Top Candidates for the Montreal Canadiens GM Position

Now that the dust has settled after owner Geoff Molson finally decided to fire general manager Pierre Gauthier, it's now time to look at the potential candidates for one of the most important position in the NHL.

The top candidates will need to have some experience in a managerial position or have worked in the NHL, whether in the media or for the NHLPA, to be seriously considered for the position. A renowned and storied franchise, the Montreal Canadiens will need to select the right man for the job. Despite the unexpected playoff run in 2009-10 that saw the Canadiens reach the Eastern Conference Final, Gauthier and his predecessor Bob Gainey failed to build a Stanley Cup contender over the last few years.  

This season the Canadiens are dead last in the Eastern Conference following a series of bad decisions and a rash of long-term injuries to key players such as Brian Gionta and Andrei Markov.

Below you will find a list of potential candidates in alphabetical order:

Marc Bergevin

A former rearguard who played 1,191 games in the NHL with the Blues, Penguins, Lightning and Blackhawks, amongst others, Bergevin, a Montreal native, also speaks French.. After his retirement, Bergevin was named as a pro scout with the Blackhawks' organization. Three years later, in 2008, Bergevin was named an assistant coach with the organization before accepting a job as director of player personnel in 2009. 

Last summer, Bergevin was promoted to the position of assistant general manager of the Chicago Blackhawks replacing Kevin Cheveldayoff, who had accepted the General Manager position with the new Winnipeg Jets team. While Bergevin certainly has some knowledge how to manage an NHL team, he doesn't boast a lot of experience, having worked only one season as assistant to Hawks' GM Stan Bowman.

Julien BriseBois

A lawyer by trade, Brisebois has been working with the Tampa Bay Lightning as an assistant general manager to Steve Yzerman since 2010. Very good with numbers, BriseBois, a native of Greenfield Park near Montreal, knows all aspects of contract preparation and negotiation, salary arbitration and player transaction. 

Another bilingual candidate, BriseBois worked for the Canadiens for nine years before joining the Lightning's AHL affiliate, the Norforlk Admirals in 2010. During his tenure with the Habs, he worked as Director of Legal Affairs, Director of Hockey Operations and eventually as Vice-President of Hockey operations. 

In 2007, BriseBois was named the General Manager of Montreal's top AHL affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs. Well regarded in hockey circles, BriseBois earned a Master's degree in business administration from the John Molson School of Business at Concordia University and definitely understands the financial aspects of hockey. However, BriseBois has never played hockey in the NHL or at any high level of competition, which is certainly a disadvantage when it comes to being named as the Habs' next general manager.

Pat Brisson

The über agent — who represents the likes of Sidney Crosby, Daniel Briere, Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews — is a native Quebecois and a very close friend of former Los Angeles Kings sniper Luc Robitaille. Brisson is a long shot to become the Habs' next GM because he has never acted as a GM and is currently based in Los Angeles. While Brisson played junior hockey in QMJHL, he has never seen time in the NHL. 

Brisson is also currently the agent of Habs' center Louis Leblanc.

Vincent Damphousse

A former Canadiens player, Damphousse played more than 1,378 games in the NHL with the Maple Leafs, Oilers, Sharks and Habs. Damphousse was a member of the last Canadian team that won a Stanley Cup back in 1993 when Montreal won its 24th Stanley Cup. 

Currently working as an hockey analyst for RDS, the official French language broadcaster of the Bleu Blanc Rouge, Damphousse has never occupied a managerial position for an NHL team, but was a member of the National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) executive committee, serving as Vice President under Trevor Linden. 

Damphousse is a proven winner and was part of the Canadiens when Serge Savard was the general manager. We all know that Molson has appointed Savard as a senior consultant to help him nominate the team's next GM. This relationship with Savard could very well be a serious advantage for Damphousse as the two men have known each other for decades now.

Francois Giguere

A native of Sainte-Foy, Quebec, Giguere is currently unemployed after serving as the Colorado Avalanche's  General Manager and Executive Vice-President until 2009. He was replaced by Greg Sherman, who is still acting as the Avalanche's GM. 

Giguere is a dark-horse candidate as he's been out of the NHL for three years. He also worked in the Quebec Nordiques organization between 1990 and 1995 before the team moved to Denver. I would believe Giguere would be a more serious candidate if and when another NHL team moves to Quebec City in the near future as he was born in the area.

