Don Waddell has a plan; Is this where we came in?
There have been two constants with the Thrashers since 1998: Don Waddell and the logo.
Eleven years, nine seasons, 16 goalies, three coaches (not including himself twice between firings) and one lone playoff berth after his hiring, Don Waddell is sitting at a table in his office, doing research.
“One, two, three . . .”
He’s counting team logos on the cover of an NHL reference book.
“Four, five, six . . .”
Seven. Only seven other NHL general managers have been in their respective jobs as long as Waddell.
Three run teams that have won Stanley Cups (Detroit, New Jersey, Carolina). Two have been in the finals (Buffalo, Washington). One made the playoff seven straight seasons (St. Louis), the other four straight (Nashville).
And then there’s the Teflon Don.
“I put myself in good company,” he said, managing a smile.
He’s employed. He’s fortunate. He knows that.
More than likely, if he worked in a bigger hockey market and for owners who cared about the sport and maybe something other than the next court hearing, he’d be out of work. So you could say heading an after-thought of a franchise has its benefits.
But I had to ask: Aren’t you surprised you still have a job?
“Not at all,” he said. “We’ve had to deal with a lot of adversity here . . .” And he went on to talk about the usual setbacks: Dany Heatley, goaltending, trades, ownership squabbles and certainly payroll limitations.
The Thrashers ended this season with the NHL’s lowest payroll, less than $42 million for most of the year. The league salary cap: $56.7 million. Twenty-four of the other 29 teams were north of $50 million.
Throw that out the next time somebody with the Atlanta Spirit says, “We care.”
“Youth is where it’s going to be with us,” Waddell said. “Our situation isn’t a salary cap. It’s a budget cap. We’re no place near the salary cap.”
But the draft is in two weeks, free agency begins thereafter, and Don Waddell has a plan. I’ve lost count how many this makes.
The Thrashers finished the season strong last year. But it’s dangerous to get drunk off relative meaningless wins and Waddell knows that. He also realizes the problems haven’t always been about payroll. Sometimes it’s been draft picks. Sometimes it’s been free agency. But it’s always been him. His players, his coaches, his plan, and he has yet to build a winner.
Why should anybody believe he is capable?
“We definitely have a core to build a winning team,” he said.
But are you capable?
“Absolutely. I’ve won at every level I’ve been at. There’s no difference.”
Well, there’s at least one. He hasn’t done it here. Wins with the Orlando Solar Bears don’t carry weight in Atlanta. They don’t even carry weight in Orlando any more.
He had a plan in year one. Build with speed, an attacking style and steady goaltending. Almost every major decision backfired: drafts, goalies, coach.
In year three, he shed some veterans he should have kept and went with youth. Another step back. After the lockout, he spent to the cap. But with playoff hopes on a respirator in 2007, he got desperate and shed draft picks and Braydon Coburn in deadline trades to get in. That worked until the team was swept in the first round.
“We had to blow it all up again,” Waddell said.
Operative word being: again.
“I think we’re real close to breaking out of it,” he said.
Same optimism, just fewer believers.
He knows the importance of this summer. Ilya Kovalchuk’s decision on whether to re-sign here depends on Waddell bringing in another top forward (at least). Without Kovalchuk, the team doesn’t win. Without winning, hockey won’t grow in Atlanta. With neither of those things, Waddell might actually lose his job.
Or maybe not. I’ve stopped assuming.
Waddell talks about his other responsibilities for ownership. A lot of non-hockey stuff.
“Maybe some GMs, the only thing they have to worry about is wins and losses,” he said. “We’re trying to win games here but were also trying to run a big business.”
But Don . . .
“I know — fans don’t care about the business side. I understand that. We’ve got to win.”
But 11 years later, he’s sitting with an exclusive group. Even if in a folding chair.
CHARTING THE MISERY
The Thrashers have the worst compositewon-loss percentage of any NHL team
since they came into the league in
1999-2000. Here’s the bottom five
courtesy of the Elias Sports Bureau:
W-L-T/OTL Pct.
Chicago 296-323-119 .482
Tampa Bay 294-329-115 .476
NY Islanders 297-345-96 .467
Columbus 247-325-84 .441 Atlanta 273-367-98 .436
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87 comments Add your comment
Jeff Schultz
June 10th, 2009
9:30 am
GaVaHokie — Nashville hasn’t had post-season success. But they play smart and they win games. Thrashers’ cumulative record: 273-367-45-53. Predators: 364-342-60-54.
