Management GM Pierre Dorion/Front Office Thread - Part IX [Mod Warning in post 1)

[AchtzehnBaby]

You've already been demonstrably wrong on one of these snide remarks in this very thread, care to back up your reasoning?

Sure. Alfie will not be Dorion's boss.

 

[BonHoonLayneCornell]

Sure. Alfie will not be Dorion's boss.

I think that was a figure of speech. "Thank Alfie (god)"

 

[AchtzehnBaby]

I think that was a figure of speech. "Thank Alfie (god)"

Dorion is staying. People need to own up to their "he will be fired on the first day" rhetoric.... now "he is going to get fired soon" LOL

 

[Ghost of Jody Hull]

Dorion is staying. People need to own up to their "he will be fired on the first day" rhetoric.... now "he is going to get fired soon" LOL

Has Andlauer given Dorion a vote of confidence?

Unless I missed it, I don't think he has. As far as I can tell, he hasn't said anything all that negative or all that positive. He's going to take time to "listen and learn".

The sense I've gotten from his comments is that he won't be the one making that decision, anyway. He's going to bring in someone (i.e. Staios) who'll make the evaluation and decision.

Who knows, maybe Pierre and Steve will hit it off. Maybe they won't.

But he does seem like someone who has high expectations and isn't going to wait around to win.

I will say though, publicly telling that story about Dorion asking him what he wants to do with DJ Smith was weird.

 

[BonHoonLayneCornell]

Dorion is staying. People need to own up to their "he will be fired on the first day" rhetoric.... now "he is going to get fired soon" LOL

I have no doubt Dorion will remain a resident of Ottawa. Your responses just came off like you genuinely didn't catch the Alfie/God phrase and thought that they were actually implying Alfie himself would fire Dorion, and I was just trying to clear that up.

Carry on.

 

[Samsquanch]

Has Andlauer given Dorion a vote of confidence?

Unless I missed it, I don't think he has. As far as I can tell, he hasn't said anything all that negative or all that positive. He's going to take time to "listen and learn".

The sense I've gotten from his comments is that he won't be the one making that decision, anyway. He's going to bring in someone (i.e. Staios) who'll make the evaluation and decision.

Who knows, maybe Pierre and Steve will hit it off. Maybe they won't.

But he does seem like someone who has high expectations and isn't going to wait around to win.

I will say though, publicly telling that story about Dorion asking him what he wants to do with DJ Smith was weird.

Andlauer has made it super clear that he's in wait, watch and access mode.

He already said he's in daily contact with Dorion. He said he's all about empowering employees to make their own decisions - and then evaluating them based on results.

He gave an anecdote where Pierre seemed to be trying to convince him that DJ was the right coach this season - and he basically told him to shut up and stop worrying. That it was all in his hands.

I mean, it's pretty obvious that this season will determine the fate of Pierre, and there's literally almost no chance whatsoever that he gets canned in the next few weeks.

 

[HSF]

Staois coming in as POHO is just the first step to Dorion leaving

Can't wait

 

[JD1]

If the rumor is true about Philly being willing to take on Joseph’s cap hit with Tyler Boucher attached…what are we waiting for? Forget the optics, Boucher doesn’t seem to be panning out so far and Dorion has less pressure to keep Boucher since Trent Mann is out (can easily play it off as a Trent Mann call)

I think the issue there is that the team thinks more highly of the two names you mentioned than HF Sens does

 

[AchtzehnBaby]

Staois coming in as POHO is just the first step to Dorion leaving

Can't wait

Fake news

No new hires for the time being.

Read the quotes from yesterday

 

[ACLEVERNAME]

tbh, at this point I'd sell Batherson at profit. Automatic fix in the cap and I believe we could cover the output with Senko/Kubalik and a graduated prospect or 2 - not to mention Pinto. Might be our best bet to get out of this even-steven. Could even net us a 3rd 1st rounder which would be a game changer at the trade deadline or even just restocking the prospect pool.

Sorry Drake.

 

[AchtzehnBaby]

Praise Dorion for sticking to the plan

 

[Senscore]

Well if Craig Button says so then it must be true

 

[NyQuil]

Well if Craig Button says so then it must be true

It's always nice to hear some positive vibes. It's what we are all hoping. It's just a matter of executing and getting a little more luck on the injury front.

 

[Senscore]

It's always nice to hear some positive vibes. It's what we are all hoping. It's just a matter of executing and getting a little more luck on the injury front.

I'm optimistic that this team can take the next step but talk is easy, and there's been a lot of it. Frankly, I think given the amount of financial and asset expenditure, last year was a bit of an underperformance.

Starting the season great can certainly put a lot of the doubts at rest but I'm not convinced this is a well-oiled machine until it is.

 

[NyQuil]

I'm optimistic that this team can take the next step but talk is easy, and there's been a lot of it. Frankly, I think given the amount of financial and asset expenditure, last year was a bit of an underperformance.

At what point in the season did we see the team as intentionally designed?

We were already behind the eight-ball from the start with Formenton no longer with the franchise, and he had played a vital role the year before.

Norris played 8 games. Chychrun played 12. We saw 7 goaltenders between the pipes.

Zub was hurt. Then Chabot was playing hurt and then out.

Starting the season great can certainly put a lot of the doubts at rest but I'm not convinced this is a well-oiled machine until it is.

Agreed.

Barring more adversity due to health issues, it's all on DJ's shoulders now.

 

[Senscore]

At what point in the season did we see the team as intentionally designed?

We were already behind the eight-ball from the start with Formenton no longer with the franchise, and he had played a vital role the year before.

Norris played 8 games. Chychrun played 12. We saw 7 goaltenders between the pipes.

Zub was hurt. Then Chabot was playing hurt and then out.

