Carolina Hurricanes

After supposedly learning the importance of prior head coaching experience from the Kirk Muller disaster, the Carolina Hurricanes now appear poised to again hire an untested former player as the team's next head coach.

Josh Rimer of Sportsnet reported via Twitter on Wednesday that Ulf Samuelsson is the leading candidate for the Carolina head coaching job:

Samuelsson is currently an assistant coach for the New York Rangers and served as a Phoenix Coyotes assistant from 2006 to 2011. His only former head coaching tenure came with Swedish club Modo from 2011 to 2013.

He's also the third-dirtiest player in NHL history, per the Toronto Sun's rankings, and, most importantly, played with new Hurricanes general manager Ron Francis from 1985 to 1994.

Francis' ongoing coaching search has linked him to a number of former Hartford and Pittsburgh teammates, including Kevin Dineen, Ed Olczyk and Dean Evason.

It would be neither just nor considerable for him to cripple the 'Canes with such cronyism—but it seems that Francis may be determined to do so nonetheless.

Despite his 1,080 NHL appearances, Samuelsson's playing career was not particularly productive. He tallied just 57 goals and 275 assists—dwarfed by his 2,453 penalty minutes and equaled by his 57 career fights.

Perhaps most famous for ending Bruins star Cam Neely's career with a cheap-shot hit, Samuelsson, a defenseman, did not exactly demonstrate a strong capability for or deep understanding of offensive strategizing during his 17-season career.

The 50-year-old Swede's coaching career has been similarly unremarkable.

Coaching Modo in the 2011-12 and 2012-13 Elitserien campaigns, Samuelsson posted a mediocre 47-49-16 record and lost in the first round of the playoffs both years. Modo had the second-worst defense in the league his first year but improved to the middle of the pack by his second year.

Little seems to justify Samuelsson's contention, much less lead, in Carolina's coaching job race other than his aforementioned friendship with Francis.

That's where this story begins to feel like a close-minded betrayal of faith.

The 'Canes already tried hiring a coach with no NHL head coaching experience three years ago. The experiment cost the club three valuable years without any postseason berths, derailed Muller's previously ascending coaching career and arguably ended Jim Rutherford's career as a general manager.

Presumed when the Rutherford-Francis transition occurred was that the latter would bring a fresh, rejuvenating, no-strings-attached perspective to the leadership position. Initially, after dispatching Muller only one week later, those presumptions seemed verified. 

But hiring Samuelsson as a replacement could shed an unexpected shadow on Francis' first 60 days, indicating the coaching clearinghouse was simply a prerequisite for the installation of a spoils system.

No, it's not as if Francis is hiring his brother as head coach. He is hiring a legitimate coaching candidate.

Would Samuelsson toughen up Drayson Bowman? Yes, probably.

Yet would he be able to help Eric Staal's struggling confidence and production much? Doubtful.

It's tough to believe that Samuelsson could truly be the most qualified and deserving candidate available.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.

After years of line-jumping and niche-seeking, Jiri Tlusty will face his decision day with the Carolina Hurricanes this summer.

Tlusty's contract will expire in July; he's set to be a restricted free agent (RFA).

Eight seasons and 344 games into his NHL career, Tlusty's ideal role has never been conclusively established. His playing time and productivity have varied wildly since his arrival in Carolina in 2010, and not always in correlation.

Season	GP	G	A	+/- Rating
2010-11	57	6	6	+1
2011-12	49	17	19	+1
2012-13*	48	23	15	+15
2013-14	68	16	14	+2

Yet Tlusty, 26, has the ability to be an upper-tier forward.

He ranked sixth in the league in scoring in the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season, racking up 23 goals in 48 games thanks to a stunning (and fluky) 19.7 shooting percentage.

A plethora of injuries prevented such rhythm to be regained for much of 2013-14, but the spring brought renewed production to No. 19's stick. Tlusty finished with 12 goals and 22 points over his last 33 appearances, including six goals and 11 points over his last 12 appearances.

The innate opportunism that has always been Tlusty's most exceptional trait also serves as his greatest hindrance—when teammates slump, Tlusty is usually carried down along with them.

