The Toronto Maple Leafs 2020-21 season in spite of individual honors such as Auston Matthews winning the Rocket Richard Trophy for most goals and being nominated for the Lady Byng and Hart Trophies has to be considered a dismal failure, as the club suffered their fifth straight opening-round defeat in the Stanley Cup Playoffs under the administration of Team President Brendan Shanahan.
The Leafs have transitioned from Dave Nonis, to a group effort involving Shanahan, Mark Hunter and Kyle Dubas, to the experienced hands of Lou Lamoriello, and Dubas on his own in the seven years that Shanahan has been at the helm.
Shanahan is entering year three of a six-year contract extension and although the club has reached the level of being a legitimate Stanley Cup contender after going through a rebuild to draft Mitch Marner and Matthews, the lack of postseason success may have the Hall of Famer’s fate tied to the success or failure of Dubas and the club next season.
Dubas is entering year #4 as the GM and in some areas of his job has been extremely effective. The Leafs amateur scouting has improved dramatically in his administration after questionable picks under Hunter, the club’s ability to draw free agents from Europe has yielded some success (Ilya Mikheyev) and along with capologist / Asst. GM Brandon Pridham, Toronto has been able to maneuver through the minefield of the salary cap to add players and open up space when needed.
Where the Leafs have had issues is in their overall philosophy and how conducive it has been to playoff success. Dubas has assembled a core group high on skill in Matthews, Marner, John Tavares, William Nylander and Morgan Rielly and after two postseasons failures against Boston and Columbus, Toronto tried to fill in other aspects such as size, toughness, experience and leadership, adding veterans TJ Brodie, Joe Thornton, Wayne Simmonds, Zach Bogosian, Nick Foligno and Riley Nash to a group that included Jason Spezza, Zach Hyman, Jack Campbell and Jake Muzzin.
Some of those additions did perform well, but the loss to Montreal after leading the series 3-1 has to be laid at the feet of the core group, with one lost to injury (Tavares), two who played up to expectations (Nylander and Rielly) and two who were neutralized by the Canadiens defensive efforts (Matthews and Marner).
In their season-ending media availability, both Shanahan and Dubas gave a full-throated defense of their vision for the club and in particular Matthews and Marner. That was completely on point to defend their players and reinforce their value, but that does not necessarily mean that they will not entertain offers from other GM’s during the summer.
It may be time for Dubas to pull his version of the Kawhi Leonard for DeMar DeRozan if it is out there. If the Leafs choose to maintain mostly the status quo and not make significant changes, Shanahan and Dubas may do so at their own peril. A prolonged slump during the regular season or another first round exit could push the MLSE board over the edge.
*******If you are interested in sponsorship or advertising your business in the Greater Toronto / Southern Ontario area on this column, please send a message for more information by clicking on the “Contact” button at the top of the page.*******
Toronto Maple Leafs Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»