Dave Nonis
Last night the news came down that the Canucks' General Manager, Dave Nonis had been fired. I have always liked Nonis, he seems like a straight up guy trying to do the best he could.
I think the job was too much for him. Late in the season when it was obvious the Canucks needed an infusion of talent before the trading deadline, he chocked.
The only trade made was the mean nothing trade of Matt Cooke for Matt Pettinger.
Just before the trade deadline, Nonis was interviewed on the CBC's After Hours Show. He was asked about the possibility of trades and the same old story was retold:
We will not give up our good young talent for a short term fix. We will not sacrifice our future.
Unfortunately Canucks fans have been hearing this for the last 38 years. I wonder what future these GMs are referring to?
If your always living for the future then you aren't living for the NOW. And the future never seems to come.
Its a lame excuse GMs' make when they haven't got the guts to pull off a big trade. In the end thats what Nonis lacked, GUTS.
If he had a pair he would have given up Bourdon, Edler, Bieska or Raymond or whoever else it took to grab a Brad Richards or a Peter Forsberg or whoever and make a serious run at the Stanley Cup. But he chickened out and it cost him his job.
In this day and age of free agency a GM can rebuild his team in a year or two from scratch. Hanging on to young players is not as critical as it used to be. You have to give something up to get something back.
Canuck fans are fed up with hearing about the future. Lets get a GM that can live in the NOW and get us a cup contender. I'm not interested in potential or how great the team will be in a few years. We've all heard that song and dance for too long.
Nonis, I hope you've learned your lesson. You'll be back in action somewhere soon. Get that "F" word out of your mind and live in the present.
