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Maple Leafs Hire Devils' Lou Lamoriello As GM, Capping Busy Offseason For Shanahan

Maple Leafs President Brendan Shanahan on Thursday "rounded out his hockey hierarchy" with the hiring of Lou Lamoriello, who "departed the Devils after 28 seasons to become part of Shanahan’s high-end renovation team," as GM, according to Lance Hornby of the TORONTO SUN. The "surprise move comes with risks," as Lamoriello "will be 73 when the schedule starts and the Devils are 12 years past their last Cup." But while the Leafs had put an "emphasis on development," there was "no village elder on board for day-to-day NHL business." Convinced Lamoriello "would quickly grow restless of watching the Devils from an office desk" -- he stepped aside as GM of the team in May while maintaining his role as President -- Shanahan "calculated that a new challenge would revive the tiger." Not long after Ray Shero "was announced as his replacement, Shanahan gained permission from Devils ownership to speak to his old boss," who drafted him in '87, and brought MLSE Chair Larry Tanenbaum in "to help seal the deal" (TORONTO SUN, 7/24). In Toronto, Steve Simmons notes Lamoriello's deal is for three years and worth "more than" $9M (TORONTO SUN, 7/24). The CP's Stephen Whyno noted while Lamoriello "said he was told he'd have autonomy as GM, Shanahan made it clear in conversations 'the kind of environment and organization' of collaboration he was building" (CP, 7/23).

ELDER STATESMAN: SPORTSNET.ca's Chris Johnston wrote how exactly the Maple Leafs' front office operations will work "wasn't entirely clear." Shanahan had been "constructing a fashion-forward front office before electing to drop an esteemed member of the old school directly into the middle of it." Lamoriello is "expected to mentor assistant GM Kyle Dubas, director of player personnel Mark Hunter and even Shanahan, his boss, to some degree" (SPORTSNET.ca, 7/23). The GLOBE & MAIL's David Shoalts writes no one in the NHL, "on the face of it, has or will have a better summer" than Shanahan, who lured both Lamoriello and coach Mike Babcock to the Maple Leafs. Shanahan and MLSE President & CEO Tim Leiweke promised to "sweep out the country-club atmosphere" in the team's front office, and there are "no better people to do it than Lamoriello and Babcock" (GLOBE & MAIL, 7/24). ESPN.com's Katie Strang wrote the hiring of Lamoriello "signals a significant culture change" for the Maple Leafs. Shanahan is "still setting the vision, but now it's Lamoriello's job to execute it" (ESPN.com, 7/23). In Toronto, Kevin McGran writes members of the Leafs front office "if nothing else" are all "on the same page selling a vision for the future while lowering expectations for this season, and probably next while the team builds through the draft and the acquisition of prospects." Meanwhile, Lamoriello said of Dubas, "If he doesn’t become a general manager here -- I’m not going to be here for lifetime -- it’s going to be his fault" (TORONTO STAR, 7/24). The STAR-LEDGER's Politi noted Lamoriello is "already enshrined" in the Hockey HOF, and whatever he does with the Leafs "won't change that." His legacy "is unimpeachable." But if he does manage to "deliver a Stanley Cup" to the Maple Leafs, he "could cement himself as the greatest team builder in the sport's history" (NJ.com, 7/23).

SHANNY'S SHOW: The NATIONAL POST's Michael Traikos writes the Leafs are "assembling quite the dream team of off-ice personnel this summer" (NATIONAL POST, 7/24). In Toronto, Bruce Arthur writes Shanahan was "criticized by some for moving too slowly; maybe now he will be criticized for doing too much." But he has "assembled a fascinating array of strong voices for the Leafs, and it’s up to him to manage them." More than anything, the addition of Lamoriello to the Leafs' front office "is a bet" on Shanahan. He is "betting that he can handle all these powerful personalities, that he can set the vision, and that he can pull the best out of everyone" (TORONTO STAR, 7/24). Also in Toronto, Rosie DiManno writes after a season "spent watching the product, saying almost nothing, doing even less, Shanahan has gone manic on his Leafs fixer-upper project" (TORONTO STAR, 7/24). THE HOCKEY NEWS' Ken Campbell wrote Lamoriello brings the Leafs "something they lack and desperately need, managerial experience and the ability to work the back channels of the NHL." He is "a man with old-school values," but he is "not an old-school guy." Meanwhile, Shanahan has "proved to be as savvy an executive who seems to get exactly what he wants" (THEHOCKEYNEWS.com, 7/23). ESPN.com's Scott Burnside wrote bringing in Lamoriello "seems at odds with the direction Shanahan was charting for the slow rebuild of a team that hasn't won a championship" since '67 (ESPN.com, 7/23). ESPN’s Keith Olbermann said of Lamoriello, “He’s going to do exactly what the other guys did. Nothing. … The Leafs haven’t won the Stanley Cup since the NHL only had five other teams” (“Olbermann,” ESPN2, 7/23).

