Martin accepts GM position.
April 16th, 2008 by The IcemanJacques Martin has decided to accept owner Alan Cohen’s offer and stay on as the General Manager of the Florida Panthers. It was reported in today’s Sun -Sentinel that they had this discussion earlier and that Martin had already agreed, he still wanted a some time to think it over. Makes you wonder if he was looking for another coaching opportunity that ultimately was not there, or was he just not sure that accepting this position was the right thing to do for someone who has coaching in his blood.
Uncle Jack had admitted that having both roles was very time consuming and was a very difficult thing to do, but now feels as though he is ready to accept the challenge and continue building what he started. That doesn’t make me feel too comfortable, but we’ll see how it plays out.
He also stated that there is no real timetable for choosing the next head coach of the Panthers which will be the 6th since Alan Cohen took over as majority owner of the organization. There have been a few names that have been tossed around by the locals, which doesn’t mean too much down here, however, and I am not saying that I approve or dissaprove, but one name to keep an eye on is Randy Cunneyworth who is the coach of the Panthers AHL team in Rochester.
Didn’t Randy also play defense and play for Ottawa while Martin was coach? Philosophy could be the same, and if that is the choice it could be more boring hockey here in Florida.
Ultimately is this the right choice for this organization that has not seen the playoffs since 2000 where they were eliminated in 4 games. There have been alot of bad moves by Alan Cohen, or should I say questionable moves. While he says he wants stability, and wants to have a plan and stick to it, the decisions he makes never seem to work out, and for someone who admits to being a hockey fan and doesn’t want to get too involved, I think he needs someone to help him with his management decisions. I see 2 possible scenarios that could be damning for this decision of retaining Martin as GM.
# 1) Martin hires a coach, and the organization continues to stumble and not make the playoffs, leaving Cohen no choice but to fire one or both.
#2) Martin decides that he really misses coaching and some team looking for an experienced head coach decides to lure him away from the Panthers. Thus leaving the current head coach whoever that may be, as a lame duck since as we all know, a GM wants his people.
Therefore if either of these two scenarios pan out the Florida Panthers will be stuck with more change, something that Cohen says he doesn’t want.
It is going to be an interseting off season. Martin has 4 big decisions on his plate.
Who is going to be the next head coach?
What are they going to do with regard to the draft. They do not have a number one pick, as it went to Nashville in the Vokoun trade.
What to do about Olli Jokinen. Keep him, trade him. Everyone knows the two do not get along.
Finally, what free agents to go after. Martin says he wants a puck moving defenseman. What does that mean for Boumeester? This writer thinks they need a top flight goal scorer and a tough defenseman.
Any thoughts????
Thanks for reading.
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One Response to “Martin accepts GM position.”
By mmafight on May 30, 2008
not bad for martin. http://mmafight.ca he manages to win a power struggle with his GM, do a lousy job, and retain his job. slick!