NHL club in 'sharp and steady decline' because of GM

“If he were running a Canadian-based team, he’d have been fired by now!”

HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 6 years ago
NHL club in 'sharp and steady decline' because of GM
KeyStone Press

Although some fans enjoy blaming the general manager for their team's decline, in this article by Prime Time Sports on Sportsnet 590 The FAN co-host Damien Cox, it is painful to do. 

After all, Colorado Avalanche GM Joe Sakic is a respected player, a talented one, one of the best in his generation and he is known to be a true gentleman. However, as Cox reports, the facts are there:

"Since Sakic arrived in 2013, the Avs have gone from 112 points to 90, to 82 and finally to last season’s disastrous 48-point total under a rookie coach, 21 points behind the NHL’s next worst team. The Avs then lost the draft lottery, as well," he writes in the Toronto Star

"There are many reasons for the troubles in Colorado, but clearly since Joe Sakic took over as hockey boss, the Denver-based club has been in sharp and steady decline."

Cox also believes that if Sakic was at the helm of a Canadian team in the NHL, he would have been fired by now. Since the Avalanche don't get as much attention as it once did, and the market is not as large, Sakic gets away with it... for now. 

On top of all that, there is the Matt Duchene saga. Many expected him to be traded in a blockbuster deal last season, but we are still waiting. And a lot of people, including Duchene, are pointing the finger at Sakic. 

"There’s likely no home-run result here for Sakic. He needs a solid trade, but with the Avs 25th in NHL attendance last year, even something like a Hall-for-Larsson deal might not suffice," Cox adds. 

Hoepfully Sakic will find the success he had as a player, in the office.