Let’s hope Pascal Vincent is quick-witted enough to quickly give a good first impression, because his first meeting with his new boss was brief.
Don Waddell, the new president of hockey operations and general manager of the Blue Jackets, was introduced to the Columbus media on Wednesday. His hiring had been announced the day before and obviously, everything is happening very quickly.
“I met Pascal downstairs for maybe three minutes,” Waddell admitted, in a press briefing in which the media could also participate virtually.
Waddell comes to the job at a chaotic time of year. This weekend in Buffalo, the NHL evaluation camp begins for the draft, lasting one week. Two weeks later, the hockey world will converge on Las Vegas for the draft, June 28 and 29. 1er July, the free agent market will open. And from the moment the Stanley Cup is won, the transfer window is bubbling.
So that leaves little time for Waddell to play The head of employmentnot with Véronique Cloutier, but rather with the members of her hockey staff, starting with Pascal Vincent, head coach.
PHOTO STEVEN SENNE, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Don Waddell, new president of hockey operations and general manager of the Columbus Blue Jackets
“In a week or two, I will meet everyone, including Pascal. I knew Pascal’s teams, but this is the first time I met him, admitted Waddell. I need time with him, and I don’t want to impose a deadline on myself. The draft and free agents are easy because there are dates. For the rest, we’ll have to get our answers. »
Relaunched later on the future of its coachWaddell reiterated the wish to “spend as much time as possible with Pascal”.
When you arrive in a new team where there are already people in place, you don’t make changes unless you have a reason to make them.
Don Waddell
Vincent is one of five Quebec head coaches in the NHL, along with Jim Montgomery, Martin St-Louis, Patrick Roy and André Tourigny. He obtained a promotion behind the bench in disaster, at the opening of training camp in 2023, after the incredible departure of Mike Babcock. A departure which undoubtedly did not help Waddell’s predecessor, Jarmo Kekäläinen, to remain in office.
His first season was punctuated by bold decisions. He left out Patrik Laine, benched Johnny Gaudreau and did not exactly spare the sensibilities of Kent Johnson, a fifth overall pick who was also redirected to the bridge, then to the American League, at the start of the season. season.
That said, if Waddell manages his fern as well as in Carolina, the situation will be enviable for Vincent or his successor. The Hurricanes had just missed the playoffs nine years in a row when he was named general manager in 2018. Since then, they have participated every year and have always at least reached the second round, except once, in 2020.
And like Carolina in 2018, the Blue Jackets are collecting young talent. They currently hold the 4e draft picks coming in a month; they will therefore have a right to speak in the top 6 for the fourth year in a row. Adding the selections of Cole Sillinger (2021) and Denton Mateychuk (2022), Columbus will have drafted six times in the top 12 between 2021 and 2024.
One of Waddell’s mandates will be to manage one of these choices, Kent Johnson (fifth in 2021). After a promising first campaign (40 points in 2022-2023), the attacker experienced a decline this season (16 points in 42 games), which caused him to find himself in many transaction rumors.
A funny start
In a press conference lasting almost 30 minutes, the question of Waddell’s departure from the Hurricanes was inevitably going to come up again.
The circumstances are indeed special. At 65, Waddell leaves the Hurricanes, a team whose talented core is reaching full maturity, to join an organization that is not a year away from aspiring to the Stanley Cup, and which has historically struggled to retain its best elements.
It’s true, I could retire, but I’m not even close to being there. I wouldn’t come here if I didn’t believe in the possibility of success.
Don Waddell
To add to the strangeness of his decision, he left Carolina barely a week after Rod Brind’Amour’s contract extension was announced. This therefore means that the future CEO of the Canes will arrive without the possibility of choosing his head coach.
From the outside, it’s tempting to believe that Brind’Amour negotiated directly with Thomas Dundon, the eccentric owner of the Hurricanes, known for his propensity for micromanagement. But Waddell assures that he piloted this file.
“I was the one who negotiated with Rod,” Waddell replied. His case was different. He played there, he won a Cup, his family is based there, so he didn’t want to leave. We started talking in January, I had no idea I would be leaving at that time. He wanted to stay, the owner wanted to keep him, so I had to do my duty as GM and I made sure of that.
“It had been resolved for several months. Then, time passed and he wanted me to sort out his assistants as well, so we waited until the series finished to announce everything at once. »
Once a coaching file is settled, he must tackle another.