Second, don’t for a second compare Buffalo to Atlanta. We’re talking about a team that is almost always in the hunt, thanks in part because of coach Lindy Ruff, great goaltending, defense and smart hard-working forwards. The reason the Sabres can’t hold a roster together is money and the economy, particularly in the Buffalo area. Daniele Briere and Brian leaving is not a statement on the Sabres’ organization. It’s a statement on nailed-shut storefronts in the rust belt.
And finally, I think at the highest point last season the Thrashers were third from the bottom in salary. For most of the year, they were next to last. They didn’t plummet from the middle of the pack to last because they traded Schneider and Havelid. They were never in the middle of the pack. And Don didn’t need to free up money for free agency because he knows he’s not going to be able to spend it. Most of that $21 million you refer to is not going to be spent.
Smoothie
June 10th, 2009
9:41 am
GVH, we’re just a shade under $30 M right now after signing Reasoner and inking Salmela to an extension worth I’m guessing $725 K per yr. If we’re lucky enough to see a $47 M budget this year, then we have $17 M to spend on renewing Kari, Boris V, one additional D-man, a few “glue” forwards and hopefully an established scoring winger. It will be interesting how much we end up spending on Colby Armstrong as his salary could be the key to having enough flexibility to lure in another RW who essentially would replace him in the Top 6.
GaVaHokie
June 10th, 2009
10:03 am
Jeff… My $21 million is how much to reach the self-imposed (Thrasher) cap of $46 million + $5 million from ownership = $51 million… we are currently at $30 million on the books as Smoothie just pointed out.
And I agree on the salary, but you specifically pointed at the end of the season… sorry to take your literally.
… that’s hardly Waddell’s fault… he did what he was supposed to do in March… dump salary, restock the shelves with picks and prospects.
Darkhorse
June 10th, 2009
10:16 am
If I were Waddell, I would demand and drag all the owners I could to game seven in Detroit. Then all the owners can witness first hand how great it feels to be live at a game seven Stanley Cup Final. Maybe then, they’ll better understand how great hockey can be, even here.
GaVaHokie
June 10th, 2009
10:21 am
Why does Waddell look like he has a glass eye on the front page?
Eric Randolph
June 10th, 2009
11:01 am
Nice job on the article Jeff, although the truth hurts in this case. I’m still a fan because I love hockey, not because I believe in DW. I know DW is the obstacle, and I wish he was gone, but I’m also thankful that we have an NHL presence in ATL.
The real question, is how long will that last?
Smoothie
June 10th, 2009
11:09 am
GVH, I don’t see us going above $47 M and JS affirmed as much in his comments above regarding what DWad is hopeful of spending. That would allow the following give or take a few hundred thousand:
Player Cap Hit
Armstrong $2.25 M
Slatesy $0.90 M
Thorbsy? $0.55 M
Crabber? $0.63 M
UFA RW $4.25 M
Valabik $0.95 M
UFA D $3.75 M
Lehts $3.50 M
Pavs 1/3 $0.50 M
Total Hit $17.28 M
Of course, it’s unlikely that Crabb and / or Thorbsy will be with the parent club the entire 186 days season so you can figure an adjusted cap hit for those two. Basically, we’d have $8 M or so to spend on FA if we choose to go that route. However, I’m not so sure I’d want to spend that much on a RW in this FA market. I think I’d rather draft Kane for ‘10-’11 and see about plugging in Knuble at 2 years and $6.5 M or so. That way, we’d have closer to $4-4.5 M to spend on a D-man, which is much more important in my humble opinion.
GaVaHokie
June 10th, 2009
11:14 am
The ratings are out from last night…
CBS 7.5 …NCIS and The Mentalist
ABC 6.9 …NBA
NBC 3.7 …NHL
FOX 3.0 … House (reruns)
Can’t wait for Atlanta to make the Stanley Cup Finals so we can get a piece of THAT action.
GaVaHokie
June 10th, 2009
11:19 am
Smoothie… $4.25 for a RW? They should just trade for someone already making that… like Lupul.
Alan
June 10th, 2009
11:24 am
First, thanks Schultz for taking the time to post this and respond to reader questions. My question is this: At the end of the season, Kovalchuk left an open invitation on the table directed towards ownership/GM that he would personally help recruit free agents for the team. Do you know if Waddell accepted that invite, and do you know if Waddell has asked any other players to do the same?