Claude Loiselle

A former center who played 616 games in the NHL for the Red Wings, Devils, Nordiques, Maple Leafs and Islanders, Loiselle has been working as Assistant General Manager under Brian Burke of the Toronto Maple Leafs. 

Loiselle currently negotiates NHL contracts with the team, but has never played for the Canadiens and doesn't have a very good track record with the Leafs over the past few seasons. A native of Ottawa, Loiselle also speaks French, but he is not considered a favorite to land the prestigious job in Montreal.

Pierre McGuire

The well-known television analyst —  and former NHL assistant coach and head coach — has been working for NBC and TSN for the past few years. However, he has interviewed for general manager positions in the past without much success. Born in New Jersey, McGuire grew up in Montreal and also worked as a pro scout back in the 1990s. 

He knows the league inside out, especially since he popularized the "Inside the Glass" broadcasting position with TSN. Another advantage is that he's also bilingual, but his lack of experience as in a managerial position will most likely eliminate him as a serious candidate for the job.

Patrick Roy

The former NHL goaltender won the Stanley Cup four times with the Montreal Canadiens and the Colorado Avalanche. A close friend of Serge Savard, Roy is currently managing and coaching the Quebec Remparts of the QMJHL. 

Also a native of Sainte-Foy, Quebec, Roy is obviously bilingual and has played for a decade with the Canadiens before asking to be traded following an incident with head coach Mario Tremblay in the 1995-96 season. A very hot-headed and vocal head coach, Roy doesn't have any experience at the NHL level as a head coach or a general manager. While some experts believe Roy is a serious candidate to replace Gauthier, I believe Roy would prefer to accept a position as the Habs' head coach replacing Randy Cunneyworth.

Other potential candidates: Jim Nill, Doug Risebrough, Andre Savard

A combo of former teammates Patrick Roy as Head Coach and Vincent Damphousse as GM would seem to be the perfect duo as both players were well-respected and liked when they donned the Habs jersey in the early 1990s.

Damphousse, who is a poised and calm person, would perfectly balance Roy's hot-blooded temper.

Who would you like as the Canadiens' next General Manager?

---
Follow me on Twitter to get updates on the Canadiens and the NHL in general.

(Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images North America)

Read More

He Said / She Said: Replacing Pierre Gauthier

With the trade deadline rapidly approaching, one question has oft been asked by both local and national media: Will Pierre Gauthier be remain at the helm for the Montreal Canadiens.

While he may survive past February 27th, it is looking increasingly likely that the Montreal Canadiens will go in a new direction with regards to its management team.

With that in mind, our resident writers Bryan Willey and Rosalyn Roy were asked about who they would like to see replace the embattled GM.

Bryan Willey: I think there is a difference between who I would like to see as GM and who will ultimately be given the role.

In my mind, the top-two candidates have to be Jim Nill and Rick Dudley. They could turn the team around in a short time and, out of the names available, are by far the most qualified. However the chances of either of them ultimately be named GM border on nil - pun intended.

Of those who have a chance, the person I would most like to see is Pierre McGuire. I have always been a fan of his, love his passion and the fact that he has knowledge for hockey at its many various levels.

He has been wrong on a couple of calls, but overall has been right a heck of a lot more.

Ultimately, I believe the GM will be one of Julien Brisebois, Serge Savard or Vincent Damphousse.

Frankly, this scares me.

Rosalyn Roy: Bryan, I am also convinced that who I want and who will be the next Habs GM are likely two different beasts.

I'd agree with you on Jim Nill, though I am not a huge fan of Dudley. Nill has an excellent track record and, of course, speaks French. Dudley doesn't and, while he did do his best with Atlanta and is now with the Leafs organization, he wouldn't be one of my first choices.

In fact, in looking at the Leafs, who are rebuilding nicely, they have a potential candidate we could pillage in Claude Loiselle, who is currently an Assistant General Manager with the club.

Negotiating and cap space management are Loiselle's strong suits, two items that have been sorely lacking in Montreal. The Tomas Kaberle acquisition to supposedly fix the power play is a good example of what not to do, and I doubt Loiselle would have made that mistake.

I do think that the next Habs GM is quite likely to be Larry Carriere. He's a direct hire by Geoff Molson and was clearly shoved behind the bench not for his hidden coaching talents but because the head office wanted eyes inside the room. Carriere also speaks the requisite French.

I'll agree that Savard is also a candidate, albeit a minor one, because he also has ties to the Molsons. Better him than Bob Gainey at this point.

Bryan Willey: It all makes you wonder why Molson has not acted yet?

