Guerin Named New Wild GM

[Gurglesons]

How has the goaltending situation been satisfied? Elliot is Mendoza line as starters go and Hart hasn't demonstrated anything at this point. As far as the defense, 2/3 of it was drafted by Holmgren and Niskanen was Fletcher's doing. Provorov's the only starter on D that's Hextall's guy.

From where I'm standing, Hextall took a .500 hockey club with a few key pieces and some nice futures and embarked on a 5 year project to turn it into a .500 hockey club with a few (mostly older) key pieces and some nice futures.

Sanheim and Myers were both Hextall pieces.

 

[billybudd]

True - but in doing so, he ran out the clock on his owner's patience and lost his job.

Hextall lost his job because he was running out the clock on his most-important players and, at best, had positioned himself to maybe backfill some of them. I mean, that's what the Pirates do, though not for the same reason.

While you've got Giroux, Voracek, Simmonds, Couturier (etc) all in their prime and producing, you need to figure out how to complement them. Setting up replacements 7 years down the road isn't a thing you want to ignore, but it can't be priority number 1. Picking up JVR at the end of his prime because you anticipate Simmonds leaving is fine medium-term thinking, but once Simmonds does leave, does still having JVR make the team better than it was when you got there? Certainly not. When your best players are 26 years old and under contract, you have to add to what you have, not lock down your plan to replace them when they wash up.

 

[Gurglesons]

Hextall lost his job because he was running out the clock on his most-important players and, at best, had positioned himself to maybe backfill some of them. I mean, that's what the Pirates do, though not for the same reason.

While you've got Giroux, Voracek, Simmonds, Couturier (etc) all in their prime and producing, you need to figure out how to complement them. Setting up replacements 7 years down the road isn't a thing you want to ignore, but it can't be priority number 1. Picking up JVR at the end of his prime because you anticipate Simmonds leaving is fine medium-term thinking, but once Simmonds does leave, does still having JVR make the team better than it was when you got there? Certainly not. When your best players are 26 years old and under contract, you have to add to what you have, not lock down your plan to replace them when they wash up.

The issue is that the players you named are all forwards. The defense was a mess capwise with Coburn, MacDonald, etc making way too much money.

The cap situation didn’t allow him to get that sorted out.

I think you’re also really downplaying JVR. He likely hits 30 last year if healthy. And they signed him for five years.

 

[Turin]

Hextall lost his job because he was running out the clock on his most-important players and, at best, had positioned himself to maybe backfill some of them. I mean, that's what the Pirates do, though not for the same reason.

While you've got Giroux, Voracek, Simmonds, Couturier (etc) all in their prime and producing, you need to figure out how to complement them. Setting up replacements 7 years down the road isn't a thing you want to ignore, but it can't be priority number 1. Picking up JVR at the end of his prime because you anticipate Simmonds leaving is fine medium-term thinking, but once Simmonds does leave, does still having JVR make the team better than it was when you got there? Certainly not. When your best players are 26 years old and under contract, you have to add to what you have, not lock down your plan to replace them when they wash up.

And saddle them with your coach who is almost Mike Johnston level of obvious bad.

 

[billybudd]

Sanheim and Myers were both Hextall pieces.

Myers isn't in the starting D and hasn't even demonstrated he belongs in the NHL yet. I guess Sanheim was a Hextall player, so that's 2/6 he'd be responsible for. That's not really satisfying anything, in my book, that's just adding 2 defensemen to finally backfill Timonen and Coburn.

 

[billybudd]

The issue is that the players you named are all forwards. The defense was a mess capwise with Coburn, MacDonald, etc making way too much money.

The cap situation didn’t allow him to get that sorted out.

I think you’re also really downplaying JVR. He likely hits 30 last year if healthy. And they signed him for five years.

I'll give you that. The salary structure is way more sensible now, but I still think the on-ice team is roughly the same.

JVR is 29. Guys like him usually don't have many good seasons past 30. I'm not saying he's washed up, but I'd bet money he's exiting his prime.

 

[Gurglesons]

Myers isn't in the starting D and hasn't even demonstrated he belongs in the NHL yet. I guess Sanheim was a Hextall player, so that's 2/6 he'd be responsible for. That's not really satisfying anything, in my book, that's just adding 2 defensemen to finally backfill Timonen and Coburn.

Their projected D is..