Secondly, not only do I think McCrimmon isn’t coming back, I ask why we would want him back. The team played like crap with him last year, and all you have to do is look at Detroit’s PK numbers last season to see exactly what kind of defensive coach he is. Also look at the number of games they had a resounding lead in that was eventually blown due to the prevent defense. Bringing him back in any capacity would be a mistake.
Bill
June 10th, 2009
11:44 am
Jeff-
I have to take issue with a few items. You wrote:
“More than likely, if he worked in a bigger hockey market and for owners who cared about the sport and maybe something other than the next court hearing, he’d be out of work. So you could say heading an after-thought of a franchise has its benefits.”
I’d suggest if he was in a bigger market, with owners that cared, he’d have more money, a more enticing place for players to play, and would likely wouldn’t have the ownership fiasco to deal with.
Also four of the five teams you listed at the bottom of the piece, Chicago, Tampa Bay, NY Islanders and Atlanta have one thing in common – horrid ownership. Chicago’s Bill Wirtz’s best move was shuffling off this mortal coil, Tampa’s new owners honestly thought Barry Melrose was the answer, Charles Wang of the Islanders gave a injury prone goalie a 15 year contract, and well, we know what the ASG is all about.
Smoothie
June 10th, 2009
11:47 am
Not sure about Lupul Hokie, but I would look closely at making a trade with Philly for either Hartnell or Claude Giroux. I would like Lupul at $3.0 M per year, but certainly not at $4.25 M. Again, I’m not advocating they spend that much on a RW. I plugged that number in thinking we wouldn’t spend more than $3.75 M on another D-man. Perhaps I should reverse the numbers as a veteran D-man of high-repute would probably expect at least as much as what Ron Hainsey is making.
Andrew
June 10th, 2009
12:16 pm
Don Waddell: “Same optimism, just fewer believers.”
Jeff Schultz: Same lazy pessimism, just fewer readers.
Sadtoseeitthisway
June 10th, 2009
12:22 pm
Sounds like DW was sipping on his fourth scotch of the night and wasn`t stopping there. Well the rest of us feel the same way. The whole story is right there before you DW on game nights. As you sit high in your box looking across at a lot of empty seats. A LLLLLOT of empty seats.
Ice Meister
June 10th, 2009
12:23 pm
Jeff-your take on the Sabres-
Buffalo situation has little to do with the Rust Belt. Virtually all Sabres games are sold out and the local TV ratings are off the chart. Everyone wears a Sabres hat and/or jersey (to work).
The money is there, but ownership will not pony up to keep the team together. Drury, Briere, Greir, JP Dumont, McKee and Campbell all wanted to stay. It’s a hockey town with rinks on every corner.
Ice Meister
June 10th, 2009
12:24 pm
Lupul has played his way out of the Philly lineup, just like he did in Anaheim and Edmonton.
NASTY NEST
June 10th, 2009
12:28 pm
OSGOOD, OSGOOD, YOU SUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sadtoseeitthisway
June 10th, 2009
12:34 pm
Waddell sounded like he was sipping on his fourth scotch of the night and he wasn`t stopping there. The rest of us felt the same way the first two thirds of last season. But why is he still here? He tells us all is well with a team full of third and fourth liners. The truth lies in the number of empty seats, a lot of empty seats
GaVaHokie
June 10th, 2009
12:35 pm
They’re certainly spending money in Buffalo… their payroll was $50 million last year. They’re just retaining the wrong people, I suppose.
http://nhlnumbers.com/overview.php?team=BUF&season=0809
They’ll have $4 million to spend this summer to replace Kotalik, Spacek, Afinogenov and Peters… and to retain Stafford, Kaleta, Sekera and MacArthur… that defense is pretty bad.
They probably should have let Connolly walk.
Ogie Ogelthorpe
June 10th, 2009
12:43 pm
Here’s an interesting tidbit about Hossa from last night’s game-
After the second period on the NBC telecast, former NHL player, coach, general manager and current TV analyst Mike Milbury was asked what Red Wings coach Mike Babcock was telling his players in the locker room. Milbury looked straight into the camera and pretended he was addressing Hossa.
“You wanted a Stanley Cup? Why don’t you prove it to your teammates?” Milbury said, his voice rising. “Don’t let everybody else carry the mail.”
We’ll see if Mary Ann picks it up in Game 7.
ice
June 10th, 2009
12:44 pm
Enter your comments here
Ice Meister
June 10th, 2009
12:45 pm
You are correct Hokie-see other teams make big mistakes too!
I think they will let some people walk this year and get more youngsters in the lineup. They have some good talent coming up.
