Why the hell was Shero made GM?
When the reign of Patrick was over, I thought that the Pens may have finally made the decision that would turn the team around. I was excited that the management had finally realized what a problem had been for so long and they corrected it. But after Shero took over, it was almost all downhill, and fast.
While yet another high pick was taken, I believe that Staal is far too overrated based on his last name. He had 68 points in 68 games, while Little, taken 12th in the draft by Atlanta, had 109 points in 63 games in the same league. Brassard, taken by Columbus 6th, had 116 in 58 games. Kessel, taken 5th by Boston, had 51 points in 39 games and was tied for the lead in points at World Juniors, behind Malkin. Except for Toews, every other forward in the top 10 averaged over a point per game. 15 of the other 30 top North American prospects averaged a point per fame or more, including some defence. While he is still a good player, I don’t see how he was rated or taken above players like Brassard, Little, or Kessel. Yet he was taken 2nd. The pens also passed on the russian Kulemin, a quality Russian prospect and line mate of future Pen Malkin, with whom he has experienced a ton of success. Kulemin was also a left wing, which is an area that the pens have little depth at in the system. As a matter of fact, the Pens didn’t pick any left wingers in the draft.
Then qualifying offers were due, and Shero opted not to make offers to a number of players, including Andy Hilbert. Hilbert had 18 points in 19 games with the Pens and was spectacular with Crosby and Armstrong, playing left wing where the Pens lack considerably. Shero also made little attempt to bring in some top ranked prospects in Anshakov and Salmonsson.
Then free agency began. Instead of going after some quality help on the left wing, Shero decides to bring in Mark Eaton, a defenseman who is not necessarily needed and will be a 6th defenseman in the lineup, and Jarrko Ruutu, a grinder and enforcer who will be a 4th line winger. Ruutu will be making 1.15 million. And after signing the two, Shero complains that the three million that Morozov, a leading scorer in the Russian Superleague, is supposedly commanding is way out of his price range. Yanic Perreault is on the list of players that the pens are looking at, who is yet another center that the pens don’t need. The pens have Staal, Malkin, Crosby, Christenson, Talbot, and Stone at center and there are other prospects at that spot. Yanic is definitely not needed.
From what I have seen thus far, Shero was the wrong choice for a GM. He has made plenty of choices that were not in the best interest of the team, which leads to the question of why was he hired? What made him a better candidate that the rest? Why the hell was Shero made GM?