Sports is a true meritocracy. It’s true at the high school and college levels. Truer still at the professional level. Players have to put forth their best game in game out, year in year out to find success. Falter and fans will be asking “what ever happened to him “? No different for General Managers. It’s true that coaches and GMs are hired to be fired. What a coach or GM does while still employed becomes their legacy. This is how I see the legacy of Julien Brisebois, the GM of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Job
Every NHL General Manager has an unenviable and stress filled job. They are responsible for all player transactions and all player contract negotiations. They also are expected to win a Stanley Cup every season. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t an attempt to build sympathy for any GM. They get paid handsomely for their work. Good, bad or indifferent, they live or die with the success of their decisions. The goal is putting his team in a position to hoist the Cup. The job requires hard work and dedication 365 days a year. Are they perfect? By no stretch are any of them perfect. Sometimes the most difficult thing a GM has to do is the decision of the future of a player.
Which players stay and which ones have to go. Which players you lock up long term and which players the team can no longer afford. Because no GM is perfect, they try to make the right decisions regarding player personnel. Ultimately, it’s a roll of the dice. Remember, this is a meritocracy. Don’t care what you’ve done in the past. There will always be a younger player ready to show they are ready to take your place. It’s a story as old as time. Players get old and slow and their skills begin to deteriorate. Father Time is undefeated. We’ve all seen teams making the wrong personnel decisions. Trades that didn’t work out. Free agent signings that went south. Players kept too long or perhaps moved too soon.
The Reality
During his six seasons as Lightning GM Julien Brisebois has had to cut ties with some players. Barclay Goodrow and Blake Coleman weren’t affordable right after the back to back Cups. The expansion draft welcoming the Seattle Kracken into the league saw the Lightning lose Yanni Gourde. Then Ondrej Palat and Ryan McDonagh became casualties of the salary cap over the last few seasons. Just a couple of seasons ago, Brisebois made the unpopular decision to not extend Corey Perry. A fan favorite who experienced a resurgent season in his first season in a Bolt sweater. Through it all, Brisebois has maintained a level of excellence that no other GM in the league can touch.
Since his appointment in 2019 to Lightning GM, Brisebois has put together an impressive run. His teams have made three Stanley Cup appearances winning two of those series. He also has a President’s Trophy on his resume. Since his first season as GM, only two teams have won more than 280 games. The Lightning and the Boston Bruins are the regular season cream of the NHL crop. No other team in the league has more playoff wins than the Lightning in the same time.
Despite all this success, Brisebois has shown that he isn’t the type to rest on his laurels. Some in his position would kick their feet up and go through the motions. One thing is certain, Brisebois is constantly working to make his team better. In his first campaign, his team tied the NHL record for most regular season wins. At the trade deadline that season, Brisebois stood down. Didn’t make a move. That record breaking team got bounced in the first round of the playoffs. Got swept by Columbus and former coach John Tortorella.
The Decisions
Brisebois took note. The next season his team wasn’t quite the juggernaut from the season before. They were battling the Bruins all season long. At the trade deadline that season, Brisebois went all in, giving up two first round picks for Barclay Goodrow and Blake Coleman. Those two deals were the impetus for two consecutive Stanley Cup victories. Since then, Brisebois has continued working tirelessly to make the Lightning competitive. His teams have not missed the playoffs during his tenure. The proof of his commitment to his job is evident. Yet, recent events have a segment of the fan base calling for his head.
Every GM has to deal with reality. The salary cap governs your every move. Other professional leagues have salary caps but the NHL cap is a hard cap. In the other sports teams merely have to pay a fine if they go over the cap. So, it’s more a suggestion than a cap in those leagues. In the NHL, go over the cap and you can’t dress a player who earns more than the overage amount. So as one season passes and another is around the corner, it becomes decision time for the GM. This month was no different.
The Lightning needed some changes. Their play at even strength last season was not good. Two consecutive first round playoff exits were more evidence that improvement was needed. Brisebois made the decisions he felt were needed. He traded to get Ryan McDonagh back from Nashville. Not standing still, he signed arguably the top free agent this off-season Jake Guentzel. Then, he traded away Mikhail Sergachev and Tanner Jeannot. Lastly, he did not re-sign Steven Stamkos.
The Legacy of Brisebois
That last one was tough. Stamkos has been a fixture here. Not just on the team but in our community. The longest tenured captain in team history. You know, the guy who has played more games and scored more goals than anyone else in the history of the organization. Brisebois arrived at the decision that he and the face of the franchise saw his value differently.
I caution fans when the team makes a trade, to withhold judgment for at least two or three seasons. It takes time to evaluate any deal. When Brisebois dealt two first round picks and a couple of players to get Brandon Hagel, fans lost their minds. Ask those same fans now, which team won that trade? The decision on Stamkos needs to play out. It could turn into the worst move Brisebois has made in his successful run as GM. If Stamkos has a stellar year and Guentzel tanks it, the calls for the GM’s head will be deafening.
However, if Stamkos’s performance falls off a bit and Guentzel lights it up, the team should improve. Maybe even lead to another deep playoff run. Either way, the legacy of Julien Brisebois continues.
