As I was thinking about yesterday’s trade and how it might affect our Penguins—artistically and financially—it brought to mind a general manager from the past.
His name was Aldege “Baz” Bastien. Like present-day GM Jim Rutherford he, too, was a former goalie who had once backstopped a Steel City hockey team. In Baz’s case, the old Pittsburgh Hornets of the AHL. He was struck in the eye with a puck one night, back when netminders plied their trade barefaced. It cost him the eye…and a promising career. Which forever endeared him to our hardscrabble, steelworker fans.
Baz worked his way into management with Detroit and Kansas City before eventually returning to Pittsburgh in 1976 as the Pens assistant GM. The following year he was promoted to general manager. Recalling the gritty goalie from the Hornets’ glory days, most fans heartily endorsed the move.
Bastien arrived at a troubled time. The Penguins had entered into receivership—effectively declaring bankruptcy—only two years earlier. Edward DeBartolo, Sr. and his construction millions had not yet arrived on the scene. The existing owners hardly had deep pockets. Nor were the Penguins a popular draw. Sellouts were extremely rare. More often than not, the team skated before sparse crowds at the old Civic Arena.
Needless to say, Bastien faced a difficult mandate. Keep what was, at best, a mediocre team with too few stars afloat. Do it with a farm system that had been slashed to the bone by penny-pinching owners. And do it on a shoestring budget.
Since finances didn’t afford Baz the luxury of waiting for prospects to develop, he made trades. Lots of ‘em. Twenty-eight, by my count, over the course of his six seasons at the helm.
Some, like prying power-play wizard Paul Gardner loose from Toronto for a pair of minor-leaguers? Brilliant. Others, such as surrendering a first-round pick to Washington for pedestrian winger Hartland Monahan? Terrible. Most were tit-for-tat—swapping our problem players for those of another club.
To sweeten the pot, Baz often included draft choices in his trades. During his tenure he dealt four first-round picks. Second- and third-round choices, too.
If this has an all-too-familiar ring, it should. While the underlying forces at work are different, Rutherford operates in much the same manner. Pressed, I’m sure, by an ownership group that desires to maintain a certain degree of luster for a shopworn team in order to sell it, JR’s caught in an endless cycle of trying to make improvements to a fading former champion without the aid of a productive farm system or significant salary-cap space. A dynamic that compels him to overreach or overpay. Or both. Which he seems to do quite regularly these days.
Kind of like thrashing about in quicksand. Or “rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic,” as a commenter on another blog so aptly put it.
The Baz Bastien Era did not end well. After bobbing along like a cork atop turbulent seas through five choppy seasons, the team sank like a stone in Baz’s final year. Just as he was about to plot a new and uncharted course—building through the draft—Bastien tragically perished following an automobile accident in the spring of 1983.
His predecessor, Eddie Johnston, was left to set the new plan in motion. Fortunately, a phenom named Mario Lemieux was waiting in the wings.
A great History lesson Rick of the Pen’s organization before Mario arrived.
I never experienced the actual details of the early years of the Pen’s before Mario and to think that the original Fan Base in Pittsburgh actually went thru
similar situations before. It must be very disheartening for many of them to see the slide starting all over again.
Thanks.
Thanks Jim.
At the risk of sounding like I’m speaking out of two sides of my mouth, you certainly can’t fault Rutherford for doing everything in his power to try and improve the team. Especially with the Pens still very much in the playoff hunt. And his last two trades—purely from an on-ice standpoint—were good ones.
Trevor Daley was a huge upgrade over Rob Scuderi, and I think Carl Hagelin will likewise prove to be a much better fit than David Perron, who just seemed to fight the puck the whole time he was here. JRs replaced two plow horses with two guys who can really skate, and I thought the Pens’ newfound speed was evident during yesterday’s impressive 5-0 win over Carolina. That’s the most flow they’ve displayed since goodness knows when.
However, there is a price to pay when you’re forced to rely almost solely on trades to make improvements. Picking up part of Scuderi’s salary for one, although that may have been unavoidable. And adding a guy who, while a good player, is probably overpaid at $4 million a year (for four years). And what about Clendening, who we basically gave away? Will he blossom out west a la Simon Despres?
Rick,Got a crazy idea.Why don’t you do a 3rd book on the Mario years or the 32 years of Mario in Pittsburgh? Then comes the crazy part…Sell the story to Radio-Canada,( the French arm of the CBC) in Quebec as a French movie. You would not know this living in Pennsylvania,but being from Canada,living in the only official Bilingual province, I am aware of the Government’s requirements to protect the French culture and language in Quebec and New Brunswick.In short ,the Federal government spends a lot of money on French movies for local consumption.They have to. Regulations!
So my friend, you are the most informed person I know regarding the Penguin’s, and already being an author of two previous books on the Pens, you would be the perfect choice to do this. Over qualified.
A recent survey I read in the Quebec media said that Mario was ranked third of all time French Hockey players. First was,Senator Jean Belliveau, for his hockey skills and his political career in saving our country. Second was Maurice,( THE ROCKET ) Richard. Radio Canada has done several movies about his life and even the CBC English did a mini series about him as well. Third was Mario !
Probably the greatest Quebec born Hockey player ever in terms of pure Hockey talent. Quebec loves their hero’s.
But nobody in Quebec knows Mario the way you do! You are unique. Someday,someone in Quebec will make that movie Rick with a 5 – 10 million cultural grant from the Federal government !
Just a crazy idea Rick ?
Hey Jim,
Thank you for your suggestion … and very kind thoughts. But, honestly, I don’t know if I’m the man for the job. I’m pretty up on the details of Mario’s career, but truly don’t have much insight into the deeper, more personal aspects of his story. Something I think you would need for a project of this magnitude.
Plus, I think I’m still recovering in a way from writing “Total Penguins” a few years back. While I’m very proud of it, it was a ton of work, to say the least.