The St. Louis Blues are making waves, not for their play on the ice or even for rumors about players.
Chatter surrounding the club is picking up due to current GM Doug Armstrong’s move out of his current position.
Of course, we all know the situation: Armstrong is moving out of the GM role and into the President of Hockey Operations chair. That’s been the plan for a while. And thus far, there hasn’t been any inkling that might change.
This past week, however, there was some talk emerging that Armstrong might be considering taking on a GM role in another organization. Specifically, rumors suggested the Toronto Maple Leafs might come calling if there was an opening in their GM and President of Hockey Operations roles.
That situation sounds more like a conspiracy theory. But now, a notable insider has added fuel to that fire. Pierre LeBrun recently appeared on Melnick in the Afternoon, discussing, among other topics, the possibility of Armstrong considering a GM position in another organization.
“He does not feel like someone saying goodbye to the hockey world… I got the...impression that, if a team came calling, that he would listen.”
All right, so there’s nothing wrong with listening. But if someone is happy with their current job, they wouldn’t be listening to other offers. While they might still get offers, they would politely turn them down.
If LeBrun’s comments do have any truth to them, it could be that there are rumblings behind the scenes. SO, it might just be a matter of time before some real chatter emerges.
Would Armstrong's moving to another organization be a betrayal for Blues fans?
One of the questions that arises when considering a move by Doug Armstrong to another organization is an apparent betrayal. It would seem that Armstrong is just looking for an opportunity to dump the Blues and move on to greener pastures.
If the move were to Toronto, well, those aren’t exactly greener pastures.
But from a rational perspective, Armstrong’s move to another team would necessarily be a betrayal to Blues fans.
The reasoning here is simple. It seems that Armstrong’s time in St. Louis has reached an end. There are times when a person has just reached a natural end in a company or a job. It’s like there’s nothing left to prove in that role.
In fact, there are times when you’ve been in a job for so long that moving on to another company is a way of rekindling interest in your career.
Perhaps that’s where this is going. Doug Armstrong might not be ready to hang up the phone. By the same token, perhaps taking on the toughest job of all, the GM role in the worst media market, Toronto, could be the ultimate challenge for Armstrong.
Who knows? This is pure speculation. The rumors seem outlandish and not something truly worthy of digging any deeper into. But, curiously, talk is picking up momentum. So, we shall see if anything truly serious comes of this discussion.