Former Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford abruptly resigned his position on Wednesday leading fans to speculate why?
Fears of any health-related issues were quickly squashed with both Rutherford and the Penguins saying that was not an issue.
So with only five months left on his contract, why not just ride it out?
93.7 The Fan’s Colin Dunlap reports that multiple sources tell him Rutherford’s departure was a result of him trying to trade defenseman Kris Letang, a move Penguins ownership did not approve of.
While we’ll probably never know the full story behind the sudden departure, Rutherford told WPXI’s Alby Oxenreiter that he’s decision developed over the past few days and that the Penguins were aware of it.
“It was just a situation that we had talked about over the past couple of days and it was a decision at that point that I felt that my time was up here.”
Along with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, Letang could also be one of owner Mario Lemieux’s three untouchable players. Lemieux played his entire career in Pittsburgh and could want to raise all three player’s numbers to the rafters when they retire, something that the organization was unable to do with Jaromir Jagr.
The Hockey News’ Ken Campbell, who also spoke with Rutherford, said that the former GM sounded more like someone who was going to take a break, than someone who was ready to retire.
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