Molinari: Give Dubas GM Job? Give Him Tight Deadline First
Let’s establish this right up front: Kyle Dubas has proven to be a capable NHL general manager, and he probably will do pretty well if he agrees to take on that role for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
But let’s establish this, too: Dubas is not Sam Pollock or Bill Torrey at the peak of their powers; he’s not even Joe Sakic on a so-so day.
Why Fenway Sports Group, which owns the Penguins and is conducting the search for a new GM, has been deferring to Dubas like he is all of that — and a whole lot more — is downright baffling.
Now, it was clear even before Dubas was fired by Toronto last month that FSG was interested in him, presumably because his contract with the Maple Leafs was about to expire.
Dubas’ appeal is understandable — he’s young, seems to share FSG’s affinity for analytics and had reasonable success during five years as a GM in the NHL’s most-scrutinized market — but the teams he oversaw in Toronto won one playoff series during his time in charge.
While that might look pretty good when compared to the Penguins’ postseason performances since they last won a round in 2018, it didn’t exactly spawn a groundswell of support for his immediate induction to the Hockey Hall of Fame.
And it certainly doesn’t explain why Dubas has been allowed to let this process drag on for so long.
FSG reportedly told him he could take last weekend to make up his mind. That weekend is becoming a distant memory, and there’s still nothing to indicate that FSG has gotten an answer.
All of that creates the impression that FSG hasn’t just been flexible in dealing with Dubas, but downright pliable, willing to contort its urgent need for a GM to accommodate his whims.
Maybe it’s because, as some suspect, he’s using the Pittsburgh Penguins’ interest as leverage in trying to get a management position in Ottawa, once the sale of the Senators goes through. Or perhaps he just doesn’t make up his mind quickly. Or possibly, he’s just a deliberate, tenacious negotiator.
Whatever the case, it looks like Dubas has been interviewing and assessing FSG more than its executives have been doing with him.
That’s fine, to an extent — there’s nothing wrong with wanting to have a good feel for the people for whom you might be working, because having a bad read could cause a situation to quickly mutate from promising to utterly unbearable — but the search for Ron Hextall’s replacement has been far more protracted than is prudent for the organization.
It presumably began no later than April 14, when president of hockey operations Brian Burke, assistant GM Chris Pryor and Hextall were fired — that planning for the possibility of such moves should have gotten underway much earlier is a separate issue — which means that Thursday is the end of the seventh week of the hunt.
Being thorough obviously is good, but the next GM, who will be coming in from outside the organization, is going to be overseeing a draft in about four weeks, and a potentially pivotal free-agent signing period begins a few days after that.
It would be nice if the people who will be making personnel decisions would be given the time needed to be thorough about preparing for those, too. Then again, that likely would have involved settling on a new GM a few weeks ago.
Oh, and there’s the matter of determining which of the Penguins’ unrestricted-free-agents-to-be — a list headlined by Tristan Jarry and Jason Zucker — they should try to retain, since those decisions could have a profound effect on other moves made over the course of the summer.
If Dubas is, in fact, playing the Penguins against Ottawa to get the most favorable deal possible, that’s fine, but so is one of those parties — or both of them — telling the candidate that the time to make a decision has arrived.
The Pittsburgh Penguins should give Dubas a deadline — one in the very near future, at that — to let them know if he’s going to sign on with them.
If he’s not, they should select one of the assistant GMs lined up behind him — that list appears to include Mathieu Darche (Tampa Bay), Steve Greeley (Dallas) and Jason Botterill (Seattle)Â and get started on a hyper-critical offseason.
They’ve already invested far more time in hiring Hextall’s successor than was necessary.
Every day — every hour — that the search drags on is costing them time that could be better spent addressing the many pressing issues confronting this team.
And that will take even longer than picking the next GM has. Probably.
Categorized:Penguins
Doug Wilson President of Hockey Ops…Greeley as GM….just a question…if Dubas wants total autonomy how does he feel about the power Sullivan has with FSG ? Could be a huge hurdle !
I feel like being tied to Sully indefinitely is going to be a problem with whoever takes the job. Every GM wants to hire his own coach, and should be able to. Not saying he gets axed right away, but if I was coming in I’d at least want the power to make the decision.
Presumably, they already gave him a deadline although it was a soft one. “Take the weekend to discuss with your family and decide.” Now you suggest they give him another one? How about this….”Hey kid, you have until 8pm tonight to give us your decision, or else our offer gets pulled.”
I agree with everything else you stated. The next GM will be standing in a hole up to his knees on day 1.
could not agree more….
I, for one, am tired of hearing his name and just wish he would head to Ottawa, Edmonton or Moose Jaw. Hopefully Botterill is still interested and can get back here. Time is wasting waiting on this guy.
Tell Dubas he has until 9AM tomorrow morning. It is so obvious he is using us for the Ottowa job. Let him go he is not that great. FSG this guy is making you look like fools. LETS GET IT DONE ASAP
Just hire someone now, when or rather if, Dubas calls, tell him the position is taken.
Agree.
Move on, hire someone.
My source tells me its Botterill/Greely. Papers are in the process.
🤞 hope your source is correct and the new guys hit the ground running!
The Executives at FSG have become hypnotized by Kyle Dubas and they have lost all sense of objective judgement in this process. It is my understanding that they did give him a soft deadline period to “think it over” during the Memorial Day (LONG) Weekend. The fact that they are now two full days past the holiday weekend demonstrates that they have become fixated on him without moving towards other options. Having worked in HR mgmt for 15 years, it is not a good sign that a person has this much consternation & negotiation for a position of this nature.… Read more »
Nice one
I have been hacked.
GOD LUCK, PITT! Toronto could hardly wait to jettison Dubas. Humm! I wonder why, Pitt? Before you give out your congrats, take a look at how he ‘dus-built’ Toronto arounfpd 6 players. If he dies that in Pitt – you guys have a LONG wait til competativeagain
As an update, Dubas took the Pens job. I think he thought he is getting Crosby, LeTang and Malkin in their prime. This was discussed on the NHL radio network this afternoon and the hosts pointed out how old the overall age of the team is. I think they are headed for a painful rebuild, which for my Red Wings is now going on its 8th year. No magic formula to rebuild and still contend; it is usually one way or the other. Stay tuned.