Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 

Shaking Up The Band Perry

April 29, 2016, 4:23 PM ET [18 Comments]
GARTH'S CORNER
NHL news by Garth • RSSArchiveCONTACT





The man who fired one of the winningest head coaches in NHL history, Bruce Boudreau, this morning, said Friday afternoon that the head coach wasn't the only problem with the Anaheim Ducks this season.

Murray owned his share of the blame. Boudreau deserved some of it, too.

"I didn't think it would be a good situation to go forward in. In no way is this pointing a gun at Bruce's head", Murray explained.

Overall, Boudreau compiled a regular season record of 409-192-80.

Boudreau was the fastest NHL coach to record 400 wins.

Boudreau was 208-104-40 with Anaheim and won four straight Pacific Division titles since he replaced Randy Carlyle on 11/30/11. The Ducks started the 2015-16 regular season with an abysmal 12-15-6 record, however, they rallied to correct their course with an NHL best record 34-10-5 after 12/27/15.



He said that winning in the regular season is fine and dandy, however, he wants to win in the real season: The Stanley Cup Playoffs.

"I want playoff success", Murray said.

What was different about this season ending presser than the past three season ending media conferences was that Murray was not skewering his goaltending for going haywire at the wrong time during the playoffs. To the contrary. Murray praised John Gibson and Frederik Andersen for giving his team the chance to compete every game versus Nashville.

In a departure from his usual post mortem analysis, Murray is now pointing the business end of his management stick at his core players, the guys who have been on the Ducks' ride to success (and failure) for the past 4+ seasons.

Murray says that his core players are also part of the problem.

"The core has to be help responsible. They have to be. Maybe I haven't been hard enough on them the last few years. But they're going to hear some different words this time".

Two goals. Three assists in Game 6, the past four seasons for Perry and Getzlaf.

That's shocking.

An agitated Murray asked:

"Where were they in Games 1 and 2? There's lots of people involved in this not going well"

Boudreau always preached that the best players on any successful team have to be the best players in order to win championships. Stars like Kane, Toews, Quick, Hossa, Kopitar, Doughty are synonymous for upping their effort and passion level when the stakes were driven up to pressure levels.

Murray questioned the passion levels of his Ducks in these playoffs. Boudreau is partly responsible for that. The players set the passion level in the room, on the bus, on the plane, at the hotel, on the bench and most importantly, on the ice.

Bob Murray wanted to see and hear more of the passion in the ill fated Nashville series. It never materialized until the final seven minutes in Game 7 when the Ducks owned the puck, the momentum and generated a dozen scoring chances. It was too little too late as Pekka Rinne and his five other Preds goalies stone walled Perry, Getzlaf, Folwer, Kesler, Silfverberg, Cogliano, Perron, Vatanen, Lindholm, Bieksa and the Ducks.



To know Bob Murray is to know that he does not mess around. He's a very measured and intense leader. He was visibly angry on Friday afternoon.

admitted publicly that he has been rather lenient on his core players the past few seasons. Murray vowed that tough talk will soon replace kid gloves as it pertains to dealing with his leaders. Though he didn't come right out and name names, Murray wants Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf, Cam Fowler and his internal leadership group to know that they will be held to a higher standard in the aftermath of the Ducks' embarrassing first round series loss to the Nashville Predators.

Murray told the media that he began to "worry" after Game 2 of the Ducks-Preds series. His team fell into a quick two games to none hole, only to dig themselves out with three straight wins.

In the end, Boudreau, Perry, Getzlaf, Fowler and the Ducks lost their fourth straight Game 7 decision in the past four seasons.

I believe Murray when he says that the changes to his team don't begin and end with Boudreau's ouster.


I trust Murray when he says that there will be changes to his roster.

It will not surprise me in the least if Murray were to trade Corey Perry, now 30 and replace him with another UFA forward. Perhaps Steven Stamkos or Kyle Okposo. It will not surprise me at all if/when Cam Fowler is traded away.

Murray put it out there for the hockey world to reach and listen to. He is open for business thi summer.

"It won't be the same team, that's for sure."



As for the hiring of Boudreau's replacement, Murray pumped the brakes.


"My staff. We have a list."




Murray said he has yet to make a decisions about retaining Trent Yawney and Paul MacLean as assistant coaches. Both men are considered front runners to take over the bench from Boudreau. Dallas Eakins is having a ton of success with the Ducks' AHL club in San Diego and he is also in the running as are Marc Crawford, Guy Boucher, and Mike Yeo.

