Who would you like as the next GM?

[SprDaVE]

Yeah, Treliving has done good work too. I won't discredit him too much.

Shanahan is in a tough spot right now even though it's his fault in the first place. With the candidates that are out there, I think he needs 1-2 months to decide but there's no time to wait.

All of the options whether it's Treliving, Tulsky, Darche, or anyone else come with question marks. It's unfortunate a coveted GM position (maybe the most coveted) is going to get handed out like candy due to the time constraint.

Yep and fair. I think the one thing Shanahan has is Pridham and I think they can probably slow down a bit with him. It doesn't seem like they are rushing at all at finding someone.

 

[hockeywiz542]

LeBrun: Rumblings on the Maple Leafs' GM search, with new names and priorities emerging

If Brendan Shanahan is looking for an experienced candidate, is Brad Treliving the front-runner? Could Doug Armstrong be in the mix?

theathletic.com

Brad Treliving is an obvious person of interest in the Maple Leafs’ search for a new general manager right now, and while nobody involved has been willing to confirm it as of Monday afternoon, I would be surprised if Toronto president Brendan Shanahan hasn’t interviewed the former Flames GM by the end of this week.

The question is just how expansive Shanahan’s process will be — how many people he wants to talk to before making a hire that is rather time-sensitive before the NHL’s busiest offseason window is upon us next month.

We do know what Shanahan himself said at Friday’s dramatic news conference, that experience would be a factor in the candidate he hires.

...........

Where that leaves Leafs assistant GM Brandon Pridham, for example, is interesting. He’s been in the Leafs front office since 2014, so nine years would qualify as experience. By all accounts, he’s super bright. He knows the CBA inside out and has explored every loophole as the Leafs have done a delicate salary-cap dance throughout his time in Toronto. But he might still be seen as not ready for a GM job in Shanahan’s eyes. I do think Pridham’s role and import have a chance to continue to grow and evolve under a new GM.

..........

Whether Shanahan — again, based on the idea that he’s looking at people with GM experience — will reach out to former GMs like Jason Botterill and Marc Bergevin remains to be seen. Bergevin, who spent 10 years in the frying pan of Montreal, was recently interviewed in Calgary and Pittsburgh.

That brings us to Doug Armstrong. The Leafs’ GM search was about five minutes old this past weekend when people began to mention Armstrong’s name as a possible candidate.

The Blues GM certainly checks all the boxes as far as experience and a Cup ring — not to mention the kind of confidence and wherewithal to withstand the pressure-packed demands of the Toronto market.

For starters, I do not believe Armstrong has an actual “out” in his contract with the Blues. He signed a five-year extension in September 2021 that runs through the 2025-26 season.

But I also think Armstrong has the kind of strong relationship with Blues owner Tom Stillman that if the Maple Leafs approached Stillman about it, maybe he would be OK with it if it’s something that Armstrong really wanted. Maybe, maybe not. Pretty hard to know exactly how Stillman would react.

Would Shanahan see that as too many hoops to go through? It’s pretty unusual for a GM to get pried away when still under contract for multiple years.

But Armstrong might be worth the hassle. Again, I have no idea at this point whether Shanahan would go down that road. Or whether Armstrong would, though maybe there has been a hint of it.

 

[BallardEra]

McGran: Bowman and Quenneville could be a dark horse

Kevin McGran from the Toronto Star, joins Conor McKenna, Simon Tsalikis and Luca Scott on the Morning Show to talk about Kyle Dubas being let go by the Toronto Maple Leafs, Brendan Shanahan running the ship, Bowman and Quenneville being potential candidates and more.

www.tsn.ca

 

[Leaf Rocket]

McGran: Bowman and Quenneville could be a dark horse

Kevin McGran from the Toronto Star, joins Conor McKenna, Simon Tsalikis and Luca Scott on the Morning Show to talk about Kyle Dubas being let go by the Toronto Maple Leafs, Brendan Shanahan running the ship, Bowman and Quenneville being potential candidates and more.

www.tsn.ca

I'll take coach q but please for the love of God not Bowman...

 

[Mr Knies Guy]

Jason Botterill seems super awful to me but he did have a lot of fanfare before he got his shot with Buffalo. A lot of his signings were bad, like Skinner at 9M per season. Not much at the draft either other than the obvious ones. The body of work is relatively small and he did get them Thompson and a few other players that are now flourishing.

Armstrong would be huge. Treliving would probably be fine.

Johnston did say Pridham is likely to stick around with the new GM as well.

I tend to agree but think he got better with time like Dubas; the

Another thing that I found interesting on Friedman’s podcast, is he said Dubas wasn’t trying to “push Shanahan” out, but rather he wanted to figure out a way to streamline the internal approval process as they were entering a summer with some big contract negotiations and big trade discussions and wanted to avoid delays in getting everyone to say yes and to help avoid leaks, etc.

