Habs, Kings, Ducks General Managers Named as Finalists for GM of the Year Award

May 24, 2014

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(Photo: NHL.com)

The finalists for the NHL’s General Manager of the Year Award were announced yesterday. Marc Bergevin of the Montreal Canadiens and Bob Murray of the Anaheim Ducks have been named finalists for the second consecutive season, and Dean Lombardi of the LA Kings has been named a finalist for the first time.

Bergevin has been with the Canadiens since May of 2012, and was commended for his success in acquiring offensive threats during the offseason.

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 for Thomas 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.

LA Kings General Manager Lombardi was appointed to his position in 2006, and was GM during the team’s 2012 Stanley Cup win. The Kings are currently in the Western Conference Final.

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 Muzzin and 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.

Murray was named general manager of the Anaheim Ducks in 2008. The Ducks won the Pacific Division title for the second consecutive season before falling to the LA Kings in the playoffs.

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-signing Matt
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 in Mark Fistric
, Tim Jackman, Stephane Robidas and Jakob Silfverberg; and oversaw the
development of young goaltenders Frederik Andersen and John Gibson.