Murray is taking his time seeking out Boudreau's successor.

"I'm not in any hurry whatsoever."

My guess is that he will be having candid, closed door manversations with his leaders first to get their take on why the offense fizzled out in the seven game series against Nashville.


Here are the playoff scoring totals for Perry, Getzlaf, and Fowler from the past four playoffs:


Perry was held scoreless and had 4 assists. He was -7 for the Preds series.
Last postseason, he scored 10 goals, 8 assists was +6 in 19:54 TOI.
In 2013-14, Perry scored 4 goals, added 7 assists was -2 in 19:41 TOI.
In 2012-13, he had zero goal, 2 assists was an even rating in 20:20 TOI.


Getzlaf scored 2 goals and added 3 assists against Nashville. He was +4 in 22:05 TOI.
Last postseason, he scored 2 goals, 18 assists was +6 in 22:25 TOI.
In 2013-14, Getzlaf scored 4 goals, added 11 assists was -2 in 19:41 TOI.
In 2012-13, he scored 3 goals, 3 assists was +2 in 21:27 TOI.



Fowler scored one goal, added 2 assists and was -2 in 25:22 TOI against the Preds.
Last postseason, he scored 2 goals, 8 assists was +5 in 23:07 TOI.
In 2013-14, Perry scored 0 goals, added 4 assists was +2 in 23:51 TOI.
In 2012-13, he had zero goal, 3 assists was an even rating in 22:44 TOI.


Whether they like it or not, Perry, Getzlaf and Fowler will be associated with Anaheim's Game 7 failures just as much as Boudreau was. The skunky, malodorous air emanating in the Orange county air is a by product of the grand slam of postseason failures.

Perry, Getzlaf and Fowler are the constants. The leaders in the group. The go-to guys in the room. They have been around the longest, therefore, much more is expected of them. Bob Murray hand selected them to be the leaders. When the Ducks went on their heroic post-Christmas winning streak to save their season, Perry (62 points, 34 goals) and Getzlaf (63 points, 50 assists) were lauded as the leaders of the movement. They led the team in points and were #2 and #3 in TOI.

So too should Perry and Getzlaf and Perry be blamed for the Nashville collapse. In Fowler's defense, he missed a six week block of time from January to March while he recovered from injury. When he returned to the lineup, he took care of his business and led the D corps in TOI and he finished second in points from the D.

Along with the Sedins, Roberto Luongo, and Alex Burrows, Ryan Kesler and Kevin Bieksa had a similar disposition when they were part of the leadership core in Vancouver. The Canucks know a thing or two about playoff failures.


Leaders lead. Followers follow.

When leaders don't lead, the team suffers four heart breaking losses, in a row, in critical lose-and-go-home Game 7s. For the first time in their long tenure in Anaheim, Bob Murray is questioning the contributions of Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf and Cam Fowler. I've been told since last summer that there are no sacred cows in Anaheim. In other words, every player is a tradable commodity. The only players on their current roster that I know Bob Murray would not trade away right now are John Gibson, Shea Theodore, Sami Vatanen, Hampus Lindholm, Josh anson, Simon Despres, Jakub Silfverberg, Ryan Kesler, Rickard Rackell, Nick Ritchie, Chris Wagner, and Brandon Montour.

You see a trend working here?

There is a serious youth movement happening in SoCal.

There was a time not that long ago when Perry and Getzlaf were considered the "kids" on the Ducks roster. Today, they are considered among the old guys. Perry and Getzlaf will each turn 31 in May. Perry is an $8.625M AAV for the next four seasons. Getzlaf is an $8.25M AAV for the next four seasons.


Fowler is a bit of a freak in that he just turned 24 and he has already played seven seasons in the NHL. Fowler is a $4M AAV the next two seasons.


Save for Kesler, Bob Murray is trending towards moving forward with his youth. Now may be the time for Murray to parlay his veterans into young players who can augment and enhance the impressive group that he already has assembled.


