Trust the Gorton's Fisherman!

In one of the oddest managerial changes in recent memory, the New York Islanders fired GM Neil Smith today. It's not altogether odd that the Islanders fired Smith, considering the legions of men who have come to Nassau Coliseum with the best of intentions only to leave bloodied and confused. What is odd is who the Islanders chose to replace him with.

Meet Garth Snow.


Yes, that Garth Snow. He of the giant shoulder pads and with the words "career backup" seemingly permanently attached to his first name. Well, he did have a decent run with the Flyers in the late 90s...or maybe it was the early 00s... I guess his run in Philly wasn't that decent if it can't stay in my gray matter, eh?

I'm not here to question Garth Snow's hockey acumen. (His shoulder pads, maybe.) And I'm not here to question Charles Wang's business acumen. He's owned more hockey teams than I have. All I'm saying is that when it came time to find a new GM, Wang chose the guy on the end of the bench, sitting on that little step above everyone else. The guy with the fresh towel around his neck. The one with the half-empty water bottle who spends most of his evening at the arena looking up at the Jumbotron.

Doesn't that strike you as a bid odd? What if this trend is picked up in the other major North American team sports? Is Ozzie Newsome on the verge of being replaced as the Ravens GM by Kyle Boller? Does Joe Dumars have to look over his shoulder to see if Carlos Delfino is going to take his job? Is Brian Cashman worried that Kelly Stinnett is going to see the Boss behind his back?

There's been some questionable coach/GM decisions made to be sure. The post-Pat Riley era was pretty bizarre for the Lakers. Some worked out, even if it was with another team (Randy Pfund, polishing a ring as the GM of the newly crowned Heat) and some didn't work out at all and the remnants were never heard from again. (Bill Bertka, please pick up a white courtesy phone.) I think it's safe to say that the aforementioned examples both featured longtime, experienced people in the league who had paid their dues and worked their way up. And it's not like former athletes (star or otherwise) have all been busts. Mike Scioscia's made a nice name for himself as a manager, and you can easily find former players who have shown they can handle running operations quite successfully...that Larry Bird guy's had his ups and downs, but he's done alright running the Pacers.

However, in the new era of sports (1980-present) has there ever been someone who went straight from the playing field to the front office? Even Michael Jordan, arguably the best player in any team sport ever had problems in his first front office stint and couldn't get back on the floor fast enough. The other possible "best ever" is Wayne Gretzky, and he wisely tip-toed lightly into sports management, first taking the reigns of Team Canada before joining the Coyotes. So, is Charles Wang and the Islanders hierarchy telling me that Wayne freaking Gretzky couldn't skate from his last shift to the front office, but Garth Snow can? I don't buy it.