John Ferguson, Jr.

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For other persons named John Ferguson, see John Ferguson (disambiguation).

John Ferguson, Jr. (born July 7, 1967 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada) also known as "JFJ" is the son of John Ferguson, Sr., and current General Manager for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League.

He gained the rank of GM on August 29, 2003, at the age of 36, succeeding Pat Quinn who retained his duties as head coach. Ferguson's hiring was part of a shakeup that saw Ken Dryden give up his duties as Leafs president and take on the reduced role of vice-chairman. Previously, while Quinn was GM and Dryden was President, the two had a frosty relationship. Some considered Ferguson's appointment an insult, since Quinn had more experience as Toronto's GM alone (plus Quinn's tenure as GM with the Vancouver Canucks) than Ferguson who had previously never held the role.

The 2006 firing of Quinn upset some long time Leaf fans, with many calling for the firing of Ferguson himself. Insiders suspect that Ferguson had the support of MLSE CEO Richard Peddie and Chairman Larry Tanenbaum. Quinn was backed by Kenneth Thomson who owned a 15% stake of MLSE via Bell Globemedia.

Before his arrival in Toronto, Ferguson had served as vice-president and director of hockey operations for the St. Louis Blues, and before that he was assistant general manager for the club.

The younger Ferguson initially tried to follow in his father's footsteps. He was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in the 12th round of the 1985 NHL Entry Draft, but proved unable to rise above the minor leagues. He retired from professional hockey in 1993 and went on to earn a law degree and became a scout and player agent. John Ferguson Jr. is also a graduate of Providence College where he was a member of the Friars' hockey team.

It has become readily apparent that John Ferguson Jr. is really out of his league as an NHL General Manager, and especially as the GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs. He lacks credibility with his peers. Signs are that the Leafs will terminate his contract following this season and hopefully will recruit a General Manager worthy of the position as GM of the Leafs. MLSE has learned from its experience with Bryan Colangelo, the General Manager of the NBA Toronto Raptors, that a top notch General Manager is crucial to rebuild a team and maintain the fan base. The NHL head office would likely offer Ferguson a mid level administrative job where he could join many of the former Maple Leaf coaches and executives who were never able to find an equivalent job with another NHL Team.