Roberto Luongo was named as the general manager of the Canadian team heading to the 2021 world championship in Latvia this year. He spoke with media on Wednesday after news broke that Gerard Gallant had been named the team’s head coach and a few days after Shane Doan was also added to the management team.
Luongo was asked why he’s jumping into management and he gave an interesting response.
Saying he’s having a blast with his latest career choice, Luongo said it was actually his enjoyment of fantasy sports that steered him towards wanting to become a hockey manager. He said, “This may sounds silly or funny, but the thing that prompted me to go into management was playing fantasy sports.” He added, “I love playing fantasy football, fantasy baseball, drafting, making trades, all that kind of stuff, managing teams.”
Obviously, Luongo is aware there’s a lot more on the line in his new role. Instead of just playing for fun, he’s playing for something that matters to a lot of fans and Canadians and, in many ways, he’s playing with a lot of player’s hockey careers. If he were to get into NHL management as a GM, his decisions could make or break the financial future of any given player. “It’s more serious now,” he said.
Things Are Moving Quickly
In only his second year in management, the former goaltender noted that things are moving fast and he’s learning a lot. But, he’s got a ways to go and he’s trying to learn as quickly and as much as he can. His goal is to simply give the best he can offer to the Florida Panthers or Team Canada, “I’m always willing to help.”
How quickly he gets considered for bigger roles in the NHL may start here with the Canadian team. If he does well and the team wins, he’ll get a lot of credit and it will certainly look good on his resume.
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