The shirt was done to the top button. The tie was knotted. The hair perfectly in place — not in a slick or stylish way, but simply corporate neat. The manner was authoritative and confident, but without an ounce of showmanship.
Once more and with an extra slice of white bread, Leafs general manager-by-default Dave Nonis demonstrated that he’s the at the other end of the spectrum from Brian Burke, his predecessor, mentor, and superficial opposite.
Nonis delivered the post-mortem of the Leafs 2013 season on Thursday, with a nary a sound-bite worthy quote, as is his habit.
It was a year conceived in controversy after Burke was fired and the reigns handed to Nonis on the eve of training camp and which — after moments of great promise — suffered a fatal, self-inflicted wound in the third period of Game 7 in Boston on Monday.
But even if the end-of-season address fell short of Burke’s standards of performance art, there were hints Thursday that Nonis’ differences with his old boss run deeper than a penchant for buttoning up his shirts.
Nonis, for example, said he would trade Dion Phaneuf, the team’s captain and the best defenseman albeit in a fairly shallow pool. And he said it without flinching. I asked him and Nonis said an unblinking “yes” before I’d even finished the question.
It was the kind of query that barn rentals were made of in the Burke era. Burke defended his own and consistently painted himself into small corners occupied by Ron Wilson, Mike Komisarek, Jonas Gustavsson and anyone else to whom Burke pledged his undying loyalty.
Which isn’t to say Nonis said he will trade Phaneuf, who was either a hero for absorbing a team-high 25 minutes a game during the regular season and playoffs, or a bum who got walked around or pushed around in front of his own net for last-minute goals in Game 6 and Game 7 against the Boston Bruins, part of his minus-6 mark for the series.
But it is to say that Nonis allowed that he would consider trading Phaneuf, who is a better lightning rod than No. 1 defenceman, and will earn $6.5 million next season in the last year of his contract.
“I’ve always felt the word untouchable is really silly in this sport,” said Nonis. “There are players you would be unlikely to move and players we see as being long-term solutions to success here. But untouchable doesn’t help you if you’re looking to get better. You look at the some of the teams that have gotten better and been good for a long time, they’ve moved some people that may have made fans shake their head, but they’ve gotten better doing it.”
How’s that for contrast? Burke used to flail at shadows defending Phaneuf, who he acquired in a one-sided trade with Calgary in Janaury 2010. “They can all go defecate in their chapeaus,” he once said in response to his then captain being voted the most overrated player in the NHL by an anonymous poll of his peers in Sports Illustrated.
The reality is Phaneuf might be the least of Nonis’ problems, if he’s even a problem at all.
While he’s certainly had a hand in shaping the Leafs during his four years as Burke’s right-hand man, that’s a big difference from having his hand on the tiller. Burke cast a massive shadow. Nonis is now in the glare alone.
His best moves in his first four months on the job may have been to do absolutely nothing, unless you count snagging Ryan O’Byrne at the trade deadline. He benefitted from Burke’s absence in that it was a relatively painless matter for him to send the likes of Tim Connolly and Mike Komisarek to the AHL and have John-Michael Liles as a healthy scratch for large chunks of the season.
It was the greatest gift he could have given to Randy Carlyle. There is no easier way for a coach to preach accountability than when $14.1 million in NHL contracts are either sitting in the press box or riding a bus to Grand Rapids. While Nonis was in on those deals they were Burke’s signings, so it wasn’t a reflection on him when the fat money sat.
So by doing nothing, Nonis got a fair amount done.
But that won’t be an option much longer. The Leafs need help at centre ice and the blueline, and Carlyle wasn’t exactly overwhelming in his endorsement of James Reimer in net.
The team is in decent shape under the shrinking NHL salary cap with $45.1 million committed to 12 players, giving Nonis $19.2 million to spend. Buyouts to the likes of Komisarek or Liles could provide even more flexibility.
With some luck they might be able to pry some talent away from the profligate as teams like Chicago, Vancouver and Philadelphia have more players than they can afford or perhaps Nonis will veer from Burke and use an offer sheet on a high profile RFA.
In the meantime Nonis has his own decisions to make, such as what to do with free agent centre Tyler Bozak; whether to extend Phil Kessel and how much to pay RFAs like Cody Franson and Nazem Kadri.
It’s time for Nonis to go to work and make the team his own.
In his first 12 months on the job Burke made 78 different player transactions. Kessel, Phaneuf, Nazem Kadri, and Carl Gunnarsson were all acquired or signed in that first flurry by Burke. In many ways that first year set the foundation for the team that Nonis was putting a bow on Thursday.
It’s now his job alone to take a team that achieved more than any of Burke’s teams and take it to still greater heights.
The season is over but the first season of the rest of Dave Nonis’ life has just started. That top button will only get tighter from here on in.
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