The Hurricanes' now-fired coaching staff continually struggled to find his ideal spot on the depth chart. He produces best and usually serves well as a secondary option for top-line teammates, but his contributions on lower lines rarely seem to justify such a promotion.

In fact, Tlusty was largely considered a defensive winger up until the lockout. The percentage of shifts he began in the offensive zone jumped from 48.8 percent in 2011-12 to 58.5 percent in 2012-13 and 59.1 percent this past season, according to Extra Skater. Tlusty's shot-attempt differential (Corsi rating) also increased accordingly.

Consider the wide variance of Tlusty's shooting percentage rate over the last three seasons below:

From the heights of early 2012-13 to the steady struggles of early 2013-14, Tlusty's rises and falls are usually quite pronounced. He appears an unheralded top-six contributor when converting at a high rate, then an inconsequential fourth line when his rate craters a few months later.

All of the above equates to an intriguing conundrum for Ron Francis and the rest of Carolina's overhauled management staff this summer.

The 'Canes face a looming and inevitable salary-cap squeeze this offseason (unless they decide to use their allotted compliance buyouts). The club has just six forwards remaining under contract, according to Capgeek, and (along with three UFA forwards) five RFA forwards—Tlusty, Andrei Loktionov, Drayson Bowman, Nathan Gerbe and Zach Boychuk—with whom to negotiate.

Tlusty is concluding a two-year contract with a $1.6 million cap hit. Two summers ago, such a deal was a big raise for the Czech Republic native, who was coming off of two consecutive one-year contracts for $500,000 and $525,000.

This time, however, his sights are likely set even higher.

Tlusty has recorded 104 points the last three years combined, per QuantHockey.com. Matt Cullen, 37, has tallied 101 and landed a three-year contract with a $3.5 million cap hit last summer; Mikhail Grabovski, 30, has registered 103 and signed a five-year deal with a $5.5 million cap hit last summer; Patrik Berglund, 25, has recorded 95 and received a one-year contract with a $3.25 million cap hit last summer.

Those are somewhat special examples, but the comparison is nonetheless eye-opening.

Last November, TSN's Darren Dreger reported that Tlusty was one of two players on then-general manager Jim Rutherford's trading block. Luke DeCock of the News & Observer then tweeted an interesting inference in reaction:

If DeCock's opinion was indeed correct at that time, it's possible that seven months and a GM change have subdued his urges. It's also possible that it hasn't.

Can the 'Canes afford to double Tlusty's salary into the $3 or $4 million range?

Would doing so be a sensible idea in the first place?

Is Tlusty even highly interested in re-signing in Carolina?

No answer is too clear.

But a decision will have to be made regardless.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.

Last Friday's reports that Dan Bylsma would be fired from the Pittsburgh Penguins' head coaching position sent an earthquake rumbling through the Carolina Hurricanes' coaching search.

Even after such claims proved false, Bylsma has remained the assumed leading candidate in the Hurricanes' search. The 43-year-old boss, after all, has experienced tremendous regular-season success in Pittsburgh, leading the Penguins to more than 100 points prorated in all six of his partial or full campaigns there.

But Barry Trotz, who was fired this offseason after a steady 15-year tenure with the Nashville Predators, may well be a more sensible, if less sexy, hiring.

Both coaches boast fairly impressive resumes.

Bylsma led the Pens to a Stanley Cup title in 2009 and won the Jack Adams Award (Coach of the Year) in 2011; Trotz, 51, took a small-market, offensively undermanned Preds squad to the playoffs seven of the last 10 years.

The two respective coaches experienced such success, however, with two drastically different teams on the ice in front of them.

Bylsma coached behind the superstar power of such hockey icons as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, James Neal, Kris Letang, Paul Martin and Marc-Andre Fleury. Pittsburgh's team payroll has been among the seven most expensive in the NHL for all five of Bylsma's full campaigns, including the league's most expensive this past season.

