Confirmed with Link: Dubas the new GM - TSN

[Warden of the North]

People talk about Mark Hunter like hes the only scout in hockey.

Dubas should be trying to poach Tampa, Winnipeg or Nashville's scouts whether Hunter leaves or not.

 

[I Believe]

Man the last 3 years just flew by.

Congrats Kyle! Seemed like the obvious choice.

 

[DarkKnight]

Good luck to Kyle, I'll be rooting for him. With that said, there are now many questions within our organization that weren't there two weeks ago. How that's a net positive escapes me.

 

[Mess]

I would even think Shanahan would need approval to make a costly fire (Babcock etc.) or trade a Mathews like player. He would probably get it but even he doesn't have a complete free reign.

Agreed, when it comes to big financial decisions for sure as they have to approve the $$$ portion of that transaction.

However I would imagine Leafs MLSE ownership has given Shanahan full autonomy on the day to day running of the Leafs which includes spending to the cap ceiling and hiring and firing anyone he wants to positions below him.

Shanny has the authority to fire Babcock the coach he hired though, whereas normally a GM gets to pick his own coach and fire them as well. I don't believe in Leafs structure with Dubas as GM he could fire Babcock, unless he first gets Shanahan's approval to do so.

I also doubt that Dubas would go to Leafs Ownership and say I want to sign Tavares for 7X $10 mil as a normal GM, as he again would need Shanahan to be onboard first with the signing and then Shanny the one likely to go the MLSE BOD for final $$$ approval on that type of long term commitment.

So I see it more as Shanahan is the Leafs real GM for all intents and purposes and Dubas is assistant GM in his roles and responsibilities.

 

[93LEAFS]

He drafted the consensus #4 ranked prospect with the #4 pick. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy Babcock didn’t get his way and got the Leafs to take Hanifin, but so far all we have his Dermott from beyond the first round make the NHL.

I hope and expect this will change and have more guys turn into NHLers, but I think at best all we can say is “it’s too early to say” when it comes to evaluating Hunters choices.

Except the consensus #3 pick was still on the board.

I also think there is often a misdirected belief of how much a team can really beat the odds scouting. If Hunter managed to pull 2 NHLers out of his 4 picks between 30 and 60 that is a very good job.

 

[Warden of the North]

When one divisional foe has Steve Yzerman as their GM, and you have Kyle Dubas.. guess what? You aren’t going to win.

What has Yzerman won as a GM?

 

[Randy Randerson]

I think it's time we get to the important question then, was he a fan of Archer?

Archer debuted in 2009, our graduating class was 2007, so this will stay one of the great mysteries of our time

 

[93LEAFS]

Agreed, when it comes to big financial decisions for sure as they have to approve the $$$ portion of that transaction.

However I would imagine Leafs ownership has given Shanahan full autonomy on the day to day running of the Leafs which includes spending to the cap ceiling and hiring and firing anyone he wants to positions below him.

Shanny has the authority to fire Babcock the coach he hired though, whereas normally a GM gets to pick his own coach and fire them as well. I don't believe in Leafs structure with Dubas as GM he could fire Babcock, unless he first gets Shanahan's approval to do so.

I also doubt that Dubas would go to Leafs Ownership and say I want to sign Tavares for 7X $10 mil as a normal GM, as he again would need Shanahan to be onboard first with the signing and then Shanny the one likely to go the BOD for final $$$ approval on that type of long term commitment.

So I see it more as Shanahan is the Leafs real GM for all intents and purposes and Dubas is assistant GM in his roles and responsibilities.

Any GM that has a team President has to do the same.

I also don't think Shanahan would have the autonomy to fire Babcock. I'm not even sure Anschultz does.

 

[Morgs]

People talk about Mark Hunter like hes the only scout in hockey.

Dubas should be trying to poach Tampa, Winnipeg or Nashville's scouts whether Hunter leaves or not.

Ehh.. if you look at those teams draft records in the first round the last decade you will be very disappointed.. minus the obvious picks like Laine, Ehlers, Connor, and Forsberg.

 

[member 147413]

People talk about Mark Hunter like hes the only scout in hockey.

Dubas should be trying to poach Tampa, Winnipeg or Nashville's scouts whether Hunter leaves or not.

I agree completely.

I don’t think Hunter has done anything to warrant half the praise he receives.

