Your top 5 worst NHL GM's right now

[Rodgort]

I think 4 of the 5 NHL GM's in the league right now are from Canadian teams, and considering how high us Canadians think of ourselves for hockey knowledge that is pretty sad.

Honestly shouldn't the Canadian teams be among the best run groups in the NHL considering how the arenas are mostly sold out?

Anyway this is just opinion get mad at me if you want haha, but here is my list:

1. Chiarelli - Seriously how do you make a team with McDavid and Talbot a non-playoff team? You trade your best wingers and overpay for middling talent. There is an article on tsn about how the Oilers have the worst production from the wings in the NHL right now (https://www.tsn.ca/talent/oilers-ham...-wing-1.963104). This team is going to land ass backwards into Dahlin too. %$#%

2. Bergevin - After six years Habs still don't have a top centre, traded Subban for Weber, depleted their depth on defense (got lucky with Mete) and also made their defense slow in a time when all other teams are getting faster and gaining dmen with transition ability, not to mention the 2016 trade deadline where he picked up garbage grinder for picks and all of those players are not in the NHL now. No one knows where the Habs are going, at least I don't.

3. Ken Holland - Detroit is a mess, look at that roster and cap, Yikes. I don't know if more needs to be said other than he would easily be #1 on my list if not for the boneheaded mistakes of the other two

4. Dorion - I feel like most isn't his fault and that it is Melnyk steering the ship (and giving them NO budget to work with), but still a whole lot of moves for little result when they need any move that clears salary to be a hit

5. Benning - Honestly I should probably move him from my bottom 5 after he got Dahlen for Burrows, Goldobin for Hansen, along with a couple good draft picks lately (only in the top rounds as the latter rounds have been brutal). He will likely get some team overpaying big time for Gudbranson too. I keep him on my top 5 because... no one knows what the Canucks are doing

Ok the end. #GetBetterGMsInCanadianMarkets

[hockeyrobot]

I like your top 3 quite a bit.

[Jouko-Pouko]

I'm guessing it looks like GMs on Canadian teams are looking bad because the owners are too involved and not allowing them to do their jobs. Or maybe they are just bad, that's also possible.

Benning made those two very solid moves at the trade deadline, so I think he deserves a breather from the "worst GMs" list. Not sure who else to put there, though. Maybe Stan Bowman deserves some consideration because of that Seabrook contract. I also hated the Panarin for Saad trade, and I don't like the Hjalmarsson for Murphy trade either.

[pmorrow]

1. Bergevin - I know he had a tough prospects cupboard when he arrived, but he seems to have made so many mistakes with the roster. I also feel he didnt realize when the Habs Cup window opened about 4 years ago or so when they were arguably a top 3 team in the East. I just feel like his tenure has been a series of opportunities squandered.
2. Sakic - Though the team has rebounded somewhat, that team really has made a number of horrible trades that set them back. Trading OReilly for nothing put them back bigly.
3. Chiarelli - Big bad moves. We all know which ones.
4. Francis - Every year we expect them to take a step forward. They're still in the hunt, but it's time to stop giving mediocre goalies big deals. And its time to get some true elite offence on that roster. Time to make a power move of the non-Darling type.
5. Benning - Bad direction for the team, although it's clear this has quite a bit to do with ownership. They've taken some small steps, but still a roster I don't like overall.

[PenguinHunter]

Just glad the Flyers GM is not bring considered.


One that is not mentioned above but might need taken into consideration is Chayka...I know he hasn't been there long... but the team appears to be getting worse and not better.

[Stencil]

1. Doug Wilson: The core of this team is the same since many years and they didn't win in playoffs other then one good run. It's a winning team because of that core but nothing was done to improve that core across the years, to change it or to bring significant young talents to complement them. They win because of 3-4 good players in the team that are there forever but I don't think they won because of Wilson's moves and I don't see a bright future.
2. Marc Bergevin: I was confident when he arrived but he can't picture his team as it is. The results of the draft are really bad and the team doesn't change. The development of young players is bad and the team doesn't change. The trades they did were for complementery pieces, picturing them as a contender, and they are far from that. So they gave away good draft picks for players not in the NHL.
3. Ken Holland: Mostly the same as Marc Bergevin but at least they develop their young players well in the minors.
4-5. Jim Benning and Garth Snow: Their teams are pretty good at drafting, at least in the first round, but they don't have a plan and the trades they do are mostly bad. They don't get value or trade players up for free agency and lose them for nothing. The free agents they sign are really bad contracts

I left Jason Botterill out because he's new in Buffalo but this team is a real mess. The trade he's gonna do for E.Kane will tell more about his talent.