Trotz, conversely, was annually forced to make do with one of the most talent-lacking forward corps, featuring less-than-famous leaders like Martin Erat, David Legwand, Mike Fisher and Patric Hornqvist. The Preds' payroll has been in the bottom third of the league since 2007-08, when Capgeek first began keeping records, and was the NHL's eighth cheapest in 2013-14.

When evaluating the two coaches' success relative to the payroll (and, thus, general quality) of the team given to them, the results are rather eye-opening.

Season	Points	Payroll (in millions)	Points/Million
2013-14	109	$69.6	1.57
2012-13*	72	$39.2	1.84
2011-12	108	$64.2	1.68
2010-11	106	$61.7	1.72
2009-10	101	$56.8	1.78
Total	496	$291.5	1.70

Season	Points	Payroll (in millions)	Points/Million
2013-14	88	$59.4	1.48
2012-13*	41	$31.4	1.30
2011-12	104	$52.2	1.99
2010-11	99	$50.9	1.94
2009-10	100	$44.2	2.26
Total	432	$238.1	1.81

Indeed, Trotz's Predators have actually earned more points in the standings per million dollars in salary-cap hit than Bylsma's Penguins have over the past half-decade.

Despite a recent surge, Carolina's spending has mirrored Nashville's much more closely than Pittsburgh's over the years, as well.

Trotz has been criticized as too conservative, focusing on defense too highly over offense. Yet again, his assigned roster comes into play: The abilities of defenseman Shea Weber and goaltender Pekka Rinne shine brightly over the Predators' aforementioned cast of forwards.

In 2013-14, the 'Canes spent $39 million on their forwards and averaged 2.50 goals per game; the Preds spent $33.0 million and averaged 2.61 goals per game.

Said Trotz in a May 13 interview with Josh Cooper of USA Today:

My situation is I've spoken to a couple of teams. They are in a process of getting their hockey operations in order, everything from a general manager search to doing their draft meetings, so... myself and my representative have been keeping in contact.

It seems fair to say that the 'Canes should certainly be one of the teams in contact.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.

A bizarre juxtaposition of rules gives the Carolina Hurricanes an opportunity to escape their upcoming salary-cap dilemma by simply spending even more money.

However, it's still not clear if the team will actually take advantage of such an opportunity.

Entering the 2014 NHL offseason, the 'Canes retain both of their compliance buyouts awarded to each team after the salary-cap reduction of the 2013 collective bargaining agreement.

When used on a player signed before September 15, 2012, the compliance buyout eliminates all future cap hit, but necessitates a 66 percent salary payment for players age 26 or older.

With the cap jumping from $64.3 million in 2013-14 to a projected $71 million in 2014-15, however, remaining compliance buyouts are about to become legal loopholes.

Carolina didn't use them last summer. New general manger Ron Francis begins work with both at his temporary disposal.

With the team projected to have just $19.3 million in space to work with this summer (12th-least in the league) and a mere 13 players under NHL contract (second-fewest in the league), it would seem the 'Canes would be well-advised to use one or both as easy solutions to the impending payroll crisis.

Cam Ward, already walking on shaky ground after a weak 2013-14 effort, would certainly be suspect No. 1.

The former Stanley Cup winner has become an inconsistent piece of glass who is a bit pricey for a backup netminder—more than a bit, actually, at $6.3 million per year.

Thanks to the compliance buyout concept, his contract is instantly removable for a lump sum payment of $8.4 million. Is it worth it? That's a question that may keep Francis up at night.

John-Michael Liles has two years remaining at $3.875 million per season and could be a strong second in the "competition" for most tantalizing buyout.

Liles wasn't particularly bad after Carolina acquired him in January, but he—much like Tim Gleason, the man sent the other direction in the New Year's Day trade—is making well above market value.

Given that his extension was signed after September 2012, Alexander Semin is not eligible for a compliance buyout, and probably fortunately so: Statistics suggest he's very due for a rebound 2014-15 campaign.

Farther down the payroll list, Jay Harrison (two seasons remaining at $1.5 million per) is coming off arguably his worst professional season and could offer a less expensive route for Francis to clear out some misused money.

