After a work week bookended by candid press conferences and endless speculation, the Toronto Maple Leafs are on the hunt for a general manager.
Team president Brendan Shanahan announced Friday the club and GM Kyle Dubas - who was on an expiring contract - decided to "part ways." Also gone are AHL coaches Greg Moore, A.J. MacLean, and John Snowden. Meanwhile, Jason Spezza, Dubas' special assistant, reportedly resigned.
All of this turbulence comes with several franchise-altering decisions coming to a head over the next six weeks. The future of head coach Sheldon Keefe is to be determined, the draft goes June 28-29, and, on July 1, free agency opens and trade protection kicks in for multiple core players.
"I want to be very thoughtful and thorough, but I do think it is a priority and it needs to happen rather soon," Shanahan said of the timeline for hiring a GM.
Here's a non-exhaustive list of potential candidates.
Brad Treliving
Treliving, a 53-year-old longtime executive who recently parted ways with the Calgary Flames following nine seasons as GM, checks off a lot of boxes.
Shanahan noted previous GM experience would be an "attractive quality" - check; experience managing a Canadian franchise - check; history of pulling off a bold, complicated, star-studded trade in the offseason - check, thanks to the Jonathan Huberdeau-Matthew Tkachuk blockbuster in late July 2022.
TSN's Chris Johnston believes Treliving is actually the favorite to win the job.
Where Treliving's candidacy takes a hit: The Flames failed to make it past the second round of the playoffs during his tenure. Now, just like the Huberdeau-Tkachuk trade not working out for Calgary in Year 1, a lack of playoff success isn't entirely Treliving's fault. As with Dubas and the Leafs, players and coaches must execute. Nevertheless, Treliving deserves some blame.
Brandon Pridham
Pridham, one of four assistant GMs under Dubas, is, for all intents and purposes, the Leafs' interim GM. He's the new point of contact for rival executives, and Shanahan will be considering him for the permanent job.
Hired out of the NHL's head office early on in Dubas' run, then promoted to AGM in 2018, Pridham was Dubas' right-hand man. The 49-year-old is a salary-cap wiz who's well-connected in the hockey operations and player agency worlds.
In other words, Pridham is the leading internal option. Hiring from within would have its benefits, given the short runway to complete a lengthy to-do list, which includes potentially trading Mitch Marner or William Nylander and figuring out what to do with 11 free agents, including RFA goalie Ilya Samsonov.
It's fair to say Pridham and Dubas were probably on the same page for a lot of managerial decisions. They're that tight. Would hiring Pridham then mean the Leafs are essentially extending the Dubas era? Or, conversely, would the new guy be able to assess and correct Dubas' missteps better than anyone else?
Eric Tulsky
While Shanahan revealed little about the selection process, he did say he'll keep an open mind. That should be music to Tulsky's ears.
Tulsky, a pioneer of the hockey analytics movement and self-described "data-driven thinker," will be an NHL GM somewhere, someday. It's a mere formality. He was a finalist for the Chicago Blackhawks' opening last year and is reportedly in the running for the Pittsburgh Penguins' job.
Despite being an assistant GM in Carolina, Tulsky yields plenty of power within the Hurricanes, a final-four team this season. He oversees the analytics and pro scouting departments and helps out with contract negotiations and other CBA matters. Most notably, he has a direct line to owner Tom Dundon.
Tulsky is a scientist by trade. He has a bachelor's degree in chemistry and physics from Harvard and a Ph.D in chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley. Prior to turning a hockey writing side hustle into a career, he worked in the nanotech industry, where he holds more than a dozen patents.
In hiring Tulsky, the Leafs would be investing in another young high achiever.
Marc Bergevin
No hockey market is identical to Toronto, but Montreal is close, and Bergevin spent nine years as the Canadiens' GM. All of his moves were scrutinized by the massive fan base and hefty media contingent - in two languages, no less.
Bergevin, a former NHL defenseman, was extremely active on the trade market over his Habs tenure, pulling off deals small, medium, and large. He's shown a willingness to trade stars (P.K. Subban, Max Pacioretty) and high picks (Alex Galchenyuk, Mikhail Sergachev), winning some and losing others.
That swing-for-the-fences track record would be the pitch from the 57-year-old Bergevin, whom Montreal fired in November 2021. Currently a senior adviser for the Los Angeles Kings, he's reportedly a finalist for Calgary's GM job and has interviewed for either the president or GM job in Pittsburgh.
John Chayka
What did Chayka learn from his first twirl in a GM's chair?
Surely, Shanahan would ask just that if Chayka earned an interview with the Leafs. Chayka, the youngest GM in NHL history, made a few savvy personnel moves in Arizona. However, he also ended the four-year run in awkward fashion, butting heads with Coyotes ownership on his way out in 2020 before getting suspended by the league for a scouting snafu.
The 33-year-old served his suspension and subsequently interviewed for the vacant roles in Pittsburgh. He values data, and Toronto has a robust research and development department.
In tapping the exceptionally bright Chayka, Shanahan would be trusting that time away from the game offered the white-collar executive some perspective.
Jason Botterill
Botterill, 47, brings a little bit of everything to the table.
He's held various titles in NHL front offices - scout, director of hockey ops, assistant GM, associate GM, and GM. He's worked for four clubs over 17 years - the Dallas Stars, Penguins, Buffalo Sabres, and Seattle Kraken, where he's currently an assistant GM under Ron Francis. As an executive, Botterill has hoisted the Stanley Cup three times, all with Pittsburgh. A former NHLer armed with a master's degree in business administration from the University of Michigan, he's viewed as a mix of old and new school.
At the very least, Botterill's resume should be piquing Shanahan's interest.
John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email ([email protected]).