DEVIL WITH A BLUE DRESS ON
: In New Jersey, Gulitti & Gross note the Devils will "receive a third-round draft pick from the Maple Leafs as compensation for Lamoriello." Meanwhile, Lamoriello "cited a tightening of the purse strings under former owner Jeff Vanderbeek as the start of him leaving the Devils." Lamoriello said, "There’s a lot of things that have transpired there, some are public and some are not with references to changes in ownership. I would say things just weren’t the way they were in the past and you weren’t allowed to do some of the things for financial reasons, to be perfectly honest. When [Devils co-Owners] Josh Harris and David Blitzer came in, they changed that. I just thought that maybe there was a change in a thought process as far as a transition and I decided to look that way" (Bergen RECORD, 7/24). In Newark, Steve Politi wrote it "made sense" for Lamoriello to take the Leafs GM job because he "knew he was ill-suited for what essentially had become a well-paid advisory role with the new direction" the Devils were headed. Shero "had hired new head coach John Hynes, called the shots during the entry draft, and in what had to be the final straw, fired Lamoriello's long-time right-hand man," Devils Exec VP/Hockey Operations & Dir of Scouting David Conte. Politi: "What, exactly, does it mean to be team president if you don't have the final say in personal or business decision?" It is "nothing more than a nameplate on the door, and Lamoriello told his bosses that he wasn't happy." Harris said of Lamoriello, "As a personal matter it wasn't working for him." Politi wrote the Devils in the meantime should "plan a Lou Lamoriello Night" in order to "let the fans salute him for all he's done for the franchise." Lamoriello on Friday "took out a full-page ad" in both the Newark Star-Ledger and the Bergen Record "to thank" the fans (NJ.com, 7/23).

WHAT LOU LEAVES BEHIND: In New Jersey, Tara Sullivan writes the departure of Lamoriello is the "surest sign yet of a new Devils dawn, one cast in the shadow" of Harris and Blitzer. As it turns out, there "just wasn’t room for Lamoriello" in the Devils' front office anymore. The Devils under Lamoriello "were a revelation in revamped management strategies, with small-market smarts and old-school toughness toppling big-city budgets and new-age freedom in memorable fashion." Three Stanley Cups in five finals appearances "marked Lamoriello’s nearly three-decade run as nothing but a roaring success" (Bergen RECORD, 7/24). In N.Y., Larry Brooks writes the "Mountain of Success in New Jersey was built by Lamoriello, the chiseled face of the franchise like no other executive in the NHL, if not in all of pro sports" (N.Y. POST, 7/24). Also in N.Y., Pat Leonard writes Lamoriello's tenure with the Devils "probably won’t be remembered in New York the way it should be: as one of the greatest general managers in pro sports in this area -- ever" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 7/24). SNY’s Adam Schein said Lamoriello “never got the press, never had the resources.” Schein: “He’s one of the best executives in the history of the NHL and in the history of New York sports” (“Loud Mouths,” SNY, 7/23). The N.Y. Daily News’ Leonard said the “shocking thing about him leaving the Devils is that the Devils have always mirrored his image” as he had “his hands in everything” in the organization (“Daily News Live,” SNY, 7/23).  In Newark, Rich Chere asked whether MSG Network analyst and former NHLer Ken Daneyko might be "the next president of the Devils." Daneyko: "Absolutely. No question, that would interest me. That's what I would like to do" (NJ.com, 7/23).

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