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Leafs Front Office 2026-27

My wishlist from earlier.

President needs to be an elder statesman with cachet around the league, and a track record of executing a vision. This can support a more progressive GM from a talent evaluation background + management experience. What I appreciated about Dubas, even with a occasional mistakes, is there was a clear goal and the execution was often creative and leveraging key strengths at the Leafs disposal (nostalgia, bottomless funds, etc.), and a willingness to stack iterative small 'wins' for a long term gain, rather than only swinging for the fences.

I think it burned the Leafs a bit having Shanahan (limited experience, albeit respected) and Dubas (inexperienced but bright, definitely got the run around from other GMs and the NHL) at the helm of an organization as important as Toronto. Throw in a first-time coach to the mix and it was a lot of learning required.

President: Jim Nill or Laurence Gilman
General Manager: Sunny Mehta or Mike Futa (is there a younger Futa?); not sure of his management capabilities or appetite for the big chair, but I'm a fan of Judd Brackett's eye for players. I don't think good draft people necessarily make good GMs though, which is a common flaw in many front offices in the NHL and businesses in general (i.e. promoting their top engineer to run a business).

Head Coach: I didn't have a problem with Berube's premise, but there was no follow through with structure to support those goals (forecheck, backcheck, paycheque) and severe inability to get buy-in. Who is the next Jon Cooper? Is there a version of Mike Babcock that is not an asshole? David Carle has a very shiny resume outside of the NHL. John Gruden with the Marlies plied his trade under Trotz/Mongomery and the Boston culture and he's already familiar with and to the organization.
Assistant Coach: Lalonde, Sullivan are fine; I think Anders Sorensen would be good for the forwards as an assistant and developing players.
 
Joe S. said:
That's fair. I don't think anyone sees them as cup contenders. He came in knowing a rebuild/retool was in order and so far, he hasn't sacrificed any of their future.
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And not to glaze Dubas too much but your last point is also noteworthy. He had three 1st rounders last year (one already contributing in the NHL) and 13 picks in that draft overall. He's kept all his future 1sts. He has seven 2nd round picks in the next 3 drafts and five 3rd round picks. He's added young NHL talent to the roster. A lot of people thought Karlsson would be an anchor at this point but the guys 36 years old and still contributing. He fixed his worst move by dumping Jarry with Edmonton and somehow getting a 2nd rounder of that deal. Crosby gets to see playoff hockey again before the end of his career and Pittsburgh's future is still significantly brighter than it was when Dubas first arrived.
 
Bender said:
Good for them that they're in the playoffs but I don't see them going on a run with that goaltending. Crosby, Malkin, Letang, Karlsson are all in the twilight of their careers. Let's see what happens when they leave, then we can assess the job he's done.
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Probably won't go far but Pitt was a disaster when he showed up there. The fact that they're currently in a playoff spot and have lots of futures is pretty nice for them. This isn't about the "stars" carrying the load either. Pitt has dealt with a lot of injuries. Malkin has missed 24 games. Rackell 21, Barzeau 18, Crosby 12. Rust 7. Letang hasn't been great again. The supporting cast has been very good.
He's made a lot of very good moves putting them in this position.
Want to compare what he's done in Pitt to what Tre did here. There is no comparison.
Sad thing is he left the Leafs in a lot better shape then what this disaster has become. I would have liked to see him finish the job here. Would have been a very interesting summer had he stuck around and traded one of 16/88.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
And not to glaze Dubas too much but your last point is also noteworthy. He had three 1st rounders last year (one already contributing in the NHL) and 13 picks in that draft overall. He's kept all his future 1sts. He has seven 2nd round picks in the next 3 drafts and five 3rd round picks. He's added young NHL talent to the roster. A lot of people thought Karlsson would be an anchor at this point but the guys 36 years old and still contributing. He fixed his worst move by dumping Jarry with Edmonton and somehow getting a 2nd rounder of that deal. Crosby gets to see playoff hockey again before the end of his career and Pittsburgh's future is still significantly brighter than it was when Dubas first arrived.
Click to expand...

Dubas has the Penguins in a great spot. That's just facts and not glazing.

What could have been if Shanahan was the one fired and Dubas given the President and GM role.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
And not to glaze Dubas too much but your last point is also noteworthy. He had three 1st rounders last year (one already contributing in the NHL) and 13 picks in that draft overall. He's kept all his future 1sts. He has seven 2nd round picks in the next 3 drafts and five 3rd round picks. He's added young NHL talent to the roster. A lot of people thought Karlsson would be an anchor at this point but the guys 36 years old and still contributing. He fixed his worst move by dumping Jarry with Edmonton and somehow getting a 2nd rounder of that deal. Crosby gets to see playoff hockey again before the end of his career and Pittsburgh's future is still significantly brighter than it was when Dubas first arrived.
Click to expand...
Goaltending hasn't exactly been Pittsburgh's strong suit even after the Jarry trade though. Again, good that they're in the playoffs, and good that he dumped Jarry, but Skinner has a lower save percentage now than in Edmonton. Is the bar really get into the playoffs one year and pray the goaltending doesn't fall apart? Because I think plenty of GMs could've done that.

