Canadiens GM search: Potential candidates

With the firing of Pierre Gauthier as general manager of the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday, who will be called upon to lead the National Hockey League’s winningest team back to glory?

The Canadiens, mired in the basement of the Eastern Conference, have now missed the playoffs six times in the past 13 seasons; they had missed only eight times in their first 81 NHL seasons. And considering that Gauthier — hired on Feb. 8, 2010 to replace Bob Gainey, who stepped down from his advisory role with the team on Thursday — was given just over two years to build a contender, pressure to succeed will be placed on whomever owner Geoff Molson (with the help of Serge Savard) selects as Gauthier’s successor.

Here is a Coles Notes rundown of seven possible heirs to the Gauthier throne. The search is on.

Julien BriseBois: Widely considered the logical successor to Gauthier, BriseBois has managed AHL affiliates for the Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning, where he now serves as Steve Yzerman’s assistant GM. Yzerman has already stated that he expects to lose the on-the-rise executive to a team looking to fill the GM role. BriseBois worked closely with Gainey prior to Gauthier’s arrival.

Claude Loiselle: The Ottawa-born former Quebec Nordiques forward has extensive experience with contracts and was one of the authors of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. He has worked in the Tampa Bay and Anaheim organizations and is currently an assistant GM with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Jacques Martin: It would be a shocker, to be sure, after the former head coach was given his walking papers by Gauthier on Dec. 17 and was replaced by interim head coach Randy Cunneyworth. But the decidedly French-speaking Martin does have experience in the role, as he served as both coach and GM for the Florida Panthers. He’s a hockey lifer who commands respect around the NHL.

Doug Risebrough: The former GM of the Minnesota Wild is now a consultant and scout with a successful Eastern Conference team, the New York Rangers. During his playing career, the forward won four Stanley Cups with the Canadiens (1976 through 1979) before being traded to the Calgary Flames. He reached his fifth Cup final wearing a flaming C; his Flames lost to the Habs in 1986.

Patrick Roy: Saint Patrick has had his name bandied about the rumour mill as a replacement to interim coach Cunneyworth, but would be a high-profile choice to be the face of hockey’s most-storied organization. Or, the Quebec City native could choose to hold out and see if the possibly resurrected Nordiques are hiring.

John Ferguson, Jr.: The former GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs was drafted by the Canadiens as a player in 1985, and his father played his entire career for the Habs. JFJ, who can speak French, is now a scout for the San Jose Sharks and worked with Yzerman to select Canada’s 2007 gold-medal IIHF World Championship roster.

Kevin Lowe: Likely a long shot, and a possible candidate to retake his previous role as GM for the Edmonton Oilers, Lowe climbed up the executive ranks rapidly after his championship-filled playing career. As player, coach, GM, and now president of hockey operations, Lowe has helped build competitive Oilers clubs, and one that now teems with young talent. Could he do the same in Montreal?

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