MONTREAL, QC. — Canadiens Marc Bergevin was named by the NHL as one of three finalists for the 2013-14 NHL General Manager of the Year Award. Bergevin’s fellow nominees are Dean Lombardi of the Los Angeles Kings and Bob Murray of the Anaheim Ducks. Murray and Bergevin have been nominated for the second consecutive season.
In the past year Bergevin’s acquisitions have included Christian Thomas, George Parros, Dale Weise, Robert Czarnik, Mike Weaver, Devan Dubnyk, Daniel Briere and Douglas Murray. Canadiens fans were largely underwhelmed by the additions until the dying seconds of the NHL trade deadline when Bergevin was able to land the coveted forward Thomas Vanek from the New York Islanders.
From NHL.com:
Voting for this award was conducted among the 30 club general managers and a panel of NHL executives, print and broadcast media at the conclusion of the Second Round of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The winner will be announced Tuesday, June 24, during the 2014 NHL Awards from Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas.
Following are the finalists for the NHL General Manager of the Year Award, in alphabetical order:
Marc Bergevin, Montreal Canadiens
Bergevin guided the Canadiens (46-28-8, 100 points) to their second 100-point season since 1992-93, leading the team to the playoffs for the second time in as many years as general manager. He bolstered the offense with the summer signing of Daniel Briere and also added grit with the offseason acquisitions of Douglas Murray and George Parros. Bergevin then shored up the roster with midseason trades forThomas Vanek, Mike Weaver and Dale Weise, all of whom played critical roles in the team advancing to the Eastern Conference Final for the second time in the past five seasons.
Dean Lombardi, Los Angeles Kings
Under the direction of Lombardi, the Kings (46-28-8, 100 points) earned their fifth consecutive playoff berth, recorded their fourth 100-point season in franchise history and made their third straight appearance in the Western Conference Final. He solidified the team’s blue line by re-signing defensemen Alec Martinez, Jake Muzzinand Slava Voynov and did the same up front by bringing back Dustin Brown, Kyle Clifford,Trevor Lewis and Jordan Nolan. Lombardi then kick-started the club’s offense with the addition of Marian Gaborik at the Trade Deadline; after being blanked six times in 63 games prior to his arrival, the Kings were not shut out once in the final 19 contests of the regular season with Gaborik in the lineup.
Bob Murray, Anaheim Ducks
Murray paved the way for the finest season in Ducks history, leading the team to its second straight Pacific Division title; the top record in the Western Conference for the first time in club history; and franchise records in wins (54), points (116), points percentage (.707), home wins (29) and road wins (25). He set the Ducks up for success by re-signingMatt Beleskey, Saku Koivu, Ben Lovejoy and Kyle Palmieri as well as enticing Teemu Selanne to return for one final season. Murray also traded for Mathieu Perreault during the preseason; added depth players inMark Fistric, Tim Jackman, Stephane Robidas and Jakob Silfverberg; and oversaw the development of young goaltenders Frederik Andersen and John Gibson.