Provorov - Niskanen
Sanheim - Braun
Ghost - Myers

My dad is a diehard Flyers fan, you follow them at all?

 

[Gurglesons]

I'll give you that. The salary structure is way more sensible now, but I still think the on-ice team is roughly the same.

I disagree completely.

If your just speaking in results. Sure. If your speaking in a vision for the team. They are clearly going to be contending for awhile.

Couts, Konecky, and Patrick with JVR and Giroux plus Provorov, Sanheim and Ghost and Hart in net. Just Couts, Provorov and Hart is the trinity.

 

[billybudd]

I disagree completely.

If your just speaking in results. Sure. If your speaking in a vision for the team. They are clearly going to be contending for awhile.

Couts, Konecky, and Patrick with JVR and Giroux plus Provorov, Sanheim and Ghost and Hart in net. Just Couts, Provorov and Hart is the trinity.

You're operating under the assumption that JVR, Giroux (and Voracek) continue producing exactly as they are, indefinitely, and that Hart is something he has not demonstrated himself to be as a professional. I don't think any of these assumptions are well-founded. There are a lot of hotshot CHL goaltenders who come up early and become nothing or who take many years to become something. There are very few players like JVR who continue producing into their 30s like they did in their 20s.

My dad is a diehard Flyers fan, you follow them at all?

Yeah, I remember the time my diehard Flyers Fan friend told me all about how the Flyers finally got their guy in net and how obvious it was that her Flyers would be set for the next half-decade. That guy was Roman Cechmanek, who had a significantly more impressive rookie season than Hart did. 3 years later, he got laughed back to Europe.

That a fan thinks something doesn't mean that's what happens. We had people penciling Beau Bennett on the first line for years when he should have been in the minors or tradebait. Heck, this summer we have people penciling all kinds of longshots onto the first line along and penciling all the goals they'll supposedly score right next to their names.

 

[Gurglesons]

You're operating under the assumption that JVR, Giroux (and Voracek) continue producing exactly as they are, indefinitely, and that Hart is something he has not demonstrated himself to be as a professional. I don't think any of these assumptions are well-founded. There are a lot of hotshot CHL goaltenders who come up early and become nothing or who take many years to become something. There are very few players like JVR who continue producing into their 30s like they did in their 20s.



Yeah, I remember the time my diehard Flyers Fan friend told me all about how the Flyers finally got their guy in net and how obvious it was that her Flyers would be set for the next half-decade. That guy was Roman Cechmanek, who had a significantly more impressive rookie season than Hart did. 3 years later, he got laughed back to Europe.

That a fan thinks something doesn't mean that's what happens. We had people penciling Beau Bennett on the first line for years when he should have been in the minors or tradebait. Heck, this summer we have people penciling all kinds of longshots onto the first line along and penciling all the goals they'll supposedly score right next to their names.

Why are Giroux and JVR suddenly dropping off? The Flyers are primed to start their ascension to contender level this year.

This is without players like Frost, Brink, Farabee, etc who haven’t even made the jump.

Obviously Giroux will decline. But he still will be a 50-60 pt guy at worse. Couts and JVR aren’t going to decline for a couple years. Lindbolm and Konecky have a ton of room to grow as well as Patrick.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Why are Giroux and JVR suddenly dropping off? The Flyers are primed to start their ascension to contender level this year.

This is without players like Frost, Brink, Farabee, etc who haven’t even made the jump.

Obviously Giroux will decline. But he still will be a 50-60 pt guy at worse. Couts and JVR aren’t going to decline for a couple years. Lindbolm and Konecky have a ton of room to grow as well as Patrick.

JVR's biggest worry is his health, the guy is a ticking time bomb of being a LTIR candidate within the next 2yrs.

 

[Turin]

I disagree completely.

If your just speaking in results. Sure. If your speaking in a vision for the team. They are clearly going to be contending for awhile.

Couts, Konecky, and Patrick with JVR and Giroux plus Provorov, Sanheim and Ghost and Hart in net. Just Couts, Provorov and Hart is the trinity.

Based on current info and not divination, Couturier, Provorov and Hart is a crappy big 3 if you’re trying to win the Cup.

 

[Gurglesons]

JVR's biggest worry is his health, the guy is a ticking time bomb of being a LTIR candidate within the next 2yrs.

Lol what? He has played 60+ games 5 out of his last 6 seasons and played a full season in the lockout season.