It’s another hint that Dubas was planning to make a major change to the core.

FWIW, I think that still happens. I think the organization understands the entire big 4 won’t be back next year. A lot of talk about the players being too comfortable.

Apparently player exit interviews internally don’t go well, with some players being blunt of what happened.

The reckless speculation being guys like ROR/Schenn were blunt about the mindset of this team, more notably the core, versus their championship winning teams.

Which is sorta backed by Schenn’s comments in round 2 of it being about who cares about being there.



There’s no time for that in our situation lol

James Mirtle mentioned that whoever the new GM is will come in with a likely mandate that more than cosmetic changes are going to be made.

Friedman clarified today that’s what he meant when he said someone with “bite”. Leafs are looking for someone who is willing and able to deal with the major off-season the Leafs will have.

yeah, I’m fully on board the thinking Dubas was going to make a huge move, no doubt in my mind now.
Seravalli also confirms the earlier reporting that he tried to push Shanahan out with full autonomy and direct line to board. He said he suspects that to be the primary reason for Shanahan axing Dubas and it has little to nothing to do with the increased money demand

I’m really worried with Shanahan the lone cowboy at the reins. I’m also quite worried that he will turn off a few potential candidates because he seems a power greedy pig and any GM that with experience and worth anything will need autonomy.

I think it is a blemish and a major one.

I always judge a GM based on the variables in front of him when a signing/trade takes place. Everything else is hindsight.

The sudden drop in points for Huberdeau is bad luck for Treliving. I can agree with that. Huberdeau is still in his prime, so he should have performed well before the extension kicked in. The fact he didn't is not a good look for Treliving's team-building skills chemistry-wise but perhaps Treliving wanted to remove Sutter and couldn't.

I can back him on that.

However, the real issue is signing Huberdeau in desperation without knowing how he fits into the team. Not only this, the extension begins as he exits his prime. At least, 5-6 seasons in his extension will be post-prime years. Plus, the contract is essentially buy-out proof and a real burden with the full NMC.

In comparison, at least Tavares was signed as a 27-year-old with 3-4 years of his prime left.

Treliving has made major mistakes as a GM with no vision and honestly shouldn't even be considered for this position. It will be a real shame if this is the direction Shanny goes in.

Yep. I think he’s desperate for the Leaf job and will give up autonomy for it, which will please Shananhan who won’t give up that power

 

[Maple Leaf]

Dubas

It is not too late

 

[HEAVY DUTY]

I would love it if we got Doug Armstrong. I think Armstrong is putting his name out there through the media. First Friedman and now Lebrun. I think he wants this job and is telling Shanahan indirectly.

Even the athletic article mentions how Shanahan should go about asking permission to speak to Armstrong. lol.

make it happen Brendan. this is our guy.

 

[daveleaf]

The more I think of it the more I think there is no way Armstrong leaves St.Louis to come here. Other than the possible fame of being the guy that climbed that mountain for the leafs there is no reason to leave.

I'm thinking it's Treliving or Shanny goes the Pridham route and gets him a senior advisor. Maybe a Poile who doesn't want to be in the spotlight but in the back grund.

For all the Dubas lovers on here I think the prick really left the team in a rough spot. Negotiating contracts with guys that NMC kick in before their negotiation period is beyond amateur. Shanny should have gotten rid of him last year after that first round exit. Keefe has to go too, no reason for him to stay. He's useless.

 

[Mr Knies Guy]

I would love it if we got Doug Armstrong. I think Armstrong is putting his name out there through the media. First Friedman and now Lebrun. I think he wants this job and is telling Shanahan indirectly.

Even the athletic article mentions how Shanahan should go about asking permission to speak to Armstrong. lol.

make it happen Brendan. this is our guy.

I mean it happened with Burke didn’t it? He forced his way outta Anaheim. Granted he only had one year left, but money talks and who knows how happy the Blues are with him even with the new contract, he’s been there a helluva long time

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Just hope for you guys that it's not Bergevin.

Please don't listen to this man. He's like our lovable town drunk.

Marc Bergevin was a fine GM. He would bring much needed depth and character to this bunch of wusses. He's gonna beefcake the hell out of Marner, no one'll ever call him by the B word ever again. Long live the Biceps.

 

[Leaf Rocket]

I tend to agree but think he got better with time like Dubas; the

yeah, I’m fully on board the thinking Dubas was going to make a huge move, no doubt in my mind now.
Seravalli also confirms the earlier reporting that he tried to push Shanahan out with full autonomy and direct line to board. He said he suspects that to be the primary reason for Shanahan axing Dubas and it has little to nothing to do with the increased money demand

I’m really worried with Shanahan the lone cowboy at the reins. I’m also quite worried that he will turn off a few potential candidates because he seems a power greedy pig and any GM that with experience and worth anything will need autonomy.


