When Marc Bergevin was dismissed, owner Geoff Molson decided he would change the team’s structure and not put as much power in one man’s hands. During the Bergevin era, there were questionable decisions that probably would have been challenged if someone else had been involved in the decision process, such as telling the alumni players to stay away from the current players (from ‘Serge Savard happy to feel like part of Canadiens’ family again,’ The Gazette, March 24, 2023). The Montreal Canadiens have a storied franchise, and former players know more than a thing or two about dealing with the media and playing under the Montreal looking glass.
Molson started by hiring Jeff Gorton as the vice president of hockey operations and he made it clear that Gorton would be working in tandem with a general manager to be named later. His hire started a complete overhaul of the Canadiens’ hockey operations. Kent Hughes came aboard as GM, Chantal Machabée was hired as the vice president of hockey communication, and eventually, Dominique Ducharme was replaced by Martin St. Louis as head coach.
Gorton, the First Block of the Rebuild
When he explained his decision to hire Gorton and have two people accountable for hockey performance, Molson was visibly excited about the hire. He explained Gorton was a man of experience and watching how the New York Rangers performed, he must have been doing something right. When Gorton was brought in, he explained what needed to be done to reshape the Canadiens, mentioning working on player development and improving the use of analytics.
Since then, the rebuild has begun and is going full speed ahead. Adam Nicholas is now the director of hockey development and is always working on skills with various players, the new analytics department has been added, and progress can be seen at all levels of the organization. Before the start of the season, Hughes and Gorton weren’t very keen about discussing the playoffs; for them, the “p” word was “progression.”
Related: 5 Takeaways from Canadiens’ Jeff Gorton’s Press Conference
While it’s unclear where Gorton’s job ends and Hughes’ starts, watching them in press conferences indicates they are working in perfect harmony and have become a well-oiled tandem. In his first press conference with the team, Gorton explained his role would consist of being available to the GM to allow them to benefit from his experience, but that they would still have the power to make decisions.
Interest from the Columbus Blue Jackets
Today, Sportsnet’s Eric Engel reported Elliotte Friedman in the 32 Thoughts podcast said the Canadiens do not want the Columbus Blue Jackets to talk to Gorton about their GM vacancy. Given how the two-man structure seemed important for Molson, it’s anything but surprising. You can hear what Friedman said around the 39th minute.
At the end of the season, in the Gorton-Hughes press conference, Gorton was asked about his future and his answer was crystal clear:
It’s just gossip stuff really. I’m here, I’m happy, I love Montreal, I love this organization. Geoff Molson has been unbelievable to us…we’re happy. Winning the Stanley Cup in Montreal is all I think about. [around the 36-minute point]
He would never say “Please get me out of here. I hate it!”, but he seemed very genuine when he said it. Gorton seems to like rebuilding teams and why should he leave his latest building site before the project is completed? He was forced to leave Rangers before he was done, and I don’t think he wants to leave unfinished business behind in Montreal. I can’t help but feel he must be following his former team’s progress in the playoffs and wondering what would have happened if he hadn’t been fired.
While it’s very understandable the Blue Jackets would reach out to Gorton considering his body of work (and the fact that John Davidson, whom he worked with in New York, is there now) they’ll have to go elsewhere to find their new GM.