Habitual readers of this column know that I have had my finger on the pulse of the Anaheim Ducks for the past 18 months. I have covered the Buffalo Sabres and the Eastern Conference for this site since 2005. I have many contacts inside the NHL. I was told by a respected source last winter, and again last summer, that the Sabres and Ducks were locked into trade discussions for Cam Fowler. The talks never materialized into a trade, however, they continue to be alive today. There is no denying the respect and admiration that Sabres GM Tim Murray has for Fowler. He's big, strong, can skate like a top line forward, routinely eats TOI north of 25 minutes without getting tired, distributes the puck with precision and power, and can QB the PP from the left side. Fowler and Rasmus Ristolainen as a top pair in Buffalo for the next ten years is an intoxicating proposition. I'm told that talks have not broken down regarding a trade for Fowler. The results between Bob and Tim Murray to this point have been "not "no" forever, just "no" for now".

The plot thickened earlier this week after the Ducks were bounced from the first round by Paul Gaustad and the Nashville Predators. A source told me that last summer, the Murrays started discussing a trade for Corey Perry. Yes. THAT Corey Perry. The story that I have been told is that Tim Murray, seeking another scoring top line winger was interested to know if Bob Murray would ever consider trading Perry to Buffalo. The answer wasn't "no" forever, just "no" for now. When the Ducks limped out to their 12-15-6 record to begin last season, there were more talks. After Christmas, Ducks took flight and finished the season with a 34-10-5 record. There was no way that Bob Murray would shake up his roster while it's players had risen from the NHL outhouse to the top of the league standings. No way in Hell.

Today, it's another story.


Bob Murray is fed up with the excuses regarding his team's four consecutive Game 7 losses.

On Friday, Murray broke off one of the winningest coaches in NHL history, one who coached his team out of the gutter and into a division title with a 108 point season.

Who would do such a thing, you ask?

Bob Murray would.


He is in paradigm shifting mode. He will be very active in the trade and UFA markets this summer. His team needs a new beginning, a new lease on life.

Do not be surprised if Bob Murray trades Cam Fowler and Corey Perry. Don't be surprised if Tim Murray is the direct beneficiary of the blockbuster, ginormous infusion of talent. Tim Murray has the appetite and the bait to go big game hunting.


Fowler (6'2" 210) and Perry (6'3" 210) have the size, skill, attitude, and winning pedigree that the Sabres desperately need more of moving forward. You can't have enough leaders in your room. The Sabres will lose Brian Gionta and Josh Gorges after this season. Fowler and Perry will pick up the leadership mantle and support the next captain Ryan O'Reilly.


Imagine for a moment a revamped Buffalo Sabres lineup that features a top five of Corey Perry-Jack Eichel-Samson Reinhart-Cam Fowler-Rasmus Ristolainen.


The chances of it happening are greater than ever now that Bob Murray is brutally disappointed with his veteran leaders in light of the first round embarrassment at the hands of the Nashville Predators.




Tim Murray has had his eyes glued to Corey Perry since 2002.

Murray almost singlehandedly engineered the drafting of Perry and Getzlaf to the Anaheim Ducks at the 2003 NHL Draft. It's a fascinating story.


As Minnesota Wild GM Chuck Fletcher told the Star Tribune, in 2003, Tim Murray, then the Anaheim Ducks’ chief scout had targeted Corey Perry.


“I still remember Timmy pushing Bryan and I on him,” said Fletcher, then assistant general manager to Tim Murray's uncle Bryan who as Ducks GM at the time.

“He (Tim) took Bryan and I to go see him (Perry) because the big knock on Corey was his skating. But he was so skilled and so smart and so competitive".

As we've learned about Tim Murray, once he trains his laser pointer on a player, he is committed to that player. He did the same thing with Ryan O'Reilly and Evander Kane by scouting them repeatedly until he knew every ounce of information and intel on that player. Sabres fans have seen what years of intel gathering by Murray can result in. It took Murray years to get into a position of power on an NHL team and when he finally had the financial ability and the player and prospect assets, he closed deals on two behemoth forwards in ROR and EK9. Never underestimate the power of Tim Murray. He plans his work and he works his plan.


With the 19th pick in the 2003 NHL Draft, Anaheim selected Ryan Getzlaf, the huge, skilled center from the WHL Calgary Hitman.

Then Ducks GM David McNab recounted that Tim Murray had convinced the Ducks scouting staff that in the rest of the first round of that draft that “there was one premier player left in the draft — Corey Perry,” the big, tough, skilled, fearless power winger from the OHL London Knights.