Yep. I think he’s desperate for the Leaf job and will give up autonomy for it, which will please Shananhan who won’t give up that power

Chelios did say the man is very political Regardless hopefully he makes the right moves and get the right guy that helps the team instead of hurt.

 

[TheShape]

Take it for what it's worth but Biz and Ryan Whitney were saying today that Doug Armstrong apparently has an exit clause in his contract for a few select teams and the Leafs are one of them.

 

[SprDaVE]

Take it for what it's worth but Biz and Ryan Whitney were saying today that Doug Armstrong apparently has an exit clause in his contract for a few select teams and the Leafs are one of them.

Didn't they just bring up that some GMs have out-clauses and it's possible Armstrong has one? Not sure if they talked about something recent though. LeBrun, Strickland and everyone else have said he doesn't have an out clause.

 

[Leaf Rocket]

Didn't they just bring up that some GMs have out-clauses and it's possible Armstrong has one? LeBrun, Strickland and everyone else have said he doesn't have an out clause.

If stricklands says its...it's kind of tough to argue. Blues has him and Rutherford so... there aren't many insiders there lmao

 

[socko]

Brendan Shanahan should be the new GM. Make that guy earn his paycheck. He gets paid for doing nothing. Expose him as the fraud he is.

 

[Wendel17]

None of the names on this list excite me or even give me hope for the future. As far as I'm concerned it's George McPhee or bust. And if Shanahan being president is the reason McPhee won't come then he should step aside.

 

[Whitesnake]

Please don't listen to this man. He's like our lovable town drunk.

Marc Bergevin was a fine GM. He would bring much needed depth and character to this bunch of wusses. He's gonna beefcake the hell out of Marner, no one'll ever call him by the B word ever again. Long live the Biceps.

Yeah he was so great. If you're interested in having Andreas Martinsen, Steve Ott and Dwight King lookalike....you'll be fine. I can't wait for Wayne Simmonds extension as well.....

Seriously, that statement I gave out here was mostly a little joke. I said on the Habs board that as much as I thought it was time for him and Timmins to go, that the day that tons of bad coaches and GM's get 2nd, 3rd or a gazillion chances, they should to.

Bergevin did made some good moves. He just wasn't able to build a team. He reacts. Rather than being proactive. Will see who is is available and make it the strategy instead of having the strategy and finding who will fill this. And he had the best goalie in his era...and wasn't able to do squat except the year that was so normal, that we won the Clarence Campbell trophy.

Still...he deserves another shot. In Toronto? If I'm him, I'm staying away from the madness that are those types of markets. But then, his biggest downfall is his ego....so I guess we'll see.

 

[Wrong Wilson]

None of the names on this list excite me or even give me hope for the future. As far as I'm concerned it's George McPhee or bust. And if Shanahan being president is the reason McPhee won't come then he should step aside.

He'll hire Bruce Boudreau

 

[trellaine201]

He'll hire Bruce Boudreau

Bruce loves the Leafs.

 

[hockeywiz542]

Maple Leafs should get their house in order for next GM

Brad Treliving, or whoever else Toronto pursues as its next hockey executive, will want a lot more clarity than what's been offered to date.

torontosun.com

Brad Treliving, or anyone else stepping into the current Toronto tempest, will want a defined chain of command, presumably where he would have autonomy on significant personnel decisions.

There are conflicting reports Kyle Dubas was trying to establish just that with Brendan Shanahan and the MLSE board, seeking more power to ‘streamline’ hockey decisions in his contract extension talks just before Friday’s sudden firing.

Counter arguments suggest Dubas had much of that authority already and other than having his moves rubber stamped, the buck should rest with him if something went wrong.

This bickering is part of an unsurprising schism developing in the Leafs front office after Dubas’ sudden departure, pitting his loyalists against ‘Team Shanahan.’ Keep in mind Dubas hasn’t yet had his rebuttal to Shanahan’s version of how the firing unfolded, when the latter hinted a late change in the framework to Dubas’s extension by agent Chris Armstrong was the deal breaker.

It’s understandable that uber-impatient fans of the Leafs don’t need to hear about more potential impediments to team success, whether the board has every right to sign off on expensive decisions or should shut up and let their chosen GM do their job.

Shanahan is being second-guessed for the way he originally structured the Leafs’ hockey office in 2014, the back-to-front hirings of Dubas, Brandon Pridham, Mike Babcock and finally Lou Lamoriello as GM. But in the case of Dubas and Pridham, there was strong belief that summer they’d be snapped up by other teams if Toronto didn’t act fast.

