Speculation: New GM if We Change Direction

[Mickey Marner]

Ari Gold.

 

[AllDay28]

Well you've been telling us they'd beat the Habs for a week now so forgive me if I don't put much stock in your predictions.

sorry I’m an optimist. Better than having no life hoping my fav team loses like you do.

 

[3blizzard4]

Auston will soon be headed to Arizona for the summer. Zero covid restrictions there. Not a puck in sight. Yeah I am sure this loss will not be hanging over his head. Its us fans that get depressed and waste words here thinking about this sadly.

Guaranteed contracts. Whether you produce or not. Auston will net his 30-40 goals in a the regular season. That's about it. Previous 5 playoff series is full proof of that.

 

[Leaf Fans]

Where do I sign to get this guy off the Leafs? Is there a petition?

You can make one.

 

[EK392000]

He is the problem. He created this overpaid core them went out and gave away picks for some old guys that were crap and worn out.
Ya, he is 100% the problem

Overpaid, yes, but not my much. They’re still great players, which they’ve proved multiple times in the regular season, but don’t show up come playoff time. On paper, this team should be cup favourites and, at the very least, making it out the first round. But they’re not. The GM is supposed to put together the team on paper and the coach sorts out the on ice product.

Dubas went out and added Foligno, who captained a Blue Jackets team that not only beat the Leafs last year, but swept the Lightning the year before. He’s good defensively but I think he was added to bring that underdog mentality, that leadership with a killer instinct. In theory, it was a good a idea. How everything panned out is a different story. Not sure Dubas can be held entirely liable for it.

Players need to be held accountable too.

 

[egd27]

sorry I’m an optimist. Better than having no life hoping my fav team loses like you do.

I've been rooting for them to win for 50+ years, so I'm afraid you're mistaken yet again. Maybe reading a situation isn't your strong suit.

But hey, remain optimistic as long as you can.

 

[New Liskeard]

Auston will soon be headed to Arizona for the summer. Zero covid restrictions there. Not a puck in sight. Yeah I am sure this loss will not be hanging over his head. Its us fans that get depressed and waste words here thinking about this sadly.

Guaranteed contracts. Whether you produce or not. Auston will net his 30-40 goals in a the regular season. That's about it. Previous 5 playoff series is full proof of that.

What I had seen in the post game interviews were two young players clearly visibly upset and hurt (Marner and Matthews). If you don't believe that, you can guarantee they are completely devistated in letting down their teammates, specifically Spezza and Thornton. Sure they failed, but I don't buy for a minute they dont care.

 

[67leafs]

We can't afford talented grit, we can only afford league minimum grit.

I agree.......I think a better balance of skill needed higher paid grit is the answer. Let’s face it.....someone has to go in order to achieve that.

 

[AllDay28]

Guys we need grit. Like kadri whos suspended and Colorado hasn’t lost a step. Or Tampa and ... Pat Maroon? Ya grit gets you titles

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

Dubas IMHO assembled a fantastic team and addressed all the "issues" and deficiencies from last year. This was one of the best Leafs teams I have ever seen, I would go as far as to say the D was as good as the Rouse/Macoun/Ellet/Gill/Lefebvre days. That aside, if Dubas did a great job assembling the team, who is responsible for not executing? Coach/players or both?

The coaching staff made some questionable decisions and the PP was terrible but ultimately its up to the players who are supposed to be professionals getting paid lots of money to go out and perform. They've had different surrounding casts and a new coach and they didn't perform for a 5th yr in a row.

 

[67leafs]

Maybe mathews marner and Tavares will take a pay cut in order to produce a winner with more talented grit..........LOL!

 

[acrobaticgoalie]

Sam Bennet from CGY comes to mind, which reminds me we traded for David Rittich and I don't even know what the heck for if we weren't using him. Again there were other options and that's why they get paid the big bucks and not us armchair GMs.

You add depth at every position for playoffs. If your starter goes down with an injury and have to rely on your back up but he isn't getting the job done, then you turn to a fringe NHLer (Hutch, Vehvilainen)?

You add insurance.

 

[egd27]

Back to the division with Boston/Tampa.

Florida is no slouch and Ottawa may make some noise. A couple bad stretches and there may not be a 6th series next season.

 

[Bloomberg]

Florida is no slouch and Ottawa may make some noise. A couple bad stretches and there may not be a 6th series next season.