Brendan
June 10th, 2009
3:06 pm
Connolly is one of those “high risk/high reward” type situations. At $4.5 million, that’s a big risk. But if Connolly delivers 30 goals a season, I’d say Buffalo got its money’s worth. I just hope the guy can stay healthy. And, I sincerely hope the players don’t go “head hunting” on a concussion-plagued player. I thought Tim Connolly was older than 27, but he’s not. So, hey … his prime years are still ahead of him, provided he can stay healthy enough for doctor’s permission to play.
Over the years, I thought Buffalo should have kept some players that they let walk. Everyone likes to cite McKee, Drury and Briere, and especially, Campbell. All those guys wound up overpaid. But I really can’t believe, even overpaid, Buffalo would let Drury and Briere leave. I would have kept Drury. And probably been wrong about it. And I sure would have kept J.P. Dumont, even at $2.5 million. He wound up in Nashville for $2.1, after salary arbitration. And, I also think I would have kept Mike Grier. A good mucker-n-grinder. That 2005-06 Buffalo Sabres team, in retrospect, was probably good enough to get to the Cup Finals. Maybe even win it.
See, but markets like Buffalo and Ottawa … they KNOW … THEY KNOW going in … that they have to draft something close to flawlessly. Their markets aren’t laden with capital. Draft day blunders simply cannot happen for those teams. As a result, look how well those markets have done on draft day. Ottawa, in particular, always finds a good player, no matter WHERE they draft. Even in 1999, who landed Havlat, with pick #26? Answer: Ottawa. A few years back, at pick #28 or so, they pick up Nick Foligno. In other words, they manage. They make those 2nd rounders count, too. That’s not easy. But THEY KNOW.
And, in my opinion, Don Waddell HAD TO KNOW he wasn’t going to get the cash to really make a splash in Atlanta. That’s why those 1999-2002 draft years really hurt, beyond that of the consensus lottery draft selections. Nikulin never came. Patrik Stefan never emerged as a truly elite player. I hope doing he’s okay, by the way. I saw he had some career-ending injury, but I never bothered to follow up on it. Last I’d heard, he’d ventured into some small, private business endeavor.
Ice Meister
June 10th, 2009
4:47 pm
Sabres drafts have been spotty over the years as well. another former 1st round pick headed for Europe this week, having never palyed an NHL game. I have the 1995-96 Hockey News NHL Guide, which documents all the 1st round picks fro the previous year. Most of the guys selected in the 1st round never made it to the NHL.
It is believed that Drury and Briere would have stayed in Buffalo for $5M each. That would have been pretty good, based on the way they played together in Buffalo. Sabres miss these 2 guys, who scored key goals in tight games. You gotta have guys who make plays.
Brendan
June 10th, 2009
6:38 pm
Goodness, if that’s true, Ice Meister, I actually feel sorry for Buffalo. At $5 million, apiece, who’d complain about that outlay for Drury and Briere? I had heard, very unofficially, that a deal was in place for Drury for 5-years/$25 million, but that Drury’s agent never faxed over the signed contract. Well, if I’m Buffalo … after about an hour or so, I pick up the phone to ask, “Hey, did you guys send that faxed contract or not?, b/c GM Regier doesn’t have it in his hands, and he’s waiting for it. Who knows.
Ask the Oilers about Nylander. A deal’s not a deal … ’til it’s signed by all parties, and ACCEPTED as a valid contract by the NHL League office. One time, I forgot who’s contract it was, but the league invalidated a signed deal because the payment schedule was inappropriate. The GM wanted to do something freaky like pay the guy $7.5 million in the 1st two years, then $2.5 million for the third, and $4 million for the 4th. Something like that, anyways. The League stepped in and said, “no.”
Being a GM is tough. But not so tough that a dedicated person couldn’t figure it out, fairly quickly, especially if s/he surround him/herself with quality people who’d step in to say, “Sir, do you really think trading Crosby for Sakic is wise at this point in their careers?” Oh, riiight. Not such a good idea. “Well, that’s what you’re here for, to prevent me from doing something just that stupid.” I suppose that’s the danger of having nothing but “Yes Men” around you; none of them will step up to observe that the Emperor isn’t wearing any clothes.
