Free advice: Silence is golden

From my own observations, deductions, things I’ve heard, and other pieces of evidence, I’ve come to this conclusion: Brian Burke’s only job in Calgary is to say things.

I came to this primarily because of his job title, President of Hockey Operations. Think of the teams that have POHOs (or similar titles): Edmonton, Vancouver, Toronto, Columbus, and Calgary. All teams that have been rebuilding in recent years. Think of the people hired to be POHOs: Kevin Lowe, Trevor Linden, Brendan Shanahan, John Davidson, and Burke, respectively. They’re all huge names, well respected in the hockey world.

This is mostly because, in my opinion, POHO is mostly a symbolic position without any real responsibilities. Despite the important sounding words, the POHO is mostly here to offer some legitimacy to a rebuilding team. Teams like the fanfare of bringing in a big name to right the ship, especially if hopes are down.

However, their real results are hazy. There never appears to be a clear distinction between what is the POHO’s doing and what is the GM’s doing. Being POHO probably means that you are an extra voice in the room or occasionally consulting with a GM, but the power is actually very limited. It’s mostly a speaking role for GMs who are either too shy or too boring for network TV. That comes with its prices.

Consider when Burke first stepped aboard. After two fruitless years of rebuilding under Jay Feaster, the team was going nowhere. Especially after a disastrous 2012-13 season when he declared a high schooler to be the second coming of Joe Nieuwendyk, threw away the two best players – one of them the face of the franchise – for magic beans, and nearly tossed away first and third round picks for the opportunity to lose Ryan O’Reilly on waivers due to not reading the CBA (he also traded for and signed Dennis Wideman that year, but that was regarded as a good move). Perhaps if this organization was to go anywhere, it needed someone who had a bit more of a clue of what was happening and didn’t make grand declarations they couldn’t live up to.

Enter Burkie. Maybe in the first few months of the job, he had substantial and important things to do, such as firing Feaster and steering the ship for about a half a season. It went mostly alright; he managed to get a pick for Reto Berra but didn’t for Mike Cammalleri. The only move he made which still has an impact today was extending Matt Stajan. That was Burke’s impact on Calgary Flames hockey.

But ever since hiring Brad Treliving, it’s quite clear who is calling the shots. Even though some like to pretend that every bad move under Treliving was actually done by Burke, it’s more than likely he was, at most, just a voice in the room. There has never really been substantial evidence that Burke is actively overstepping Treliving and exercising his authority as POHO. If that was happening, the Flames would be the most dysfunctional organization in the league. Treliving probably would not have re-signed in Calgary. Burke’s role in the org during the Treliving era has mostly been to say stuff.

Here’s an example. At last year’s season ticket holder’s town hall, Burke said stuff like this:

That didn’t happen. Unless he was being incredibly crafty about Bollig’s imminent demotion to the AHL, he was speaking his honest opinion. He wanted Brandon Bollig to play more hockey. Everyone disagreed. Burke shuffled off and didn’t make a peep about it ever again, and didn’t do anything about it because everyone – literally, the people who are theoretically below him in the organizational structure – said, “No.” Seems like the president, the guy with the most power, couldn’t use that power for anything.

But of course, these are examples of the harmless things he says. Who really cares if they hand Burke a microphone at a town hall event? Everyone else is busy, he has some idea of what’s going on, and he’s got some pretty good quotes. That’s why they give him the mic during the trade deadline, sports network interviews, and pretty much any place where there is a mic. He can give you a headline.

Not all headlines are good ones, for example:

Now, there are many problems with these words. We can talk about the negligent, carefree attitude towards concussions, one of the most damaging injuries this sport can give a person. We can talk about the dumb reinforcement of a hockey culture that rewards the destruction of the human mind and body for the sake of appearing tougher and manlier than other sports.

But those are articles for other people at other times. Let’s just talk about how ridiculously short-sighted and completely misguided it is to say those words while the team that employs you is currently listed as a defender in a lawsuit centering around a head injury resulting from hockey.

How awkward will it be when the plaintiff of that lawsuit brings up this awesome quote of the head honcho saying, “Well that’s just how it is,” to the needless injury that ended a man’s career (or the chances of him living the rest of his days in a state without massive pain)? I’m not much of a legal expert, but I would definitely imagine that the President of Hockey Operations’ lax comments on the nature of concussions in hockey are not going to do him many favours in court over a concussion-related matter.

How can anyone, especially in the Flames organization, hear these comments and not respond with absolute fury? It’s not only a completely callous thing to say, it dives carelessly into the territories of “irresponsible” and “actually damaging.” If absolutely nothing else was happening, this comment is just an embarrassment the team can duck and hide. Now, it could potentially carry legal weight and ramifications. It’s eleven words that could cost the franchise millions.

Somehow, Burke was not done:

Well, we’re sorry to break it to you Brian, but CalgaryNEXT is in fact very much dead, and everyone agrees with that. It was an abhorrently crappy proposal that sucked from its unveiling and was never approved upon, and it was generous that the city acknowledged it in the first place. Our civic leaders may be onto something when they remain cautious about using public money, and we know you’re bluffing on the moving thing.

This huffing and puffing spread so fast that it forced Ken King to apologize for Burke’s comments. Yes, the very same Ken King whose public appearances in recent years have mostly been him apologizing for things he said earlier. It is quite something when he has to apologize for your remarks.

The statement is standard fare. Four sentences long, but you only have to pay attention to the middle two:

Indeed, Brian Burke is not a spokesperson for the new arena project. He also is not a spokesperson for concussions (the Flames did not respond to that comment), or for anything else for that matter.

Which raises the question: if Brian Burke is not the spokesperson of anything, why do the Flames keep trotting him out to any event that needs someone speaking? Why do the Flames keep bothering with the charade if it can, and repeatedly does, backfire on the organization?

The silence on the issue has, as already detailed, negative effects on real world things that affect the Flames. Here’s mayor Naheed Nenshi in response to Burke:

King might love his “enthusiasm,” but that doesn’t change the fact that Burke has increased the stress on an already strained relationship with the city. Comments like these only weaken the bargaining position of the Flames in negotiations. Neither of those are necessary when arena negotiations are reportedly going swimmingly and there is potential for a deal before the municipal election. What is the point of trying to big-talk the city when the city has rebuffed you at every turn? What’s the point of big-talking when there’s actually progress being made on the project?

Furthermore, what is the point of Brian Burke anymore? The Flames have a proven competent GM now, one that they clearly trust with autonomy. Without completely knowing the roles and responsibilities, I still feel it’s safe to say that if Burke was no longer (if he still is) involved in hockey ops, nothing would change. Treliving would do what he does, all is fine.

If he still is substantially involved in hockey ops, that might be for the best because it’s better than whenever he actually speaks. If Burke’s main role here is to be the speaker, he’s not doing a very good job of it. His hot-headed honesty might be considered good TV, but at the risk of pissing off the fanbase, the city, and the hockey world in general, it’s too much. There’s a point where his words do more than make people roll their eyes.