With Ron Francis officially out of the picture, the Carolina Hurricanes lurched quickly forward into the next era of management leadership. I wrote about Ron Francis’ legacy as the Hurricanes general manager yesterday, and with the hiring of Rick Dudley today, I will shift toward considering the next era of Hurricanes hockey leadership.
The current Carolina Hurricanes executive team
Don Waddell–Interim General Manager (potentially for awhile now?): Don Waddell has seemingly been gathering clout since the ownership change seems to be the closest thing to a general manager right now and also seems to have a significant role in building out the hockey operations team. The most recent hire (see below) is pretty directly a result of his influence. Whereas Ron Francis and Tom Dundon never seemed to click, Waddell seems to have slid into much of what was previously Francis’ responsibility.
Rick Dudley–Senior Vice President of Hockey Operations: On Tuesday, while the ink was still drying on the terse press release announcing Francis’ contract being terminated, the team announced that it had hired Rick Dudley into the role of Senior Vice President of Hockey Operations. Dudley, who was in a similar role with the Montreal Canadiens, adds another veteran NHL executive with broad experience with a number of teams and in a variety of roles. The X-factor in Dudley’s hiring is his extensive ties to Don Waddell and most significantly their time together leading the Atlanta Thrashers organization.
Paul Krepelka–Vice President of Hockey Operations: Somewhat more quietly, the Hurricanes also added former agent Paul Krepelka to the mix. Krepelka seems destined to fill sort of an assistant general manager role focused on contract negotiation. His hiring also raises the question of if the expectation is that there will be more departures from the team that Dundon inherited.
Eric Tulsky–Manager of Analytics: Still in the mix and hopefully away from the fray is analytics lead Eric Tulsky and his hire Kevin Kan.
Tom Dundon: Because of his direct involvement thus far, I would be remiss not to include owner Tom Dundon on an org chart of sorts for the hockey operations team.
Also still in tow are holdover assistant general managers Brian Tatum and Ricky Olczyk and long-time director of amateur scouting Tony MacDonald and his team.
Is this it for now?
With Francis’ departure and the addition of Paul Krepelka and Rick Dudley combined with word that Don Waddell would be be interim general manager on a longer-term basis, one has to wonder if this team is it for now and the foreseeable future.
My wild speculation is yes. With news that Steve Greeley from Buffalo seems to be out of the mix and no new names emerging, there does not seem to be anything in process right now.
On the positive side, the ‘committee’ now has a sizable amount of NHL experience such that at least in terms of making the types of decisions that need to be made the experience is there.
On the negative side, it feels a bit cobbled together out of necessity more so than strategically build, but that is just my personal opinion.
The Atlanta Thrashers live
I will be direct and just say that I am not thrilled that somehow through all of the gyrations of firings, interviewing, maneuvering ad what else, the Carolina Hurricanes hockey operations are suddenly led by the duo that led the Thrashers out of Atlanta.
No doubt there are any number of contributing circumstances, and certainly someone could make a case that it was not Waddell’s and Dudley’s fault, but at the end of the day in a results business, those results stink royally.
I am just beginning to research and form an impression and opinion on Rick Dudley, but Don Waddell is a known quantity albeit in a different role for the Hurricanes. As the lead on the business side, I think he is out of touch with the market and the fan base. Perhaps out of necessity to market the team, Waddell spoke proudly about the team’s financials. But below the top line numbers, his strategy to dramatically decrease promotions without much of a plan to back fill some of those attendees has directly led to a cataclysmic drop in the quality of the entertainment product that the team is selling. Even on weekends, the arena is mostly devoid of any kind of energy and vibe that would help hook new fans. Perhaps as indicated also by his inability to make the business side work in Atlanta, perhaps Waddell is a better fit on the hockey side of the operation. And perhaps, he and Dudley’s experience working together can help fast track the assembly of a committee to run the hockey side of the team successfully.
But again, paint me as frightened by the fact that my southern market hockey team is now managed by the duo that led the Thrashers out of Atlanta.
‘What I’m watching’
Right now, I am watching multiple situations with regard to the Hurricanes management.
1) With Rick Dudley on board, is this the group that starts to move on the coaching decision?