Pierre McGuire is one of the biggest blowhards on TV. And yet, he was considered, seriously, for the position of GM of the Minnesota Wild. Now, Pierre isn’t utterly without qualification, but I’ve heard bloggers develop better ideas that his. And if Pierre can do, ANYONE can do it. I do honestly wonder who’d be the better GM. Don Waddell … or Pierre McGuire. Pierre likes to opine when there are no consequences to being wrong. Mike Milbury does the very same. Milbury removed all doubt about his GM prowess. I’d take Waddell over him, too.
Ice Meister
June 10th, 2009
10:38 pm
Regier is under seige in Buffalo. He doesn’t get on the radio and take questions from fans. Some folks blame him, others blame the owner. All in all, it’s a pretty sad situation for a “hockey town”. The blogs in Buffalo rip Sabres’ management pretty hard, maybe harder than Atlanta.
Boy are right on about McGuire! He works on TSN too and he’s such a Toronto homer! Throw in Eddie Olczyk too. How the heck is NBC supposed to sell hockey with those 2 idiots out there!
ESPN always had better crews. I wish I could get Hockey Night In Canada for the finals.
Milbury made alotta dumb moves in NY, but I like him on TV. He also does HNC senments during the 2nd period.
GaVaHokie
June 11th, 2009
8:50 am
McGuire is gunning for Cherry’s job.
Ice Meister
June 11th, 2009
12:15 pm
Cherry is 75 and he will stay in his job until he dies.
That’s not the kinda seat I would want to fill when Cherry finally croaks!
Brendan
June 11th, 2009
5:42 pm
Cherry has a great job. He’s paid to be a goofball and talk hockey. Is that working? In the strictest sense, “yes, because he gets paid to do it.”
Ice Meister
June 11th, 2009
9:23 pm
Cherry greatest atribute to his fans is that he is a diehard Canadian. He trumpets Canadians all the time. Not that doing so is a bad thing, but he has built a rabid fanbase who will never turn on him.
As goofy as he is, he’s normally right about issues that relate to hockey situations and individual players. He has a John Madden quality, in the sense that he has been a successful coach and announcer without having played at the major league level.
Madden has been out to lunch for a decade.
LAC
June 12th, 2009
12:50 am
Don Cherry is drunk 99% of the time on TV. He makes NO sense, cannot carry a complete sentence and babbles like some skid row BUM.
He is without question THE WORST Hockey has to offer and is an embarrassment to the game and himself, he should NEVER be allowed near a NHL game as long as he is alive !
Kevin
June 12th, 2009
2:49 am
what those waddell and NBC crew get in here….Look i like how NBC and Vs cover the games….and the folks doin games are fine i rather hear NBC announcers then the canada guys…But if pens do win the cup do u folks notice are care tell waddell off that 2/3 of the team are former thrashers players….so if pens win who help why Don waddell of course!
Ogie Ogelthorpe
June 12th, 2009
8:24 am
Don’t know if Cherry is drunk or just totally stupid.
He has to yell into the microphone all the time, like Stephen A. Smith from ESPN.
Hockey Night in Canada used to have some really good announcers, now they all just a bunch of homers.
KS
June 12th, 2009
8:42 am
The same season Hossa left, he played in the Stanley Cup Finals. The next season he is there again, and just might get his hands on that sweet silver. There is no way Kovy is going to stay in Atlanta!
Old Time Hockey
June 12th, 2009
12:35 pm
This team could win with great, consistent goaltending. We just don’t have that. All I hear is the Kari apologists saying sign him, sign him. The difference between the Penguins and the Red Wings in the games has been the goaltending. Great goaltending, you win, good goaltending, you lose. We will never compete with elite teams with inconsistent goaltending.
john
June 12th, 2009
10:20 pm
S.O.S. DW reminds me of what it was like dealing with the old Clampett’s regime with the Falcons. Poor judgement, poor draft picks, constant rebuilding. Kovie would be nuts to stay in Atlanta where he’ll never see another winner unless he plays as many years as Bobby Hull. It’s a shame that Atlanta’s hockey fans have to watch Don “Waddle”.
Sage of Bluesland
June 13th, 2009
5:09 pm
Another excellent article, Jeff–I think you’re the only one at the AJC who really cares about the abomination currently going on in Thrashersland.
The fans who continue to subsidize this utter incompetence; I have no clue where their mind is…They, the least-respected variable in the entire sporting equation, have ALL of the power yet they are so sheep-minded and cannot even see it!
Cut the funds–wholesale–and watch how fast things change…If that ‘change’ is moving the team, then so be it. This ownership needs to be held accountable for their completely insulting actions.
If what you’ve observed isn’t insulting to your intelligence, well it should be…Wake up, folks…