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

[TheHudlinator]

Really like this move for Pittsburgh

 

[LastOne2100]

I'm not sure any GM would have done worse considering the contracts he signed after.

So Kyle Dubas, signing an RFA to a $10.9 Million contract based on a single 94 point season = genius.

Treviling, signing a UFA to a $10.5 Million contract based on multiple 90+ point seasons and a 115 point season = terrible.

Got it.

 

[notbias]

So Kyle Dubas, signing an RFA to a $10.9 Million contract based on a single 94 point season = genius.

Treviling, signing a UFA to a $10.5 Million contract based on multiple 90+ point seasons and a 115 point season = terrible.

Got it.

It's much better.

One is signed through their prime and the other is signed through the end of their career. Not to mention the defensive side of Marner's game.

 

[nuxnux1]

Smart guy.

He took a team who lost in the first round 3 consecutive years before he was GM and traded 3 1st round picks only to lose in the first round 7 consecutive years. He then doubled down and traded another 2 1st round picks in his final year for a second round exit.

He's never proven any success at the NHL level - and now never has to because he's not the GM.

There's very few people who can obtain a high level position with zero results, Dubas seems to be one of them.

He surrounded the core 4 with good pieces, the problem is with them not dubas imo, they just don’t have that next level of play that winners have in the playoffs

 

[LastOne2100]

It's much better.

One is signed through their prime and the other is signed through the end of their career. Not to mention the defensive side of Marner's game.

It's really not, and RFA vs UFA makes it all the more embarassing.

But still, let's compare it with one of Dubas' other signings, John Tavares.

$11M for a player (during a time of lower cap ceiling) with a couple 80 point seasons?

Your revisionist history is hilarious. Most people at the time felt the contract was fair value.

 

[notbias]

It's really not, and RFA vs UFA makes it all the more embarassing.

But still, let's compare it with one of Dubas' other signings, John Tavares.

$11M for a player (during a time of lower cap ceiling) with a couple 80 point seasons?

Your revisionist history is hilarious. Most people at the time felt the contract was fair value.

I'd still prefer Tavares, but yes it is a bad signing.

Tavares might end his contract as a PPG C still.

Huberdeau just had 55pts and it is year 1 of his contract starting next season.

 

[LastOne2100]

I'd still prefer Tavares, but yes it is a bad signing.

Tavares might end his contract as a PPG C still.

Huberdeau just had 55pts and it is year 1 of his contract starting next season.

Moral of the story is that being a GM is hard, and they don't get the benefit of hindsight like you do.

In the moment, with the cards dealt, I am not sure what magic you would've expected.

If you think Dubas would've done much better, you're absolutely off your rocker, as Dubas made worse mistakes with less pressure (Mrazek, Murray - both of which didn't need the benefit of hindsight for everyone in hockey to know were terrible errors).

 

[DesertPenguin]

I think it’s a decent hire for Pittsburgh, Dubas for all his flaws seems to be good at augmenting a team’s core. But Pittsburgh’s core hasn’t carried the mail any better than Torontos core in the past few years, so not sure how much improvement to expect, nor why Dubas took the job if more promising teams were offering him employment

The only bright side of that situation for Pittsburgh is that their core, while older and in decline, is signed to about half the cap hit as Toronto's.

 

[DesertPenguin]

So what's his plan.

Does he get the rest of Pittsburgh on board with the fact their Cup window is completely closed and start to rebuild, or does he placate Sid and Geno and pretend to go for it?

Also, cue Jason Spezza coming out of retirement.

Sounds like the plan is for him to plug the holes in the dam best he can to make a couple more runs at it, and then beef up his scouting and development personnel to be plugged in and ready for the rebuild in a couple years time.

 

[DesertPenguin]

Definitely a radical polar opposite sort of direction from the incompetent staff they just moved on from. It's a bit of a peculiar fit though, in terms of Dubas not having demonstrated whatsoever, that he can be that "finisher" GM who takes a team that's on the cusp and gets them over the hump. Which is where Pittsburgh currently are. They've got an old core that still has those key pieces to be a contender...but badly needs a substantial overhaul of the rest of the roster around them.

I am thinking that's where the actual GM comes in. Dubas builds the organization for the long term rebuild, and the yet to be hired GM is the closer to try to get the last bit of competitive hockey out of Sid/Geno/Letang. Once the door is definitively shut on the core, the closer GM is walked out and a builder is brought in to drive the scouting and player development department Dubas has been busy constructing.