2) What, if anything, happens with Tony MacDonald and the amateur scouting team? Most of that group dates back to Jim Rutherford’s time as general manager. As such, they have many years of working for and with Ron Francis. Are Tony MacDonald and that group tied to the team, or is there a chance that they are loyal to Francis and the previous group? With the 2018 NHL Draft now less than two months away, movement from this group would not be good right now.
3) Who does what? If you count Waddell as new (having shifted across from the business side), the group suddenly has three new faces. I will be curious to see how takes on what roles as the summer progresses.
4) What is Tom Dundon’s role and does it begin to decrease? With the three people in place, will we begin to see a gradual decrease in Dundon’s day to day involvement, or will he remain highly involved?
5) Does the search for a general manager resume in earnest or is it to be back-burnered at this point?
What say you Canes fans?
1) Who else gets nervous thinking about the Atlanta Thrashers’ brain trust leading our hockey team?
2) With a committee of three now in place to go with remaining holdovers, do you think the organization has the skill sets necessary to proceed into the summer effectively and tackle key decisions including hiring a head coach?
3) What other questions/watch points do you have right now?
Go Canes!
I mentioned last week before the draft that management just needs to not mess things up. That was before acquiring the #2 pick. At this point all the management team needs to do is read Canes & Coffee and listen to Matt and his loyal followers!
Seriously, if Svechnikov lives up to his reputation as one of the best second picks this century, then the Canes are going to be the next Winnipeg Jets (I mean that in a good way, not that former Thrashers management is leading them to Houston–it is a concern though).
As Fogger will rightly remind us, a core of Aho, Svechnikov, Necas, Hanifian, Pesce, and Slavin is as good as any six players under 25 in the league. With all the additional prospect potential the Canes are going to be very good. It will take a lot to screw this up.
Kucherov (24), Vasilevski (23), Brayden Point (22), JT Miller (25), Yanni Gourde (26 okay not under 25), Sergachev (19), Taylor Raddysh (20) all say hello. Given that many of the other key Lightning players are like 26-30 I wouldn’t say the Canes have as good any 6 young players in the league, even under 25.
I heard a sports commentator recently talking on TV about how EVERY fan likes their teams prospect pool and young players. But every team has guys to be excited about so when we think things are getting good (and they are here) the Canes should always be aiming higher and higher.
Seeing how the Lightning have a blend of veterans, prime-aged stars, and young up and comers it’s quite sobering to think that the Canes are still pretty far away from being a top of the conference looking team.
So you’re going to use the best run team in hockey as a comparison…okay. I get that we want to be the best run organization, but Ron was following Stevie Y’s blueprint, almost to the letter. They found their stars and developed a ton of talent with them. Which, given our #2, Aho and Necas, we also will be doing. They didn’t spend big bucks on free agent goalies, they developed them. Which we also are doing.
Just because you don’t see the results yet doesn’t mean the process isn’t working. It just means it hasn’t clicked yet. But by all means, throw in the hand grenades and let’s start over, that’s a fantastic idea.
1. Not worried one bit. Everyone makes mistakes in their professional career and learns, and we’re no different. Besides, Dudley wouldn’t come to Carolina at his age if he thought we were another form of the Atlanta ownership group that dismantled the team. The Atlanta situation is a far cry from Carolina and those ownership groups when compared are a vastly different landscape. As for Waddell, I think you’re right he was a fish out of water with being on the business side and is both more comfortable and better served on the hockey ops side.
2. Yes, this group is fine for now making big decisions. Dudley adds a key voice in the room and oozes experience both on the executive and scouting side of things.
3. I think we will see a few more individuals drop out of their roles (the tree is still shaking off the old leaves). Look for more turnover in the player development/scouting areas. Either way, we’ll be fine. We now have the lateral hierarchy in place to make smart decisions.
4. Bonus statement…remember change can be good!
1. Not nervous about Waddell and Dudley as far as moving goes. Bettman is not going to let anyone anywhere move a franchise as far as I can tell.
