By hiring Lou Lamoriello as Maple Leafs' GM, Shanahan shows his ego is secondary
The Toronto Maple Leafs' rebuilding effort will be led by a man with a long tradition of being able to keep a franchise competitive with consistent defensive play.
Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan's decision to hire Lamoriello, 72, as the team's new general manager could be viewed as targeting the team's most visible weakness. The Maple Leafs ranked 27th in goals-against last season and have been lacking in competitive spunk in recent years.
Lamoriello's 28 years as New Jersey's general manager were marked by the franchise's consistency of tight defense and ultra-competitiveness.
Although the Devils have missed the playoffs for the past three seasons, Lamoriello's teams made the playoffs in 20 of the previous 23 seasons. Just three years ago, Lamoriello's Devils overachieved to reach the Stanley Cup Final. That Devils team was not a top 10 offensive team, and didn't have a dominant defenseman.
Lamoriello's strength clearly has been his ability to patch together competitive teams with impressive chemistry.
His decision to accept the Maple Leafs job shows that he wasn't ready to stop running an NHL team, even though he stepped down as New Jersey's GM last May and hired Ray Shero. Lamoriello is replacing Dave Nonis, who was fired after the 2014-15 season.
Unquestionably, Lamoriello is one of the most respected management figures in the game, and he's known as a strong personality. His hiring makes it clear that Shanahan doesn't intend to call the management shots behind the scenes. Shanahan was drafted by Lamoriello in New Jersey. They know each other well, and have great respect for each other.
With Mike Babcock recently hired as coach, the Maple Leafs boast the highest profile president-GM-coach triumvirate in the game today.
Lamoriello won Stanley Cup championships with the Devils -- in 1995, 2000 and 2003 and lost in the Final in 2001 and 2012.
The only criticism that you ever heard about Lamoriello is that he doesn't pay enough homage to the marketing aspect of the game. In recent years, it was said that his team's were not entertaining enough in a New Jersey market that still had to work to sell tickets. That will not be an issue in Toronto.
This is a bold move by Shanahan, one that shows that his ego is secondary to his objective to transform the Maple Leafs into a winning franchise. Lamoriello won't be a yes-man. He has own ideas on how to build a winning team, and Shanahan obviously has faith in Lamoriello's vision for how to win.
Shanahan previously hired former NHL player Mark Hunter as director of player personnel and Kyle Dubas assistant general manager. Lamoriello's hiring doesn't change their jobs. Their opinions will matter, but Lamoriello's history says he will run the show with Shanahan's input.
The Maple Leafs' rebuild is projected to be a lengthy process, but the buzz around the hockey world is that Lamoriello's hiring could shorten that. Neither Lamoriello nor Babcock will have much patience with losing.
Lamoriello will turn 73 during the season. He is not going to want this rebuilding campaign to be a drawn-out affair.
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