Chris Watkins started the “Fire Mike Gillis” Facebook page after the unsuccessful playoff run in 2011. Now with the hiring of Trevor Linden as the new President, it seems the page has served its purpose.
The activity on “Fire Mike Gillis” page picked up after the trade of Roberto Luongo to the Florida Panthers on March 4.
Watkins says at the time, there was an overwhelming feeling of discontent with the management among fans.
So the firing of Mike Gillis did not come as a surprise to him.
“I thought they would wait till the end of the year, but I think they needed to do something because of season ticket holder renewals,” he says. “I was surprised by when they did it, but they needed some good press.”
Watkins says he has always seen Linden as a possible replacement for Gillis, so last month, he started “Hire Trevor Linden” page as well, which now has 1,082 “likes” and has really picked up since yesterday.
Meanwhile, the “Fire Mike Gillis” page has dropped off after getting over 3,300 “likes.”
Watkins says he is not planning to shut down the old page and wants to turn it into more of a sounding board for fans.
He says fans’ reaction to Linden’s hiring has been split so far.
“He is obviously a beloved Canuck and there is a lot of faith from the fans in him, but there is also a little bit of trepidation in terms of his experience,” says Watkins. “He’s got a huge job ahead of him. But he was given an opportunity and hopefully it works.”
The Vancouver Canucks were eliminated from the playoffs after a loss on Monday. It is the first time in the last six years that the team did not make it into the playoff round.
Watkins predicts the team is not going to do considerably better next season, despite Linden’s appointment.
“They are probably going to be competing for a playoff spot and possibly on the outside. I don’t know what changes they can make that are going to have a huge effect on the next season. It takes a long time to turn a team around.”
Regardless, Watkins is not blaming the team’s plight on the coach.
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