Confirmed with Link: Canucks hire Jim Rutherford as POHO, Interim GM - search for permanent GM will continue

[GranvilleIsland]

The media is angry at the org for some reason

Cause they're frauds.

 

[TruGr1t]

IMac sounds so salty. Great to see different guys breaking canucks stories.

hit the bricks, pal.

Drance, IMac and Patrick Johnson are super salty. You can sort of connect the dots there ... these guys were the stalwart "insiders" during the Benning era.

 

[Dab]

Difference is that Benning cleared out the staff that got them 2 presidents trophies and a Stanley cup final. Right now, they are clearing out 7 years of garbage.

In my opinion One of Gillis’ big mistakes was not dropping a nuke in the front office week 1 of his tenure.

 

[CpatainCanuck]

Brian Burke still helping the Canucks, even after he left back in 2004.

What does this even mean. Brian Burke might like the Canucks, but he isn't going to do them any favours by sending valuable managerial talent or players at below market value this way to the detriment of his current team.

 

[Vector]

Rutherford and Francesco to hold introductory press conference Monday at 11am.

 

[sting101]

I'd love for the organization to have a Science & Technology Dept... But I'd settle for a laptop with Excel over a white board with marker any day.

I'm all for front office cost cuttings too. Imagine how much time and money they can save using Zoom compared to having to fly to Toronto whenever they want to talk to Bettman et al. True that flying is more efficient and effective than walking, but still.

i love your posts man always make me laugh

 

[2011 still hurts]

the media bootlickers being upset because all the yes men and leaks are gone is music to my ears

 

[Gstank]

Price is just about as bad of a source as Sekeres.

Also personally i think the firings where a knee jerk reaction that wasnt done with due diligence. Which says a lot about how Rutherford is going to run the team and personally i dont like it at all.

 

[SelltheTeamFrancesco]

Brian Burke still helping the Canucks, even after he left back in 2004.

Black Price has as many insider as the posters on this board none. Dudes a joke.

 

[Dab]

Price is just about as bad of a source as Sekeres.

Also personally i think the firings where a knee jerk reaction that wasnt done with due diligence. Which says a lot about how Rutherford is going to run the team and personally i dont like it at all.

Often times when a new President comes in he’ll want to bring in his own team- and some guys might be let go even if they have been fine in their roles. I see nothing wrong with this, nothing sneaky here- it’s not personal- just business and I wish them well in their future endeavors .

 

[Diversification]

Changed pretty quickly from Smyl and Co, to this.

That Roberto and especially Luigi are involved is significant. That could well mean the toy has been put onto a high shelf out of the reach of Francesco.

 

[Grub]

Sooooo...it's looking more and more like Gear and Wall were axed at the direction of the Aquilini's and not necessarily by Jim Rutherford.

Is it possible that the Aqua family decided those two were part of why the family is seen as meddling in team affairs? Leaking some info about Franco's perceived influence on Benning, perhaps?

One thing is for certain after that Smyl / FrAq interview: the Aquilini's are damn sensitive around the notion that they've been meddling. It seems they want to squash that idea ASAP.





Of course, this approach isn't helping that idea. Exactly the opposite.

We asked for a clean house and we got a clean house. I don’t understand why some people are complaining. I for one am happy.

 

[Diversification]

this is all I need to support the firings
f*** Imac

This sounds like a guy who feels the ground shifting underneath him and he doesn't like it one bit. He was happy with the status quo and his sources throughout the org. When Benning and Green were let go, he tried to cozy up to the interim group with flattering words about how the team is in secure hands with stolid stewards at the ready. Now with Rutherford coming and Gear and Wall out, he can sense that the good old days are in jeopardy. Too bad so sad.

 

[lawrence]

Gillman shouldn’t be offered a lateral move to Vancouver. It’s a gm or nothing. Same with McPhee and so for.

 

[MS]

I think these clearly came from Stan Smyl. Nothing else really makes sense to me.

remember when someone said it was like “game of thrones” in the Canucks front office 2 weeks ago? Smyl won.

But why would Stan Smyl have authority to fire key people like this after Jim Rutherford was hired? Surely at this point it’s Rutherford’s call?

It can be one of two things to me :

1) Rutherford knows he’s bringing in his own people in these roles and they’re clearing the decks per his request.

2) Ownership found out these guys had been disloyal to the team in some way and now they sleep with the fishes.

Don't really understand getting rid of Chris Gear. Perhaps a personal feud that Frank had with him?

But Gear was part of the interim management team announced 5 days ago and mentioned by name by Aquilini 4 days ago. If they were planning to axe him at that point, they could have just axed him or not included him in the interim team.

It seems pretty clear that something happened in the last 4 days. And I can’t see anything other than the two options I mentioned above.

Timing of this is so bizarre.

 

[Burke's Evil Spirit]

FWIW, Blake Price seems to think the Gear/Wall firings come from Rutherford, and the "in the works for a while" rumors going around now are damage control being done to insulate him a bit.

I think this has to come from Rutherford. That's the only reason for things to have happened this way. Hopefully Johnson, Delorme, and Benning the Lesser join that list soon.

I don't buy the "Burke pushed this" thing for a second - he hates Aquilini. I do believe the overall plan is to bring some ex-Pens personnel here though.

 

[2011 still hurts]

i think it just comes down to JRs call at the end even if it seems drastic, it looks like this might be what "full autonomy" is under aqua now which is either a good or bad thing going forward

think all we can do is hope that JRs shotcalling can be trusted for the long term health of the org

 

[mriswith]

There isn't a single person from Bennings organization other than Ian Clark that I'd be sad to see go. We have virtually nothing to lose.

I want to see Abbotsford targeted next.

 

[mathonwy]

What if Gilman as GM hires Gillis as Associate GM?

The world will explode.

 

[mathonwy]

Its fine if he is going to replace them with equally or more competent people.

Is that it?

Pretty low bar.

 

[mathonwy]

Cause they're frauds.

Yes. Exactly.

 

[TruGr1t]

i think it just comes down to JRs call at the end even if it seems drastic, it looks like this might be what "full autonomy" is under aqua now which is either a good or bad thing going forward

think all we can do is hope that JRs shotcalling can be trusted for the long term health of the org

At the core, it sounds like the "interim management group" got a little ahead of themselves. Who knows if Aquilini informed them he hadn't crossed everything with Rutherford, or even if they even knew about Rutherford, but that press conference and release sounds absolutely stupid now. So does the interim reporting by Drance et al. pumping up Gear/Wall and somewhat insinuating they'd probably have roles in the new regime.

Hopefully this whole "Ryan Johnson might be a GM candidate" thing is another concept Rutherford quickly smashes to bits. As mentioned, hopefully this is also the last instance of this style of what I'd call "Aquilini communications".

 

[Johnny Canucker]

Show me anyone who says they predicted the season Pettersson is having and I'll show you a liar.

overpaid for 1.5 seasons of data.

 

[arttk]

Is that it?

Pretty low bar.

I actually have no idea how good Gear and Wall is so that’s why I say equal or better. I mean I am not going to freak out until all the changes are done. It’s not like things were working well before this so I am being open minded about it.
the media pump tires on a bunch of folks and one of the guys they are all pumping on us Ryan Johnson so that makes me not trust anything they say.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

oh no it’s like that time pittsburgh sent another ex-goalie GM, eddie johnston, to take over hartford and extract ron francis, ulf samuelsson, and scott young