2. With the hiring of Dudley there is enough skill to run the team on a day-to-day basis for now. What would be nice would be for Dundon and/or Waddell to come out and let the public know what the ultimate team will look like to include a description of each members responsibilities. He should not do this for our approval (he is the owner), but should do it to reassure the fan base that things are progressing towards some ultimate goal.
3. Waddell seems to be a smart hockey man is most respects. But as far as from a fan’s point of view IMO he has not done a good job promoting the team or making the fan experience a good one. I have been a season ticket holder since the team arrived in Raleigh. The way things were run last season I felt RF, Waddell, and the rest of management forgot all about the season ticket holding fans with virtually no activities where the fans could be involved with the team. My first reason for buying season tickets is because I love hockey and I get attached to (have favorites) the team (players). My hockey experience is enhanced the most when I have more access to the team and the players. Beyond that I By this I mean I don’t buy season tickets to get a discount on a soft drink or hot dog. I buy it hoping other perks come with it such as meeting (interacting with) the players, meeting with the owner and team management, and getting first call on other perks such as playoff tickets, etc.
It is distressing to see the players spending hours and hours out in the community doing things and to see thousands of dollars spent transporting millionaire player’s fathers and mothers to games and when it comes to the season ticket holders our contact is limited to 1.5 to 2.5 hours once or maybe even twice a year. Why can’t there be more integration of the season ticket holders and/or fans with the team? My answer is because management is inept in promoting its product. Just my thoughts. I’m sure some of the contributors to this site will agree and some will disagree. But at least on this site I get some involvement and interaction with people who do care about the team and NHL hockey.
RR, IMO I believe Waddell was doing the job PK wanted him to do. The page has turned. It will not be the same under TD. I made a comment about this below.
Also, Joe Nieuwendyk resigned his scouting position. I like the Dudley hire; he brings tons of experience as a former GM with strong scouting experience. This move fills an immediate need to have an experienced executive provide a new, fresh opinion as well as influence and prepare for the upcoming draft (and any associated trades). The hiring of a new GM and coach can now be put on the back-burner for awhile.
TD will likely stay highly involved. I recall him stating that he wasn’t sure what the Canes “were selling”. That is a very telling statement from an experienced business person. I believe the current focus is on establishing a new team identity that is tougher and way more exciting than the former and current team. This identity forges the path forward and influences our player changes. Also, how do you not reward Vellucci if he takes the Checkers on a deep run into the playoffs? We’ll see! I agree with lfod – change can be good!
1. My previous knowledge of Waddell’s time with Atlanta was flawed so I am redeveloping my impressions of him. I did not know that he was GM for ten mediocre years there and don’t what combination of constraints and bad decision-making was in play. I keep hearing from people who say they don’t like him because of what he did to Atlanta, implying that it was he who moved the team to Winnipeg. New ownership did that – what was Waddell’s role in the process? I don’t know. But I would be more concerned about bad management than moving.
2. Without a doubt this team can make decisions – they are all well-connected in the hockey world to get the right people, or people they think are right.
BTW, Matt, Vellucci is also an AGM who has been retained although he is more focussed now on the Checkers. But he is part of Canes management as well.
3. I wonder if the reboot of Canes management personnel will be followed by a meaningful reboot of player personnel – I hope so simply for the change in culture that has to happen to make this team a true winning franchise.
The Hockeybuzz blogger for the Canadiens spoke fairly highly of Dudly’s role with the club, though apparently his biggest flaw was not picking the best available players in the first round.
Well said about the club doing more for the players than the fans. I found the mom and dad trips embarrassing to watch.
The players have the money to bring their parents along, even buy them lower level seats.
It also seems that the team loses every single mom/dad trip game, coincidence or lack of concetration.
Not worried about moving at all.
1. Wasn’t there a clause in there when Tom bought the team that he couldn’t move it out of Carolina, at least for several years.
2. Bettman seems to be hell bent against teams relocating.
3. I think Waddell gets a bad rap from Atlanta. I think there’s a caricature out there of him coming in and saying “Screw this team! Let’s mess things up and relocate them!” A lot of the problems there seemed to be more on ownership than anything Waddell did.
