[Friedman] Pittsburgh hires Kyle Dubas as President of Hockey Operations

[PromisedLand]

My "insight" is that it's all little more than guesswork, it's hard to say if Shanahan is any good at his job or not. Especially after learning about the tension between him and Dubas. If one likes Shanahan, they will credit him for the Leafs good moves and Dubas for the bad moves. If one likes Dubas more, they will do the opposite.

Shanahan made the error in hiring dubas to begin with. His judgment call is susepect IMO anyway

 

[thekernel]

To the surprise of nobody, Dubas has found a job within ten seconds

 

[Based Anime Fan]

Shanahan made the error in hiring dubas to begin with. His judgment call is susepect IMO anyway

I would expect no less of the most progressive team in the league according to al ot of HFboards. Of course they're all FOSS nerds.

Dubas wasn't using Excel, he was using a highly customized LibreOffice, and that could be why it wasn't working.

 

[DS7]

Yeah, so he increased them 1 point while trading 5 1st round picks in 5 years and having Matthews/Marner and Nylander enter their prime. Zero playoff success also.

Dubas inherited a 21 year old Matthews, 22 year old Marner and 23 year old Nylander. He didn't draft any of them.

Is that really praiseworthy?

He increased 1 point as an average..so he exceeded the previous record multiple years over a result leafs only achieved once since they were a team. That's impressive.

Playoff success is two factors outside of his control. Leafs were screwed by the flat cap and the division format. They were knocked out by being made to play one of the most dominant runs of a cup contender in memory in Tampa in the first round. I cant see that as a mark against him. (The canada division year and Montreal will be looked back on as one of the biggest what ifs)

The context matters and how Kyle operated within the ccontext as a rookie GM was competent at the very least and praiseworthy.

The Tavares/marner/Mathew contracts of course are the inarguable black marks against him. I'm not trying to put him on a pedestal here. But I can see him succeeding elsewhere. Is that too charitable a view ?

 

[Empoleon8771]

Absolute lol at Leafs fans making fun of Pittsburgh for hiring Dubas right after the Leafs hired Treveling to be their GM.

 

[Leaf Fans]

To the surprise of nobody, Dubas has found a job within ten seconds

No one should be surprised anyway.

 

[Golden_Jet]

He increased 1 point as an average..so he exceeded the previous record multiple years over a result leafs only achieved once since they were a team. That's impressive.

Playoff success is two factors outside of his control. Leafs were screwed by the flat cap and the division format. They were knocked out by being made to play one of the most dominant runs of a cup contender in memory in Tampa in the first round. I cant see that as a mark against him. (The canada division year and Montreal will be looked back on as one of the biggest what ifs)

The context matters and how Kyle operated within the ccontext as a rookie GM was competent at the very least and praiseworthy.

The Tavares/marner/Mathew contracts of course are the inarguable black marks against him. I'm not trying to put him on a pedestal here. But I can see him succeeding elsewhere. Is that too charitable a view ?

Florida did fine beating the number 1,2 and 4 ranked teams in the league.

 

[Darren McCord]

Catastrophically bad hire for Pittsburgh.

Dubas was a total failure and disappointment for a half decade as GM in Toronto - - now someone is dumb enough to promote him to president.

Wasn’t close to being ready for the GM job and definitely isn’t close to being ready for this job either.

Watch how badly he gets exposed in Pittsburgh. I’m super excited to watch the train wreck unfold!

Good thing they didn’t hire him to be a gm then

 

[bigdog16]

Who built the roster filled with so many underachievers?

One or two years of disappointing playoff failures is maybe in the players. But when it’s FIVE (5) consecutive years of the same thing, that’s 100% on the GM.

Sorry about your luck, Pittsburgh.

Lol gtfo. If Treliving doesn’t move any of the core 4 and adds a couple depth pieces, and the Leafs go on a deep run next year then what? You still going to be tossing Dubas under the bus? Leafs could win the cup with almost an identical team next year and Leaf fans will still claim Dubas is a bum.

Im sure one day Leaf fans will realize the playoffs are an absolute crapshoot

 

[red devil]

 

[Divine]

Lol gtfo. If Treliving doesn’t move any of the core 4 and adds a couple depth pieces, and the Leafs go on a deep run next year then what? You still going to be tossing Dubas under the bus? Leafs could win the cup with almost an identical team next year and Leaf fans will still claim Dubas is a bum.

Im sure one day Leaf fans will realize the playoffs are an absolute crapshoot

Your argument goes both ways though.

Dubas inherited Matthews, Marner, Nylander, Rielly and Kadri and you're giving him credit for 'building' the team.

Why is it if a new GM inherits the same - now all the credit goes to Dubas? The Leafs entire core has basically been the same since before Dubas was GM.

Rielly, Matthews, Marner, Nylander were all part of the core before Dubas.

Dubas traded Kadri away for Kerfoot and paid Tavares 11M - that's as far as he went building the team.

 

[LOFIN]

Who built the roster filled with so many underachievers?

One or two years of disappointing playoff failures is maybe in the players. But when it’s FIVE (5) consecutive years of the same thing, that’s 100% on the GM.

Sorry about your luck, Pittsburgh.

So if (and when, considering what has been said around the Leafs) they come back with the same core-5 and Sheldon Keefe, what will you say at that point?

 

[Syrinx]

This inspires more confidence in me as a Pens fan than Burke and Hextall ever could. They were too entrenched in the old boys network to make any meaningful change.

 

[Leaf Fans]

It is quite funny how the narrative has changed around the Leafs. After the loss, it was pinpointed on the coach and the top guys (excluding Nylander who was actually all right). But after Dubas got canned, now it's back to his roster construction.

Some people changed their narrative.

