Of the double occupation at the head of the Canadiens’ hockey operations, we know surprisingly little. Kent Hughes appears to handle contracts and transactions. What about Jeff Gorton?
…
Mystery.
Almost two years after his appointment, his role has never really been explained. We can guess that he’s leading the way. In a documentary behind the scenes of the Canadiens’ last draft, he is the one sitting in the center of the room. He is also the one who leads the discussions and gives the main directions.
Over time, it was concluded that Gorton was the equivalent of a Minister of Internal Affairs, responsible for the draft, the medical staff, player development and the advanced statistics department. And Hughes, a Minister of External Affairs, responsible for relations with agents and other teams.
However, it is not the case.
In a thirty-minute interview given to The Press, Friday evening, Jeff Gorton explained to us who does what on the Canadiens staff. The tasks are not clearly defined. The operation is much more collegial, much more organic than one might believe.
An example ?
Kent Hughes is not the Canadian’s only contact with other teams. Jeff Gorton sometimes picks up the phone, too, to discuss transactions.
“I have a lot of experience to offer Kent and the organization,” he confides. In some cases, I will talk to the teams, because I know their leaders well. Sometimes I have the best relationships. Sometimes it’s Kent. But I try to give him as much freedom as possible. When I was general manager [des Rangers], I greatly respected those who let me do my job as CEO. I want other teams to know that Kent is the GM, he’s the one making the calls. »
These are situations that can become delicate. I can attest to that. For eight years, I was part of a two-headed management team The Press. I always found that it worked best when everyone had their own well-defined square of sand. At the Canadian, we instead made the bet to put Gorton and Hughes in the same sandbox.
PHOTO DOMINICK GRAVEL, THE PRESS
Our columnist Alexandre Pratt in discussion with Jeff Gorton, executive vice-president of hockey operations of the Montreal Canadiens
It works ?
Yes, assures Gorton.
“Teams are moving more and more towards systems with two leaders. It seems to work very well. Kent and I are two very different guys. It helps. We challenge each other, we push each other.
— So you didn’t separate tasks?
— Not so much, no. If it didn’t work, maybe we would do it. But we have a good relationship. We understand what needs to be done. »
The two are involved in every hockey decision, from trade talks to statistician job interviews.
“I invite him to each of my meetings, and he invites me to his. We have two heads. We’re trying to figure out what’s best. I want him to learn as much as possible about the business side. There is no “you don’t touch this or that”. We are not alone. John Sedgwick handles salary cap and collective agreement management. He advises us on how to build our training. It’s difficult for an agent [comme Hughes] to understand the nuances of training on the first day of the season, or waivers. We all learn. Even I am still learning. »
What does he prefer?
The preparation for the draft, in which he confirms to be very involved, as we saw in the documentary produced by the Canadian.
“I can’t imagine myself in an office, with someone coming to me and saying: this is what’s happening. I want to be part of these conversations. I’ve been doing this for a long time. I feel like my experience can help. Seeing a group of 30 guys debating who to pick is exciting. I want to be one of them. In our environment, everyone has a say, and everyone is encouraged to speak. This sounds like the vision I had when I was hired. So far, so good. »
You should know that before being general manager of the New York Rangers, then vice-president of hockey operations for the Canadiens, Jeff Gorton was chief recruiter of the Boston Bruins. He was in office during the selections of Joe Thornton, Sergei Samsonov and Kyle McLaren. When spying on a prospect, he looks for four characteristics.
Courage.
The character.
The skating move.
The meaning of the game.
“Ideally, in the first round, the players you draft have all of those attributes. In later rounds, like 5eon the 6the or the 7e, I look for players who possess at least one of these qualities, at a high level. Afterwards, we wonder if it is possible to develop something else with them. At 17, it’s not easy to predict their future. »
PHOTO DOMINICK GRAVEL, THE PRESS
Our columnist Alexandre Pratt in discussion with Jeff Gorton, executive vice-president of hockey operations of the Montreal Canadiens
When he evaluates players, he also pays particular attention to clean keys. The frank touches. “It’s when you have the puck and you leave it in a better place than where you took it. » It’s his favorite statistic. “I like to see the evolution of players’ decision-making. If you look at David Reinbacher, he has some really nice, candid touches. »
Advanced statistics have also been more present in internal discussions since the hiring of Christopher Boucher last year.
Boucher now has a direct channel of communication with head coach Martin St-Louis. “The two spent a lot of time together this summer,” reveals Jeff Gorton. St-Louis has expressed its needs. Boucher nourishes the conversations with new perspectives.
“Chris recently gave us a presentation on trios. He showed us the characteristics of the best lines in the National League, and what combinations could work well for us.
“We study other teams, and we try to determine the keys to their success. Are they better than us at getting the puck out of the zone? Are their success percentages better than ours? Are they spending more time in the offensive zone? Our coaching team uses this data. »
So this is how two-headed management works for the Canadian. A double occupation in which, against all expectations, neither Lady Pagaille nor Captain Rebondissement has yet caused trouble.