Dennis Skulsky stepping down effective April 1

[SammyGreene]

As per Greg Douglas this morning, Skulsky's sidekick stepping down too. Again paving the way for potential new ownership and upper management. Can't say Pitblado did an overly impressive job overseeing the 2014 Grey Cup with the non-sellout of the game dominating the headlines at the time.

HERE ‘N’ THERE: For the Lions’ outgoing director of fan engagement Jamie Pitblado, the state of confusion at breakfast Thursday was only heightened emotionally later in the day when he said his goodbyes to fellow workers. Pitblado joined the Leos in 2013 to take on the role of spearheading the 102nd Grey Cup Festival and moved into senior management with the football club the following year.

When his longtime newspaper mentor Skulsky announced last month he was relinquishing his duties as Lions president and CEO but would remain in a lesser role as vice-chairman, Pitblado, 51, says he figured it was time to reassess his own career.

“Dennis is a mentor and a good friend,” Pitblado said Friday. “I was feeling a little burned out after struggling through the off-season. It dawned on me that commuting from Yaletown to Surrey was making me feel detached from the community environment that has been such a big part of my life, a big part of who I am. There are so many ups and downs in professional sports with a ‘just win, baby’ mandate. It really does become a grind. I’ve decided to take a month or six weeks just to smell the roses and re-group.”

SHORT HOPS: Former TSN Radio sportscaster Matt Baker has left his gig with the Vancouver Stealth lacrosse organization and joined the Lions as digital content coordinator. His duties will include interview content online and website editorial contributions. The Leos have happily welcomed home Terri Breker to their marketing services department following her departure for a similar role with the now departed Abbotsford Heat hockey club.

[Sir Purrcival]

Out of curiosity, does anyone think Scott Ackles has deep enough pockets to become an owner? Certainly has the historical ties, it would be charting a course that his father didn't take so there would be fewer comparisons, etc. etc.

[BC 1988]

As per this article Skulsky has put off the "stepping down" given the health of David Braley.

B.C. Lions owner David Braley faces a “long, slow” recovery from a diabetic-related foot infection, says the team’s vice-chairman, Dennis Skulsky.

Skulsky announced in February that he would relinquish his duties as president and CEO of the Canadian Football League club effective April 1. But that decision has been put on hold. His stay will be lengthened because of Braley’s illness.

The Lions owner entered a Vancouver hospital on March 24 and remains there indefinitely.

“I’ll move on when the time is right,” Skulsky said. “It could be a month, it could be two months. It could be the end of the season. We’ll see. We need to have someone leading the club.”

Skulsky said Braley’s return to health “isn’t responding as well as they would have hoped. He has an infection in his toe. It’s done some damage. And he’s got to recover from that.”

Braley turns 75 on May 31 and is approaching the 20-year anniversary since he rescued the Lions from bankruptcy and possible oblivion. He has made no secret of the fact the club is for sale. The Hamilton, Ont., businessman also owned the Toronto Argonauts from 2010 to 2015 before selling that club to Bell Media and Larry Tanenbaum.

“To be honest, a sale (of the Lions) is the least of our worries,” Skulsky said. “The focus now is getting David better. That’s No. 1. And we’ve got to get ourselves ready for the (2016) season. I’m here for as long as it takes.”

Skulsky became team president in 2010, succeeding the late Bob Ackles. He was publisher of The Vancouver Sun and Province until 2006, when he was named president and CEO of Canwest Publishing.

Last fall, Skulsky informed Braley that he planned to gear down into semi-retirement to spend more time with his family and because of his own health issues. Skulsky is also diabetic.

“To be honest, after 43 years of full-time employment, you get worn down,” he said. “It was a combination of wanting to spend more time with the grandkids and taking a break from high-pressure jobs, flying on too many airplanes. This is a great job. It’s really great when you’re winning. But when you’re not, it’s not as much fun.”

Braley said Skulsky’s new role as vice-chairman would restrict him to 25 per cent of his former duties. But that won’t happen until the Lions owner returns to good health.

mbeamish@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/sixbeamers

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[Rammer]

I hope Braley recovers soon from this setback. I also commend Skulsky for retaining his role to help guide the Lions at this critical juncture of the season. Not sold on Skulsky as he seemed to not be engaged with the fans as I would like, but he does have a working relationship with Wally and that is needed right now.

As per Pitblado resigning, it is interesting that he brought up the difference of being behind a winning club and a losing one. Obviously siting that the Lions marketing is more dependent upon their record than anything else. That is Vancouver pro sports in a nutshell. Even the Canucks don't survive poor results, so the Lions and Caps will feel poor results quicker and harder.

So correctingbmany of the woes of the Lions falls directly on Wally's shoulders. From finding the players ready to contribute to getting the wins to engage the paying fans and local sponsors. No easy task, but now is a prime time for the Lions to take advantage of both the Caps and Canucks struggles and seize the positives that winning drives in the GVRD media.

[SammyGreene]

I hope Braley recovers soon from this setback. I also commend Skulsky for retaining his role to help guide the Lions at this critical juncture of the season. Not sold on Skulsky as he seemed to not be engaged with the fans as I would like, but he does have a working relationship with Wally and that is needed right now.

As per Pitblado resigning, it is interesting that he brought up the difference of being behind a winning club and a losing one. Obviously siting that the Lions marketing is more dependent upon their record than anything else. That is Vancouver pro sports in a nutshell. Even the Canucks don't survive poor results, so the Lions and Caps will feel poor results quicker and harder.

So correctingbmany of the woes of the Lions falls directly on Wally's shoulders. From finding the players ready to contribute to getting the wins to engage the paying fans and local sponsors. No easy task, but now is a prime time for the Lions to take advantage of both the Caps and Canucks struggles and seize the positives that winning drives in the GVRD media.

Great post Rammer. I think the marketing side of the club is basically in holding mode until a sale is completed. So yes, even more weight on Wally's shoulders to revitalize the franchise with the on field product.
The way I see the spotlight is big time on Wally, Jones as OC and Jennings to right the Lions ship.

Jones must prove it was Glenn who limited his creativity as an OC in 2014. Now he he has a young and potentially dynamic QB to work with. He also starts from scratch in the offensive backfield with whatever RB's skill set best fits his scheme instead of making it work with Harris' ability. What an opportunity.

[WestCoastJoe]

Best wishes to David Braley on his path to recovery.

Interesting to hear Skulsky talk about pressure. It is how we live these days. There is freedom and there are limitless choices in the democracies of the West, but it ain't easy.