As for the GM question, I’m starting to think more and more that Waddell will end up being in that position permanently. He and Dundon seem to gel, and I wonder if Dundon will start to think “Why risk hiring someone else, when I know for a fact I have a guy I like right here?”
I checked out the interview with Dudley over on Wral.com and it didn’t impress me.
He says his primary motivation is to work with Don Wandell because they’re longtime friends.
When pressed on his ideas for the next steps he says he is going to do what Don Wandell asks him to do.
When asked about his role with the team he says Don Wandell will tell him what to do.
Even if personally you take a job because you like hanging out with your buddy, you should at least try to give a more convincing reason why you want the job, shouldn’t you?
At least the dude is 69 and can still benchpress with the best of them, he can even be a conditioninc coach, if Don tells him to do that.
Count me as worried as well. There are rumors circulating that TD’s plan is to sell the Canes in 3 years to a group that will move the franchise. Further, TD wanted RF to tank the team this year and next. RF refused to do so and that prompted his firing and BP leaving. That plan is also the reason its so difficult to get a GM or coach here. If this is true, then you can expect many of our veteran players being traded away for draft picks to set the team up financially (low payroll) and on the ice for the next owner group.
TD has mentioned that he could sell the team in 3 years, but “wouldn’t do that”. However, the moves made are consistent with such a plan.
I realize I have no way of proving these rumors, and they may be wildly inaccurate, but I throw them out there as an alternative explanation for what is going on. I’m not sure I can fully believe them, but I am disturbed by them enough to put them out there.
Worst case rumor-mongering is all that is. Maybe it’s true and maybe it’s not. For now I will accept this as a new owner trying to aggressively find his way. More evidence will be apparent in what we do for the coach, the draft, and FA signings. I will wait until then before I speculate or even suggest anything of this sort.
Not sure this holds water at a common sense level.
Buying a team and running it in a way certain to lose money for 3 years hoping to then make a profit on an exit after 3 years is challenging math. That would suggest that despite losses, the team would have to increase significantly in value (to cover losses and make a profit). On top of that, Bettman’s track record for the most part is that it is nearly impossible to move a team.
For a businessman with success in other areas, this seems like a really risky and incredibly hard way to earn a buck.
The play for TD here is that he bought the franchise for $450 million. The next expansion team will likely come in at a price around $650 million. That would value the Canes at that level for someone to buy and, even with losses would net TD a nice return in 3 years.
Please understand that I am not into rumor mongering. Just relaying intel from someone who has access to high levels in the Canes org. It may be sour grapes or totally unfounded. I’m not promoting this as being true, just info from someone who has passed along things that have panned out in the past. I truly hope this is nothing!
Those are a bit on the crazy side I admit.
We’ll see whether a credible coach is brought in and what the Canes do in the next 6 to 8 weeks, especially at the draft and early free agency.
Anything other than aiming to improve the team for a playoff appearance next spring would look more than a little off putting.
I believe the TD deal included the team staying in Raleigh until at least 2025.
1) I am not nervous. It was a totally different scenario.
2) I believe the people in place are very capable of running things. I am not sure if Waddell will want to stay as GM or go back to president. I think we can survive as is but I believe TD is still looking for a GM. He is going to pick the guy he wants and so be it if it takes time. The present group can do the draft if necessary, or even longer.
3) Look at the Jets. Where did a lot of those players come from!! Too much negativity.
Waddell/financials and quality of the entertainment. One of the primary things TD talked about was totally changing the experience of the fans so they would enjoy coming to the games. He wanted to put bodies in the seats and that was a very big deal. Do we really think Waddell is going to try and penny pinch now. PK was driving the ship then and it was all about no money being spent on players or fans. Waddell did his job for what PK wanted. Ask RF what happens when you do not go along with TD’s direction. TD’s direction is pretty clear on this subject.
I don’t buy the blame game with Waddell in Atlanta. It was a horrible situation. They played in a horrible rink in a horrible location. It was a basketball rink that had messed up sightlines in a location that was a sketchy place to park a long way away from where the vast majority of their fans lived. The players hated it. The fans hated it and eventually the owners hated it. If the Thrashers had built their arena out in Duluth where the current minor league team is located they would still be in Atlanta.