Daniel Brière and Roberto Luongo are young and ambitious. Kent Hughes and Émilie Castonguay are seasoned negotiators. Mathieu Darche and Stéphane Quintal know the workings of the National Hockey League and its collective agreement. Patrick Roy and Danièle Sauvageau are experienced managers who have won the highest honors.
They all have what it takes to become the Canadiens’ next GM.
Who will be chosen?
First, you have to know what the club is looking for. President Geoff Molson and Executive Vice President Hockey Operations Jeff Gorton gave a few clues at a press conference. We know that the successful candidate will have to:
- have “an excellent knowledge of hockey and the industry”;
- have expertise “complementary” to that of Gorton;
- have a profile “a little outside the box,” according to Gorton;
- to be bilingual ;
- lead discussions with other DGs. “The GM will be responsible for the team’s final decisions,” Molson said.
A complementary profile. Outside the box. New ideas. It pleads in favor of players’ agents. From Mathieu Darche, too, who grew up in a different corporate culture within the Tampa Bay Lightning. But it is also the profile of a man that we see almost every day on our television.
Marc Denis.
Marc Denis is an exceptional hockey analyst. The best I have seen in French on television. He could continue to shine like this until he retires. However, he has other avowed ambitions.
In 2019, the former NHL goalie told me about his interest in a position in team hockey operations. “It’s not impossible that I’ll go that way one day. Management interests me. ”
This is why, on the sidelines of his work at RDS, he was, until November, vice-president of hockey operations for the Saguenéens de Chicoutimi. No, it was not just an honorary title to enhance the prestige of the organization.
“Marc was not just a figurehead,” Saguenéens general manager and head coach Yanick Jean told me. “We agree, he did not coach the club. But we spoke to each other almost every day. He likes to be involved. He likes to be in the action. He is a very intelligent man, who has good ideas, and who works as a team. ”
The two men worked together for six years.
“Marc is interested in development and recruitment. It’s part of his strengths. He also has the qualities of a communicator which are essential for the position of GM of the Canadiens. Few people have the ability to deliver a message in the right way, in the right tone, in both languages. ”
The deputy commissioner of the QMJHL, Martin Lavallée, also knows Marc Denis very well. The two were teammates in minor hockey, and they shared the same school locker.
“Marc, he’s a tough guy. Very clever. Always well prepared. He never skips a stage. He wants to do it right. In other words, a first in class. In fact, Denis was named student player of the year in the midget AAA and in the QMJHL. Martin Lavallée adds. “On the hockey side, he’s a very good talent assessor. On this, he has nothing to envy of other candidates. His knowledge of the collective agreement may not be his strength. Except he’s so smart, I’m sure he would learn really fast. ”
His intelligence. Its rigor. His desire for a job well done. These are some of the qualities that convinced the government of the Coalition Avenir Québec to entrust him with the chairmanship of the committee on the future of Quebec hockey. Marc Denis impressed his new colleagues with his leadership, his straightforwardness and his listening skills. As one committee member pointed out to me: “ [Marc] can be both polite and challenging. Two great qualities for a leader. ”
QMJHL commissioner Gilles Courteau does not sit on the committee. But he confirmed to me that Marc Denis had nevertheless taken the time to call him, after his appointment, to find out his ideas. A welcome gesture.
PHOTO PATRICE LAROCHE, ARCHIVES THE SUN
Gilles Courteau, commissioner of the QMJHL
“Marc is a guy with a very good head,” says Gilles Courteau. He’s super smart. He is able to take his rightful place, without encroaching on the territory of others. An important character trait, in the context where the future GM of the Canadian will work in pairs with Jeff Gorton.
“In Chicoutimi, he never shamed the authority of Yanick Jean or Rénald Nepton. If he was named to the Canadiens, he would fit in very well and [respecterait] his role and his new tasks. Over time, he would be able to put his color. ”
After his professional hockey career – nearly 350 games in the NHL – Marc Denis quickly made the jump as a television analyst. A rapid and successful transition which demonstrates its ability to adapt to a new environment. Like many others, Nicolas-Étienne Côté, senior producer at RDS, is impressed by the talent of his colleague.
“I often tell him jokingly: ‘Marc, you are the first that I get into the clone machine!’ Beyond his qualities visible on the screen, he is very involved. As a producer, generally, it is necessary [prendre] the lead. But Marc himself often arrives with ideas. ”
Examples ?
The use of advanced statistics. An area also dear to Jeff Gorton, who wants to modernize this department at the Canadian.
We were the first in Quebec to offer advanced statistics in our reports. Marc was really one of the first to push for that.
Nicolas-Étienne Côté, senior producer at RDS
Denis also showed an interest in these data in his role with the Saguenéens. “I don’t know how much he believes in basing hockey decisions on that, but he’s got a big openness. He’s very fond of it. He is also on the lookout for all new trends. He was in front of the parade to talk about the new goalie skates, or Bauer’s holed paddle. ”
Behind the work of Marc Denis on the air, there is a significant amount of work, specifies Nicolas-Étienne Côté. “When he makes his goalie record, he calls goalie coaches in the NHL. Then he makes up his mind. He is professional. He is demanding in his way of preparing his files. He is also a man who has principles. If he’s got things on his mind he’s able to hold his point, but he’s always going to do it in a respectful way. ”
Descriptor Pierre Houde, who works and travels on the road with Marc Denis, spoke well of his colleague to me for half an hour. He believes the Canadiens should offer him an important position in hockey operations. He also slipped a word to the principal concerned, recently, during a dinner in Washington.
PHOTO BERNARD BRAULT, PRESS ARCHIVES
Pierre Houde and Marc Denis
“I asked him,‟ Mark, am I losing you this year? ” His piece of beef went straight [rires]. He replied: ‘What are you saying there?’ This was before the changes to the management of the Canadiens, but everyone suspected it was coming. I told him, ‘Look, Marc, the management of the Canadiens can’t help but consider you for a position in the structure of hockey operations.’ Is it as general manager? As director of recruiting? In player development? I think Marc can be a great resource at these levels. ”
“I insist: for me, it would be extremely sad to lose him. On a professional level, but above all in terms of human complicity. My passion is not hockey. My passion is my job. But Marc, his passion is hockey. […] I watch him watch the talent. I watch him analyze a game. I saw the ardor he put into his work with the Saguenéens. […] I am convinced that Marc must be considered, and I am convinced that it must burn him inside. ”
With reason.
Think about it: Marc Denis is only 44 years old. He is curious. Clever. Eloquent. Capable of adapting. Listens to others. He is a three-time world champion. A former player of the organization, who excels in the evaluation of players, who is sensitive to Quebec hockey and who has a fine knowledge of the media market.
Marc Denis as future CEO of the Canadian? He ticks all the boxes.