Insider reveals some candidates expected to interview for Leafs GM job; some of them will not go over well with fans
Brad Treliving has been the focus of the Toronto media as the prime candidate for the now vacant Leafs' GM job. It has been deemed "his job to lose", so to speak, by many.
According to Elliotte Friedman, Treliving has now completed his interview for the job. On today's 32 Thoughts podcast, Friedman revealed some other candidates that are scheduled to be interviewed by the Leafs and a pair of them are quite concerning, given their track records.
Friedman mentioned Jason Botterill, the former Sabres GM who is the least concerning candidate scheduled to be interviewed that Friedman knows of, but he also mentioned former Habs GM Marc Bergevin and former Bruins and Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli. Both of the latter are very concerning candidates given their poor track records in drafting and developing prospects, their trade history and even their personal history.
Without Carey Price in net, Bergevin would have had much less success than he did in Montreal as he failed to provide any coach under his charge with a lineup that could defend responsibly and produce enough offense. Chiarelli, on the other hand, won Cup with the Bruins in 2011, but traded a 20-year-old Tyler Seguin and did not have much success following the 2011 Stanley Cup run. He then moved to the Oilers where he created a complete mess for the team and wasted a handful of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl's prime years, failing to address their goaltending needs and defensive group. He also traded Taylor Hall for Adam Larsson in one of the most unpopular one-for-one hockey deals in modern hockey history.
Neither of the two should even make it to the second or final round of interviewing given their past. Sure, they have some Cup final appearances to speak of, which is more than Dubas can say, but in terms of building out a well-balanced team and making sound hockey decisions at the negotiating table and on the draft floor, Dubas was far more open to different ideas and held himself to a higher standard than these two candidates have shown in the past.
In terms of Botterill being an option, I'd put him in a similar range to where I view Treliving - certainly not a bad option, but I do believe there are some better options available. Jim Nill, as Carlo Colaiacovo had pitched on Thursday might be the best one I've heard yet. Eric Tulsky is a close second. With Doug Armstrong having multiple years remaining on his deal in St. Louis, it's highly unlikely that he is allowed by the Blues to pursue the Leafs' GM job.
| POLL | ||
MAI 26 | 255 ANSWERS Insider reveals some candidates expected to interview for Leafs GM job; some of them will not go over well with fans If you had to choose one of Peter Chiarelli or Marc Bergevin as the next Leafs GM, who would you pick? | ||
| Bergevin | 50 | 19.6 % |
| Chiarelli | 42 | 16.5 % |
| Neither, I'd probably cheer for another team | 163 | 63.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
