jammer2 Posted October 22, 2014 Share Posted October 22, 2014 Well, the light at the end of the Leafs tunnel, it just flicked on in the form of a strobe light. The Leafs have hired London Knight GM Mark Hunter as their go to scouting force. Mark is in charge of amateur scouting, pro scouting and NHL player evaluation. Mark has a *brilliant* hockey mind and can see things a lot of other guys miss. In short, he's a genius at what he does, finding young future stars early on in their careers. Watch out NHL, the Leafs will be coming. Probably the most important person the Leafs have added to the org in over 3 decades, Hunter is *that* good. This move assures the Leafs will draft very well, and will no longer get snookered in NHL deals. Just for this move alone, Brandan Shanahan gets a A+. http://www.torontosun.com/2014/10/21/leafs-hire-ohls-mark-hunter-as-director-of-player-personnel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commander Clueless Posted October 22, 2014 Share Posted October 22, 2014 Shanahan keeps on bringing in the Shanaband (of brothers). It's good. Starting with Kyle Dubas (certified lord of advanced stats), Shanahan looks to be remodeling the front office. Hopefully, this trickles success down the ladder like excellence trickles down from Burke's bladder. Bladder ladder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammer2 Posted October 22, 2014 Author Share Posted October 22, 2014 @Commander Clueless I tell ya, it's the dawning of a new era. Nothing against Gauthier, but I can almost guarantee-damn-tee that he would not have been Hunters choice at that point of the draft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commander Clueless Posted October 24, 2014 Share Posted October 24, 2014 @jammer2 Gauthier wasn't my pick either, and I would venture to say that they Leafs wouldn't have picked him if Shanahan was around then either. I hope you are right in that it's a new era. We really need it to be. The Burke era saw some positives and a lot of WTF moments. I've said before that I feel like the Leafs are at a crossroads - do they go "all in" and try to make an Eric Staal type deal to take that next step, or do they take a step backwards and trade guys like Phaneuf and Lupul for a younger and (hopefully) better core? With the recent hirings of Dubas and Hunter, I almost wonder if they aren't leaning towards the latter? Phaneuf is the key here, IMO. He's 29-going-on-30, and the Leafs either need to go with him as the guy or move him, accept the consequences, and move on. I'm not a big fan of Phaneuf, but I also don't think he's NEARLY as bad as people make him out to be. Yeah his contract is kind of bleh, but he's a good player. On the other hand, he was Burkie's guy. He was Wilson's guy. I don't think he's Shanahan's guy. I think moving him would remove him as captain and be a breath of fresh air to the organization, at the expense of quality of defense for the short term. That may result in a low finish for the team, but it may be worth it in the long run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyercanuck Posted October 24, 2014 Share Posted October 24, 2014 @Commander Clueless I agree with jammer...Hunter should be a good signing. London was always either competitive, or they rebuilt for the next year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commander Clueless Posted October 24, 2014 Share Posted October 24, 2014 @flyercanuck One has to wonder if they intend to keep Hunter in a somewhat vaguely defined role, or if Dave Nonis should start feeling really uncomfortable right now. Actually, he probably already was feeling pretty uncomfortable, to be honest. He and Carlyle don't exactly have job security with the new Shanahan regime coming in to place. At least, I don't think so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammer2 Posted October 24, 2014 Author Share Posted October 24, 2014 @Commander Clueless I have heard rumblings about Shanny wanting to eventually take over the GM duties, I would not be surprised if they were true.....either way, I'm sure Hunter is a keeper and will be the top scout for years and years to come. If I was Nonis, I would not feel comfortable. Take it from a long suffering Flyers fan, going all in for an almost 30 year old Stall is not the way to go. You give up tons of youth and a large chunk of picks etc...and yeah, he gets you to the playoffs, maybe win a round or two...but if your goal is the Cup...I would not recommended a move like that. Been there, done that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commander Clueless Posted October 24, 2014 Share Posted October 24, 2014 @jammer2 Could be. Whether Shanahan takes over himself or gives it to Hunter, I like the idea of displacing Nonis. I don't think Nonis is terrible, but he follows in Burke's footsteps and it's time to move on from that. Maybe even just move Nonis back to AssMan. Then fire Carlyle. Again, I don't think Carlyle is necessarily a terrible coach or anything, but it feels like it's time to move on. The regime is changing. This is now Shanahan's team, and it's time to purge Burke's boys and get his guy in place. The Babcock rumours are circulating for some reason, and I think this is indication that Shanny is hunting for his guy. Maybe Blashill out of Detroit if Babcock sticks around? As for Staal, I think it really depends on Phaneuf. I can't say I'm sure Dion is Shanny's guy and, if he's not, he needs to be moved by the end of this season at the latest. Preferably before, so the Leafs can adjust and move on more quickly. Thing is, it's a hard sell to plunge Leafs Nation back into rebuilding mode after a glimpse of playoffs. That said, Shanny needs to ignore that and do what he feels is right to make it his team, whether that's sticking it out with Phaneuf or rebuilding the defense without him. Nonis' days as the big man are numbered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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