Brian Burke has a Stanley Cup ring, that much is true. He assembled an Anaheim team in 2006-07 that finished fourth in the league with 110 points and cruised past the Ottawa Senators in five games.
Word is, Burke happened upon a fortunate situation when he was hired. The Ducks had reached the finals in 2002-03 and were building a nice core of young talent. Burke was "lucky" to step into Bryan Murray's vacated GM role and make the final roster tweaks to push the Ducks toward a Stanley Cup.
The truth about Murray's tenure as Ducks GM (2002-03) is this.
2001-02: The Ducks finished 24th in the league, missed the playoffs, and drafted Joffrey Lupul seventh overall.
2002-03: The Ducks finished 11th in the league, lost in the finals to the Devils in seven games, and drafted Ryan Getzlaf (19th overall) and Corey Perry (28th overall).
2003-04: The Ducks finished 22nd in the league, missed the playoffs again, and drafted Ladislav Smid ninth overall.
For the record, that's two of three seasons out of the playoffs and two top 10 draft picks.
Of course the Cup Finals appearance was a great accomplishment on Murray's short Duck tenure, but even then it was considered a "Cinderella run". A young goalie named Jean-Sebastien Giguiere took home the Conne Smyth trophy after losing in the seventh game to Martin Brodeur and the Devils.
Take a close look at the team Murray took to Game Seven of the Cup finals and you'll see names like Kariya, Oates, and Sykora alongside names like Rucchin, LeClerc, and Thomas. Despite playing 21 games (including a seven-game finale), none of the players were amongst the top 10 playoff scorers. The leading goal getter was veteran centre Steve Rucchin.
On the surface, Murray's draft record with the Ducks looks very impressive, particularly the drafting of Getzlaf and Perry in 2003. Fact is, any team not named the Rangers or Leafs drafted at least one core player in the first two rounds of the generational 2003 draft. Take a look at the draft and find me more than a handful of players in the first 50 picks of the 2003 draft that haven't had a significant impact on their team.
So with this in mind, I'll ask you which GM was "luckier", the one with the Cup Ring or the one with the Cinderella run?
The one whose team had two top 10 draft picks during his tenure, and managed to select Getzlaf/Perry in the bottom half of the first round or the one who traded those two top 10 draft picks to create the best defence pairing in the league?
While not all of Burke's GM moves turned into gold for the Ducks, a Cup Ring is hard to argue with. Yes, every team requires luck to be on their side, but luck alone will not win it all.
As a side-note, I'd also like to point out, that any fan who complains about being in "cap hell" a season after a Cup win, doesn't deserve a championship team. There is no winning formula to capture a Stanley Cup in a salary-capped league other than getting as much talent as you can within your limits.
Winning teams will often find it hard to keep a talented team together, as you simply cannot keep talented players from earning their prime dollars.
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about 1 month ago
I don't think anyone ever said it was a fluke.
What has been questioned is just how big a role Burke played.
Getzlaf, Perry, Rob Niedermayer, Giguere, Penner and McDonald were all there pre-Burke.
Pronger and Scott Neidermeyer fell in his lap.
Then he did some good work to fill in the rest.
I think the disconnect stems from the fact that Burke is being hailed as a saviour when in fact his record is anything but stellar.
about 1 month ago
Burke made many solid decisions and won a Cup in a salary-capped league. To Ducks fans he should be a saviour - yet I've only heard that he was lucky, and left the team in salary trouble.
The trade that set the table for a Cup was trading Federov (signed to a 5-yr $40mil contract by Murray the year before the lockout) for Beachemin/Wright/Marchant. Without that trade, there is no Cup in Anaheim.
...and FA signings and trades do not fall into anyone's lap, there is risk in every move a GM makes under the salary cap (something Murray didn't have to deal with). Burke paid top-dollar for Neidermayer, AND overpaid his offensively inept younger brother to a four year contract. He basically gave up 4 first rounders to Edmonton to acquire Pronger. Both paid off in spades, yet Burke appears "lucky" to get them both.
I don't see him as a saviour coming to Toronto, but he is a well respected GM and has a proven track record of building winning teams.
Jer
about 1 month ago
I didn't like where you were going with this but then you went and turned things around nicely - good post.
To spencer - Pronger did not fall in Burke's lap - he out-negotiated JFJ (I'll wait for the snickering to stop...) - Pronger should have been a Leaf, but JFJ blew it and Burke offered the better pkg and got him. Take a look at what Edmonton did with and without Pronger, and that shows you the significance of that move.
Burke was hired after the Ducks missed the playoffs. That was Brian Murray's team - 22nd overall, which is why he was fired.
Burke brought in all top 6 D. He brought in Selanne and McDonald - top 2 scorers on the season and in playoffs. He let Babcock go and brought in Carlyle. All in all, replacing 10 roster players and the head coach is not tweaking - that is the biggest overhaul of any team in recent memory next to this years Leafs.
Vancouver still has a team for 1 reason - Brian Burke. He quite literally saved their franchise, and not just with the moves he made. He made a lot of off-ice and financial moves that dramatically increased the revenue coming in the door. The maneuvering required to draft the Sedins together was nothing short of visionary, and extremely aggressive. His Loyalty to Cloutier did him in, but everything else was very solid work.
Lastly - all you have to do to blow the "Murray set the table for Burke" myth out of the water is take a look at what Murray has done with his current team since taking over as GM after they went to the cup finals. Anybody else notice a trend?
about 1 month ago
"While not all of Burke's GM moves turned into gold for the Ducks, a Cup Ring is hard to argue with. Yes, every team requires luck to be on their side, but luck alone will not win it all."
You sum it up perfectly right here. He is a good GM. Not amazing. He is not a savior, and for all the Leaf fans who think you're going to win it all this year now, be quiet. He will help this team get back on the NHL map, but don't expect a Cup run for at least another five years.
Great job with this, Jeremy.
about 1 month ago
Burke did not walk into a good situation in Anaheim as many will say.....HE signed Niedermayer, HE signed Selanne HE traded for Scotty's d-partner Beuchemin (spelling) AND HE traded for Pronger....had he not made those moves, the ducks never win the cup. Burke brought the ducks their first cup. Sure he has had problems with the cap....but he does what he has to do to put a competitive team on the ice. he over payed for replacements for teemu (bertuzzi) and scotty (schneider). the fact of the matter is he tried to replace two guys holding his team hostage by not coming back till mid season.
about 1 month ago
Burke built that team in Anaheim. Selanne,Niedermayer,Beuchemin,Pronger and even guys like marchant, sutherby and up and coming bobby ryan are there because of him.
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