FSG seems like they have deep pockets.

They sure do. Liverpool certainly spends money.

 

[OtherThingsILike]

Terrible day for all those Pittsburg fans who have been going on for years about what a terrible GM Dubas is.

Sure, but now we know more about how the Leafs worked.
All of the good things the Leafs did were because of Dubas.
All of the bad things were the fault of Shanahan and/or the Board.

 

[Channelcat]

This is a good lesson for you kids. Get yourself a pair of black framed glasses and hang around your local rinks with a clipboard using words like synergies and derivatives. You too can make 7M usd as an NHL executive.

 

[A1LeafNation]

Absolute lol at Leafs fans making fun of Pittsburgh for hiring Dubas right after the Leafs hired Treveling to be their GM.

Not all Leaf fans. Some Leafs have asked why Shanahan isn't fired and Dubas isn't the Leafs President and GM.

It's easy to understand why he is a President of a team. He put together the Leafs front office.

 

[Leaf Fans]

Sure, but now we know more about how the Leafs worked.
All of the good things the Leafs did were because of Dubas.
All of the bad things were the fault of Shanahan and/or the Board.

Well, Dubas had his ups and downs. The one playoff win in his 5 years as GM is also the farthest the Leafs have gone in 19 years. His teams also made the playoffs every year, that hasn't happened in a longer time than the second round.

 

[WORLDSTARHIPHOP]

A fat promotion into a much more stable and long term job, out of Toronto media seems pretty good for the family tbh

 

[RSPens]

Here's hoping Dubas does something more interesting with the Pens roster than Hextall's bizarre strategy of making the team older and worse.

Don't forget slower, smaller and costing more too.

Is Kyle Dubas the greatest president to never win anything ?

We'll see...I mean Shanny has one playoff round as a Pres

 

[WetcoastOrca]

Most President's have won, either as players or GM's.

Winning as a player matters also - because it shows you know what it takes to win, in the locker room culture, etc.

The Kevin Lowe approach. Lol.

 

[RSPens]

That's not how leveraging works. If you're trying to get the most money out of a potential employer, you don't tell them they are your only/preferred choice.

You do if the potential employer is questioning your dedication to the team.

 

[Divine]

The Kevin Lowe approach. Lol.

Or Yzerman

 

[Golden_Jet]

Not all Leaf fans. Some Leafs have asked why Shanahan isn't fired and Dubas isn't the Leafs President and GM.

It's easy to understand why he is a President of a team. He put together the Leafs front office.

Ya a lot of fans are what took so long.

 

[Tak7]

Kyle Dubas Penguins Presser

*Honored to join Pitt as President. Thanks & praises everyone involved in the process. Says Pitt reached out the day after Dubas was let go by Toronto. Made him / his family feel very comfortable, showing them the city. Made decision early this week that this was the right move for his young family. Spoke with both Sullivan & Crosby to get sense of organizational position & direction. Says those conversations were very important. Sees task as two pronged effort - in the short term, making smart decisions to continue supporting current core to contend. Work will also begin to deliver long term plan to continue turning Pittsburgh into quality organization.

*On next GM - in meeting with ownership, realized thorough GM search already underway. Says intention will be handle GM duties as interim basis here until July, then continue search. Wants progressive person who can add to skillset of organization. Mentions that it's difficult to get permission from other teams to speak to candidates currently

*On Pens contending window - heard a lot of people were highly skeptical about current team's ability to win. He won't bet against Crosby, Malkin, Letang, Sullivan. Need to fill out depth around those players.

*On Crosby conversation - wanted to feel out where the team was at, and that winning was still priority. When you have people like that, entering the building everyday, can help reduce gap between current era and next era of hockey.

*On upcoming draft & free agency - says he tries to stay up to date with every team's NHL and AHL teams. Will rely heavily on coaching staff at both levels, and highlights good group of people in the background already in Pittsburgh. Will rely on amateur scouts foe draft, but says he already has very decent base for upcoming draft.

*On ' analytics guy ' reputation - grew up in an environment that allowed him to appreciate data/objective details that enable you to make better decisions. Says he doesn't know exactly extent of work analytics team here currently does, but ownership have enabled him to add to analytics group should it be required. Says integration of all departments, can help all other divisions - personnel, development, high performance, etc. Wants deeply collaborative group that works together.

*On Greyhounds experience - calls it his dream job. Grew up in the Soo. Reflects very fondly on that time, and gained so much valuable experience. Highlights mistakes he made and lessons he was able to learn from them. Taught him to deal with pressures & criticisms, and about leadership and treating people correctly.

*On aging roster with NMCs - wants to see what he can effect via depth & younger players. Says over the next few weeks will get a gauge of player value around the league. Focus is on how team stacks up against teams in Pitt division, not all other 31 teams.

* On evaluating goalie position - having not spent time with Jarry, will reach out to other staff members to learn more and then spend time with Jarry. Will evaluate what's in the marketplace & then see how Jarry stacks up against the market.

* On challenges in Toronto with his family - suggests he may have been too honest that day. Says the next morning, got a call from Pittsburgh ownership. Wanted to take pause, as he intended to be patient, but his wife pushed him to take the call & see what materialized, not to pass up an oppprtunity. Mentions his wife said it was a good time to move on, as they were leaving Toronto regardless. Said first meeting went very well, before meeting Sullivan and Crosby. Says the closer was Pitt bringing his family down, and his family feeling they could establish themselves here


*On players/style he wants to add - says he's only spoken briefly with Sullivan on it. Says top end forwards are good group. Questions whether they need another piece to supplement that. Mentions Pens have plenty of cap space available - $20m - this summer. Wants to establish what sort of depth pieces team wants to add, while examining what they currently have.