Conversely, owner Peter Karmanos mentioned to The News & Observer a disbelief in the salary-success correlation and, mindful of the club's declining financial situation, may not be willing to be so liberal with his cash.

According to Forbes.com, the Hurricanes organization operated at a $3.4 million loss in 2013 and functions under the third-highest debt in the league—only the Phoenix Coyotes and New Jersey Devils have more. 

As Karmanos moves from Michigan to Raleigh and takes on a more influential role with the franchise's business side, the club's collective wallet may soon speak louder than ever before.

Around the NHL this offseason, spending more money off the books will suddenly translate to a greater ability to spend money on the books. 

The league is taking a one-year vacation into the loose world of the "soft cap." Rich franchises will suddenly find their excess cash the most directly convertible to roster improvement since the cap implementation in 2005.

The contradiction is confusing, but the reality is straightforward—and is about to become a leading theme in summer activity.

Whether the 'Canes will choose to take part, though, remains uncertain.

Salary and buyout information courtesy of CapGeek.com.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.

Over the course of 1,731 games and 23 NHL seasons, new Carolina Hurricanes general manager Ron Francis played with a vast number of teammates.

This summer, as Francis begins his general manager tenure searching for a new head coach, those peer connections have again risen to the forefront.

The list of Francis' former on-ice teammates-turned-coaches is lengthy: Kevin Dineen, Ed Olczyk, Ulf Samuelsson, Dean Evason, Doug Jarvis, Rick Tocchet.

The amount of off-ice coaching success those men have had, however, is minimal. 

It may be great for Francis' social life to choose one of his buddies as head coach—but it would be neither just nor considerable for him to cripple the 'Canes with such cronyism.

Of the six, Dineen has had by far the most success behind an NHL bench, but to label his entire coaching tenure with the Florida Panthers as successful is still generous. 

Dineen, now 50, led the Panthers to their first-ever division title and first playoff appearance in 11 years in 2012. He did so, however, with a loser-point-aided losing record (38-44) and lost to the sixth-seeded New Jersey Devils in the first round. 

The Panthers then floundered to a pathetic 15-33 record in lockout-shortened 2012-13 and to a 3-13 mark to begin 2013-14 before Dineen and staff were fired.

The inexperienced boss, who played with Francis in Hartford from 1984-1991 and in Carolina in 1998-99, admittedly dealt with a severely salary- and talent-lacking squad for the majority of his time in South Florida, but his results were almost equally mediocre.

Olczyk, now a familiar name to all for his analysis on NBC national broadcasts, hasn't coached since 2005, when he finished off the Pittsburgh Penguins' pre-Sidney Crosby era in ugly fashion.

The Pens posted a brutal 23-59 record under Olczyk's guidance (if it could be called such) in 2003-04; following the lockout year, they then began the 2005-06 campaign 8-23—despite rookie Crosby's 31 points in 31 games—before the Olczyk disaster was finally called off. 

Francis spent just two seasons, 1996-97 and 1997-98, as his teammate in Pittsburgh; for the Hurricanes' sake, it's worth hoping that the bond between the pair didn't grow too deep in those two years.

Samuelsson has perhaps displayed the most dedication to coaching of the six, leading Swedish club Modo to a 47-49-13 record in 2011-12 and 2012-13 and serving as both a Coyotes and Rangers assistant in the past half-decade, but he's also widely regarded as one of the dirtiest players in NHL history.

Would he toughen up Drayson Bowman? Yes, probably. Would he be able to help Eric Staal's struggling confidence and production much? Doubtful.

Evason played with Francis in Hartford from 1984 to 1991 and currently holds the Kirk Muller-vacated job as head coach of the Milwaukee Admirals (the Nashville Predators' AHL affiliate).

Jarvis also skated alongside Francis in Hartford in 1985-86 and 1986-87 and has been spent eight years as an NHL assistant: 2005-2009 in Montreal and 2010 since in Boston. 

Tocchet, a teammate of Francis for three seasons in the Steel City, coached two disappointing and forgettable years in Tampa Bay before being axed. The Lightning won a mere 19 games in 2009-10 under his leadership, then improved to 34 in 2010-11, yet it wasn't enough to prolong Tocchet's fate.

