Who is the best General Manager in the NHL? I'm knee deep in a project developing analytics to rate how good GMs are at their jobs, and I'm very much interested to get some feedback from Hockey Twitter. 16 GMs will compete in 4 round robin polls for a chance to advance to the championship round. This will be restricted to those who are currently employed in the role, because otherwise I’d feel obliged to include multiple Stanley Cup winners Jim Rutherford and even Dean Lombardi. Some would argue that Lou Lamoriello belongs in a worst GM poll series, but as reigning “Executive of the year”, he needs to be here.
I had some difficulty narrowing in on the best 16 choices, so decided to launch 3 “qualifier polls” to determine the final 3 spots (won by Kyle Dubas, Kevin Cheveldayoff, and Jarmo Kekalainen). The 13 GMs to get an automatic entry into the Sweet 16 were mostly determined by championships and team success, but also included recent “GM of the Year” award winners and nominees. That includes: Stan Bowman, Doug Armstrong, Brian MacLellan, Julien Brisebois, Steve Yzerman, Jim Nill, Don Waddell, Don Sweeney, David Poile, Lou Lamoriello, Kelly McCrimmon, Joe Sakic, and Jeff Gorton. Though Lou will also be a nominee in the worst GM poll, whenever that launches, unless he has success in the winner’s bracket.
Who is a better #NHL General Manager?
— Hockey Economist (@Hockeconomics) March 26, 2021
Note: This is a qualifier poll for an upcoming "Best NHL GM" #HockeyTwitter poll bracket challenge.
Who is a better #NHL General Manager?
— Hockey Economist (@Hockeconomics) March 24, 2021
Note: This is a qualifier poll for an upcoming "Best NHL GM" #HockeyTwitter poll bracket challenge.
Who is a better #NHL General Manager?
— Hockey Economist (@Hockeconomics) March 23, 2021
Note: This is a qualifier poll for an upcoming "Best NHL GM" Twitter poll bracket challenge.
It’s also worth mentioning that some GMs have an easier job than others. Kelly McCrimmon has much less difficulty luring talent to Vegas versus Kevin Cheveldayoff in Winnipeg. Often players will accept a lower price tag to play in locations with lower taxes or nicer climate. The Jets have been very shrewd at signing their existing players to quality contracts, but aren’t landing the big names on the open market because the venue is less desirable. That being said, it may work to the Jets advantage that they aren’t landing the big-ticket UFAs, since such a high number of those treaties will eventually become a liability. Chevy has a lower strikeout rate because he’s not being tempted by pitches that he can’t hit. Glen Sather had the opposite problem in New York.
Don Sweeney surely deserves credit for landing so many bargains on the Bruins roster, but he also inherited a championship core from his predecessor, and future free agents would take discounts in order to be a part of a contending team and fit their salaries into the pay structure. A similar phenomenon occurred in Tampa, with the added bonus of no state tax. Julien Brisebois inherited the foundation of a champion from Yzerman and they can’t afford to overpay on new acquisitions.
All these things need to be considered in weighing who
has been the best GM. Some are dealt a more favorable hand at the beginning of
their tenure than others. I don’t think Julien Brisebois would be enjoying all
the success he’s had if he’d been hired in Buffalo instead. There’s a reason
that every Oilers GM in salary cap history has sucked at signing UFAs in July.
The venue gives certain job postings a higher degree of difficulty. Remember that
when you vote…
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