Out of the box, you remember, is the English expression Jeff Gorton used at his first press scrum in Montreal to say he could go off the beaten path in search of his general manager. Without saying he would go in that direction, he wanted to keep all doors open.
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“I wasn’t thinking about Kent [Hughes] and to Marty [Martin Saint-Louis] When I said that, Gorton explains today.
“But I really wanted to consider all possible options.” The name Kent came to mind two weeks after I took office. As an agent, he had some experience in the world of ice hockey.
“He burst out laughing when I called him and asked if he would consider the idea of becoming general manager of the Canadiens.
“I don’t think he ever thought about that possibility. He had his own business representing athletes and enjoyed that field. »
Geoff Molson’s surprise call
Gorton was as surprised as Hughes when he received the call from Geoff Molson. He then worked as a commentator on the National League television station.
“I was having dinner with my wife when a number from Montreal popped up on my phone,” he says.
“I wondered who could have called me from Montreal back then [alors qu’il n’était plus DG dans la LNH]. Not wanting to offend my wife, I waited until I got home to look through the directory of phone numbers for the league’s general managers.
“A strange feeling came over me. When I saw it was Geoff Molson, I wondered what he could possibly want from me. The rest is history. »
Kind of great intelligence
The Canadiens owner contacted Gorton at the suggestion of Gary Bettman. In the Hughes case, everyone concluded that he was close to Gorton.
“People said we were friends, but that wasn’t true,” Gorton says.
“People also said we have property on Cape Cod, but we don’t live close to each other. I’ve never seen Kent’s house. I hadn’t actually spent much time with him in person. We talked on the phone most of the time. »
The first step was to negotiate the contracts of Hughes’ clients, first with the Bruins and then with the Rangers. But the rest of the discussions often revolved around hockey.
“Kent is extremely intelligent, he has a completely different vision than most people in hockey,” emphasizes Gorton.
“He has his own way of talking about player development. He doesn’t just stick to the X’s and O’s on the board.
“As an agent, he always discussed what his clients and other players could achieve if teams helped them a little more and talked to them in the right way. He followed his views.
“He’s stubborn as hell! »
Diametrically opposite
This is a side of Hughes’ personality that we’ve just gotten to know. You wouldn’t say that if you saw and heard him. But you have to remember that he was an agent, a role that involves negotiations.
“We are diametrically opposed in many ways,” says Gorton.
“Kent likes to argue. He’ll be talking all evening! If I tell him the salary cap is 83 million, he’ll say that’s not really the case when you take long-term injuries and other factors into account.
“It’s never like that with him. »
– In short, he always wants to have the last word, right, Jeff?
“Oh yes, he likes it!” replies Gorton.
“And it’s in everything. We are not the same, but we complement each other well,” concludes Gorton.
We call it the “battle of ideas” and that’s fine, experienced managers will say. You will have guessed that in this context the two men do not fail to tease each other.
At last year’s Canadian golf tournament, this writer overheard Gorton making a joke to Hughes about his bare head. The answer didn’t take long to arrive.
“And you dye your hair!” Hughes had told him.
– Is that right, Jeff?
“No, no,” he replies forcefully.
“But if you look closely, you can see that I have gray hair here and there. It started since I arrived here. »
It is save!