Brian Burke Says Thanks, But No Thanks To Talk Of Leafs GM Job
Posted January 25, 2008 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Brian Burke isn’t interested in being the general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Not yet.
The Anaheim Ducks GM was in T.O. Friday, making a stop at the Hockey Hall of Fame alongside Ducks owners Henry and Susan Samueli, who were donating a Stanley Cup ring to the hockey shrine.
With the bitter winds of January day battering the windows, Burke stated emphatically that he and his wife are happy in California and he has no interest in applying for the Leafs’ job that Cliff Fletcher is filling on an interim basis following the firing of John Ferguson Tuesday.
“I have no intention of going anywhere else,” said Burke. “I’ve said this repeatedly to anyone who will listen.
“I’m not sure which part of it I’m not saying in English. We really love it in Anaheim. We work for special people there. We want to stay.”
Burke is locked into a four-year contract that keeps him paid through 2008-2009. He added that he expects contract negotiations over an extension to heat up following this campaign.
“I’m flattered by all this,” he said of conjecture he might want to move back to Canada and join the Leafs. “It’s a great job.
“If you’re Catholic, this is the Vatican … they’re not going to have to beg anyone to take this job. This is one of the plum jobs in all of pro sports.”
But Toronto’s place at the centre of the hockey universe doesn’t appear to be enough for the veteran NHL architect, who could ultimately have a change of heart, but isn’t likely to admit it until things are a little different, contractually speaking.
“I’m flattered by all the attention and that someone would think I’m the right guy for this, but I have a job that I love and I work for special people in the Samuelis. I’m not going anywhere.”
After th presentation, the Samuelis, Burke and other Ducks executives were off to Atlanta for the weekend’s all-star game festivities. It was the first time that an NHL club donated a championship ring to the Hockey Hall of Fame. The ring was placed in a display case alongside an 1893 ring, which was the first year a team gave its players a Stanley Cup ring.
