Confirmed with Link: Flames name Brian Burke president of hockey operations

[LukeD]

As long as KK's role has been minimized, I'm happy.

 

[King In The North]

There is a lot of hype in the latest batch of prospects...but how many have really shown anything in the NHL? Brodie?

They're called prospects for a reason.

 

[Lunatik]

They're called prospects for a reason.

Let's not confuse this poor fellow with things like reality and facts. You have to speak in terms he understands, over the top nonsensical reactions with a large hint of trolling.

 

[Anglesmith]

There is a lot of hype in the latest batch of prospects...but how many have really shown anything in the NHL? Brodie?

Name an organization whose prospects have proven themselves at the NHL level en masse, and I'll show you a unicorn.

 

[JHabs]

The Calgary Flames formally announced the addition of Brian Burke to their Hockey Operations department Thursday, leaving many to question the future of current General Manager Jay Feaster. Burke, who in January was replaced by Dave Nonis as the GM of a Canadian franchise for the second time in under a decade, casts a tall shadow over the Flames’ front office that leaves many to wonder if he was brought in to lay in wait for Feaster’s job....

Read the Full Story Here

 

[MarkGio]

Read the Full Story Here

Did you watch the presser's yesterday? Did you listen to Conroy or Hartley speak on the subject yesterday?

While its possible that Burke is going to impose his will on the roster, everyone involved has said their jobs haven't changed, only King's job.

 

[StreakingRed]

Burke, Lowe, Tortorella & Sutter, all in the same division starting this year!

Can I get a 'Whoa Bundy'?

 

[Anglesmith]

Read the Full Story Here

Yup, I can make up story lines too. "Canadiens draft Fucale- Price on the way out?" Find the full story here.

Most reliable source for information on this one is straight from the press conference.

 

[MarkGio]

The Flames organization hasn't always been the most honest and transparent club to follow, but Burke doesn't strike me as a guy to lie about the situation. A good PR interview would be telling the local fans that it was an easy decision from the start, not how reluctant you were to take the job and even turned it down initially. To me, that feels more honest about the situation.

 

[Calculon]

Keep in mind, Feaster said the exact same thing when he was hired as the assistant GM to Sutter in 2010.

Burke is most definitely an insurance policy of sorts.

 

[MarkGio]

But there has been lots of structural changes since Sutter's time. There was no special assistants or AGMs. Hell, Sutter was the head coach AND general manager when he started. I see the Flames making adjustments to the hierarchy and front office to align with the standards of better managed organizations.

Even if Feaster was on a short leash, I hope that Burke hires/appoints another GM rather than doing things himself.

 

[Anglesmith]

Keep in mind, Feaster said the exact same thing when he was hired as the assistant GM to Sutter in 2010.

Burke is most definitely an insurance policy of sorts.

That is a natural comparison, but keep in mind that even though Feaster was brought in as an insurance policy (and that seems like a wise choice, given it is far easier to replace a guy with another guy in your organization), Sutter was still probably calling all of the shots right down to the end of his tenure. That's why I think people are getting a little ahead of themselves assuming that Burke is the de facto GM already. He might be here as an insurance policy, but until he is the GM, he is not the GM.

 

[MarkGio]

Sutter's biggest mistake was hiring every single one of his brothers and cousins. Nepotism makes it hard to be constructively critical about things.

Feaster isn't on the same path IMO.

 

[Calculon]

That is a natural comparison, but keep in mind that even though Feaster was brought in as an insurance policy (and that seems like a wise choice, given it is far easier to replace a guy with another guy in your organization), Sutter was still probably calling all of the shots right down to the end of his tenure. That's why I think people are getting a little ahead of themselves assuming that Burke is the de facto GM already. He might be here as an insurance policy, but until he is the GM, he is not the GM.

Eh, Feaster was the assistant GM at the time, answering to Sutter. He didn't have the authority to act as a GM. It's different this time around, which is why there's a certain amount of truth to the statement 'Burke is the Flames GM,' much like how there was some truth to the statement 'King was the real GM of the Flames.'

Really, if you think about it, the President of Hockey Operations sets the path the Flames are going to follow. When he says he wants the team to get bigger, stronger and meaner, then it's Feaster's job to go out and get it done. Feaster doesn't have the same kind of leeway Sutter originally had, in the sense of molding the team however he'd like to.

No, he's not the GM, but it's not inappropriate to say that Burke has the authority to override Feaster if he feels it necessary. If Feaster fails to do his due diligence the next time he offer-sheets a player, or asks for a teams most obscure and random prospect when trading Cammalleri or Giordano, Burke can certainly tell him to 'stop being stupid; what's wrong with you. Try again.' Any moves Feaster may want to make needs Burke's consent; hence the idea that Burke will have his hand in running the show.

Perhaps the fairest thing to say is that it's more a of sharing of responsibility really. Feaster still does the day-to-day stuff, and still dictates his subordinates but Burke maintains the overall message and is responsible for making sure Feaster doesn't screw it up.

 

[Anglesmith]

Eh, Feaster was the assistant GM at the time, answering to Sutter. He didn't have the authority to act as a GM. It's different this time around, which is why there's a certain amount of truth to the statement 'Burke is the Flames GM,' much like how there was some truth to the statement 'King was the real GM of the Flames.'