I am relatively confident that Gauthier is not his man so my guess is that the man in question is currently employed by another organization.

Because of this assumption I do not think that Carriere is part of the plans going forward.

There have been reports that Molson has been in contact with Savard. My take on this is that Molson is looking at hiring a rookie GM and wants the mentoring ability of a Savard to help along the way.

Personally, I would view this as a mistake because Savard has been completely out of the loop for more than a decade. The Canadiens need someone with in-depth knowledge of the game today.

In regards to Loiselle, I wonder how important he really is in during negotiations. If the Habs wanted to sign Brad Richards for five million dollars and the Rangers offered him seven million then the chances of him coming to Montreal would hover between slim to none, regardless of Loiselle's talents.

If he is simply a means of cap management then the organization should hire one of the best CFO's in Quebec and have him run the books.

I am thinking more along the lines of bringing in a man who can bring back the cockiness, pride, and arrogance that made this team so great. In my eyes, McGuire leads that race.

Rosalyn Roy: I'm not really willing to speculate on what Molson will or will not do. I do agree Savard is well past his expiry date when it comes to GM potential. I'm pretty sick of the old boy's club that has been in charge of this club for far too long.

Contract negotiation and proper cap management are essential in the realities of today's NHL. And Loiselle has perfectly acceptable credentials and experience that extend beyond that a mere accountant would obviously lack. Whatever one may think of the Maple Leafs, Brian Burke does not fill his head office with incompetent people.

The Habs' arrogance, self-entitlement and cockiness are not attributes that have served them well in the recent past.

Pierre McGuire's passion aside, if he were as ideal a candidate as he seems to think he is, he'd have held a GM position for years now, or at least risen through the upper ranks of an NHL team.

McGuire is pretty low on my list of candidates I want retooling this team. He has bashed this team for too many years for my liking, even when they got it right like during the Jaroslav Halak for Lars Eller trade, which in hindsight was a solid deal.

He enjoys the press and sensationalizes pretty much anything and everything. He is far too emotional at times, hindering his ability for logical, clear headed decisions. And, frankly, his mouth runs most of the time

Arrogance, cockiness and pride are not what this team needs and not what has made them great in the past either. What made them great was a combination of talent, skill, hard work, a solid pipeline and good luck.

The organization needs practical solutions and I don't see anything in McGuire that makes me think he could offer more than any other mainstream pundit.

He may have been right about a lot of things, but the bottom line is I don't like him and I don't see anything that makes me trust him to retool this team either.

Bryan Willey: That's where I disagree. The best GM's surround themselves with the best talent. We need a guy with direction to surround himself with a capologist, an assistant GM, and other qualified people.

Sure, bring Loiselle in to help with cap but not as the guy making key decisions. Kind of like Nill to Holland or Brisebois to Yzerman.

This needs to be done with a team effort.

Rosalyn Roy: If we're talking mouthpiece only who can pander to the press while his underlings do all the actual work then yes, Pierre McGuire will suffice nicely.

Claude Loiselle ran Tampa Bay's AHL affiliate and, as a result, has experience assessing upcoming talent. As an ex-hockey player he is still young enough to have some insight into the game that does not pre-date the last Canadiens Cup win. It's not solely about his experience in the financial end of things, but rather his resume as a whole.

As an experienced assistant GM for two NHL teams now, he's got solid credentials and experience that I find sorely lacking McGuire.

Bryan Willey: Regardless, McGuire is still my choice. A local guy with an indepth knowledge of all levels of hockey.

It's easy to assume that his knowledge is courtesy of the the TSN team, but it isn't. He calls the local TSN 990 everyday and has conversations on so many players, their stats, their home town and their junior careers.

His experience as an assistant GM is from to long ago, but his critical comments towards a lack of scouting in Quebec, his comments on the Habs' horrendous pro scouting, everything is spot on.

Regardless of expeirence, I like his attitude and the fact he is right a lot more than he is wrong.




What do you think? Who would you choose as the Habs next GM?

---
Bryan is a Marketer by day, writer for HabsAddict.com by night and full time fan of the game. Follow me on twitter @BryanWilley78 but don't bother looking for me on Facebook, I'm just too old for that now!

Rosalyn used to frequent the old Forum during her early childhood when her father was a corporate season ticket holder, where she fell in love with Larry Robinson, so her lifelong obsession with the Habs is entirely his fault.

He Said / She Said is regular column on HabsAddict slated to appear on a bi-weekly basis.

(Photo by Getty Images North America)

Read More