May I present an alternative theory that isn't rooted in a nefarious motive, but is just as cynical, speculative and potentially imaginary?
Perhaps Dundon is an owner in over his head. He paid a lot of money for a franchise that has only been profitable recently when near the bottom in terms of payroll. The Canes have some good young talent, but it’s starting to get more and more expensive as the young guys come off their ELCs (Slavin, Pesce, Hanifin and coming soon, Aho) and the older players get closer and closer to their UFA years (Skinner, Faulk, Lindholm,Teravainen.) Dundon is now on the hook for what will be an increasingly expensive team that isn’t good enough to guarantee playoff revenue; he’s staring down the barrel of millions of dollars in losses to go along with the toll the actual purchase had on his finances. What to do? Cut costs, obviously. Given that players win hockey games and cost-cutting the roster would send a horrible signal to the fanbase at this point, go cheap with management. The biggest individual drivers of management cost? The GM and the HC.