It Could Be Worse: You Could Be Forced To Suck Up To Eugene Melnyk

By George Marshall

"I am Eugene, King of the trashpile!"
Courtesy: Matty Go Sens

Arguably one of my favourite things about being a sports fan is the ability to be pissed off at just about anything when your team is not performing well with about zero negative repercussions. It's what makes sports so amazing. And now with "The Internet" we have a place to express that rage in a large community of ragers. Coming from the Greater Toronto Area (me, not the internet, despite what some Torontonians may claim), the internet has become the primary source of where my rage goes, since few people in the GTA realize 29 other teams play in the same league as the Leafs (maybe 28 if Leafs fans are keeping score in The Great Jersey Toss-Off with the Oilers).

But what if you worked for Eugene Melnyk? What if you sat beside him at home games knowing that a pink slip would follow if you mentioned any one of these topics:

• The internal budget
• A casino
• His relationship with Dave Cameron
• Letting Alfredsson walk
• Why he cheered for Montreal that one time
• Legal actions against Biovail after grossly overestimating losses caused by a trucking accident

I could go on, but you get the point.

This would be similar to approaching your boss and asking why you always have to add the cover sheets to those TPS Reports.

I'm also gonna need you to pay for that arena too

You would likely get fired if you released your built-up frustration to a superior. Even Paul Maclean cracking a joke about his inferior roster became a factor which led to his termination this week. We now know what it takes for Melnyk to pay you to not coach.

When Maclean was fired, some people were upset about it (one in particular was quite vocal), some were happy and some were apathetic. I fall into this latter category; Paul may not have blended well with the roster he was given, but he should not be blamed for this team's lack of success.

That's Melnyk's fault.

Over the past couple years, Melnyk has been tightening the noose pulling some strings for this organization and has taken it from a team that may play hockey in June to a team that will be playing the lottery in June instead, and not the kind of lottery that Melnyk has been lobbying for. He knows that spending money doesn't guarantee that you win but he seems to be lost on the fact that refusing to spend guarantees you won't.

And now Melnyk has a friend coaching the team. I won't rule out Dave Cameron yet, but it is a bit concerning that when other teams were looking for coaches during Paul Maclean's tenure, not once was Cameron mentioned (but this guy was).

Maybe a coaching change was due for the Sens. Maybe there should be changes in management in the future. But the only thing I am certain of is that we won't see a winning team until we see a different owner. Luckily, I can say all of this without fear, because there isn't anything that Melnyk can take away from me; he's already taken away my favourite hockey team.

It could be worse.