Thoughts in Bold: GM Steve Staios on the Got Yer' Back Podcast
With a little over one week before the March 8th trade deadline, Senators general manager Steve Staios was interviewed by Pierre LeBrun about the latest happenings with his club on the Got Yer’ Back Podcast.
Staios spoke for more than 10 minutes addressing a few interesting topics - including the recent gossip that Brady Tkachuk’s name was in the rumour mill and that the Senators may be listening on offers.
For anyone not familiar with the format of this article, I have transcribed Staios’ full interview and his reflections are transcribed below. Following each of Staios’ comments, I have added thoughts of my own which are highlighted in bold. If you want to hear Staios’ interview, you can simply use the embedded video adorning the top of this post.
Enjoy.
On the decision to leave Edmonton and join the Senators…
“Well, the Edmonton Oilers mean a lot to me as an organization. I think going back as a player, I was still trying to find my footing as an NHL player. When I landed in Edmonton, I was given a great opportunity with a great coaching staff, general manager and leadership with Kevin Lowe, Craig MacTavish, Charlie Huddy and the group there. So, the Oilers organization means a lot to me and my family. We still have some of our best friends that live in Edmonton. As far as my career, it was a wonderful year in Edmonton. The situation sort of unfolded where this opportunity in Ottawa was there and obviously with my previous working relationship with Michael Andlauer and the Hamilton Bulldogs, it seemed to be a good fit.”
Staios was rumoured to be a prospective replacement for Ken Holland should the longtime hockey executive ever decide to take a more senior role that would oversee the hockey operations department. By jumping ship to the Senators, that obviously will never happen. Ottawa was an enticing fit for Staios, it brought him closer to home and reunited him with Michael Andlauer who he enjoyed a lot of success with from their days together running the OHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs.
On an eventful few months that featured Pierre Dorion’s resignation, a GM search and eventually Staios stepping into the role…
“Yeah, it was a unique process. Obviously, Michael (Andlauer) is the man in charge and making the decisions. So, as everyone knows, we had a lot of things that were thrown at us here in Ottawa early on - including a half-year suspension, injuries and then obviously the (Evgenii) Dadonov situation. Michael had made the decision that he wanted to make a change. At that point in time, we looked at it from all angles. We had a lot of names and structure that I had presented to Michael. At the end of the day, he makes the decisions. He was comfortable with this structure moving forward and we’ve continued to build off it. I think when you start looking at names on a GM search, there are obviously many capable people out there who could do the job. And, we’ve continued to look down the hallway at Ryan Bowness and his continued ascension in the game and his experience - his winning experience with the Pittsburgh Penguins. So, we felt we had a candidate there that certainly could work alongside me in the GM position to continue to move this thing forward. And, then obviously with the major addition of Dave Poulin and all the experience that he brings and the wisdom. He’s really just the type of person that we want in and around our group as well. I’d go so far to say that (Poulin) is probably one of the most… of all the executives in the National Hockey League, you’ve got to meet a lot of them, I think you could easily say that Dave Poulin is one of the most understated and extremely capable (ones). We feel good about that structure. I know Michael talked about having a ‘two-headed monster’, I think we’re even deeper in that regard and we’ll continue to build off of it.”
I have mentioned this before, but I would love to hear a deeper explanation of what makes this front office believe so highly in Ryan Bowness. Make no mistake, that is not meant to be a slight. It’s just that the body of work done by the hockey operations department since he arrived, has not been particularly flattering. To this point, the new regime has not made any personnel decisions yet either. Based on these considerations or the odd interview that Bowness has been involved in, there just isn’t a lot of information to go off of — hence my curiosity regarding Staios’ belief and confidence in Bowness’ abilities.
One of the things that Staios has acknowledged before is that his predecessor, Pierre Dorion, preferred to operate unilaterally as an autocratic general manager. If the incumbents left in hockey operations depicted Dorion as a guy who refused to listen or rely on the information and opinions of others before making moves, it would certainly put them in a better light given the team’s results over the past six years.
I just believe that if there is a future opportunity to shed light on Bowness’ (or anyone within hockey ops) behind-the-scenes work and philosophies, it would be awesome. Any insight into the people and processes that are involved would be welcomed.