 

[hotpaws]

Lol even if I thought it was 80% chance he stays I still wouldn't, don't care to make a bet risking the 20% scenario

But was talking about some of your other posts in the thread, HF is just more enjoyable actually discussing over trying to win the wit game

what other posts ?

he wasn't my choice but as the new GM of my team i wish him well obviously

he's in the driver seat now and is set up for success , the team has performed well , has a very good young core , very little dead cap and a solid prospect pool in the pipeline so i don't want to hear excuses and he doesn't get a pass because he's a rookie GM

now this being said i expect he'll make mistakes like every GM but if he makes an epic error like Burke then he should be shown the door quickly

the only real thing i don't like about him is he likes to self promote in the media and he likes to philosophize about crap like how he was going to re invent how the echl is used among other things

imo the team doesn't need the GM to re invent the wheel , we just need someone who is a competent mgr

and tbh i think he mainly got the job because Shanny wants to pull the strings behind the scenes and believes he'll be easier to control than other candidates

 

[thewave]

Hope he is up to it. Good luck Dubie Howser.

 

[ULF_55]

Hunter's scouting looks fine.

I suspect we might see some more of his players in the NHL next year, so far he has Marner 4th., Dermott 34th. and Matthews 1st. in the NHL.
That is very similar to the Bruins, with McAvoy 14th., Carlo 37th. and Debrusk 14th..

Leafs need top notch scouting. Let's hope Hunter continues to find the right guys. If not Hunter someone else, maybe poach the BJ's head scout.

 

[diceman934]

I don't really see much evidence for a terrific drafting record so far.

Really. Lilly was a fantastic pick who 16 other teams pass on. He was not the slam dunk pick that some on here think he was. Choosing Marner was a fantastic pick and he was the only one in Leaf land who wanted to draft him. He wanted Dermot who was slated to go late 2nd round and traded down so he could get other picks to draft him. To have some on here say that Dubas is better at drafting when he has had no draft picks is a joke but I heard he wanted the big center that is still in the AHL as his possession numbers were through the roof.

Hunters picks will be proven to be real good remembering that NHL team are lucky to get 2 NHL players out of a draft and 3 is exceptional.

 

[DarkKnight]

People disrespecting Hunter, you bear no relationship to the praise he receives from his peers. Some really clueless people here, good talent isn't easily replaceable.

 

[supermann_98]

Wow, I’m not really surprised but I’m more surprised it happened so quickly.

Shanny doesn’t mess around

 

[Cor]

I’m not gonna say anything now, but when September comes and Hunter is still here, I’m bumping this thread

 

[diceman934]

He drafted the consensus #4 ranked prospect with the #4 pick. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy Babcock didn’t get his way and got the Leafs to take Hanifin, but so far all we have his Dermott from beyond the first round make the NHL.

I hope and expect this will change and have more guys turn into NHLers, but I think at best all we can say is “it’s too early to say” when it comes to evaluating Hunters choices.

Two others wanted Prov the flyers D man. Hunter was the only one who wanted Marner if you remember we had a trade arranged that Hunter talked them out of.

Dismissing the Marner pick is funny as all around that pick were land mines. Hunter put his reputation on the line with that pick and the kid is a super star and a franchise player.

 

[RomanianLeafs]

Many fans are going to like Dubas, because he can’t evaluate talent using the eye test. He needs charts, just like most fans on here.He has never played the game at a high level, just like most fans on here. Pretty sad times.

so.much envy..wow..stop it dude nobody cares about your posts

 

[Nithoniniel]

Really. Lilly was a fantastic pick who 16 other teams pass on. He was not the slam dunk pick that some on here think he was. Choosing Marner was a fantastic pick and he was the only one in Leaf land who wanted to draft him. He wanted Dermot who was slated to go late 2nd round and traded down so he could get other picks to draft him. To have some on here say that Dubas is better at drafting when he has had no draft picks is a joke but I heard he wanted the big center that is still in the AHL as his possession numbers were through the roof.

Hunters picks will be proven to be real good remembering that NHL team are lucky to get 2 NHL players out of a draft and 3 is exceptional.

Marner was the overwhelming favorite pick along with Hanifin. It was the right choice, but it wasn't something that a whole lot of people wouldn't do. I'd have a hard time pegging a former top ranked pick who fell in his lap as a great pick either. Dermott is though, most definitely. Still, that's not a huge list of great picks over three years for a guy who is supposed to be a scouting prodigy. Plenty of teams out there that has done more with less.

