Mark Hunter - Might as well have his own thread

[shortfuze]

Is there an actual link to him saying he’s like to be a GM?

 

[ULF_55]

Knights are the elite franchise in the OHL to which he had a major role in.

He led a decision making department in the NHL.

Seemed to select the right player in Marner when it was a coin flip between him and Hanifin. In fact a lot of mock drafts had him much further down because he was a smaller winger, and people were stuck in the truclance era. He also had pressure from the coach to take Hanifin and went with his own eye test. This was a risky move that shows guts.

Rest of his drafting remains to be seen by and large. Way too early to judge.

I didn't want him as GM but his resume is far far superior to the other internal candidate.

https://www.tsn.ca/mckenzie-s-final-ranking-mcdavid-eichel-and-1.300634

McKenzie had Marner 4th., based on his ranking of combined NHL scouts.
I'm sure other individual, non-NHL scouts, based rankings had him in other positions.

I really don't see much hate towards Hunter being expressed more like you said some people want to see the results of his NHL drafts before they call it.

 

[hotpaws]

Is there an actual link to him saying he’s like to be a GM?

Shanny said at the presser where he announced Dubas as GM that Hunter wanted the GM job and was very disappointed he didn't get it .

i have no idea how many sources have to say Hunter wanted to be GM before people finally accept the fact he wanted to be the GM

 

[newfdizzle]

Hunter was a big part of us picking Mitch instead of Noah Hanifin. Looks like Noah is going to be a stud but still... Hunter was firm that Mitch was going to be a great player despite the lack of size and suuch.

 

[Nithoniniel]

Hunter was a big part of us picking Mitch instead of Noah Hanifin. Looks like Noah is going to be a stud but still... Hunter was firm that Mitch was going to be a great player despite the lack of size and suuch.

Yeah, sure. The thing is, if Hunter is worth all the praise he gets as a scout, he should have more to show than a pick that more than half of us here on these boards would have done. So far his resume as an NHL Head Scout is nothing special.

 

[LeafFever]

Hunter was a big part of us picking Mitch instead of Noah Hanifin. Looks like Noah is going to be a stud but still... Hunter was firm that Mitch was going to be a great player despite the lack of size and suuch.

Eh not really.

 

[shortfuze]

Shanny said at the presser where he announced Dubas as GM that Hunter wanted the GM job and was very disappointed he didn't get it .

i have no idea how many sources have to say Hunter wanted to be GM before people finally accept the fact he wanted to be the GM

So instead of just providing a link you tell me shanny said it at the press conference (which I didn’t have time to watch) and complain cause people are asking for a link. Sorry bud. I have had better things to do with my time the last 3-4 days then sit on the internet machine. No need to get bent out of shape.

 

[CantLoseWithMatthews]

Hunter was a big part of us picking Mitch instead of Noah Hanifin. Looks like Noah is going to be a stud but still... Hunter was firm that Mitch was going to be a great player despite the lack of size and suuch.

I love Mitch, but picking Hanifin was pretty much the only way to screw up that pick. There are a lot of different ways we could have done things that would have been fine

 

[hotpaws]

So instead of just providing a link you tell me shanny said it at the press conference (which I didn’t have time to watch) and complain cause people are asking for a link. Sorry bud. I have had better things to do with my time the last 3-4 days then sit on the internet machine. No need to get bent out of shape.

not bent out of shape but it gets frustrating reading this same question endlessly

Hunter wanting to be the GM has been reported many many times in the media both before and after Dubas was promoted yet i keep reading on this forum that people don't even know if he even wanted the job

some people have honestly not heard like you but for many others it seems it's some weird attempt to convince themselves he'll stay on in his current position long term even though it's been reported from multiple sources he'd leave if he wasn't made the GM

 

[daveleaf]

Some scouts with an keen eye for talent had ..

1) McDavid
2) Eichel
3) Barzal
4) Provorov

and Hunter should have picked between a PPG 86 point centre or a potential #1D man playing +25 mins/g with #4 or traded back to #8 to take Werenski/Marner/Rantanen and added 3 X 2nds. IMO

Wingers are easy to find and had Leafs ended up with Mikko Rantanen, Sebastian Aho, Kyle Connor, Brock Boeser etc instead of Marner they would still have added a 25- 30 goal winger all drafted later on and not needed a top 5 pick to find one.

Leafs wouldn't be looking for a C to replace Bozak with 2 X PPG centres in Matthews & Barzal with Kadri running 1-3 down the middle or taken Provorov or Werenski and not be looking for a top pairing Dman and PP QB as they would have already drafted their own with better foresight.