On what is has been like navigating his job for the first time ahead of this year’s trade deadline…
“It’s been good. We’ve had… there’s a process that we’ve put in place in understanding of what maybe our needs are. We’re using the trade deadline as one opportunity to continue to build around this group. So, yeah, there’s certainly a process in place and players that we have… as far as types of players that we have targeted and value moving forward. And, can continue to support this very good young core that we have here in Ottawa. When you look at our group, just the youth and in the most respectful way, the lack of experience, you’d like to see if there’s the opportunity to bring some veteran people in here to support it. Trade deadlines are just one opportunity to be able to build off of that. Typically, as you know, the market really dictates what you can do and how much you can do. But, as far as us entering it, we’re involved in trying to address some areas. But, we’re also very patient and understanding that these things do take some time. As I said, the trade deadline is just one opportunity.”
Staios has mastered the general manager playbook by saying a lot without giving anything away. It has been well-documented that the Senators would like to add some veteran experience to their mix, but Staios is not putting any self-imposed timelines on it.
Relying on the market to dictate when the organization should make the add is important. In their situation, playoff teams are not looking to dump the calibre of veteran that the Senators are looking for — which means a more limited market of players who may be available. Waiting for the offseason probably affords the organization a better opportunity to acquire talent more cheaply.
One veteran defenceman that the Senators were linked to, Chris Tanev, is now off the market. In Flames’ blue liner wound up going to the Stars in a three-way deal involving the Devils. If he is going to join the Senators, it will have to wait until the summer.
On where things are with impending free agent Vladimir Tarasenko…
“I won’t go so far as to talk about the personal dialogue with any of our players, but certainly, I think, as you see where our team is in the standings and you see an incredibly impactful player who has won a Stanley Cup, there’s going to be a high level of interest for sure. You mentioned that he’s rightfully negotiated a no-trade clause within his contract, so there’s a process there as far as working with a player, any player, if you are going to move them on that as well. But, certainly, there is a level of interest in these types of players that is very high at the trade deadline. I really like what Vladi has brought to our group. He comes in on a one-year deal and continues to prove his ability to play in big games. (He has) an understated leadership, as well. He plays the game the right way, as well. He probably got typecasted a little bit in his career as just being an offensive player, but he’s certainly a well-rounded player for me.”
Staios is doing his best hypeman impression for Tarasenko. The combination of his production, name value and unrestricted free agent status makes the Russian forward the easiest piece to move. Assuming the Senators are willing to absorb some of Tarasenko’s cap hit to facilitate a trade, there should be several interested parties.
One team that the Senators cannot trade Tarasenko to while absorbing part of his cap hit is the Rangers. As outlined by Adam Herman (@AdamZHerman), “teams are not allowed to re-acquire a player with cap retention within one calendar year of that player having been on their reserve list.”
Since Tarasenko was last on the Rangers’ reserve list on June 30th, 2023, should the Rangers want to reacquire him, the Senators or any other third-party team cannot retain part of his salary. For the Rangers to acquire him, they will have to take on the full cost of his $5.0 million (AAV) contract.
Regardless of Staios’ promoting skills, the biggest blows to Tarasenko’s value lie in his poor defensive metrics (which I’ve highlighted previously here) and the protection offered by his full no-trade clause. The Senators need his permission to make a deal, which can potentially limit the return. Bruce Garrioch is reporting that the Senators are looking for a second-round pick and a prospect in return.
On the recent gossip that Brady Tkachuk’s name is in the rumour mill…
“That could not be further from the truth. I don’t follow on social media. I do get… our communications people alert me to things like that. There’s obviously no truth to that. We’re building this team around Brady Tkachuk. The type of person, the type of player, and the type of leader that he is, he means everything to this organization. He brings it every night along with our core group of players. It’s a matter of time and a matter of nurturing this group. When I talk about bringing in veteran players, it’s really to support this young group and to support Brady, Tim (Stützle) and the rest of the group. Claude Giroux has done a phenomenal job of that, but you can always use those guys. We’re the fifth-youngest team in the league. So, say we’re three years younger than these Stanley Cup contending types of teams, but it’s three years younger across the board. That adds up to a lot of years and games played. That’s really it, but certainly, Brady is the leader that we need in this room. He is everything that is advertised. I’m just trying to do my best to support him.”
Staios is responding to the Spitting’ Chiclets’ Ryan Whitney, who tweeted that there was gossip that Brady Tkachuk’s name was coming up in trade rumours.
