Who would you like to see as the next GM and next coach of the Blues?

[BlueDream]

I would definitely be interested in Hextall.

Him and Q for example... that'd be freakin sweet.

 

[Ranksu]

I would definitely be interested in Hextall.

Him and Q for example... that'd be freakin sweet.

Didn't Hextall fail big times to acquire #1 goaltender.

 

[BlueDream]

Didn't Hextall fail big times to acquire #1 goaltender.

They still have a better goalie than we do.

 

[Ranksu]

They still have a better goalie than we do.

 

[Ted Hoffman]

Didn't Hextall fail big times to acquire #1 goaltender.

To be fair, Philadelphia quite arguably has a more unhealthy obsession with goaltending than we do.

 

[Evocable Manager]

Didn't Hextall fail big times to acquire #1 goaltender.

Look at their talent pool. They have a better duo than us in net + Carter Hart and are loaded with some good talent everywhere

 

[GoldenSeal]

Dean Lombardi and Q.

 

[Celtic Note]

For the moment I am going to not add a list of names. Personally, I think you need to assess the best plan of attack moving forward. The buzzwords in the NHL right now are speed, youth and skill. But honestly I find all of those overblown.

The words I would like to define us are a balanced, intelligent and engaged team with quality at the forefront of our play. I will carry these terms over to the what to do thread, but for here I will use them to say how I would want to see the Blues create an identity from the front office out. We need a GM that can build a team with these principles in mind and hire a coach focused on implementing them.

All there other rearms seem pretty straightforward to me but balance can be tricky to define. To me, balanced really refers to building a team that doesn’t skew too far into any one defining characteristic. We shouldn’t be a top scoring team at the expense of defensive prowess. We cannot be a team full of inexperienced players, nor loaded with over the hill vets. We cannot be speedy at the expense of physical. There is a blend here that Cup winning teams achieve and we have to strive for it.

For years the Blues were a structured, defense first and heavy team. Now we have skewed to another extreme of offense first play without structure and risk management. You have to be able to weather the storm defensively against a good offensive team and counter a great defensive team with dynamic offense. All or nothing teams can only get so far.

To get there we need a well rounded GM that can assemble the constituent parts. He also needs to find a coach that can be a smart tactician and rousing leader. He has to be an objective guy that favors current performers over guys that have performed and guys who may.

 

[i aint Dunn yet]

coach : i will buy into the hype and say sheldon keefe

g.m. : anyone but army ... hell the yotes hired a college grad and they seem to be doing better

 

[Ted Hoffman]

coach : i will buy into the hype and say sheldon keefe

g.m. : anyone but army ... hell the yotes hired a college grad and they seem to be doing better

The Coyotes had the potential to be pretty well set before he got there. Since he rolled in, they've put up 70 points twice and missed the playoffs badly, and this season they're 5 out after getting off to a hot start.

Well, who knows - maybe one day all those gaudy analytics will pay off and they'll go 52-24-6 and light up the league. Until then, I'm expecting him to [finally] accidentally back into success in a few years [for one season] and then fail some more - but, he was a cheap hire and really that's all that mattered [and matters] for Arizona.

 

[Frenzy31]

IB is completely correct. He has been terrible in his UFA signings and outside of high draft picks - one he just dumped, his line up isn’t good.

I don’t want Keck either. He has been terrible in contract management. He hasn’t done well in his trades outside of trading for Bread.

Not a fan of his at all.

 

[simon IC]

For the moment I am going to not add a list of names. Personally, I think you need to assess the best plan of attack moving forward. The buzzwords in the NHL right now are speed, youth and skill. But honestly I find all of those overblown.

The words I would like to define us are a balanced, intelligent and engaged team with quality at the forefront of our play. I will carry these terms over to the what to do thread, but for here I will use them to say how I would want to see the Blues create an identity from the front office out. We need a GM that can build a team with these principles in mind and hire a coach focused on implementing them.

All there other rearms seem pretty straightforward to me but balance can be tricky to define. To me, balanced really refers to building a team that doesn’t skew too far into any one defining characteristic. We shouldn’t be a top scoring team at the expense of defensive prowess. We cannot be a team full of inexperienced players, nor loaded with over the hill vets. We cannot be speedy at the expense of physical. There is a blend here that Cup winning teams achieve and we have to strive for it.

For years the Blues were a structured, defense first and heavy team. Now we have skewed to another extreme of offense first play without structure and risk management. You have to be able to weather the storm defensively against a good offensive team and counter a great defensive team with dynamic offense. All or nothing teams can only get so far.

To get there we need a well rounded GM that can assemble the constituent parts. He also needs to find a coach that can be a smart tactician and rousing leader. He has to be an objective guy that favors current performers over guys that have performed and guys who may.

Brilliant post, Celtic. You summed up my philosophy.

 

[Ted Hoffman]

I don’t want Keck either. He has been terrible in contract management. He hasn’t done well in his trades outside of trading for Bread.

Not a fan of his at all.

I think he's been hit and miss, but when he's missed it's been glaring. I give him credit for both trades with Chicago, the trade that got Gaborik to Columbus, and trading Umberger for Hartnell [which promptly blew up in Philly's face]. On the flip side, his trade with Vegas at the Expansion Draft, ... woof. I don't fault him for striking a deal to get Karlsson picked, because you can't find anyone who at the time said "wow, Vegas got a hell of a steal, Karlsson's a future 40-goal scorer." I do fault him for throwing a '17 1st and a '19 2nd just to unload Clarkson's contract on top of that. I thought it was a hell of a price to pay at the time.

