McDonough draws on Finks' sage advice

Prior to John McDonough's move from the Cubs to the Blackhawks on Tuesday, who was the last major player to jump from one of Chicago's professional sports teams to another Chicago team?

No, not Matt Karchner.

The answer: the late Jim Finks.

The former general manager of the Bears left that position in 1983 to become president of the Cubs. Care to guess whom he quickly snatched up and added to the Cubs' payroll?

"Jim Finks hired me," McDonough said, smiling at the memory. "I believe I was the only individual he hired.

"He was a real mentor of mine."

Lesson No. 1 Finks imparted on McDonough: You better be great at interpersonal communication.

"I've never seen someone as good with people as Jim," McDonough said. "He was elegant, he was sophisticated, he was gregarious. He was everything an executive should be."

A quarter-century later, McDonough still is abiding by the rule of Finks as he prepares to take over the Blackhawks.

"It's all about people," McDonough said. "If you're not wearing the uniform, it's about being really good to people, being available and doing the best you can to always represent your product."

Somewhere his mentor is smiling.

"It was an honor to say I was hired by Jim Finks," he said. "Anytime I can be compared to Jim Finks, I look at it as the ultimate, ultimate compliment."