Montreal Canadiens Rumour: Kent Hughes a Candidate for General Manager Job

The Montreal Canadiens general manager opening is going to take some time to fill.

Ultimately, the choice will be made by Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations Jeff Gorton. He met with the media on Friday and explained he is in no rush to make a decision and thinks it will be after Christmas before the vacancy is filled.

Rumours have been pretty quiet thus far with a few names being thrown out there, but nothing concrete about conversations or interviews with Gorton.

Of course, Patrick Roy threw his own name into the ring but it seems unlikely he gets the job after walking away from the Colorado Avalanche for not having more say in personnel decisions when he was the team’s head coach.

The first real rumour about a potential general manager candidate leaked out yesterday on Hockey Night in Canada. Elliotte Friedman mentioned that Kent Hughes is an agent that is thought to be a candidate for the job.

This makes sense, as Gorton mentioned in his press conference that he will try to find someone in the hockey world who complements what he brings to the table. He has worked in scouting and front offices for decades, but he mentioned he was never a player or an agent at the NHL level so that could be an avenue they look at.

Hughes is currently the agent for 17 players. He is from the province of Quebec, and many of clients are from the area as well including Patrice Bergeron and Kris Letang. (Both are pending UFAs so maybe they’d be convinced to sign in Montreal next year if their agent became the team’s GM?)

Hughes son Jack (not that Jack Hughes) players at Northeastern and is rated to go in the first round of the upcoming NHL Draft. Perhaps Jordan Harris would be more inclined to sign with the Canadiens after this season if he had a connection to the GM?