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R.E Burthe (Tampa, Florida) – “A new beginning and a new direction.” That’s the promise of new Tampa Bay Lightning General Manager Lawrence Bailey as he takes the helm of a team that has oft been likened to a ghost ship, drifting aimslessly about the Atlantic. “As far as I can tell, this team doesn’t have a vision, it doesn’t have an identity,” the empassioned newcomer began. “That all changes here. “We don’t have the balance it takes to be a champion, and we haven’t gotten the performance we need to out of the guys who are eating up the bulk of our budget. There are changes in the works, this team needs to be reinvented.” Bailey went on to single out the team’s three superstars, forwards Eric Lindros and Teemu Selanne as well as goaltender Curtis Joseph as being actively “on the market.” “These are great players without a doubt, but they haven’t gotten it done thus far and something’s got to give,” he rationalized. “We’ve got guys like Eric (Daze), Jo (Stumpel) and Marty (St. Louis) who form a solid nucleus in the top 6. For one reason or another Teemu and Lindros just haven’t meshed well with them. We need to shake things up. “As far as Curtis goes, he’s world class. An Olympian, a playoff performer, among the league’s elite. But with Brent (Johnson) pushing him we feel as though he’d be better off with a team that’s closer to the title and we’d be better off filling some of our roster holes with the return we can get for him. We have a solid core on D, but it could use some bolstering and there’s a need for overall youth to address.” Bailey explained that this is in no way a fire sale however and he wouldn’t make moves for the sake of change or cutting costs. He pointed out that this team is “financially sound” and the philosophy of dealing off some big names is a hockey decision, not a business one. “We can afford to keep these guys around money wise, we just don’t want to stagnate with the same line up that disappointed last year,” he explained. “If we don’t get value back however, we’re happy to start the season with this line up. I mean, we’re not lacking talent, that’s for sure.” It is indeed the start of a new era and only time will tell how well this aggressive restructuring plan will work out. |
New management - new direction