As I'm sure you've read by now, Craig Custance is out there trying to find answers to the "Waddell: chopping block or guillotine?" question. He recently interviewed Atlanta Spirit baron Bruce Levenson about whether or not Waddell was about to go; Levenson says Waddell is definitely staying.
We have no reason to doubt this. I would be shocked if Waddell was fired or transferred to some other position.
My point of view (I'll refrain from making this an Official Editorial Position, as I'm not sure how the others feel) is that Waddell, while not the total calamity that his worst critics make him out to be, will most likely never find a way to be an effective and productive GM. This is partly due to some of his own bad decisions; much of it has to do with the vicissitudes of the Atlanta Spirit Group. Even if Waddell were replaced, I'm not certain that anything substantial would change. As long as the ASG comports itself the way it does, the Thrashers organization will remain dysfunctional.
Now, I don't think any of this means that the Thrashers are guaranteed to have a horrible season. I can't join in on the hysteria about us being last in the league at the moment, as we haven't played a game since Sunday. We'll see how things go in November. If the Thrashers can hitch themselves to a winning streak, strange and surprising things could happen.
Whatever DOES happen with the Thrashers in terms of performance and standings, my ideal scenario for this team's front office would be a sale to owners who are actually interested in and knowledgeable about hockey. Change we can believe in and stuff.
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2 comments:
you know it's a weird see-saw. on the one hand, the dude's molded the team we have. he sees something there that maybe we don't. i mean look at washington's GM. for years everyone thought he was a moron, but it turns out, he might have been a genius. not that i'd EVER say that about d-wad though. and on the other hand someone new would come in and tear down everything here - and sure, maybe that'd be good, but maybe it'd be worse. total crapshoot.
all that said, sometimes i think i could do a better job than waddell. and GM'ing is definitely not my wheelhouse.
I think the court battle with the owners gets decided in Feb. Season will be over a couple months after that.
If there is a move, I doubt it takes place before the end of the season...
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