This offseason has been somewhat unusual in regard to the number of teams searching for new general managers (GM). The New Jersey Devils, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Vancouver Canucks turned over a fair bit of their front office staff.
But the team that surprised the NHL, and especially Colorado Avalanche fans, is the Nashville Predators. The Predators had been looking for their new GM for a while, and eventually moved quickly to land Chris MacFarland.
The surprising nature of that move forced Joe Sakic back into GM duties. That’s a fine short-term solution. However, the sense is that Sakic won’t be holding onto the GM role for too long. That’s why the Avalanche will need to name a new GM.
But as far as one notable insider is concerned, the Avs will be searching for a “new” GM. According to David Pagnotta of the Fourth Period, Colorado will be looking to have someone take over as Sakic isn’t really keen on staying in the GM role permanently.
“They'll look for... a new GM because I don't think that's something that Joe Sakic wants to do permanently anymore.”
Now, the reason why we’re saying that it’s going to be a “new” GM is that the early indication is that the Avalanche could be turning to Andrew Cogliano. That was our initial reaction here at Mile High Sticking, and, unless something drastically changes, Cogliano could be the heir apparent.
The situation, nonetheless, won’t be one in which Cogliano gets the keys to the kingdom soon. Sakic will likely take Cogliano under his wing, pretty much getting him up to speed on the day-to-day duties of a GM.
The goal will be to gradually let Cogliano get comfortable with the role, so that Sakic can take a step back and focus solely on the Hockey Ops role.
It’s tough to assign a timeline to this process. While it might take a few weeks, it might take longer. It would all depend on how far along Cogliano is in finding his bearings with the GM role.
Familiarity will be key for new Avalanche GM
When Sakic stepped back following the Avalanche’s 2022 Stanley Cup win, it was MacFarland who got the promotion. The organization wasn’t keen on bringing in an outsider to take over.
The rationale there was the familiarity that MacFarland already had within the organization. That’s the same rationale that should prevail in this particular juncture.
The Avalanche will be looking for someone familiar with the team to take over. And when the club hired Cogliano to join as a special advisor, it seemed that he would eventually play a prominent role within the team’s front office.
It seems the opportunity has arisen. So, it just seems like it’s a matter of time before Cogliano, who figures to be a company man, could take over.
Now, that’s not written in stone. But the alternative, hiring someone from the outside, would be much more complicated and potentially problematic. The question would be: Who can take over without really missing a beat? It would have to be an executive that Sakic knows and can rely upon.
That’s the description of Cogliano, or one of the team’s two assistant GMs, Kevin McDonald or Andrew Wilson. If Sakic goes with any of Cogliano, McDonald, or Wilson, the organization will be just fine.
Add us as a preferred source on Google