DETROIT (May 25) -- It's understandable why some Toronto hockey fans hold out hope that Ken Holland might choose to leave the Detroit Red Wings after this season and take over the Maple Leafs' top job. After all, Holland is part of the best management team in the NHL, and is likely to win his fourth Stanley Cup as GM of the Red Wings. But, Holland is in the early part of a lucrative, long-term arrangement here in MoTown and he made it clear earlier today that he's not even thinking of moving elsewhere.
"No, I absolutely love it here," Ken said when I spoke with him at Joe Louis Arena. "I've got a great personal relationship with the owner [Mike Illitch]. I've been here since 1983 in the organization and I've lived here since 1994. I know our young kids coming up, and I have a great working relationship with [assistant GM] Jim Nill. Then there's the other people I work with... Mike Babcock, Steve Yzerman, Jim Devellano, Scotty Bowman. Just great individuals and top hockey men. So, I've had no thoughts at all of leaving. As long as they want me, I'll be here."
And, the reason is simple. There is no incentive for Holland to make a lateral move. "We stay together because we like to work here," he explained of the Wings' unparalleled hockey executive. "We don't want to leave. There is tradition among this group and with this team. We're an Original Six franchise; we've got tremendous owners, and our own private plane. And, most of all, we simply like to win. We come to the rink 82 times during the season and know -- more often than not -- that we're going to win. And, in the NHL, winning gets into your blood. You're always happy. And, we have loads of fun together."
Even the most dyed-in-the-wool fan of the Leafs would agree that no Toronto GM, coach, or player has spoken for decades with the unbridled contentment of the above paragraph. And, for good reason. The Leafs haven't had the management stability of the Red Wings since the 1940s, when it was crystal clear that Conn Smythe ran the hockey club and Hap Day was the coach. Smythe and Day teamed for Stanley Cups in 1942, '45, '47, '48, and '49. Joe Primeau was coach when the Maple Leafs won again in 1951. That's six championships in 10 years. Even during the Stanley Cup dynasty of the '60s (four Cups in six years under Punch Imlach), there was turmoil at the ownership level. Smythe sold out to his son, Stafford, and Stafford Smythe had a rancorous association with co-owners Harold Ballard and John Bassett. The calmness; the clear delegation of responsibility; an unquestioned committment to excellence, and satisfying end results, set apart this Detroit ownership/management group from others in the league. And, from anything the Leafs have had for as long as anyone can remember.
"That's why a guy like Jimmy Nill is happy to stay here," said Holland. "I think at some point and time, he'll want to leave, but I don't think the time is right. He's got kids that are going to Michigan State; he has another child at home, and his sister, Becky, has some of her family here. His wife loves it here. And, Jim and I played junior together. I give him the complete authority to run the amateur draft for us. I don't interfere because I trust him completely. We have a great relationship, and I don't think he's looking to go anywhere."
I wondered, though, about the the challenge of building the Leafs and finally putting the Blue & White over the top. No club other than Toronto that was around in the spring of 1967 has failed to make at least one appearance in the Stanley Cup final. Clearly, there's an attraction to being the guy that leads the Leafs to the promise land. "Yeah, but we've had to do that here a few times," Holland countered. "It's not like I haven't been involved in re-shaping clubs with the Red Wings. Maybe not from the standpoint of missing the playoffs two or three years in a row, but certainly from the changeover of personnel. Staying on top -- or close to the top -- is every bit as challenging as building from the bottom. There's only a handful of players left from our 2002 Stanley Cup team and we're now re-building our club for future years. It's an on-going process. As far as building from the bottom, I went through that in my early years with the Wings in the '80s, when we were pretty bad.
"For the past 15 years, we've been able to maintain a competitive club here in Detroit, and if there's anyone who thinks that isn't a challenge, he or she doesn't know the game."
Holland does, however, understand why a slew of good hockey people are lining up to be interviewed for the Leafs' GM vacancy. "There are some jobs that are way bigger than others and, obviously, Toronto is one of those jobs," he said. "It's Canada, and it's the hub of hockey in so many ways. A lot of people may not know that I was a draft pick of the Maple Leafs (188th overall in 1975). That team has an incredible history. Fortunately for some and unfortunately for others, the best people in the game now are under contract to other teams in the NHL."
Including the man that spoke the above words.
As for the silent guy out in Anaheim... well, let's wait and see. He still hasn't signed his name to a contract extension with the Ducks.
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