As the story goes, Tim Murray's assessment sent Bryan Murray into a frenzy as he began to call rival teams looking for a dance partner. Bryan Murray was offering two second-round picks to each team in exchange for yet another first-round pick in the 2003 NHL Draft.

It took some convincing, however, the Dallas Stars, who liked Loui Eriksson, bit on the elder Murray's offer. Voila! Anaheim took possession of the 28th overall pick in exchange for two seconds.

When most other NHL GMs were looking at pick 28 as a throwaway pick, Tim Murray convinced Fletcher, Uncle Bryan and McNab to trade two 2nd rounders for the 28th pick so that the Ducks could get Perry and Getzlaf nine picks apart in the draft.


“We wouldn’t have done it if Perry was gone,” McNab told the Star Tribune.


The rest is history.


Tim Murray's intel and persistence allowed the Anaheim Ducks to draft Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. By the way, the Ducks won the Stanley Cup in 2007.

The Corey Perry "get" in Anaheim is a microcosm of Tim Murray's dogged determination and tenacity to get his man at all costs. Tim Murray will not be out worked on a player deal.

Fast forward to 2016. Tim Murray's organizational improvement project is just about complete. Murray has been patiently searching for his left handed QB and a 30+ goal scorer to ride dirty with Eichel and Reinhart on Buffalo's top trio. The Sabres have not qualified for the playoffs for the past five seasons. Tim Murray and Dan Bylsma made a dramatic +27 point improvement in 2015-16. Murray and Bylsma are not satisfied with their progress. They want to not only make the playoffs but take a long run into the month of June next June. Murray has $35 million in salary cap space, 21 premium draft choices in the next two drafts, and all you can eat ice time for Fowler and Perry, who would be lauded by Sabres fans as heroes not Game 7 failures like they are right now in SoCal.


What would Tim Murray be willing to trade to Bob Murray for a blockbuster package of Cam Fowler and Corey Perry, you ask?


2017 1st Rounder
2016 and 2017 2nd rounder
Tyler Ennis (forward)
Zemgus Girgensons (forward)
Mark Pysyk (defenseman)
Nick Baptiste (forward)

Bob Murray can get younger, very productive assets in the form of NHL level performers, as well as premium draft choices all while creating a considerable amount of salary cap space by doing this deal with Tim Murray. Bob Murray can use his salary cap savings to pursue hot free agents Steven Stamkos and Kyle Okposo to replace Perry's scoring.

Bob Murray presently has $52.5 million in salary cap committed to 14 players for 2016-17 season. The Ducks have several key UFAs in David Perron, Jamie McGinn, Shawn Horcoff, Chris Stewart, Mike Santorelli, Korbinian Holzer, and Anton Khudobin.

Bob Murray also has to re-sign four key RFAs in super D-men Sami Vatanen and Hampus Lindholm, who are going to be expecting long term deals in the $4.5-$5M AAV range. Forwards Brandon Pirri and Rickard Rackell will need to be re-uppedto long term deals. Goalie Freddie Andersen will need a new long term deal, too. Or, will Murray trade him away and then give the Ducks net to 22 year old John Gibson?

I truly believe that Bob Murray will want to hold on to his #1 center and Ducks moral compass Ryan Getzlaf. Players of Getzlaf's ilk are not available everyday. He is the team captain and leader. I see Murray and Getzlaf working together with the new head coach to reshape the roster and the Ducks leadership group in the room.



If you read this and have doubts, ask yourself why at many different junctures this season the Ducks were routinely sending their Director of Player Personnel, Assistant to the General Manager, Special Assignment Scout & Consultant to General Manager, Director of Scouting, Director of Player Development and scouts to Buffalo and Rochester on a regular basis.

Conversely, Tim Murray sends his west coast scout to Anaheim on a weekly basis to keep tabs on his former employer.


If you still doubt it, keep in mind that Corey Perry is represented by the same player agent that reps Ryan O'Reilly, Evander Kane, and Steven Stamkos. Naturally, if Tim Murray can land Fowler and Perry via trade, there would be no need to pursue Stamkos via the UFA route.

Bob Murray may have said "no" for now for the last time to Tim Murray.
Join the Discussion: » 18 Comments » Post New Comment
More from GARTH'S CORNER
» Hailing Taxis
» He With The Gold Makes The Rules
» Sedentary Seven
» The Sedentary Seven
» GadZuccs