YOUR MOVE, BRENDAN

Shanahan is torn by the urge to get someone proven in trades and contract negotiations ASAP to handle any hot-button issues with the roster beginning July 1. Topping that is Auston Matthews with his no-move clause that kicks in on the final year of his deal in five weeks, ditto for a no-move clause for Mitch Marner’s final two seasons and William Nylander’s 10-team no-trade clause in his encroaching last year.

Or does the boss actually wait and see who else might shake loose around the league now that the plumb high-paying job in Toronto is on the table?

While it’s thought Shanahan is wasting time hoping an established exec such as St. Louis’s Doug Armstrong, would ever leave his team, the long game after June 30, when contracts are up, could change that. It’s also when GM Stan Bowman and coach Joel Quenneville could be permitted to return after an extended time-out by the league, punishment for their inaction in the Kyle Beach case during their time with the Chicago Blackhawks a few years ago.

Treliving offers the best immediate option, praised for nine years of hard work that paid off in just about everything but playoff runs and draft success.

 

[Wrong Wilson]

Any chance Doug Armstrong is related to Dubas' agent Chris Armstrong?

 

[ULF_55]

I keep coming back to CHAT GPT-4.

No emotion or attachment to any player.

 

[Gutchecktime]

I'm a little confused by people acting like GM -> President -> Ownership isn't a very normal reporting structure though. A GM here will be given a blank cheque and seemingly unlimited resources, just like we heard about Dubas the entire time. We literally had articles written where execs around the league talked about how jealous they were of it.

There will be people who see this as an enticing spot, IMO.

 

[Squiffy]

Opinion | The Leafs have a long history of chaos, but this is no crisis

Making changes is what NHL teams do when they don’t win enough. There’s plenty of time to find the right GM and deal with the pressing business to come.

www.thestar.com

So suddenly, at least to the hysterical, the Leafs were in need of a total remake. The Core Four of Matthews, William Nylander, Mitch Marner and John Tavares absolutely had to be broken up, regardless of how difficult it is to do such a thing within the salary cap.

Now comes the departure of Dubas who, let’s face it, seriously overplayed his hand. The whisper campaign suggesting Brendan Shanahan was a domineering boss has already started, but there’s no actual evidence of that.

There’s a good case to be made that Dubas needed to be replaced even before he ignored his boss and publicly expressed uncertainty about whether he wanted to keep doing the job. Still, this has all happened at exactly the time when these things always happen, unless you believe Dubas should have been dismissed partway through the Florida series.

The Leafs now have their pick of the available GM candidates out there, plus those currently employed who might have an interest in jumping ship for the chance to run the NHL’s highest profile team.

The person who gets the job will likely have a full month before the big decisions start, more than enough time for a top-flight hockey executive to dig in and understand what needs to be done. The biggest call — what to offer Matthews — will be made as it was always intended: spearheaded by a GM working closely with Shanahan, MLSE chair Larry Tanenbaum and the rest of the hockey staff.

So again, what’s the crisis here exactly?

Now, if the new person comes in and immediately makes some seriously bad decision, a crisis might well be created by the fall, but that seems unlikely. The Leafs are a deep, talented team that has been among the NHL’s elite for some time. Their best players are just reaching their prime.

...........

This is clearly a big hire for Shanahan. If it doesn’t work, he knows he will become even more of a target for criticism than he is now, which is fair. A new set of experienced eyes to examine the organization and its goals couldn’t come at a better time.

The Leafs now have the chance to become stronger and move on from Dubas, his unbreakable bond with head coach Sheldon Keefe and much-criticized theories on possession hockey and salary-cap allocation.

They also have more than enough time to make it happen.

Good article there.

I would love it if we got Doug Armstrong. I think Armstrong is putting his name out there through the media. First Friedman and now Lebrun. I think he wants this job and is telling Shanahan indirectly.

Even the athletic article mentions how Shanahan should go about asking permission to speak to Armstrong. lol.

make it happen Brendan. this is our guy.

Can't see him taking a demotion.

 

[AuraSphere]

I would love it if we got Doug Armstrong. I think Armstrong is putting his name out there through the media. First Friedman and now Lebrun. I think he wants this job and is telling Shanahan indirectly.

Even the athletic article mentions how Shanahan should go about asking permission to speak to Armstrong. lol.

make it happen Brendan. this is our guy.

I never understand how people shit on Dubas for things like contracts and then vouch for guys like Doug Armstrong who hands out Torey Krug his awful contract and let Pietrangelo walk. There are a number of bad contracts on that STL team and they went from a cup winner to a bottom dweller in a matter of a couple years