Boston Bruins team president Cam Neely (R).
IN PHOTO: Boston Bruins' Milan Lucic (L) celebrates with Boston Bruins President Cam Neely after their team defeated the Vancouver Cancucks in Game 7 of the NHL Stanley Cup Final hockey playoff in Vancouver, British Columbia June 15, 2011. REUTERS/Mike Blake

The Boston Bruins have shortlisted four potential successors to the vacant general manager position, three weeks after firing Peter Chiarelli. The four candidates will now be assessed based on interviews for a second time, after which a decision will be taken.

The Bruins missed the playoffs this year for the first time in eight years and the decision to fire Chiarelli was taken a week after the early end of the season for the team. Chiarelli had been with the Bruins as general manager from 2006, with the team winning the Stanley Cup in 2011 and also reaching the 2013 finals. Under his tenure, the Bruins had a 386-233-85 record and reached the playoffs seven times. He was also responsible for bringing in coach Claude Julien.

The four candidates reported by to be in the running are New York Rangers assistant general manager Jeff Gorton, assistant Bruins manager Don Sweeney and former Pittsburgh general manager Ray Shero. Whoever is appointed the next general manager of the Bruins will be the one to decide whether Claude Julien remains as coach or not.

Being already a part of the Bruins, Sweeney could be considered as one of the favourites to take over the top job at the organization but Rangers assistant manager Jeff Gorton could also be considered a strong candidate. His success in drafts and developing young talent has made the Rangers contenders almost every season, which is considered one of the biggest weaknesses in Boston.

Gorton was also an assistant general manager before with the Bruins, when they drafted the likes of David Krejci, Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand. Rangers general manager Glen Sather however denied having given Gorton permission to speak to the Bruins so far.

“I haven’t given permission to anybody to speak to anyone and I won’t as long as we’re playing. And there’s a question whether I would, anyway, after it’s over,” Sather told the New York Post.

Bruins president Cam Neely has said the team would conduct an exhaustive search, and it looks like that search will end sooner than later, with the NHL draft coming up next month.

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