 

[MikeyMike01]

Literally anyone would be an upgrade over the last regime in Pittsburgh

 

[The Winter Soldier]

I will say this. Dubas is a sly self promoter. Still pitching, still selling from parts of what I heard in today's presser. Maybe it has nothing to do with how he will do as a Hockey Ops President. But I listened to his answer on how he went from this quote just 2 weeks ago to today, well you can see why his comments live on to amuse, we can and we will and now this one. I have a feeling this quote will live on too.

 

[Zirakzigil]

Like the hire. Makes no sense to wait until July/August to hire a GM if he doesnt want that role too. Just hire one now or wait until next off season. Doing the daft and FA yourself makes no sense.

 

[Turin]

Like the hire. Makes no sense to wait until July/August to hire a GM if he doesnt want that role too. Just hire one now or wait until next off season. Doing the daft and FA yourself makes no sense.

Sounds like he wants somebody on another team who won’t be made available to talk to until after the draft and free agency.

 

[bigdaddyk88]

Like the hire. Makes no sense to wait until July/August to hire a GM if he doesnt want that role too. Just hire one now or wait until next off season. Doing the daft and FA yourself makes no sense.

It’s doesn’t matter who the gm is Sulivan is still the coach unless the gm goes money ball and dumps the old guys and forces mike to play a young bottom 6 nothing changes.

 

[Xirik]

Any top NHL player that had a Penguins blanket as a kid? Overpaid pens player incoming!

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

Dubas got an awesome job after making the Leafs the mockery of the league and going out in Toronto as a villain , this dubas guy isint so bad starting to like him

 

[Peasy]

Crazy their ownership group in 2 years goes from Burke is our guy, to Dubas. Quite the drastic change.

 

[RickyLafleur]

Not sure why guy's even bother saying that they wont leave or go anywhere else when it happens all the time, usually a few days later.

 

[Thorton02]

So Dubas wanted Shanny's job. Smart move. He can oversee a rebuild and not be directly responsible for poor drafting & trades. Figure as President of Hockey Ops, Dubas has the lifespan of at least 2 GMs and endless head coaches. Pittsburgh is a good hockey market but not insane liked Toronto. Dubas' quality of life just improved.

 

[justPlay]

Say what you will about Dubas, but the guy's 37. What a career.

 

[Luigi Lemieux]

Crazy their ownership group in 2 years goes from Burke is our guy, to Dubas. Quite the drastic change.

Burke/Hextall was hired by Lemieux/Burkle not Fenway. FSG inherited them, and from reports were not particularly fans of them. Fenway wants their Theo Epstein of hockey in Dubas.

 

[Hockey4Lyfe]

super happy for Pittsburgh.

I'm sure kyle's family will enjoy all Pitts has to offer. his wife taught here in Hamilton, so I'm sure she's used to the "wonder" that is the city of Pittsburgh.

Unsure of what she teaches but if this is some lame attempt at saying Pittsburgh is a “wonder” in the world of education, as a slight, it’s a pretty awful attempt.

Pittsburgh has two ridiculously highly regarded educational colleges in the entirety of North America. And a couple others that are a couple hours drive that are up there as well.

You can attack the city for other things but I would take a seat if this truly was aimed at a diss at the educational system here.

 

[The Grim Reaper]

Unsure of what she teaches but if this is some lame attempt at saying Pittsburgh is a “wonder” in the world of education, it’s a pretty awful attempt.

Pittsburgh has two ridiculously highly regarded educational colleges in the entirety of North America. And a couple others that are a couple hours drive that are up there as well.

You can attack the city for other things but I would take a seat if this truly was aimed at a diss at the educational system here.

Still bothers me that Pitt hasn't been invited into the B1G. They certainly bring in enough federal money to fulfill the academic alliance qualification. Sure, they're not a land grant university, but neither are Michigan or Iowa.

 

[Frank the Tank]

Still bothers me that Pitt hasn't been invited into the B1G. They certainly bring in enough federal money to fulfill the academic alliance qualification. Sure, they're not a land grant university, but neither are Michigan or Iowa.

Adding Pitt to the Big 10 doesn't move the needle in terms of access to large population centers that will watch their sports products. Both recent additions to the Big 10 have been done to access the East Coast (Maryland & Rutgers) and California (USC & UCLA) markets.