Kyle Dubas doesn't think the uncertainty surrounding his contract status will be a distraction for the Leafs this yearGetty Images
There is a "fascinating dynamic emerging" with the Maple Leafs ahead of the season, as GM Kyle Dubas is "entering lame-duck territory" in the final year of his contract, according to Travis Yost of TSN.ca. Dubas said that after a conversation with Maple Leafs President Brendan Shanahan this summer, he would "not be receiving an extension, with Shanahan opting to wait and see how the team progresses through a pivotal season." In his fifth and potentially final season as GM, the pressure on Dubas to "deliver a team that can win in the postseason is extraordinary." But Dubas "seems fine for now with the arrangement, telling Toronto media he was comfortable being judged at the end of this season." Yost wrote the Maple Leafs "shouldn’t merely extend Dubas because he was the best general manager for the franchise in recent history." And Dubas "needs to own some of the organizational failures under his tenure" (TSN.ca, 9/21).
CONFIDENCE IS KEY: THE HOCKEY NEWS's Mike Stephens noted Dubas is "confident that the uncertainty around his expiring contract won't serve as a distraction amidst a pivotal season." Without confidence, this situation "would eat a person alive." But Dubas is "determined to not let that happen, repeatedly insisting that he intends to be judged on the body of his five-year tenure in the GM's chair, and not just this season." For the most part, Dubas has "done a fantastic job building the Leafs' roster since taking over in 2018; recruiting marquee talent via free agency, swinging blockbuster trades, and both drafting and developing useful contributors from within." The Maple Leafs are one of the "more competently-run franchises in the NHL from a hockey operations perspective these days, and a great deal of that reputation is due to the work Dubas has put in behind the scenes." But the lack of a playoff series win "cannot be ignored" (SI.com, 9/21).
STANDING PAT: In Toronto, Michael Traikos writes the decision to not extend Dubas "may have been based on a wait-and-see approach after four straight years of failing to get out of the first round of the playoffs." But it was also "based in part on what Dubas did -- or didn’t do -- this summer." Dubas "didn't make a big trade." With the exception of a "few and insignificant small moves, he mostly stood pat, believing that this group is still capable of breaking through and winning a championship." It is a belief that others in the organization "sound like they are starting to become skeptical of" (TORONTO SUN, 9/22).
