Dominoes
May 7th, 2008 by Jason CNow that Paul Maurice has officially been fired as coach by MLSE and Cliff Fletcher, it has opened a whole new window for speculation and rumours. It was originally expected that Fletcher would find a new GM and let him decide what to do with Maurice, but now that it has been done, does this mean Fletcher is here to stay? The Leafs have to make it clear what their intentions are for the future, as the free agent market will open in just less than two months, and decide on the futures of Mats Sundin, Bryan McCabe, and Darcy Tucker.
A source provided by David here at HockeyAnalysis mentioned that the front-runner for the front office position is no other than the “Great One,” Wayne Gretzky. It has been speculated that Walter Gretzky is not doing so well health-wise, and that a move back to Ontario would bring him closer to his father. It’s also been speculated that if Gretzky does become President of the Leafs, he will bring in former agent and Phoenix GM Mike Barnett along with him.
Personally, I think it’s a possibility. It’s common knowledge that Wayne and Walter are close, and if anything Wayne’s move to Toronto would be more personal than anything. However, it’s a little hard to believe that Gretzky would leave Phoenix, seeing how the Coyotes have made leaps and bounds this season and at times challenged for a playoff spot. Gretzky deserves some credit to their marked improvement, and they have an influx of young talent, including Blake Wheeler and Kyle Turris. Remember that the Coyotes picked Turris largely because Gretzky has been high on the kid from Day 1 and have been campaigning for him ever since. This Phoenix organization has made a complete turnaround from the joke of an organization it was just a couple of years ago, and it’s hard to see Gretzky not being part of that in the long run.
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3 Responses to “Dominoes”
By Steve on May 7, 2008
The only problem I see with this is that Cliff Fletcher is not a member of the Selection Committee. Even if his links back to Phoenix have any impact I would think this is on the periphery of possibilities.
By LeaferSutherland on May 7, 2008
Wow! Gretzky now?
I thought I heard it all…
My sources are indicating that the new GM is all wrapped (with the lack of a Bill Watters’ leak to the media) and will officially be announced within 3 weeks time.
All that seems to be left is the dotting of a few “i”s and the crossing of a few “t”s.
By Jason C on May 10, 2008
3 weeks is a lot of time to dot i’s and cross t’s.
The Leafs will not be announcing anything until a very extensive search has been conducted. They owe it to themselves, the fans, and players to do so considering their huge debacle of a season.