[Cdot588]

I think Holland being on there is kind of unfair. He was the GM of a powerhouse for so long, eventually you suffer from being in win now mode all the time and not drafting in top 10. His achievements as a GM speak for themselves, an all time great! Even after their dominance his team isn't in the basement this year and has a bunch of young talented prospects coming up. All this is to say, how is he a worse GM then Chayka or the GMs Buffalo has had? What's their excuse for being terrible?

[Kofax]

You're list is pretty good and kudos for putting it together and opening yourself up to criticism.

I think Chiarelli and Bergevin are no brainers. I think I would put Bergevin above him because he has had next to no success and has been carried by Price, while Chiarelli at least won some cups in Boston, but has completely botched his job in Edmonton so far.

I agree with the comment above that you have to give Holland a bit of a break because of how strong Detroit was for so many years under his watch. Mind you they lucked out with some late selections becoming gems, it depends on how much of that was luck and how much was good scouting/managing.

Dorion I think you need to give a bit of a pass as he is working under so many constraints with Melnyk. I mean, that Hall for Ceci rumour getting quashed because of Melnyk is pretty damning. Gotta feel for the guy, and now he's going to be forced to make some trades he won't be able to win in Hoffman and maybe Karlsson, which will just make him look worse.

Benning I'm willing to give some more time given his performance at the deadline and the teams recent improvement, but yes, prior to the last deadline I would have agreed.

Chayka is a great one that was brought up previously. I think he needs to be near the top as well.

Fun discussion!

[glorybe23]

wow what a difference a year makes for Sweeney!

[lucafen4]

I'm going to disagree on Benning being included. There's a lot that goes on with ownership we don't see. They want to make money - every year. He has to balance a rebuild with trying to be competitive at the same time. Which is why they signed Eriksson & traded for Gudbransson most notably.

Gillis signed a lot of these Canucks to NTC contracts that has really hamstrung Benning from moving more - as well as ownership likely having blocked previous deals as well. The there's Edler, who will remain out of loyalty to his family situation.

But lets take a look at some of the picks he has made since 2014
'14 - Virtanen, McCann, Demko, Tryamkin (1,1,2,3) Forsling (5) - Virtanen was a 'hometown kid' pick. One wonders how much of this pick was Bennings vs. the Braintrust wanting that home town hero to cheer for. Lets not forget the flack Management has taken for 'passing on Lucic' .. Tryamkin is thinking of returning to Van next season... we'll see. First 5 picks.. all NHL calibre players. Virtanen is really just now starting to figure it out. McCann traded for attitude issues.

'15 - Boeser (1) Brisebois (3) Zhukenov(4 - who knows if he'll ever jump the pond from the KHL) Gaudette (5). Boeser was a helluva pick at #24. We can't call it a steal as he went where ranked, but man. This calibre at 20yrs old at #24. It's a steal. Brisebois is looking like a solid future NHL Dman. May turn into a safe 4. Gaudette is a fabulous 5th round pick. Plays all situations. He's going to be a mid-6F on the PK with skill.

'16 - Juolevi (1) Lockwood (3) Candella (5) - Juolevi will become a legit top 4dman, top pairing upside. Just not flashy. Smart move letting him play in Sweden this year. Lockwood, 3rd line type player - that's a solid 3rd round pick. Good in all situations. Candella, getting a bottom paring Dman from the 5th round is solid. He's close to making the 'Nucks now.

'17 - This draft most resembles the Leafs 1st draft under Shanahan - skill, skill, skill - Pettersson = nuff said. Lind (2) skill to burn. Gadjovich (2) we all know who he is now. DiPietro (3) goalie depth behind Demko - Rathbone (4) - a project but could be a 4/5. And Palmu - tiny, but ultra skilled.

This deadline will tell a lot with Benning and who gets moved, what kind of return he gets for Vanek, Gudbransson. Add in Dahlin & Goldobin and he's been making decent trades lately as well.

He deserves an extension. That statement alone should remove him from conversation of 5 worst GM's. Ideally, he would find someone as an assistant to work on trades more so he can focus more on prospects, which appears to be more of his specialty.

[nickchau2000]

Garth Snow sure worked himself out of this conversation over the last several years.

[Luffy D Monkey]

Benning has actually done a lot of good in recent years but the Loui Eriksson contract overshadows everything, bigtime.

