Maple Leafs President Brendan Shanahan yesterday said that it is "not his intention to assume the general manager’s job himself, although he didn’t rule out taking over the job if he doesn’t find the right person," according to Curtis Rush of the TORONTO STAR. He said, "This job won’t be for some general managers, but those general managers won’t be for us." He added that there "isn’t going to be any great new plan for the Leafs," but rather the challenge is "sticking with the plan." He "blamed past problems with the team’s management on impatience and the desire to take short cuts." Shanahan "would not put a timetable on any hirings" (TORONTO STAR, 4/14). The CP noted Shanahan during yesterday's press conference, one day after the team's front office purge, "stressed the need to build a resilient team and coaching staff that can handle the pressures of playing in Toronto, where fan expectations and media scrutiny can be intense." He said, "We have an incredibly loyal, resilient fan base. We need to have an incredibly resilient group of players who love to play in Toronto" (CP, 4/13).
PREACHING PATIENCE: In Toronto, Kevin McGran writes if the Maple Leafs "are ever to become Stanley Cup champions" under Shanahan’s watch, it "will be because the team president has a great deal of faith" in the patience of fans. Patience is an ideal spoken of "in 29 other NHL cities but rarely ever uttered in Toronto largely because ownership or management usually gets scared along the way and tries to speed up the building process to appease hockey’s largest and wealthiest fan base while lining their own pockets." Shanahan's approach is "refreshing," as he "trusts the fans want to see a proper rebuild." Shanahan: "They understand there are no shortcuts. Shortcuts have gotten this organization into trouble in the past." McGran notes Shanahan is "firm" on the fact that the new GM, "whoever he will be, will have to work with assistants already in place: Kyle Dubas and Mark Hunter." Dubas and Hunter for now are "running the team, both preparing for the June draft" (TORONTO STAR, 4/14). The GLOBE & MAIL's James Mirtle writes the Leafs "have bred dysfunction for so long that it's not surprising that's all many see." So when Shanahan "speaks the way he did" yesterday, the skepticism is "understandable." However, much of that skepticism "is misplaced." Mirtle: "For too long, the richest team in hockey has lost games not because of a lack of effort or heart or leadership on the ice, but because they’ve simply been outmanaged in the front office, with franchises" such as the Blackhawks and Kings lapping "them several times in the competence department." Club parent MLSE "appears to finally appreciate the situation" and is "fully on board, ready to hand the keys over to Shanahan with few questions asked." If they "stay there, and if he continues to make more good decisions than bad, the Leafs should finally begin their long road to the kind of sustained success that has eluded them for so many years" (GLOBE & MAIL, 4/14). THE HOCKEY NEWS' Ken Campbell wrote the short-term future of the Leafs "is bleak," as the team faces a "massive rebuild, one that has to go deep and dramatic" (THEHOCKEYNEWS.com, 4/13).
CHARACTER ZERO: In Toronto, Rob Longley writes as Shanahan "continues to forge ahead with a plan to win back respectability for the Original Six franchise, it’s clear that going forward he will favour players with strong character" (TORONTO SUN, 4/14). The STAR's McGran wrote there are "suddenly a lot of vacancies to be filled" within the Leafs' front office, and "most of the best people already have jobs." Shanahan will be "hiring from a position of weakness" (THESTAR.com, 4/13).Also in Toronto, Steve Simmons notes the Leafs "will begin next season with a CEO who didn’t hire the president and a president who hired the GM, but a GM who didn’t hire his assistants, and maybe not the coach" (TORONTO SUN, 4/14).
