Don't ask me why I'm so interested in Tampa lately, I guess I'm attracted to chaos, but RDS is now reporting that Jay Feaster has resigned as general manger of the Lightning. (It's in French but trust me, that's what it says)
So it would seem that one of two things happened here.
One possibility, Feaster decided to go on a binge, signing every free agent forward on the market as a sort of "Scorched Earth" policy on his way out the door. (Update: the number of Tampa forwards under contract has now reached 18, including Stamkos, with the signing of ex-Ottawa 67 Zenon Konopka)
Or the other more likely possibility, Feaster has had little to nothing to do with the recent signings and is resigning out of disgust at being cut out of the loop on personnel decisions.
It has been rumoured that Brian Lawton, recently named vice president of Hockey Operations, has been the 'de-facto GM' for a while now, making Feaster's exit a mere matter of time.
Now far be it for me to tell the new Tampa ownership how to run things, but going over your GMs head to sign every free agent imaginable in an effort to "make a splash" is about the worst possible thing you can do.
Feaster built the Lightning into Stanley Cup Champions and now a bunch of Hollywood owners and their well-coiffed coach, freshly thawed out from 1993, think they are going to come in and know how to do it better?
This is what happens when owners think that because they own the team, they know something about hockey.
If I were a Tampa fan right now I'd be very worried at the direction my team is headed.
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about 1 month ago
Great analysis Spencer, and I agree with you, for the most part. Going over your GM's head is definitely not the way to do things, even if one of the owners is a former NHLer. As for Koules, I've been impressed with his interviews and demeanour, and I like the fact that he's willing to spend to improve the team, but if this is what's been going on then he's off to a very bad start (as if Melrose wasn't bad enough!).
I believe Feaster is one of the more overrated GMs in the league, but even I can't deny he brought a Cup to Tampa Bay. Should be interesting to see how this plays out.
about 1 month ago
There will definately be a microscope under the Bolts this year that's for sure.
about 1 month ago
These guys are going to have a good offense but are going to collapse under the fact their defense is poor and goaltending will not be enough to save them in the Eastern Conference.
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