[rataylor22]

I'd have Dale Tallon on the list considering his work in Florida

[Jouko-Pouko]

I'm going to disagree on Benning being included. There's a lot that goes on with ownership we don't see. They want to make money - every year. He has to balance a rebuild with trying to be competitive at the same time. Which is why they signed Eriksson & traded for Gudbransson most notably.

Gillis signed a lot of these Canucks to NTC contracts that has really hamstrung Benning from moving more - as well as ownership likely having blocked previous deals as well. The there's Edler, who will remain out of loyalty to his family situation.

But lets take a look at some of the picks he has made since 2014
'14 - Virtanen, McCann, Demko, Tryamkin (1,1,2,3) Forsling (5) - Virtanen was a 'hometown kid' pick. One wonders how much of this pick was Bennings vs. the Braintrust wanting that home town hero to cheer for. Lets not forget the flack Management has taken for 'passing on Lucic' .. Tryamkin is thinking of returning to Van next season... we'll see. First 5 picks.. all NHL calibre players. Virtanen is really just now starting to figure it out. McCann traded for attitude issues.

'15 - Boeser (1) Brisebois (3) Zhukenov(4 - who knows if he'll ever jump the pond from the KHL) Gaudette (5). Boeser was a helluva pick at #24. We can't call it a steal as he went where ranked, but man. This calibre at 20yrs old at #24. It's a steal. Brisebois is looking like a solid future NHL Dman. May turn into a safe 4. Gaudette is a fabulous 5th round pick. Plays all situations. He's going to be a mid-6F on the PK with skill.

'16 - Juolevi (1) Lockwood (3) Candella (5) - Juolevi will become a legit top 4dman, top pairing upside. Just not flashy. Smart move letting him play in Sweden this year. Lockwood, 3rd line type player - that's a solid 3rd round pick. Good in all situations. Candella, getting a bottom paring Dman from the 5th round is solid. He's close to making the 'Nucks now.

'17 - This draft most resembles the Leafs 1st draft under Shanahan - skill, skill, skill - Pettersson = nuff said. Lind (2) skill to burn. Gadjovich (2) we all know who he is now. DiPietro (3) goalie depth behind Demko - Rathbone (4) - a project but could be a 4/5. And Palmu - tiny, but ultra skilled.

This deadline will tell a lot with Benning and who gets moved, what kind of return he gets for Vanek, Gudbransson. Add in Dahlin & Goldobin and he's been making decent trades lately as well.

He deserves an extension. That statement alone should remove him from conversation of 5 worst GM's. Ideally, he would find someone as an assistant to work on trades more so he can focus more on prospects, which appears to be more of his specialty.

Not sure how much credit should be given to GMs about draft selections, though. I recently watched a very interesting short documentary about Jarmo Kekalainen and his job, and he basically said he's not making any (major) draft decisions and instead lets his scouting department make them. He said he only sees those prospects a couple of times while his scouts spend the entire year watching them, so he said it would be silly if he was acting like he knows better than them. And he has an extensive scouting background as well, so he knows what he's talking about. Not sure what kind of role other GMs have, though.

Besides, it's not difficult to look good when you draft twice 5th overall and once 6th overall. That means you also have high picks in other rounds as well, so you're getting 1st round talent early in the 2nd round (Demko and Lind come to mind). The Boeser pick was obviously great, though, and there are some other good ones like Gaudette and DiPietro. I'd say they've done a solid job at the draft table but I'm not sure I'd call it great just because expectations are very high when you draft that high that often.

But as said earlier, the two trades he made at the trade deadline were very good, and I agree about your point regarding ownership playing a big role there.

PS: The Canucks don't have Dahlin (at least not yet), they do have Dahlen, though.

[Savvy1982]

I’m surprised nobody has mentioned Dale Tallon yet.

Leaving Marchessault unprotected while protecting Alex Peteovic, trading Reilly Smith for a bag of magic beans, firing Gerard Gallant, trading Demers for Jamie McGinn. Turning 3 first round picks and 3 second round picks in 2010 into Gudbranson (traded), Bjugstad (3rd line) Howden (Out of NHL), McFarland (Never played a single NHL game), Alex Petrovic (bottom pairing D), and Brickley (career AHLer), and on and on.

Don’t get me wrong, he was the architect of some great Blackhawks teams, but his time in Florida has been awful.

Honestly, three of the biggest reasons for Vegas’ success this year all came to the team due to Tallon’s ineptitude.