Hunter's love for wingers and particularly smaller skilled ones has drafted holes into Leafs line-up and sent the GM scrambling to fill vital building block positions externally at C and D, through trades and UFA signings.

This doesn't mean Marner isn't a great young player in his own right as he is, but when it comes to the tried and tested team building winning formula " Build from the Goalie out, through strong Defense, and strength down the middle", Hunter has missed the mark ..

Maybe this is one of the reasons Shanny decided Dubas >> Hunter when it comes to understanding team building strategies better.

At this stage hindsight is easy but at the time the Leafs were devoid of any real offensive talent. At the time the choice was Hannifin or Mariner and I think he chose correctly. If Mariner went elsewhere we would be wishing for him. We just need to give them more time, we can't argue that the talent level has gone way up with this regime.

 

[BertCorbeau]

Yeah, sure. The thing is, if Hunter is worth all the praise he gets as a scout, he should have more to show than a pick that more than half of us here on these boards would have done. So far his resume as an NHL Head Scout is nothing special.

Pretty much - not bad, not great either. He's helped build a nice pool of talent, with good depth. The next step will be to have some of those picks develop into blue-chippers in the coming years to really see if he's nailed it.

We'll get a better idea within the next 1-2 years as we see more of the second/third rounders develop. Dermott is a good start, and there has been some promising progression from some other players (like Bracco) but there is still a ways to go. We'll also be able to see how this year's 1st and 2nd rounders progress, as they could surprise everyone in their post draft years in development.

 

[AuraSphere]

Some scouts with an keen eye for talent had ..

1) McDavid
2) Eichel
3) Barzal
4) Provorov

and Hunter should have picked between a PPG 86 point centre or a potential #1D man playing +25 mins/g with #4 or traded back to #8 to take Werenski/Marner/Rantanen and added 3 X 2nds. IMO

Wingers are easy to find and had Leafs ended up with Mikko Rantanen, Sebastian Aho, Kyle Connor, Brock Boeser etc instead of Marner they would still have added a 25- 30 goal winger all drafted later on and not needed a top 5 pick to find one.

Leafs wouldn't be looking for a C to replace Bozak with 2 X PPG centres in Matthews & Barzal with Kadri running 1-3 down the middle or taken Provorov or Werenski and not be looking for a top pairing Dman and PP QB as they would have already drafted their own with better foresight.

Hunter's love for wingers and particularly smaller skilled ones has drafted holes into Leafs line-up and sent the GM scrambling to fill vital building block positions externally at C and D, through trades and UFA signings.

This doesn't mean Marner isn't a great young player in his own right as he is, but when it comes to the tried and tested team building winning formula " Build from the Goalie out, through strong Defense, and strength down the middle", Hunter has missed the mark ..

Maybe this is one of the reasons Shanny decided Dubas >> Hunter when it comes to understanding team building strategies better.

Just so you know, they tried trading the 4th OA for Columbus' 8th OA. But Columbus wasn't down to trade their 2nd round pick with it.

We were targetting Marner/Rantanen at 8th

 

[hotpaws]

Just so you know, they tried trading the 4th OA for Columbus' 8th OA. But Columbus wasn't down to trade their 2nd round pick with it.

We were targetting Marner/Rantanen at 8th

that draft clip was edited without being clear as to which side declined the deal that was discussed which leads to speculation

it seemed on our part we were looking to trade down if Marner went to the Yotes and when he didn't we called to nix the trade

also we asked for all there 2nds but i doubt Col would have done that so maybe the trade fell apart because there counter to us wasn't appealing to trade down

anyway as i said it wasn't edited clear enough (on purpose probably) to exactly explain what really happened

 

[BoredBrandonPridham]

This is interesting. I saw someone discuss Hunter drafting policies and pointing out that his fingerprints were all over that 2015 draft, while the last two drafts had clear historical tendencies of Lou in them. I'm not sure that Hunter was as in charge of the last two drafts as we have assumed.

Seems odd to have a director of player personnel who isn’t allowed to set direction on player personnel.

This said, it would make me think Hunter would be pleased that Dubas is in charge of how these pieces work together again.

 

[Morbo]

Some scouts with an keen eye for talent had ..

1) McDavid
2) Eichel
3) Barzal
4) Provorov

and Hunter should have picked between a PPG 86 point centre or a potential #1D man playing +25 mins/g with #4 or traded back to #8 to take Werenski/Marner/Rantanen and added 3 X 2nds. IMO

Wingers are easy to find and had Leafs ended up with Mikko Rantanen, Sebastian Aho, Kyle Connor, Brock Boeser etc instead of Marner they would still have added a 25- 30 goal winger all drafted later on and not needed a top 5 pick to find one.

