Guerin Named New Wild GM

Andy99

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Jun 26, 2017
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What skill sets would you want to see in a prospective GM then? Because beyond negotiation skills, I think those are probably the big two. Way I see it, the GM's responsibility is hiring experts (be it players on the ice or scouts/front office people/coaches) and then ensuring they do their job with minimal friction despite the considerable number of egos involved - and that to me seems to be mostly about people skills and identifying talent.

I'll grant that they are pretty nebulous, and pretty much impossible to know about as a fan, but that doesn't change their importance.

“Negotiation skills? We don’t need no stinking negotiation skills!”— Jim Rutherford
 

Dipsy Doodle

Rent A Barn
May 28, 2006
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What skill sets would you want to see in a prospective GM then? Because beyond negotiation skills, I think those are probably the big two. Way I see it, the GM's responsibility is hiring experts (be it players on the ice or scouts/front office people/coaches) and then ensuring they do their job with minimal friction despite the considerable number of egos involved - and that to me seems to be mostly about people skills and identifying talent.

I'll grant that they are pretty nebulous, and pretty much impossible to know about as a fan, but that doesn't change their importance.

Having a vision and direction for the team is essential, I'd say. Botterill's cap wizardry is a nice skill to have.

Talent evaluation is obviously very important but there's not much to suggest Guerin has identified any talent. All we have to judge him on is minor-league moves and those haven't exactly been stellar.

People skills...I mean, getting along with people is great but how is that different from being a good ol' boy?

There's not a lot to go on when it comes to evaluating AGMs. I just don't really know what Guerin's qualifications are to go beyond that outside of being a former player who was well-liked in the room.
 
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Peat

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Jun 14, 2016
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Will this be the second time Guerin has interviewed for a GM position?

At least. He interviewed for Minnesota last year and I feel like that's not the only time.

Having a vision and direction for the team is essential, I'd say. Botterill's cap wizardry is a nice skill to have.

Talent evaluation is obviously very important but there's not much to suggest Guerin has identified any talent. All we have to judge him on is minor-league moves and those haven't exactly been stellar.

People skills...I mean, getting along with people is great but how is that different from being a good ol' boy?

There's not a lot to go on when it comes to evaluating AGMs. I just don't really know what Guerin's qualifications are to go beyond that outside of being a former player who was well-liked in the room.

Okay, agreed on vision. Cap wizardry is nice but that can be delegated elsewhere. People skills isn't just getting along with people. Also he's clearly doing more than AHL player signings when it comes to player acquisitions, as I already said.

And no, we don't know how good he's at those skills. Never said otherwise. But you asked what his defining talent is supposed to be, so I said it.
 

BlindWillyMcHurt

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May 31, 2004
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At least. He interviewed for Minnesota last year and I feel like that's not the only time.

If he doesn't land this job then... is it safe to say that some of us here aren't the only ones that don't really "get it" when it comes to ol Billy G?
 

Dipsy Doodle

Rent A Barn
May 28, 2006
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At least. He interviewed for Minnesota last year and I feel like that's not the only time.



Okay, agreed on vision. Cap wizardry is nice but that can be delegated elsewhere. People skills isn't just getting along with people. Also he's clearly doing more than AHL player signings when it comes to player acquisitions, as I already said.

And no, we don't know how good he's at those skills. Never said otherwise. But you asked what his defining talent is supposed to be, so I said it.

You mentioned that he watched Palve, Riikola, and one of Hallander's games. I'm not sure that amounts to much but YMMV.

Maybe I phrased the question awkwardly. I want to know what he's good at, and I don't see much concrete evidence. Botts had his area of expertise and we saw and understood what he did well.
 

Peat

Registered User
Jun 14, 2016
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If he doesn't land this job then... is it safe to say that some of us here aren't the only ones that don't really "get it" when it comes to ol Billy G?

Imo no, because if that was the case, he'd have never got the interviews in the first place and I feel like most would-be GMs probably end up with a lot of failed interviews due to the tiny number of available roles.

You mentioned that he watched Palve, Riikola, and one of Hallander's games. I'm not sure that amounts to much but YMMV.

Maybe I phrased the question awkwardly. I want to know what he's good at, and I don't see much concrete evidence. Botts had his area of expertise and we saw and understood what he did well.

I just don't think you're ever going to get concrete evidence about how good or bad AGMs are at their job, and the few pieces you get like Botterill's cap wizardry are misleading like the tip of an iceberg because it shows only a small amount of their duties and tells you nothing about the rest, the rest usually being more important.
 

Jaded-Fan

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Mar 18, 2004
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To be fair some people just have that vapid mindless look as if they have been hit to the head so many times that there is only mashed potatoes left up there.

He loves dogs too.

The Wild are gonna love him.

Bill_Guerin_5.jpg
 

Riptide

Registered User
Dec 29, 2011
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Yukon
Imo no, because if that was the case, he'd have never got the interviews in the first place and I feel like most would-be GMs probably end up with a lot of failed interviews due to the tiny number of available roles.

I just don't think you're ever going to get concrete evidence about how good or bad AGMs are at their job, and the few pieces you get like Botterill's cap wizardry are misleading like the tip of an iceberg because it shows only a small amount of their duties and tells you nothing about the rest, the rest usually being more important.

I don't think this can be stated enough. Basically unless you have a pretty good line on how a pro sports franchise works, I don't think anyone here can really comment too much on it simply because we're no where close to being in the know. I mean if you don't have an exact definition of a AGMs duties and how he does those duties, how could you evaluate how good he is or isn't?

@BlindWillyMcHurt

I'd also say that the fact that he's getting the interviews is probably more meaningful then the fact that he doesn't get the gig. I mean there's probably what... 50-65 AGMs in the league (most of the teams I looked at at 2 AGMs listed)? The fact that one of them is getting multiple interviews for different openings is meaningful to some extent. At least they're getting interviews vs those that are not getting them.
 
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Andy99

Registered User
Jun 26, 2017
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To be fair some people just have that vapid mindless look as if they have been hit to the head so many times that there is only mashed potatoes left up there.

He loves dogs too.

The Wild are gonna love him.

Bill_Guerin_5.jpg
If he’s a beagle lover, he can’t be all bad...
 
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JRS91

Registered User
Jul 4, 2010
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Well their logo is of a centurion while their name is the Senators. I'm more bothered by their logo, honestly. I've always though this was a great looking logo.
cdac8982c8af3f318a2bf6e0ceeee0ed6a73b25835971ae08902fd8bc3c71934.png
 

Peat

Registered User
Jun 14, 2016
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The only way it makes sense is some Spartans served in the Senate after retiring from the military (but they had to be 60 to serve in Spartan Senate).

The logo should be a 60 y/o dude

Its the Ottawa Senators, not the Ottawa Gerontes!
 
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Jacob

as seen on TV
Feb 27, 2002
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I will say that Guerin has some qualities that seem like a great fit for a GM.. he's comfortable in front of cameras and the media, he seems to build a good rapport with his teammates, he seems good at mingling with others and probably because of his playing career + personality has a ton of connections throughout the league's front offices. Yet at the same time I don't think he'd have any qualms about making hard decisions like trading someone or sending someone down.
 
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