The thing is, I don't think I ever really heard people say that about King; certainly not with the conviction we're hearing now. King set the goals, sure, and the strategy to a certain extent, but Feaster actually did the job. I expect that this is much the same thing. I think that Feaster was part of the decision probably because he wanted the guy giving him marching orders to be doing so from a hockey perspective instead of just a business perspective. Really, I think that the job will be for Burke to pick the strategy above all else. "Jay, this season you're going to avoid making any offer sheets, and you're going to try to work in as many call-ups of different players as possible." "Jay, at the deadline, you should try to move so-and-so, but if the price is below X let's not do the deal." By no means do I think Burke will be on the phone with other GMs trying to, say, massage a deal into place. If that was the plan, there would be no reason to keep Feaster around to cause friction.

 

[benfool]

Keep in mind, Feaster said the exact same thing when he was hired as the assistant GM to Sutter in 2010.

Burke is most definitely an insurance policy of sorts.

This is situation reminds me very much of the situation when Joel Quenville was brought in to help the hawks while Savard was still the coach. I know Feaster is the GM and Savard was the coach but the situation has to have Feaster looking over his shoulder.

I do wish Burke had been here to make the Iginla and Jaybo trade as I think we could have really gotten the better of some teams with Burke. Not a huge Burke fan but he did pull of some stellar trades while in Toronto.

 

[MonahanTheMan]

This is situation reminds me very much of the situation when Joel Quenville was brought in to help the hawks while Savard was still the coach. I know Feaster is the GM and Savard was the coach but the situation has to have Feaster looking over his shoulder.

I do wish Burke had been here to make the Iginla and Jaybo trade as I think we could have really gotten the better of some teams with Burke. Not a huge Burke fan but he did pull of some stellar trades while in Toronto.

Iginla to Pittsburgh for two firsts plus Sidney Crosby

 

[abracanada]

This is situation reminds me very much of the situation when Joel Quenville was brought in to help the hawks while Savard was still the coach. I know Feaster is the GM and Savard was the coach but the situation has to have Feaster looking over his shoulder.

I do wish Burke had been here to make the Iginla and Jaybo trade as I think we could have really gotten the better of some teams with Burke. Not a huge Burke fan but he did pull of some stellar trades while in Toronto.

I think the greatest contribution Burke can provide is his connections in hockey, and ability to tweak trades to the point where they are in his teams favor significantly.

Burke is upper echelon in the NHL. He is well respected, liked and trusted amongst his peers. Neither Feaster or Sutter can claim the same level of respect in the league that Burke can.

But to me, the real comparison should be made to Ken King. Although King was charming and all of that, he had absolutely no standing in the NHL. The hiring of Burke is a gigantic step up for the organization and front office.

 

[BVicious]

Burke handled the Sundin situation poorly. Feaster got what he could for those 2 trades. The fact the blues still can't sign their best DMan because they extended Jbo is proof Feaster squeezed as mush as he could out of them to move Jbo.

I don't think Feaster is great, but I would not say he is a bad GM. He made a horrible situation better, and although fans or....HF boards, think he is horrible, I'm sure he had respect across the league. If Burke wants to work with him, Weisbrod, etc, I'm sure the Flames are in good hands. Burke said it himself, there is luck involved here, with drafting and developing.

 

[TheHudlinator]

Burke handled the Sundin situation poorly. Feaster got what he could for those 2 trades. The fact the blues still can't sign their best DMan because they extended Jbo is proof Feaster squeezed as mush as he could out of them to move Jbo.

I don't think Feaster is great, but I would not say he is a bad GM. He made a horrible situation better, and although fans or....HF boards, think he is horrible, I'm sure he had respect across the league. If Burke wants to work with him, Weisbrod, etc, I'm sure the Flames are in good hands. Burke said it himself, there is luck involved here, with drafting and developing.

Uh what?

 

[BVicious]

Uh what?

Sorry, that was Fletcher. Burke wasn't hired yet. My bad

 

[Backlund]

Burke handled the Sundin situation poorly. Feaster got what he could for those 2 trades. The fact the blues still can't sign their best DMan because they extended Jbo is proof Feaster squeezed as mush as he could out of them to move Jbo.

I don't think Feaster is great, but I would not say he is a bad GM. He made a horrible situation better, and although fans or....HF boards, think he is horrible, I'm sure he had respect across the league. If Burke wants to work with him, Weisbrod, etc, I'm sure the Flames are in good hands. Burke said it himself, there is luck involved here, with drafting and developing.

Uh what?

My thoughts exactly. You mean John Ferguson Jr and Cliff Fletcher?

 

[Lunatik]

blaming a Leafs GM for the Sundin situation, no matter who the GM was is Pejorative Slured. Sundin had a NMC and refused to waive. End of story, nothing the GM could do. Blaming a GM for that shows zero understanding of the situation.

 

[Joey Hoser]

Leafs notable assets at the time Burke was hired:

Luke Schenn
Nik Antropov
Alexei Ponikarovsky
Tomas Kaberle
Mikail Grabovski
Lee Stempniak
Ian White
Matt Stajan
Pavel Kubina


Leafs notable assets when Burke was fired:

Phil Kessel
Nazem Kadri
Joffery Lupul
Dion Phaneuf
JVR
Morgan Reilly
Jake Gardiner
Cody Franson
James Reimer

As you can see, there was a massive upgrade in terms of talent and value in the organization from the time he began to the time he left, and that's despite a disproportionate amount of bad UFA signings and trading away #2 and #9 overall picks along the way.

Guy obviously knows how to build up a franchise. Seems like a good fit for Calgary right now.

 

[Mike Jones]

I don't think Feaster is great, but I would not say he is a bad GM.

This is probably Feaster's biggest problem - he's an average GM working for a rebuilding, redeveloping and reorganizing team needing excellence from that position.

Another problem for Feaster is that Burke (Whether he can deliver it himself or not) knows what excellence (Or goodness or even "overaverageness") looks like and what happens when he doesn't see it happening?