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Tipped Off
03-29-2007, 11:45 AM
Winter Hawks get shake-up
First-year owner Jim Goldsmith assumes operational duties after the team finishes at the bottom of the WHL standings

Don't get him wrong. Jim Goldsmith said he doesn't want to be known as an obnoxious, George Steinbrenner-type owner who leaves employees kicking and screaming.

But one thing the New York-based principal owner of the Portland Winter Hawks isn't willing to do is sit back and watch his team fail.

The Winter Hawks failed in a big way in Goldsmith's first year of ownership. The junior hockey club was shut out of the playoffs for the first time in seven seasons and finished with the Western Hockey League's worst record (17-52-1-2).

Neither Goldsmith nor Donovan said they had spoken with Hodge on Wednesday to discuss his reduced role. Hodge did not return calls seeking comment.

Running a WHL team has become too challenging to leave such important decision-making in the hands of so few people, Goldsmith said.

"There have been too many isolated one-off decisions made in this organization that have caused it to get where it is, and that is unacceptable to me," he said. "This is big business and needs to be run accordingly."

The growth of Tier II junior hockey leagues and more aggressive recruiting by colleges have opened up choices for potential WHL players.

"It used to be, any kid from Canada couldn't wait to sign in the WHL," Donovan said. "It's not that way anymore."

Which is why so much is riding on Portland's top draft pick this spring. Goldsmith said he wants to ensure that whoever is selected will sign a contract to play for Portland.

Goldsmith said he isn't turning into a coach or general manager or head scout. The idea, he said, is to build a system aimed at improving communication and the sharing of information among those positions and holding them accountable for their actions.

"I'm creating a better decision-making process so we don't end up with the failures we've had in the past, or at least a better system to try and avoid them," Goldsmith said. "I'm not after anybody, I'm not pointing fingers at anybody, I'm not blaming anyone in particular for any failures. I'm trying to put whatever people remain with us in a position to succeed."

The recent hiring of two managers to run the restaurant and bar Goldsmith owns in Manhattan will free up time for his new role with the Hawks. He said he also hired more employees to take pressure off his duties in the real estate development business he owns.



Goldsmith on Wednesday appointed himself director of hockey operations, a position the team has gone without since the 1992-93 season. In his new role, effective immediately, Goldsmith said he will spend more time in Portland and have the final say on decisions involving drafts, recruiting and player trades.

The change is the first step in what Goldsmith, 49, described as turning around an organization that "seems incredibly disorganized" and that is "not functioning properly."

"This decision was made out of necessity," he said during a telephone call from New York. "We have no intention of staying in last place."

Goldsmith emphasized he has made no decisions on possible firings or hirings within the organization, but said they will be made known soon after the WHL Bantam Draft on May 3. Portland won the No. 1 overall pick in the draft lottery last week. The club also owns two second-round picks.

Goldsmith's new position will assume some of the duties of longtime general manager Ken Hodge, the former Winter Hawks coach and majority owner who is crisscrossing Canada evaluating potential draft picks. Hodge may perform fewer administrative and recruiting tasks, said Jack Donovan, a minority owner in the Hawks and their team president.

"Ken did it all, and he can't -- that's why things fall through the cracks," Donovan said. "His strength is looking at guys on the ice and saying, 'That guy can play, this guy can't, this guy has got problems.' "

It may take some time for Hodge to become comfortable in his new role, Donovan acknowledged. But in the long run, he said, "Ken's going to love it."

old_time_hockey
03-29-2007, 01:13 PM
It may take some time for Hodge to become comfortable in his new role, Donovan acknowledged. But in the long run, he said, "Ken's going to love it."

You get the feeling that he stopped short of saying Or Else at that end of that statement.