Regarding the draft picks, as we all know it's what you do with them. Dubas didn't exactly have a stellar record in terms of drafting. Under him our most notable picks were Sandin, Knies and Minten? Kindel looks good, but let's see how it plays out. I'm not ready to do any anointing until I see more.
 
Guilt Trip said:
Probably won't go far but Pitt was a disaster when he showed up there. The fact that they're currently in a playoff spot and have lots of futures is pretty nice for them. This isn't about the "stars" carrying the load either. Pitt has dealt with a lot of injuries. Malkin has missed 24 games. Rackell 21, Barzeau 18, Crosby 12. Rust 7. Letang hasn't been great again. The supporting cast has been very good.
He's made a lot of very good moves putting them in this position.
Want to compare what he's done in Pitt to what Tre did here. There is no comparison.
Sad thing is he left the Leafs in a lot better shape then what this disaster has become. I would have liked to see him finish the job here. Would have been a very interesting summer had he stuck around and traded one of 16/88.
Click to expand...
I think they are entirely different situations and it could be less disastrous, but Kyle had five years of chances and did we keep much of our futures or draft well? No, we did not. It's fallacious thinking to think if someone doesn't do well here, but finds success elsewhere that we should've kept the person we let go. In many cases people need different situations and opportunities to do well. Hiring Tre is a completely different issue and a hiring that definitely should not have been made.
 
Guru Tugginmypuddah said:
Dubas has the Penguins in a great spot. That's just facts and not glazing.

What could have been if Shanahan was the one fired and Dubas given the President and GM role.
Click to expand...
Dubas set the wheels in motion for the downfall of this team. Treliving just quickly drove it off the cliff.

I'd rather neither of them be anywhere near this team. And thankfully they aren't going forward.
 
www.nytimes.com

Maple Leafs GM search: An early list of candidates

Brad Treliving is out. Who will take over? A very early list of potential candidates to lead the Maple Leafs.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com
www.sportsnet.ca

What's next for Predators after Trotz steps down as GM?

What does Barry Trotz's departure mean for the Nashville Predators? Josh Beneteau answers that question from a few different angles.
www.sportsnet.ca www.sportsnet.ca
www.allaboutthejersey.com

The Path Forward: Step 1, Find a New Front Office

A Comprehensive Guide to GM Options. (Assuming The Devils Do The Right Thing)
www.allaboutthejersey.com www.allaboutthejersey.com

A handful of names I plucked from these articles that would be interesting: Doug Armstrong, Jason Spezza, Rob Blake, Sunny Mehta (FLA AGM), Brett Peterson (FLA AGM), Kevin McDonald (COL AGM), Scott White (DAL AGM).

I've already talked about Mehta and he's probably be my top choice right now. Spezza would be interesting... getting a Dubas taught GM to come back to fix all this mess. Rob Blake would maybe be my top "retread" choice... I think he did a really good job with LA but just couldn't get past McDavid+Draisaitl.

A couple of the articles also mention going the player agent route, which has become a little more common lately. Maybe pull an Edmonton and put Matthews' agent in charge with Judd Moldaver. Or go crazier with Darren Ferris... better with us than against us right?
 
Wording from Pelley is they’re hiring a head of Hockey Ops so that’s the President role being restored.

Pridham and Hardy take on interim duties.

Pelley also tried to clear the air about his level of involvement throughout the season. He’s not interested in scouting, coaching, GMing or who will play LW. He is in charge of vision, (business) strategy, structure, process, and the pillars to instill the right culture (MBA shit)

Extols the resources at the Leafs disposal but basically says out right that they didn’t have full alignment.

The plan is to set the organizational structure, fill in the people, establish the strategy and tactics, and instill alignment and accountability. More MBA shit (but necessary for an organization commanding this many resources).

In recounting where things went wrong, KP pointed to them not anticipating Buffalo and Montreal’s surge, highlighting their young energetic team and prospect depth (good sign if that’s what they’re looking to develop as an organizational strength)

The key element KP is looking for in a head of hockey ops (also indicating it could be a pres, GM, or combo) is someone who is data-centric. I’m guessing that might be painting around a complaint about the Brad.

Aiming for the search to be done around May, at latest before June draft.

Kristen Shilton asked a follow up about the alignment comments earlier and Pelley declined to provide specifics lol but confirms there was definitely a lot of misalignment.

I don’t hate his answers
 
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I'm listening to this Pelley press conference and I'm not liking the cut of his jib.

He keeps going on about the structure of operations being wrong. Isn't that... on him to have set that up?
 
Joe S. said:
I'm listening to this Pelley press conference and I'm not liking the cut of his jib.

He keeps going on about the structure of operations being wrong. Isn't that... on him to have set that up?
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Why he eliminated the president position across all MLSE teams I will never understand. Sure, they saved millions of dollars -- tens of it. But he's not the guy I want the GMs going directly to and bouncing ideas off of.

I really hope he realizes the err of it and restores the position. Someone needs to provide a plan and guidance to work alongside the GM. He is just not the guy for it.
 
Peter D. said:
Dubas set the wheels in motion for the downfall of this team. Treliving just quickly drove it off the cliff.

I'd rather neither of them be anywhere near this team. And thankfully they aren't going forward.
Click to expand...

Moving on from Dubas was justified and hiring Treliving to replace him was not the right move.
 
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