Carolina Hurricanes' Interim GM Eric Tulsky Safe Replacement For Now
By Glenn Brewer
Since the end of the Carolina Hurricanes season, losing in Game 6 against the New York Rangers has been a wild off-season already. The team that defeated the Canes has not even finished their next series and the Canes have extended head coach, Rod Brind'Amour's contract and have seen general manager, Don Waddell, step down. The interim general manager has been named Eric Tulsky.
Tulsky has been with the organization for a decade and came on board with Don Waddell. The Philadelphia native has quietly climbed through the organization, from the analytical department to assistant general manager in 2020. With no clear hockey background, Tulsky has a pure data and analytical mind that has become well-known throughout the league.
Having degrees from Harvard University and University of California, Berkeley, Tulsky is a brilliant man and has excelled at the right time in the game for his background.
Still, this is a rookie general manager taking over a Stanley Cup contender with almost half the roster without contracts. It is an incredibly important summer for the 2024-25 Hurricanes season and the franchise's next 3-5 years. The likes of Seth Jarvis and Martin Necas could bring the next generation of Caniacs and Tulsky has been assigned the task of creating a new contract for both of these integral players.
The fear of losing a valuable employee can cause organizations and companies to make decisions they are not fully behind. This could be another reason for the move to have Tulsky as the interim general manager. He knows organization but Waddell did the hockey negotiations.
It is a pressured off-season, and collectively, the management group and Rod Brind'Amour will have to put their heads together and look for a face to the franchise. Tulsky can control the draft, while Brind'Amour should do player evaluations. That will leave the contract negotiations to the group.