Leafs wouldn't be looking for a C to replace Bozak with 2 X PPG centres in Matthews & Barzal with Kadri running 1-3 down the middle or taken Provorov or Werenski and not be looking for a top pairing Dman and PP QB as they would have already drafted their own with better foresight.

Hunter's love for wingers and particularly smaller skilled ones has drafted holes into Leafs line-up and sent the GM scrambling to fill vital building block positions externally at C and D, through trades and UFA signings.

This doesn't mean Marner isn't a great young player in his own right as he is, but when it comes to the tried and tested team building winning formula " Build from the Goalie out, through strong Defense, and strength down the middle", Hunter has missed the mark ..

Maybe this is one of the reasons Shanny decided Dubas >> Hunter when it comes to understanding team building strategies better.

Still hurts how wrong you are on Marner, eh Mess?

 

[Morbo]

As for Hunter vs. Dubas, why didn't Colorado want Hunter to run their hockey operation instead?

 

[Martin Skoula]

The Korshkov pick was a wild swing that could have paid off if not for his broken leg that set him back. You can't predict severe injuries.

My feeling is that it's better to take gambles in the 3rd and 4th rounds when the talent pool has thinned out.

It's a wild swing we could have taken later in the 2nd. 31st overall isn't the spot to get cute when guys like Kyrou are on the board.

 

[stickty111]

Still hurts how wrong you are on Marner, eh Mess?

Not too mention, some scouts with an keen eye for talent also said "defence wins championships", "Never say Never to a Mike Babcock coached team", "In Nonis we trust"

 

[LeafFever]

Not too mention, some scouts with an keen eye for talent also said "defence wins championships", "Never say Never to a Mike Babcock coached team", "In Nonis we trust"

That entire "Build From The Net Out" feels a little outdated in 2018.

 

[AuraSphere]

that draft clip was edited without being clear as to which side declined the deal that was discussed which leads to speculation

it seemed on our part we were looking to trade down if Marner went to the Yotes and when he didn't we called to nix the trade

also we asked for all there 2nds but i doubt Col would have done that so maybe the trade fell apart because there counter to us wasn't appealing to trade down

anyway as i said it wasn't edited clear enough (on purpose probably) to exactly explain what really happened

Not true, columbus declined right off the bat and said Toronto was asking too much. The trade was contingent on if Arizona not picking Hanifin, which they didn't.

 

[Duke16]

Mark Hunter came in at a time when we were starving for talent...

We are no longer starving for talent.

 

[The CyNick]

OHL wise Dubas did an amazing job with tougher circumstances. In London hunter was in prime real estate and had lots of money whereas Dubas in the Soo was a budget team in the hinterlands.
At the NHL level Dubas was in charge of more departments than hunter AND had his own team at the same time.
Their resumes are equal in the least with maybe a slight edge to Dubas imo as he's had more responsibility at the NHL level

Why are you turning this into a Dubas thread when it's clearly about Hunter? Dubas made almost zero decisions related to talent. If you think otherwise, you are just wrong.

 

[The CyNick]

https://www.tsn.ca/mckenzie-s-final-ranking-mcdavid-eichel-and-1.300634

McKenzie had Marner 4th., based on his ranking of combined NHL scouts.
I'm sure other individual, non-NHL scouts, based rankings had him in other positions.

I really don't see much hate towards Hunter being expressed more like you said some people want to see the results of his NHL drafts before they call it.

Great, one source.

And McKenzie in his rankings had Hanifin ahead of Marner as did ISS along with many other agencies and insiders. Hunter had Marner ahead of Hanifin, and despite pressure from Babs, went with his gut and at least right now appears vindicated.

 

[saltming]

Why are you turning this into a Dubas thread when it's clearly about Hunter? Dubas made almost zero decisions related to talent. If you think otherwise, you are just wrong.

Where in my post did I say Dubas made talent decisions?

 

[Martin Skoula]

Not true, columbus declined right off the bat and said Toronto was asking too much. The trade was contingent on if Arizona not picking Hanifin, which they didn't.

I think they would have bitten on 34+38 if we had dropped #58 down a round or two or deferred it to the 2016 draft. That would have left us with #8 +#24 +#34 +#38. That's either a franchise changing draft on depth or enough to move up for Barzal/Chabot. I like Marner and Dermott, but with a draft that deep I think you have to squeeze out all the value you possibly can from it even if you don't get your top guy.