In St. Paul, Dane Mizutani notes Wild GM Chuck Fletcher was informed that his contract "would not be renewed after nine seasons on the job." Fletcher was "only the second" GM in team history, "taking over for Doug Risebrough" in May '09. Fletcher was the "sixth-longest tenured" GM in the NHL, helping "guide the Wild to six consecutive postseasons." But the team only "advanced to the second round twice in that span." Wild Owner Craig Leipold said, “I want someone to take a look at what we can do to tweak our team. This is not a rebuild. And I’ll be very direct about that when I’m interviewing a general manager” (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 4/24).
STARTS AT THE TOP: In Oklahoma City, Berry Tramel writes the Jazz have been "competitive and relevant" for most of their 37 years in Salt Lake City, and the success "goes back to ownership." That is also the "kind of leadership the Thunder has, and that’s one of the reasons small markets" like Oklahoma City, Salt Lake City, San Antonio and Portland "can thrive in the NBA" (OKLAHOMAN, 4/24).
ANYBODY WATCHING? PRO SOCCER USA's Jordan Culver noted the NWSL Orlando Pride "earned their first victory of the season" on Sunday in front of an "all-time low crowd." A mere 3,890 fans "came out for the Pride’s second home match of the season," which is nearly 400 fans "fewer than the previous all-time low of 4,273." Pride coach Tom Sermanni said, "We should be getting more people through the gates." The Pride were "second in the NWSL in average home attendance" in '17, with 6,186 fans per game at Orlando City Stadium (PROSOCCERUSA.com, 4/23).
