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scamperdog
09-03-2006, 01:53 PM
Panthers and their general manager are not waiting together to see how the 2006-07 NHL season will unfold.

Even after an offseason of major player transactions and renewed playoff hopes, the team announced in a statement Sunday that Mike Keenan has resigned from his front office post and has been replaced by head coach Jacques Martin.

It is not clear what led to the move - made just days before the start of training camp. While the Panthers are publicly saying he has resigned, sources tell TSN that Keenan was actually forced out.

Keenan had three years remaining on his contract with the Panthers and leaves after working parts of four seasons with the club. He was named head coach of the Panthers in December of 2001 and held the post until November of 2003.

He returned to the team as general manager in May of 2004 and immediately made a flurry of changes to improve the club's fortunes. He hired Martin - a former Ottawa bench boss who was also his university teammate - as head coach and added veteran players such as forwards Joe Nieuwendyk, Gary Roberts and Chris Gratton.





The team failed to make the playoffs for a fifth straight season in 2005-06, prompting Keenan to make more dramatic moves over the summer. He swung a blockbuster deal that saw superstar netminder Roberto Luongo go to Vancouver for a package that featured power forward Todd Bertuzzi, and also signed veteran goalie Ed Belfour.

The Panthers were Keenan's seventh NHL team. He began his NHL career as head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers in 1984, and then led the Chicago Blackhawks behind the bench in 1988, guiding both teams to the Stanley Cup Final.

In 1993-94, he was hired as head coach of New York Rangers and led the franchise to its first Stanley Cup win since 1940. Keenan also served as head coach and GM as the St. Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks, and Boston Bruins.

Keenan began his coaching career with the Peterborough Petes of the Ontario Hockey League.

Martin spent eight seasons with the Senators before joining Florida and is considered one of the league's top coaches. He won the Jack Adams award as coach of the year in 1998-99 and was runner-up three other times.

It will be his first general manager job in the NHL.

www.tsn.ca

SectionNDeserter
09-03-2006, 03:06 PM
5 years in one place is pretty long for this guy, Even *I* have a less abraisive personality than this guy. He has always been wildly unpopular with the majority of the players on any team he is with, in particular--the starting goaltender. Not much of a surprise that Luongo wasn't willing to sign a long-term deal until the second he was no longer a Panther.

I don't know of any goaltenders in the NHL that are currently capable of totally carrying a lame-duck team with no offense as well as Luongo. That being said, there is at least 20 or 30 other guys in the NHL that can fill Bertuzzi's shoes at least as well as he does. Trading a goaltender who is in the top 5% of goaltenders in the league, for a forward that is in the top 30% of the league was not one of his better moves (though he had to move him somewhere). Adding the backup goaltender from a team that missed the playoffs last year, and a former starting goaltender who is capable of playing maybe 5 games this season (before he gets injured) didn't do much to help their goaltending situation either.

I think the question now is, is he finished in the NHL?

RDRebelsfan
09-03-2006, 06:34 PM
I don't think you're giving Bertuzzi and Auld NEAR enough credit. Add a top 4 defensemen in Allen and I'm pretty sure Florida will only benefit from the deal.

SectionNDeserter
09-03-2006, 10:11 PM
I don't think you're giving Bertuzzi and Auld NEAR enough credit. Add a top 4 defensemen in Allen and I'm pretty sure Florida will only benefit from the deal.Nothing wrong with Bertuzzi per se (well suckering that guy a few years back is sort of an albatross around his neck), but he isn't even remotely in the same league as Luongo. I know a lot of Canuck's fans, and I don't know any of them who thought that Auld was the one keeping them in very many of the games they won last year. And as for Allen, he has either been in the AHL or playing as a 6th/7th defenseman on the Canucks for the last 5 seasons. Pretty tough competition there for him in Kevin Bieksa, Wade Brookbank, Sven Butenschon and Sean Brown... :laugh: He might get better than that, but probably not much better (though probably an upgrade on what Florida has). And if I remember correctly they acquired Luongo and Jokinen for Parrish and Kvasha. Jokinen is a better player than both Parrish and Kvasha, so in a way Florida got Luongo for free anyways. :)

LifelongChiefsFan
09-03-2006, 11:58 PM
Panthers and their general manager are not waiting together to see how the 2006-07 NHL season will unfold.

Even after an offseason of major player transactions and renewed playoff hopes, the team announced in a statement Sunday that Mike Keenan has resigned from his front office post and has been replaced by head coach Jacques Martin.

It is not clear what led to the move - made just days before the start of training camp. While the Panthers are publicly saying he has resigned, sources tell TSN that Keenan was actually forced out.

Keenan had three years remaining on his contract with the Panthers and leaves after working parts of four seasons with the club. He was named head coach of the Panthers in December of 2001 and held the post until November of 2003.

He returned to the team as general manager in May of 2004 and immediately made a flurry of changes to improve the club's fortunes. He hired Martin - a former Ottawa bench boss who was also his university teammate - as head coach and added veteran players such as forwards Joe Nieuwendyk, Gary Roberts and Chris Gratton.





The team failed to make the playoffs for a fifth straight season in 2005-06, prompting Keenan to make more dramatic moves over the summer. He swung a blockbuster deal that saw superstar netminder Roberto Luongo go to Vancouver for a package that featured power forward Todd Bertuzzi, and also signed veteran goalie Ed Belfour.

The Panthers were Keenan's seventh NHL team. He began his NHL career as head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers in 1984, and then led the Chicago Blackhawks behind the bench in 1988, guiding both teams to the Stanley Cup Final.

In 1993-94, he was hired as head coach of New York Rangers and led the franchise to its first Stanley Cup win since 1940. Keenan also served as head coach and GM as the St. Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks, and Boston Bruins.

Keenan began his coaching career with the Peterborough Petes of the Ontario Hockey League.

Martin spent eight seasons with the Senators before joining Florida and is considered one of the league's top coaches. He won the Jack Adams award as coach of the year in 1998-99 and was runner-up three other times.

It will be his first general manager job in the NHL.

www.tsn.ca


I thought I heard rejoicing coming from the southeast earlier today. I guess now I know the reason why!! :spineyes: :p