GM bashing. It’s a favorite pastime among hockey fans everywhere, from Saskatoon to San Jose.
If your team’s riding high? Your GM’s the greatest thing since sliced bread. If your team’s scraping bottom? Fire the bum.
I’ve done my share of carping and complaining about Penguins GM Jim Rutherford…especially during the first year of his tenure over the then-hated Robert Bortuzzo–Simon Despres deals. Trades that, in hindsight, wound up benefiting the locals.
Last spring I bemoaned the trade deadline swap that saw the plucky 69-year-old exec part with defensive stalwart Ian Cole and fourth-line hammer Ryan Reaves in exchange for Derick Brassard.