As I wrote after the rumour came out, it would never make sense for the Senators to unilaterally start listening to offers on the captain for all of the reasons that Staios outlined above. His physicality, production, intangibles and leadership make Tkachuk a unicorn and one of the best power forwards in the league. And, with four seasons left on the contract extension that he signed in 2021, the years of team control that his deal affords makes the idea of trading Tkachuk that much more unpalatable.
The only way dealing Brady makes sense is if he openly voiced his frustrations with the organization and expressed a desire to move on. I don’t doubt that this season has been a frustrating one for the captain. With all of the turmoil that transpired in the fall and culminated in the removal of Pierre Dorion and D.J. Smith from their roles, the events had to wear on the players who have endured their fair share of distractions through their formative years with the organization. If Brady was bothered by it all, nobody should blame him for it.
On framing where the Jakob Chychrun situation is at as far as his future…
“Well, I mean, if I was on the other side of things and was looking at our team, he’d be a player that I’d be calling about as well. It is a bit disappointing (that his name is out there). I guess, as a player, you’ve got to learn how to deal with this. Just being an NHL player and the amount of attention (you get) - especially if you’re an elite player like Jakob. Conversations happen all the time. Names get bandied about all the time. Like I said, I’d be calling about Jakob Chychrun myself if I was looking to add a top defenceman. Again, disappointing that it came out. I think we do our best to keep these things in-house out of respect for the players, in particular. But, certainly, it’s that time of year, so these things do happen.”
This was probably the most intriguing part of the interview. Staios essentially admitted that he had conversations with another executive about dealing Chychrun, but expressed disappointment that his name came out into the public sphere.
For the reasons Staios outlined, it makes sense for teams to be calling on Chychrun. He’s a valuable defenceman on an inexpensive contract who is in his prime. Chychrun will afford a team two playoff runs if he is moved at the deadline, so Senators brass has to consider that if they decide to move him. By moving him now, they should theoretically be able to maximize the return.
Management has previously expressed a desire to balance the roster more, so it could mean that one of the team’s three left defencemen could be moved. Jake Sanderson is untouchable, which leaves Chychrun or maybe even Thomas Chabot as candidates to be moved.
It is a decision that could be made in the offseason when teams are more willing to move pieces off their roster to facilitate trades.
On the job that Jacques Martin has done and where things are at on the head coaching search…
“I think when I decided to make the change with the head coaching position, it’s no different than… I guess when we were talking about the management structure. You start looking at what you really need. You really break down what you really need and the philosophy on where our team is at. I brought Jacques in to support D.J. and the coaching staff. I thought he (did). He was a great sounding board and a calming presence for the previous group. There were indications of improvement within that group. Certainly, when we go to make the change, everything our team needed at this point in time with the youth is everything that Jacques Martin is all about. To be able to bring in that type of experience at that time was a real bonus for us. It took a little bit of time (to change)… our players have played a certain way for a very long time and it takes time to get to… for the new coach to come in and really implement what he needs in holding our players accountable. I think we’ve seen great signs of improvement and maturity within that group. The benefit of having Daniel Alfredsson alongside Jacques with bringing the philosophy, discipline and structure (was huge). And then you have Alfie there to be able to continue to deliver that message and really be able to relate to these players, I’ve seen great improvements as a team and in our individual play. I couldn’t be more pleased with the job that they are doing.”
There is no question that the Senators have done an excellent job cleaning up their forecheck and neutral zone play. They are defending in more efficient layers which has generated more turnovers. With more counterattacks and sustained zone time, the Senators are producing greater shot and goal shares on the ice.
On continuing to do a coaching search and where that process is at…
“Yes, we will and Jacques will be part of that as well. You have that type of experience and he’s laying the foundation for this group. I’ll continue to… I’ve had great dialogue prior to bringing him in. As we brought him in and the process and the plan, he cares deeply about the Ottawa Senators. He wants us to have success and I see him being a part of this moving forward.”
After Staios conducted a general manager search of his own before deciding to inherit the role permanently, I wonder what will happen if the team continues to play well down the stretch for Martin.
Candidates like John Gruden or Jay McKee who already have a history with Andlauer have been portrayed as frontrunners for the job, but desirable candidates could wind up being available this summer. Should the team continue to make inroads defensively, however, I could see the organization preferring continuity over the possibilities of the unknown.
For Martin, I could understand why he may want to return to an advisory role. The position would offer him less responsibility and more job safety than the head coach position. Mind you, at Martin’s age, maybe job security is something that does not weigh too heavily on his mind. If this position represents his last opportunity to be a head coach, perhaps Martin will want to remain in his current role.