As for your last claim, I don't generally buy unsubstantiated claims but I will say this. Having listened to Dubas talk about players a few times, I don't think I could ever see him push for a guy "because his possession numbers were through the roof." That sounds like the kind of claim made by someone who want to erroneously paint him as just a stat cruncher.

 

[Sweet Leaf]

The last thing the Leafs needed was hiring a guy who moved on a year or 2 later and that is always the risk with Hunter.

This guy is part owner of the London Knights. And he loves it. His brother gave up a great NHL coaching career to coach the Knights. I'm not sure Hunter is all in long term. I think this has been a fun thing for him to do for awhile just like his brother coaching the Caps. In the end he is destined imo to leave the Leafs and work with his brother full time once this NHL itch is scratched. He'll grow tired of this eventually and go be the King in London.

 

[Peasy]

Agreed, when it comes to big financial decisions for sure as they have to approve the $$$ portion of that transaction.

However I would imagine Leafs MLSE ownership has given Shanahan full autonomy on the day to day running of the Leafs which includes spending to the cap ceiling and hiring and firing anyone he wants to positions below him.

Shanny has the authority to fire Babcock the coach he hired though, whereas normally a GM gets to pick his own coach and fire them as well. I don't believe in Leafs structure with Dubas as GM he could fire Babcock, unless he first gets Shanahan's approval to do so.

I also doubt that Dubas would go to Leafs Ownership and say I want to sign Tavares for 7X $10 mil as a normal GM, as he again would need Shanahan to be onboard first with the signing and then Shanny the one likely to go the MLSE BOD for final $$$ approval on that type of long term commitment.

So I see it more as Shanahan is the Leafs real GM for all intents and purposes and Dubas is assistant GM in his roles and responsibilities.

Its a shame they didn't hire Chuck Fletcher.

 

[Bomber0104]

People talk about Mark Hunter like hes the only scout in hockey.

Dubas should be trying to poach Tampa, Winnipeg or Nashville's scouts whether Hunter leaves or not.

I'd specifically target Nashville scouts. Whoever's been responsible for that factory of defensive stars should be brought into the Leafs organization ASAP.

 

[Buds17]

Agreed, when it comes to big financial decisions for sure as they have to approve the $$$ portion of that transaction.

However I would imagine Leafs MLSE ownership has given Shanahan full autonomy on the day to day running of the Leafs which includes spending to the cap ceiling and hiring and firing anyone he wants to positions below him.

Shanny has the authority to fire Babcock the coach he hired though, whereas normally a GM gets to pick his own coach and fire them as well. I don't believe in Leafs structure with Dubas as GM he could fire Babcock, unless he first gets Shanahan's approval to do so.

I also doubt that Dubas would go to Leafs Ownership and say I want to sign Tavares for 7X $10 mil as a normal GM, as he again would need Shanahan to be onboard first with the signing and then Shanny the one likely to go the MLSE BOD for final $$$ approval on that type of long term commitment.

So I see it more as Shanahan is the Leafs real GM for all intents and purposes and Dubas is assistant GM in his roles and responsibilities.

GM reports to President. I'm happy that the President is a knowledgeable hockey guy. I'd only be concerned if the President was consistently interfering with, or negating, the GM's plans. No reason at this time to believe that has happened, or will happen, here.

Obviously with the President hiring the GM, he'll look to someone that generally shares his vision, but I imagine the GM has the ability to do as he wishes, within reasonable and normal parameters. Ditto for Shanahan, who also has someone to answer to.

 

[93LEAFS]

Hunter's scouting looks fine.

I suspect we might see some more of his players in the NHL next year, so far he has Marner 4th., Dermott 34th. and Matthews 1st. in the NHL.
That is very similar to the Bruins, with McAvoy 14th., Carlo 37th. and Debrusk 14th..

Leafs need top notch scouting. Let's hope Hunter continues to find the right guys. If not Hunter someone else, maybe poach the BJ's head scout.

When examining things like this, while pick location is important, you also have to look at how many opportunities they had. I mean, Boston has had 6 first rounders and 11 top 60 picks in total. Leafs have had at best 4 first rounders (if you consider they traded down for Dermott) and in total 7 top 60 picks (but you can count Bracco as a 2nd which makes it 8).