in Ottawa is beyond me. They go through coaches like my kids going through Candy on November 1st. Add in the playoff misses, less than stellar drafts, and half-assed rebuild and you’ve got a Sens team that’s likely to miss the playoffs for the 2nd year in a row and third time in four years. The Sens’ real shot at success passed them by in 2008.
Pass

Mike Paul Holmgren, Philadelphia
Did a beautiful job transforming this team starting in late in 2007. If only he could avoid whatever is in the water in Philly that kills goalies dead. The franchise has been a virtual elephant’s graveyard for keepers for 20+ years. I’m on the fence on this one…the Pronger over 35 deal combined with the awful goaltending decisions…when I asked my pal Chemmy about Holmgren as Leafs GM, he replied, "Oh God no. Is this happening?" That tilts it.
Pass

Don Maloney, Phoenix
Solid drafting, good cap management, and a modicum of success in what has to be a difficult operating environment. On the other hand, they’re a marginal team who’ve never won a playoff series (last playoff series win was as the Jets in 1987, soon to be 25 years and counting!).
Push

Ray Shero, Pittsburgh
Big fan of Dan Bylsma and am really impressed with how this team has performed despite injuries.
Yes

Doug Wilson, San Jose
This team has been so good for so long it’s almost like Wilson’s work is taken for granted. On the flip side, they just can’t seem to get over the hump and I have to wonder if their window is starting to close. Thornton is 33, Marleau is 32...
Push

Doug Armstrong, St. Louis
When I think of the Blues, the first thing that comes to mind is wanting a do-over on the Steen deal. Anyways, not even two years into his tenure, Armstrong’s Blues are having an amazing season. Who knew the likes of Arnott, Langenbrunner, Nichol could still contribute at 37. I’ve long preached the value of veterans on one year deals and it’s certainly paying off in St. Louis. Yeah, it’s early days for Armstrong, but he put up very impressive numbers in Dallas (210-109-35-23) and he’s doing it again in St.Louis.
Yes

Steve Yzerman, Tampa Bay
How quickly the golden boy has faded. Reminds me of the adage, show me a good hockey coach and I’ll show you a team with a good goalie. Yzerman walked into a talented Tampa Bay club that was on the upswing. This year, sub-par goaltending has held the club back. In some quarters he’ll get bonus points for his work with Team Canada, but this country has so much hockey depth, you could probably pull the top names from a hat and ice a great team. I’m going to take a wait and see on Yzerman, see how he handles the goaltending issue in Tampa.
Push

Vancouver, Mike Gillis
When the rats and finks wear your team colours, they’re lovingly called agitators and pests.
Yes

Washington, George McPhee
Good old GM GM. On paper, the Caps looked like the team to beat in the east this year. The Boudreau firing seemed premature and the Hunter hiring seems misguided. Still, I like a lot of what he’s done with the Caps. I wouldn’t be upset if he came to Toronto.
Yes

Winnipeg, Kevin Cheveldayoff
Two weeks ago, I had to hit up Google to figure out who this guy was. As the fourth best GM in Canada, he’s not good enough for my Leafs.
Pass

* * *

So that’s seven GMs I’d swap Burke for, four I’m on the fence about and 18 that are a definite no.

As much as I question Burke, I have to admit I’m surprised I’d take nearly 25% of the GMs in the League in his place…not the totals I expected.

Then again, ask me next week and the numbers might be completely different.