UPDATE: 1:30 pm
Content of today's original blog is below—this is the new stuff.
I just finished watching Trevor Linden's press conference on the firing of John Tortorella and Mike Sullivan. I'll summarize the key points—and I'm paraphrasing, from my notes—then we can get into a bit more discussion tomorrow.
• Linden says he came into the situation with a neutral stance. Respects Tortorella and his career.
• Disagreed with some of the points that Torts made at the end of the year regarding the Canucks' roster. Said he feels that the "stale" element came from not having players at the bottom of the roster to push the core to be better. Was concerned about the overall decline in performance throughout the roster and feels that the team is built to play a certain way. Specifically mentioned that he thinks the defense should handle the puck more and carry it up the ice.
• Lots of talk about getting back to an exciting style of hockey. Might not be easy to achieve but it's a great goal—I'm glad it's getting attention early in the process.
• Felt it was important for the new GM to start with a clean slate. Says he has his list of GM candidates set—it's not a long list—and that he didn't get any pushback from any organizations in terms of timing with respect to the playoffs. Didn't want to commit to a timeline, which I think is fair—it'll take as long as it takes to get the right candidate in place. He's starting interviews next week and hopes to have a general manager by the end of the month. Would not specifically comment on Jim Benning or any other names.
• For the new coach, he said he's looking for a career coach who's experienced on many levels, a good teacher and good communicator with lots of different types of personalities, and who brings a distinct style of play. He said the search can be ongoing alongside the GM search, but that the GM would have input and would have to be onside.
•Linden sounded very much like the former president of the Players' Association when asked about the no-trade clauses. Said they were something that the players had every right to negotiate into their deals and while they'd be looked at, he respected the players' right to negotiate for them.
• Glenn Gulutzan, Rollie Melanson and Darryl Williams all stay on in their current coaching roles, though Linden acknowledged that could change depending on who is hired as the new head coach.
• He didn't seem concerned, at this point, about the scouting staff. Says they're out doing their jobs and will have meetings in a few weeks to start preparing for the draft.
• Says they're encouraged by the response they've had from fans and season ticket holders since his hiring, and they plan to reach out with town hall meetings and the summer summit, still to come.
• The firings were done over the phone. When asked if it was the first time he'd ever fired someone, a wry smile came over Linden's face as he definitively said, "No."
Once again, I'd say Linden handles himself well in a Q+A environment, and does a good job of taking a moment to gather his thoughts before dealing with an unexpected question. The P.R. side of the process is going fine so far. Now let's see what happens with the personnel.
FROM EARLIER:
I've been holding off with the blog this morning until the announcement of John Tortorella's firing came down, and it finally has. Just got the press release in my inbox.
It's official: John Tortorella and Mike Sullivan are free men.
The word started to bubble up last night in the middle of two perfectly good Game 7s, with this tweet from Farhan Lalji:
BREAKING - John Tortorella will be fired by #canucks tomorrow
— Farhan Lalji (@FarhanLaljiTSN) May 1, 2014Now, it has come to pass.
The team will be holding a press conference at 1:00, so we'll have more information then.
For now, here's the quote from Linden from the press release:
“Today we are making an important change in the direction of our team,… said Linden. “On behalf of the entire organization, we extend our thanks to John, Mike and their families for their commitment to the Canucks and wish them the very best.… “We have a lot of important work to accomplish this off-season as we build our management and coaching staffs, improve our roster and connect with our fans,… added Linden. “Our General Manager search is well underway and we will begin assessing head coaching candidates immediately.…