IMO, whether Dubas is fired or not, we wouldn't make it to the playoffs next season. There's is just not enough cap space to build a competitive team. If Dubas is here, he'll hold on to the core and we'll finish in the 10th-12th spot and will not be competitive for a long time since the cap isn't going to go up any time soon. If another GM comes in, I think we'll re-tool, have a bad year, get a high draft pick and be more competitive after next year. Either way, IMO, next season will be bad, but I'd rather we head in the right direction, then go with a core that's going nowhere. It's kinda like when Colorado traded away Duchene and look at where they are now.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

I don't see this disgrace as Dubas fault.

Other than 1 horrific contract he has done okay.

No one believed their downfall was a pathetic performance from the first line. The first line didn't even have to be good, it could have been average and they could have won.

We see a great deal of talent but getting by on talent alone seems to be where some are stuck, maybe a wake up call via trade is the only way to shake their complacency.

If we go around the roulette of blame I guess this time it falls on the players. Babcock is gone. Lou is gone. Core is the only thing that has been left untouched really. Seems like that is next and after that, it is Dubas/Keefe/maybe Shanny.

I think that is fair. Dubas did his job. There is absolutely no reason the team he built should not have been able to beat Montreal and even Winnipeg regardless of injuries to Muzzin and Tavares, and I hope he does not take any blame this time. Keefe was not perfect, and there are certain things he probably should have done differently (especially in regards to Thornton and Sandin and possibly that Matthews/Marner dynamic) but it is not like he lost by playing Marleau more than his young guys. He lost because he trusted his two top players to perform and they let him down (especially Marner).

Most of the people calling for Dubas and Keefe's heads right now are the ones who did not like them in the first place, and would rather have experience running the team. Except that some of the most successful teams right now (Colorado, Tampa, etc.) have rookie head coaches and GM's at the helm and we've had tried out two of the most respected and experienced guys to ever coach/GM the game (Lou and Babcock) without success. Experience helps, but it does not guarantee success... Especially if you are not smart with it. You need smart people, and Dubas/Keefe are smart people. I don't see many, if any, GM's or coaches out there who would have been able to avoid this result unless Marner/Matthews somehow played better under them. I just doubt that happens TBH. Seems like it is mostly in their own heads and it is 100% up to them to figure it out (if they are even afforded that opportunity anymore).

 

[Racer88]

Overpaid, yes, but not my much. They’re still great players, which they’ve proved multiple times in the regular season, but don’t show up come playoff time. On paper, this team should be cup favourites and, at the very least, making it out the first round. But they’re not. The GM is supposed to put together the team on paper and the coach sorts out the on ice product.

Dubas went out and added Foligno, who captained a Blue Jackets team that not only beat the Leafs last year, but swept the Lightning the year before. He’s good defensively but I think he was added to bring that underdog mentality, that leadership with a killer instinct. In theory, it was a good a idea. How everything panned out is a different story. Not sure Dubas can be held entirely liable for it.

Players need to be held accountable too.

I agree that the players are responsible as well bet Dubas spent 50% of the cap on 4 forward and I’m not sure they will ever be able to build a team balanced enough to win even a 1st round.
In my opinion is biggest mistake was getting Tavares at 11 million per year. With Marner, Matthews and Nylander on the team Tavares was the last place he needed to bury that much cap space

 

[Racer88]

Does anyone actually think Dubas will be fired? Although you may wish it, I think very few believe he’ll be removed. Maybe the OP could add a poll?

I want him to be fired so bad but I doubt clueless Shanny will do it.
My guess is both Shanny and him will be canned after next years 1st round exit

 

[socko]

Dubas will be here next season. /thread

/Thread back open/ We won't win a thing with Dubas next year /Closed Again/

 

[socko]

Who wouldn't want to get spanked by Boston again? Sounds like fun. Doubt it goes 7 this time. Team is more gutless than ever.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

Dubas went all in at the deadline. We only have 6 picks over the next 2 years as a team that is right against the cap. As we saw against Montreal, Matthews and Marner simply did not live up to their contracts. I don't think Dubas will move either of them and next season will be the same as this season. I wonder if management realizes this and would want to go in another direction. If Dubas leaves, who would you want as new GM to potentially make the franchise changing trade of someone within the core?

I like Jarmo Kekalainen, but don't think he's available. Maybe Chris Macfarland from Colorado?

Yes, let's bring in the guy that's running the Jackets into the ground that's a great idea, the guy is an idiot, we know that because every important person that they have f***s off the first chance they get.