It's certainly no secret that retired star players often fail miserably in attempts to convert others into stars. Wayne Gretzky stands as a glaringly blatant example of the failed transition, but others such as Butch Goring, Vic Stasiuk, Bryan Trottier and Curt Fraser also experienced similar failures.

GMs around the league today still commit that mistake, though. Colorado's Patrick Roy and his miracle turnaround exists as an exception, not a standard.

Arguably scarier than the embarrassingly weak resumes of Dineen, Olczyk, Samuelsson and the others, however, is the public traction they're gaining in the Hurricanes' coaching search.

TSN's Bob McKenzie stirred the pot with this tweet last week:

Chip Alexander of the News & Observer mentioned Samuelsson's name early in his column last week:

Francis said he could not talk about anyone who is under contract. That could include an assistant coach such as Ulf Samuelsson of the New York Rangers, who are facing the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second round of the playoffs.

Samuelsson and Francis are close friends and once were teammates with the Hartford Whalers and later the Penguins, twice winning the Stanley Cup in Pittsburgh.

Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun also daringly proclaimed Dineen as Carolina's "expected" next head coach:

In an extensive poll conducted by the Canes Country blog, 20 percent of the fanbase voted for Dineen as their first-choice coaching hire—just three percentage points shy of Barry Trotz for the largest majority. Samuelsson accounted for another five percent of the vote.

Frankness and familiarity are always positive group traits within a professional team management group. 

But now is not the time for the Hurricanes to stay trapped within their comfort zone. Cronyism has too often before trapped the team in a harmful and uncomfortable bind—the brotherhood between Eric, Jordan and even Jared Staal, the friendship between Jim Rutherford and Paul Maurice.

Now is the time for the Hurricanes to add the fresh perspectives of those outside the organization, those with different ideas and different experiences, those most dissimilar to the men who have led the team down this very path to the league basement. 

Ron Francis boldly challenged both himself and the franchise last week with the firing of Kirk Muller and staff. 

He cannot afford to now take a step back into the safe mental prison of familiarity which so haunted his predecessor. 

The hiring of an unqualified former teammate as Carolina's next head coach would be an immense gaffe with possibly irreversible consequences.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.

Just one week after taking over the Carolina Hurricanes' general manager position, Ron Francis made a strong statement about his leadership abilities and organizational vision.

Monday, Francis did more than sweep the porch. The 51-year-old former Hall of Famer fired head coach Kirk Muller after three seasons, axed assistants Dave Lewis and John MacLean and even reassigned goalie coach Greg Stefan. 

Monday, Francis renovated the house.

"In fairness to Kirk and his staff, it wasn't your typical first three years as a head coach," he said in a press conference later in the afternoon. "Coming in the first year, then having a lot go on the second year and then an Olympic year the third year."

"But for me, it was important to get a fresh start moving forward."

A fresh start indeed. Only seven days removed from his induction press conference, in which he called the coaching situation "a decision that kind of needs due process," Francis' moves on Monday were unprecedentedly swift. 

In the span of a single week—one that Francis called "a pretty rough first week" in one of Monday's lighter moments—the Hurricanes have removed the incumbent from arguably the four most prominent offices on the team. 

Yet the quick and sweeping decision also emphasized Francis' unwavering confidence in an executive role, setting forth a standard of decisiveness that already contrasts sharply with Jim Rutherford's legacy of frustrating hesitancy.

Such a standard could prove even more critical for Carolina's team identity search when the draft and free agency roll around. Opposing GMs may take Francis and the reinvigorated 'Canes front office more seriously; interested players on the open market may do the same when considering Raleigh as a destination.

Francis' boldness will surely send a message to owner Peter Karmanos, too, who seemed to be on a fast track toward micromanagement over the past few months.

Karmanos received considerable ire in April after telling TV commentator John Forslund, "I like our coaching staff. I think they've made a lot of progress with the team."

Monday, Francis figuratively told Karmanos to be quiet and stay focused solely on the business side.