Injuries were certainly a big problem last year. But rarely does an NHL team escape without them. I don't have the stats on hand but in terms of man games lost based on quality of player, the Sens were among the hardest hit teams certainly. But so was Florida and so was Las Vegas, even moreso than the Sens IIRC.

Down the stretch those teams managed to band together and push forward, while the Sens as we all saw seemed to stumble against beatable opponents and struggle against better teams. While I love what Chychrun adds to the lineup in the 12 games he did play, the team went 5-7 in that time.

There's a lot of possible reasons for all this. The youth of the roster, the roster turnover, bad timing on injuries in key positions, sure. Maybe it all added up to too much of a challenge to overcome. I accept that that might just be the case.

Ultimately though, a good team needs to end up being more than the sum of its parts. I don't think I've really seen that in this current team era. Not that I was really expecting much, but it's something that needs to be figured out, and fast.

 

[NyQuil]

Injuries were certainly a big problem last year. But rarely does an NHL team escape without them. I don't have the stats on hand but in terms of man games lost based on quality of player, the Sens were among the hardest hit teams certainly. But so was Florida and so was Las Vegas, even moreso than the Sens IIRC.

Both of them comprised of more veteran players.

Down the stretch those teams managed to band together and push forward, while the Sens as we all saw seemed to stumble against beatable opponents and struggle against better teams. While I love what Chychrun adds to the lineup in the 12 games he did play, the team went 5-7 in that time.

There's a lot of possible reasons for all this. The youth of the roster, the roster turnover, bad timing on injuries in key positions, sure. Maybe it all added up to too much of a challenge to overcome. I accept that that might just be the case.

Ultimately though, a good team needs to end up being more than the sum of its parts. I don't think I've really seen that in this current team era. Not that I was really expecting much, but it's something that has yet to be figured out, and fast.

I think there are a lot of reasons, as you've identified, and in concert, I think they sunk our chances at a playoff spot.

I do think the team last season could have made it, but a lot of things had to go right, and they didn't.

When I see people advocating to trade Chabot, or lose Kubalik, these are the kind of guys that we need to weather the kind of adversity you're talking about.

We still have roster turnover to deal with - Chychrun, Tarasenko, Kubalik, as you say, these guys have to fit in and fast.

But bringing things back to first principles, it's one step at a time.

Las Vegas has been in the post-season 5 of the last 6 seasons. Florida as been in four straight. Our contending window still hasn't quite opened yet, while they are trying to win while they can.

If we can make the post-season this year, hopefully it means we can build for a Cup run over the next 5 years or so.

Honestly, I picked the Sens just missing the post-season last year, and depending on your definition of "just", they did just that. And that was with all of the injuries and roster turnover and multiple goalies. I think it's actually a positive.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

A mistake you say?

 

[Tnuoc Alucard]

No, he's been dismissed but is paid by Ottawa until his contract happens. When employees under contract get "fired" it doesn't mean their contracts evaporate. They get to go to the cottage but still get a nice direct deposit.

Mike Babcock received a paycheque from the Toronto Maple Leafs for 4 years after he was fired. That's why it took so long for him to go out and get another job. It wasn't because he was "working on himself" or teams didn't want to hire him. He was paid to fish and hunt.

So am wondering if Columbus is still on the hook to pay him to fish and hunt now?

 

[Tnuoc Alucard]

Dorion is staying. People need to own up to their "he will be fired on the first day" rhetoric.... now "he is going to get fired soon" LOL

 

[Flamingo]

So am wondering if Columbus is still on the hook to pay him to fish and hunt now?

I wonder if his contract had a "don't be a creep" clause.

 

[YouGotAStuGoing]

So am wondering if Columbus is still on the hook to pay him to fish and hunt now?

My understanding is that a coach who is fired is paid through to the end of their contract, but a coach who resigns — as Babcock did — forfeits the remainder of their salary.

 

[Tnuoc Alucard]

My understanding is that a coach who is fired is paid through to the end of their contract, but a coach who resigns — as Babcock did — forfeits the remainder of their salary.

Was not sure if he had departed under a mutual understanding with the BJs, but this sounds correct… suppose he could have dug in his heels, and forced them to pay him, or buy him out…but he pro just wants to put this beside him, and perhaps thinks there is a slight chance he could be given a “third chance” … but don’t think any team will touch him now

 

[Agent Zub]

If things go bad Dorion will be fired quick.

If things go well he will be phased out, they will "mutually" agree to part ways.

Either way the new management gets tactical leeway and either way Dorion is gone.

 

[Very Stable Genius]

Injuries were certainly a big problem last year. But rarely does an NHL team escape without them. I don't have the stats on hand but in terms of man games lost based on quality of player, the Sens were among the hardest hit teams certainly. But so was Florida and so was Las Vegas, even moreso than the Sens IIRC.

Down the stretch those teams managed to band together and push forward, while the Sens as we all saw seemed to stumble against beatable opponents and struggle against better teams. While I love what Chychrun adds to the lineup in the 12 games he did play, the team went 5-7 in that time.

There's a lot of possible reasons for all this. The youth of the roster, the roster turnover, bad timing on injuries in key positions, sure. Maybe it all added up to too much of a challenge to overcome. I accept that that might just be the case.

Ultimately though, a good team needs to end up being more than the sum of its parts. I don't think I've really seen that in this current team era. Not that I was really expecting much, but it's something that needs to be figured out, and fast.

At the same time aside from Norris:

Tim Stutzle: 78GP
Brady Tkachuk: 82GP
Alex DeBrincat: 82GP
Drake Batherson: 82GP
Claude Giroux: 82GP
Shane Pinto: 82GP

That's extremely lucky and unlikely to happen again.