The Athletic’s Max Bultman provides a rare update into the Red Wings’ search for their next hockey executive:
If it’s seemed a little quiet around Detroit’s search so far, the best explanation I can give is probably the simplest: They’re still pretty early in the process.
Yes, the Red Wings started this search late. Typically, front office exits such as Yzerman’s occur in mid-April; starting a search in mid-July creates obvious potential complications — namely, that training camp begins in seven weeks. But my sense is that Detroit is focused on conducting a thorough search, and that’s going to take time. The Red Wings aren’t going to compromise the process for the sake of speed.
While there is some important business that needs to get done — restricted free agent Simon Edvinsson needs a new contract, and the Dylan Larkin saga remains unresolved — one difference in Detroit’s search taking place now, rather than at the start of the offseason, is that the Red Wings don’t have to worry about any other teams scooping up a potential candidate. They’re the only team in the market.
As for what they’re looking for, while you can expect the Red Wings to cast a wide net, they’ll be interested in candidates who bring an innovative approach to the front office. When the leadership change was announced, I pointed to the other Ilitch-owned Detroit sports team, MLB’s Tigers, as an example: In 2022, the Tigers hired Scott Harris as president of baseball operations and have since made major investments into analytics, biomechanics, player development and more.
That doesn’t mean the Red Wings’ next hire will automatically come from a data and analytics background, though it is one way to modernize and an area the Red Wings would do well to beef up. But it’s not the only element of a front office, nor is it a cure-all solution.
So, while there are certainly interesting names out there from data-centric backgrounds, such as Buffalo Sabres VP of hockey strategy Sam Ventura or Carolina Hurricanes assistant GM Tyler Dellow, there are likewise potential candidates from other backgrounds who could be considered. The agent-turned-executive pipeline has been quite fruitful in the modern NHL, and someone like Florida Panthers assistant GM Brett Peterson fits that mold as he helped transform Florida into a perennial power.
Those names are examples, but they typify two very different backgrounds that would fit the bill of forward-thinking hires, and there are surely more. It also doesn’t rule out internal candidates, such as assistant GM Shawn Horcoff, though the external search is widespread.
Continued (paywall)