It takes a lot of bravery for a first-year, much less first-week, general manager to send that kind of public memo to an owner. It also offers a glimpse into Francis' leadership mentality that should excite fans tremendously.

Francis noted he hopes to have a new coaching staff in place before the NHL draft on June 27.

"I'm looking for a guy that is a teacher," he said in the press conference. "In today's game, you have to be able to communicate extremely well...you have to have strong leadership qualities and...you have to be able to manage people and the different personalities that you're dealing with in that locker room."

Francis mentioned he had "already had...some calls and emails" from prospective coaches, as well.

Monday's decision jump-started an offseason of wide-scale change for the 'Canes organization, an offseason that is really just beginning. If the past week has opened up the opportunities for reconstruction, the months ahead will provide the true excitement of filling them.

It's comforting to know that Ron Francis is prepared to take firm command in the face of such wide-scale change.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.

Beneath the commotion around Ron Francis' promotion to general manager, junior league dynasty coach Mike Vellucci may slip in quietly to the Carolina Hurricanes' new assistant GM position.

Vellucci, 47, has dominated the Canadian junior leagues for the past 14 years, coaching the OHL's Plymouth Whalers (also owned by Carolina owner Peter Karmanos) to six West Division titles and nine second-round postseason appearances in 13 seasons (he took most of 2007-08 off).

He's produced five NHL first-round selections the past four years, including 2010 No. 2 pick Tyler Seguin.

He's worked with a number of current Hurricanes players and prospects including Brett Bellemore, Justin Peters, Chris Terry, Michal Jordan, Beau Schmitz and Austin Levi.

And Monday, he was handed a massive new job with the NHL franchise he has long maintained ties with, taking over one of two assistant GM openings—along with more experienced NHL front office man Brian Tatum—as well as the Director of Hockey Operations position.

Vellucci is taking over the same roles held by Francis the past three seasons and has a strong relationship with the team's new GM.

Said Francis of Vellucci at Monday's press conference:

He's dabbled in all facets of their business from the draft to their coaching to being their general manager. I think he even ran the building up there. He's got a lot of, not only hockey experience but business experience. I'm looking forward to working with Mike as he's eager to take on the next challenge in his career.

But Vellucci also brings a fresh perspective and a habit of success to the 'Canes organization, which is decidedly lacking in both of those regards.

During his time in Plymouth, the Whalers consistently remained one of the powers of the OHL, recording 398 wins, 218 losses, 38 overtime losses and 36 ties in 690 regular-season games.

Vellucci won OHL Coach of the Year in 2006-07, leading Plymouth to a franchise record 65-18-2-3 combined record and a league title. He also worked directly with a number of future NHL superstars over the years, from Columbus' James Wisniewski (70 points in 50 games in 2003-04) to Pittsburgh's James Neal (who scored 65 points in 45 games in 2006-07) and Dallas' Seguin (103 points in 63 games in 2009-10).

"It's been a good, long 14 years," Vellucci told George Sipple of the Detroit Free Press. "Hopefully I've put a good product on the ice for them and made them proud to be Whaler fans."

Now Vellucci will be working with—albeit indirectly—such superstars as Eric Staal, Alexander Semin, Jeff Skinner and Justin Faulk. He'll be part of Francis' new "cabinet," advising on NHL personnel transactions.

He'll be helping on the scouting side, too, making trips much like Francis' voyage to Finland last week that delayed the Rutherford resignation announcement.

Said Vellucci to Tim Smith of the Observer & Eccentric on Monday:

You get out what you put into it and I pride myself on being a loyal employee, and somebody that works hard every day. In return, people will take notice. And being able to work in the National Hockey League has been a dream of mine. To work with somebody like Ron Francis is a very prestigious thing and a cool thing. I’m proud I’m getting the opportunity.

In the face of criticism that this spring's changes are more of an reorganization than a rebuilding—Rutherford is staying as president, Francis and Tatum were both already part of the franchise, and the disliked Karmanos is moving to Raleigh from Detroit to take over the team's business operations—Vellucci's unfamiliar face may earn him a warm welcome from Day 1 on.