 

[trevorftw]

For the moment I am going to not add a list of names. Personally, I think you need to assess the best plan of attack moving forward. The buzzwords in the NHL right now are speed, youth and skill. But honestly I find all of those overblown.

The words I would like to define us are a balanced, intelligent and engaged team with quality at the forefront of our play. I will carry these terms over to the what to do thread, but for here I will use them to say how I would want to see the Blues create an identity from the front office out. We need a GM that can build a team with these principles in mind and hire a coach focused on implementing them.

All there other rearms seem pretty straightforward to me but balance can be tricky to define. To me, balanced really refers to building a team that doesn’t skew too far into any one defining characteristic. We shouldn’t be a top scoring team at the expense of defensive prowess. We cannot be a team full of inexperienced players, nor loaded with over the hill vets. We cannot be speedy at the expense of physical. There is a blend here that Cup winning teams achieve and we have to strive for it.

For years the Blues were a structured, defense first and heavy team. Now we have skewed to another extreme of offense first play without structure and risk management. You have to be able to weather the storm defensively against a good offensive team and counter a great defensive team with dynamic offense. All or nothing teams can only get so far.

To get there we need a well rounded GM that can assemble the constituent parts. He also needs to find a coach that can be a smart tactician and rousing leader. He has to be an objective guy that favors current performers over guys that have performed and guys who may.

These aren't just buzzwords. They're tangible, measurable data. I think most would agree that we need more speedier players.

 

[Celtic Note]

These aren't just buzzwords. They're tangible, measurable data. I think most would agree that we need more speedier players.

I agree that we can get faster. But I don’t see it as solving our problems. Having three or whatever number faster skaters doesn’t make us stop making errant passes or keep us from leaving guys wide open in the slot.

 

[Renard]

There is a lot to being the general manager of an NHL team.
The job is much bigger than just making trades.

I have to chuckle when people seem to think that a former player, who was good on the ice, will make a good general manager. Can Pronger deal with agents, negotiate contracts, handle the salary cap, have good relations with the league, handle the public aspects of the job, get along with the ownership group, select and get along with the coach, etc?

 

[Celtic Note]

There is a lot to being the general manager of an NHL team.
The job is much bigger than just making trades.

I have to chuckle when people seem to think that a former player, who was good on the ice, will make a good general manager. Can Pronger deal with agents, negotiate contracts, handle the salary cap, have good relations with the league, handle the public aspects of the job, get along with the ownership group, select and get along with the coach, etc?

There are two things that bode well for Pronger. He is highly intelligent about the game. The other being that he isn’t afraid to speak his mind. Will that make him a good GM? Who knows.

 

[Davimir Tarablad]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Easton for either position, or both.

 

[trevorftw]

I agree that we can get faster. But I don’t see it as solving our problems. Having three or whatever number faster skaters doesn’t make us stop making errant passes or keep us from leaving guys wide open in the slot.

I think it'll take quite a few changes to solve ALL of our problems, but faster players certainly wouldn't hurt.

 

[i aint Dunn yet]

The Coyotes had the potential to be pretty well set before he got there. Since he rolled in, they've put up 70 points twice and missed the playoffs badly, and this season they're 5 out after getting off to a hot start.

Well, who knows - maybe one day all those gaudy analytics will pay off and they'll go 52-24-6 and light up the league. Until then, I'm expecting him to [finally] accidentally back into success in a few years [for one season] and then fail some more - but, he was a cheap hire and really that's all that mattered [and matters] for Arizona.

he was a nothing and got a job ... they just blasted us with chi-town retreads ... im not into metrics and billy beane baseball bull* * * * , just saying we dont need the ghost of scotty bowman to compete

 

[larueskee]

I don't think a team has to hire someone that has already been around to have success. Its a misconception that bringing someone in with a Stanley Cup in a different city will somehow lead your team to success. Hitch hasn't won any titles since 1999 and neither has Army. I'm telling you they won't again.

 

[trevorftw]

What about Q for GM?

 

[GoldenSeal]

Scotty Bowman for GM (I know he's 85, but this is the team he didn't win a Cup with and that might be enough to lure him in for the short term and maybe train a successor)

Coaches, we need someone who is going to hold players accountable but think outside the box, someone who isn't afraid to play the kids if they're playing well and not afraid to bench 7m+ players. The Blues need a character guy at the helm who can instill character and teamwork into the roster.

 

[GoldenSeal]

There is a lot to being the general manager of an NHL team.
The job is much bigger than just making trades.

I have to chuckle when people seem to think that a former player, who was good on the ice, will make a good general manager. Can Pronger deal with agents, negotiate contracts, handle the salary cap, have good relations with the league, handle the public aspects of the job, get along with the ownership group, select and get along with the coach, etc?

Even with his injury, Pronger scares me. He would be the Deebo of NHL GMs. He'd call another team's GM and say "You -are- trading McDavid to us for a 2nd and JayBo."
"Umm..."
"I SAID you ARE trading McDavid to us for a 2nd and JayBo."
"Okay, okay, Chris, it's a deal, man! It's a deal!"
"I know it is." - CLICK!-

 

[Ted Hoffman]

What about Q for GM?

I think it's great he won 3 Cups with Chicago, but I'm still not sold on him taking anyone else to a Cup unless he's walking into a similarly loaded situation. I have even less faith in his ability to be a competent GM.

Scotty Bowman for GM (I know he's 85, but this is the team he didn't win a Cup with and that might be enough to lure him in for the short term and maybe train a successor)

As it is, Scotty has a largely no-touch job. At 85, his wife isn't about to let him get into a grind again. Besides, if he did help short-term it would be because the successor was Stan Bowman.