Bob
Duchene
Dubois
Jones
Torts

When that many key people leave that tells me you suck at your job.

 

[rumman]

Does anyone actually think Dubas will be fired? Although you may wish it, I think very few believe he’ll be removed. Maybe the OP could add a poll?

I’m hoping the MLSE board reflects on how good it feels to be a winner since their basketball team won it all, and makes the right move and dumps the Prez and GM. The sooner the better.........

 

[rumman]

We can't afford talented grit, we can only afford league minimum grit.

Boy wonder was insistent he could win giving half the cap to four players, that’s where he was wrong, and where he lost the portion of the fan base that actually knows what it takes to win Lord Stanley’s Cup.......

 

[rumman]

Exactly. And we don’t seem to draft talented grit either.

 

[janesy12]

Contracts aside, he assembled a great team this year whether people want to admit it or not.
The fanfare when Simmonds, Thornton were announced was high as hell.
The entire regular season, Leafs were the team to beat. They were up 3-1.
The last few years excuses were coaching, goaltending, defense, leadership, toughness, & being harder to play against.
Dubas addressed every. single. need. Again, contracts aside. (I blame Shanahan for the Marner contract)

Babcock fired. Highly touted Sheldon Keefe takes over. Coming off a very recent Calder Cup. Players loved him. Rich Clune (Marlies Captain) was quoted as saying he'd go through a wall for that guy.
He added Campbell. Addressed the goaltending issue. 1 weak goal, but otherwise was excellent.
He added Muzzin, and Brodie. Both, along with Rielly were phenomenal.
Leadership? He added Spezza, Thornton, Simmonds, & Bogosian. All vets, and a very recent Cup winner.
Toughness and being harder to play against? Towards the end of the season the Leafs were being called bullies. Thornton was slashing and fighting small skilled guys. "Wayne Train" was throwing hits and at least making his presence felt somewhat. Bogosian's reputation was being a tough defender to play against. (Thought he had an excellent series however).

Then the deadline, his big mistake. I can't help but think he gave in to the media crap. Instead of adding some more offense in case of injury, slumps, and to help the PP, he adds Nick f***ing Foligno.
His tenure in Toronto will go down as an absolute disaster. Look at other recent deadline additions. Boyle had a much bigger impact. Hell even Tomas Plekanec scored a goal in the playoffs.
Foligno was a non factor. Horrible.

IMO Dubas did his job, save for the Foligno deal. He addressed every need that supposedly held us back the last few years.
What happened? Tavares went down with a freak injury. Tough luck. Nylander (the guy that Marner fanboys hate) took over. Spezza, Kerfoot, Galchenyuk stepped up. Jake Muzzin scored 2 goals in 1 game!
TJ BRODIE MATCHED HIS SEASON TOTAL IN 1 PERIOD.

Most of the roster did their job. It was a 3-1 series lead. Fantastic goaltending, contributions from the guys that weren't supposed to be contributors. Back t0 back difficult OT losses.
Game 7 in your own stadium, with healthcare workers attending the game. First time in over a year the hometown Leafs play in front of their fans.

The entitled brats show up with their literally one of their worst performances of the season. IN GAME 7 AGAINST THE HABS TO MOVE ON TO THE SECOND ROUND.
Completely inexcusable. The entitlement needs to be stripped from this team. Hold players accountable.

In a few weeks this team will pay out over $40 million in signing bonuses for another season marred in absolute embarrassment. They've made fools of themselves, the franchise, the logo, the history, and us as fans. It's embarrassing.

Dubas holds some responsibility for the contracts, but he assembled a good team even with those on the books. There needs to be some accountability. Clean house if they have to, but the first change should come with some of that entitlement.

 

[ottomaddox]

Dubas went all in at the deadline. We only have 6 picks over the next 2 years as a team that is right against the cap. As we saw against Montreal, Matthews and Marner simply did not live up to their contracts. I don't think Dubas will move either of them and next season will be the same as this season. I wonder if management realizes this and would want to go in another direction. If Dubas leaves, who would you want as new GM to potentially make the franchise changing trade of someone within the core?

I like Jarmo Kekalainen, but don't think he's available. Maybe Chris Macfarland from Colorado?

Well it's hard to compare, but Burke/Hextall were hired in PIT recently. It remains to be seen, but they didn't exactly come in and trade away Crosby and Malkin. Not that MM and AM are winners like those two, but they are talented. I don't think the next GM will come in and start shipping out top goal and point producers.

Changes do need to be made though.