He clearly knows how to make a team win from behind the bench. That much is certain.

Now the biggest challenge of his career lies ahead: translating that experience and legacy to the front office of an NHL franchise.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.

On the evening of July 15, 2006, Carolina Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford addressed a tribute dinner in his hometown of Beeton, Ontario.

He was just 26 days removed from winning the Stanley Cup.

Said Rutherford to the 150 in attendance, "Y'know, if I'm not fortunate enough to win this again, I hope Paul [Maurice] gets to win this in Toronto."

Seven years, nine months and 13 days later, Rutherford's then-heartfelt optimism reeks of naivety and nostalgia.

The joy and accomplishment felt that warm summer night in Canada was about to be permanently replaced by failure, frustration and an insatiable longing to return again to the top of the NHL. He never was destined to win it all again; nor was Maurice, even after being re-hired by Rutherford and the 'Canes in December 2008. 

Today, Rutherford's reign as general manager of the Hartford/Carolina franchise ended, 20 tumultuous years after its beginning and almost eight years after its climax.

The 65-year-old man sat and spoke solemnly at a press conference half the size of those which followed his team after their 2006 championship, no longer arguably the most powerful leader in the Hurricanes franchise and now simply an aging relic of the oft-traveled player-to-executive hockey road. 

It was a quiet, humbling and disappointing conclusion to a career more associated with its lean years than with its occasional achievement.

Per Monday's conference, Rutherford will hand over the GM duties to Ron Francis, who has served as assistant GM in recent years. Francis will be joined by Mike Vellucci and Brian Tatum on the front office staff.

"I'm really pleased with the direction we're going," said Rutherford, honesty neither expected nor delivered. "Ronnie [Francis] has paid his dues, he's a good person...he'll be a good general manager."

"Twenty years was a long time for me; I've thought about this for a few years and certainly...the time is right now. I'd like to thank Peter for the opportunity he gave me, and the support he gave me over the years."

After the obligatory but likely less-than-sincere thanks to the "respectful" fans, media and Gary Bettman, Rutherford addressed his new role as president with a touch of submissiveness.

"I'm only in an advisory role, so if [Francis] wants to ask me a question, he can do that at his own risk," he said. "I retain the President's role, but no one will report me so I'm stepping a long way away from it."

Rutherford went into more specifics in a later interview with Bob Wage of Canes Country:

I gave this job everything I had.  Are there some decisions that I made I would like to have a mulligan on?  Yes, maybe...

For instance the Ruutu-Ladd trade.  At the time, Ladd was hurt a lot, although he was a good player, but we were desperate for help at center ice and Ruutu was a two-position player, so that is why we made that trade.  You can debate it whether it was good or bad, like any trade, but at the time we made it, we had valid reasons. 

Perhaps most perplexing about Rutherford's future legacy is his lack of a current legacy.

What will he will remembered for? The move to North Carolina, the trade for Rod Brind'Amour, the 2005-06 rags-to-riches Stanley Cup season? Or the Brendan Shanahan debacle, the two Maurice hirings, the Staal family obsession? 

For every Alexander Semin free-agency signing, there was a Tomas Kaberle disaster.

For every Doug Weight trade, there was a Chris Pronger trade mistake.

For every Eric Staal draft selection, there was a Jack Johnson first-round fiasco.

Every positive move Rutherford made was eventually counterbalanced by an equally negative one; every benefit from a smart decision was nulled down the road by a close-minded blunder. 

When Flyers GM Paul Holmgren retires, he will be remembered for mega-contracts and aggressive offseason stances. When Predators GM David Poile retires, he will remembered for his stick-it-out philosophy and depth-focused salary distribution.

Yet both will also be remembered for the success they brought to their respective clubs.

Flip-flopping Rutherford spent half his career as Holmgren and the other as Poile with no clear pattern year-to-year either.

One year, the 'Canes would seek to develop their youth and build for the future; the next, the 'Canes would push a fix-it-with-money urgency.

In the end, neither proved effective over the long term.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.