 

[Gurglesons]

Based on current info and not divination, Couturier, Provorov and Hart is a crappy big 3 if you’re trying to win the Cup.

I don’t think there is a better young D than Provorov in our division. Seth Jones is a good argument, but I wonder how much of that is Torts system. Couts is Bergeron level good and almost single handidly beat us in 2017. Hart is the question mark, but if he was the Flyers full time goaltender last year from day one. It’s likely us on the outside of the playoffs and they are playing Tampa or NYI.

 

[Peat]

Their projected D is..

Provorov - Niskanen
Sanheim - Braun
Ghost - Myers

My dad is a diehard Flyers fan, you follow them at all?

Did you become a Pens fan just to needle him?

 

[Gurglesons]

Did you become a Pens fan just to needle him?

You know me Peat!

In reality, I started skating in the early 90s in central PA. So, the Flyers sucked and the Penguins were winning championships.

#bandwagon.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Did you become a Pens fan just to needle him?

"Become?"

Pixies reads like a Flyers fan that is pretending to like the Pens, albeit poorly, and has a weird erotic fascination with Jack Johnson's giant chin.

He's an enigma wrapped in riddle that is also wrapped in a hot dog bun, wrapped around Kessel's lips.

 

[Gurglesons]

"Become?"

Pixies reads like a Flyers fan that is pretending to like the Pens, albeit poorly, and has a weird erotic fascination with Jack Johnson's giant chin.

He's an enigma wrapped in riddle that is also wrapped in a hot dog bun, wrapped around Kessel's lips.

Isn’t it very Flyeresque to rationalize everything is the coach’s fault.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Isn’t it very Flyeresque to rationalize everything is the coach’s fault.

N0. It's being ignorant about all the problems.

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

I don’t think there is a better young D than Provorov in our division.

Has to be Jones. I’d take Slavin too. Maybe even Werenski if he can kind of get back to how he was looking after his rookie year.

Provorov is really good but I think he gets slightly overrated bc he’s young and plays a lot of minutes.

But I do agree that Hextall is due some praise. That team will contend for a while, a lot of it due to his vision and patience. He should have fired Hakstol earlier though. On paper it’s a very solid team with some very good kids going to come in and push for time. I hate they took Farabee- he is basically Jake 2.0.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Anyways...

I get the feeling the Wild will just name Tom Kurvers as the full time replacement rather than the interim GM. If that's the case, I fully expect some veteran ex-GM to be his AGM or "Advisor" and that could be any of the others that were interviewed.

Kurvers comes with some solid experience...

Following his retirement, Kurvers landed a job doing radio commentary for the Phoenix Coyotes, in part due to his connection to former Montreal teammate Bobby Smith who was the general manager in Phoenix at the time. Following one season in that capacity, he was hired as a professional scout by the Coyotes. Kurvers was promoted again, to director of player personnel, in 2005.[3]

In 1991, Kurvers was inducted into the University of Minnesota Duluth Hall of Fame.[4]

In 2008, Kurvers was named assistant general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning. From 2011 to 2018, Kurvers served as the senior advisor to the general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning before being named the assistant general manager of the Minnesota Wild.

Tom Kurvers - Wikipedia


That would be smart. But it'll probably be Billy G. He interviewed with them twice this go around and once last year as well. It'd be a red flag at this point if they interviewed him 3x and still hired someone else again.

 

[Gurglesons]

Has to be Jones. I’d take Slavin too. Maybe even Werenski if he can kind of get back to how he was looking after his rookie year.

Provorov is really good but I think he gets slightly overrated bc he’s young and plays a lot of minutes.

But I do agree that Hextall is due some praise. That team will contend for a while, a lot of it due to his vision and patience. He should have fired Hakstol earlier though. On paper it’s a very solid team with some very good kids going to come in and push for time. I hate they took Farabee- he is basically Jake 2.0.

Guarantee Provorov has a breakout this year now that they can’t weigh him down with MacDonald.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Guarantee Provorov has a breakout this year now that they can’t weigh him down with MacDonald.

Did he weigh him down the year he had 17 goals and 41pts?

 

[K Fleur]

Seth Jones play/success has less to do with Torts and way more to do with Jones being a beast.

 

[Gurglesons]

Did he weigh him down the year he had 17 goals and 41pts?

The majority of that year his time was spent with Ghost.