Leafs GM Dubas: No plans ‘to go anywhere else’
-
Kristen Shilton, ESPN NHL reporter
Kyle Dubas doesn’t know whether he’ll return as general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs. But it’s the only position he would consider taking in the near future.
Dubas is on an expiring contract that’s yet to be renewed — in part by Dubas’ own choice. He spoke candidly about approaching the next chapter of his career during the Maple Leafs’ end-of-season media availability on Monday and how it won’t include a change of address.
“I definitely don’t have it in me to go anywhere else,” Dubas said. “It’ll either be here or it’ll be taking time to recalibrate, reflect on the seasons here. You won’t see me next week pop up elsewhere. I can’t put (my family) through that after this year.”
Having conversations and getting feedback from loved ones — Dubas is a married father of two — will play a primary role in how he proceeds from here.
“It requires me to have a full family discussion,” Dubas said of making his decision. “My family is a hugely important part of what I do, so for me to commit to anything without having a fuller understanding of what this year took on them, it’s probably unfair for me to answer. It was a very hard year on them.”
Dubas said he would speak further with Leafs’ president Brendan Shanahan in the coming days to gauge where the organization is at as well in terms of moving forward. The 37-year-old joined the Leafs’ front office in 2014 as an assistant GM and was promoted by Shanahan to his current role in 2018, replacing Lou Lamoriello in the process.
“I’ve had a good, long relationship here with Brendan and the owners. I’ll speak to them in the coming days. It’s been a very taxing year (on my family) and that’s obviously very important to me. And then we’ll all make our decisions and roll from there.”
Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe was also brought on by Dubas after the general manager fired Mike Babcock in 2019. Dubas was GM of the Ontario Hockey League’s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in 2011, when he originally hired Keefe to coach that team. Dubas then brought Keefe to Toronto as coach of the Toronto Marlies, the AHL affiliate, and finally over to the job with the Maple Leafs.
Keefe said on Monday he was giving Dubas space in figuring out his next path.
“Kyle and I have a lot of history,” he said. “I believe in a lot of the things he’s done here that have put us in positions to succeed. I’m hopeful that [contract] gets worked. Out of respect to him, I’ve left him alone and let him really sort through the things he needs to sort through and go through the process himself.”
Toronto has a long offseason to contemplate what went wrong. The Maple Leafs were ousted from postseason contention last week by the No. 8-seeded Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference semifinals, a series in which Toronto fell behind 3-0 before losing in five games. It was a crushing disappointment given the Maple Leafs had advanced in the playoffs for the first time in nearly 20 years after topping the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round. Toronto had previously made six consecutive first-round exits from the postseason.
The sting of how things ended clearly remained with Dubas, and he pledged to learn from another bout of frustration.
“Perhaps the path needs to shift slightly,” he said. “It needs to be adapted slightly. And you get in between persistence and full belief versus being a little too staunch and rigid. And I think that’s the question I would take the time for myself in reflecting on the year.”
Dubas has remained staunchly behind the Maple Leafs’ core of talented forwards — largely Auston Matthews, Mitchell Marner, John Tavares and William Nylander — for years. He’s repeatedly defended them against lagging playoff performances, which resurfaced again in the series against Florida.
Matthews and Tavares each failed to score a goal vs. the Panthers, while Nylander and Marner combined for three goals and six points. The Maple Leafs failed to tally more than two goals in any game against the Panthers, a primary factor in their early exit.
It’s long been a topic of discussion in Toronto about whether the time has come to trade a piece of Toronto’s core to help reshape the roster. Dubas was asked about that possibility again on Monday and shared it wasn’t out of the question.
“I would consider anything with our group here that would allow us a better chance to win the Stanley Cup,” Dubas said. “I would take nothing off the table at all. And I think everything would have to be considered.”
That assumes, of course, that Dubas returns to call the shots. Right now, he’s in limbo. But Dubas does have the support of Toronto’s longest tenured player to stay on.
“I think the world of Kyle,” said defenseman Morgan Rielly, who’s spent his entire 10-year career with the Maple Leafs. “I thought what he did for our team this year, whether it be his first meeting in training camp through the trade deadline right through to when I spoke to him three minutes ago, he’s a world class GM. I’m not in charge of what happens with his contract but everything he did was in the team’s best interest, and he put us in a position where we had a chance to play and to win and to succeed and ultimately the players are the ones that were on the ice at the end of the season.”
Hard-throwing rookie Jacob Misiorowski is a National League All-Star replacement, giving the Milwaukee Brewers right-hander a chance to break Paul Skenes‘ record for the fewest big league appearances before playing in the Midsummer Classic.
Misiorowski was named Friday night to replace Chicago Cubs lefty Matthew Boyd, who will be unavailable for the All-Star Game on Tuesday night in Atlanta because he is scheduled to start Saturday at the New York Yankees.
The 23-year-old Misiorowski has made just five starts for the Brewers, going 4-1 with a 2.81 ERA while averaging 99.3 mph on his fastball, with 89 pitches that have reached 100 mph.
If he pitches at Truist Park, Misiorowski will make it consecutive years for a player to set the mark for fewest big league games before an All-Star showing.
Skenes, the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander getting ready for his second All-Star appearance, had made 11 starts in the majors when he was chosen as the NL starter for last year’s All-Star Game at Texas. He pitched a scoreless inning.
“I’m speechless,” said a teary-eyed Misiorowski, who said he was given the news a few minutes before the Brewers’ 8-3 victory over Washington. “It’s awesome. It’s very unexpected and it’s an honor.”
Misiorowski is the 30th first-time All-Star and 16th replacement this year. There are now 80 total All-Stars.
“He’s impressive. He’s got some of the best stuff in the game right now, even though he’s a young pitcher,” said Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who is a starting AL outfielder for his seventh All-Star nod. “He’s going to be a special pitcher in this game for a long time so I think he deserved it and it’s going be pretty cool for him and his family.”
Carlos Rodón, Carlos Estévez and Casey Mize were named replacement pitchers on the AL roster.
The New York Yankees‘ Rodón, an All-Star for the third time in five seasons, will replace teammate Max Fried for Tuesday’s game in Atlanta. Fried will be unavailable because he is scheduled to start Saturday against the Chicago Cubs.
In his final start before the All-Star game, Rodón allowed four hits and struck out eight in eight innings in an 11-0 victory over the Cubs.
“This one’s a little special for me,” said Rodón, an All-Star in 2021 and ’22 who was 3-8 in his first season with the Yankees two years ago before rebounding. “I wasn’t good when I first got here, and I just wanted to prove that I wasn’t to going to give up and just put my best foot forward and try to win as many games as I can.”
The Kansas City Royals‘ Estévez replaces Texas’ Jacob deGrom, who is scheduled to start at Houston on Saturday night. Estévez was a 2023 All-Star when he was with the Los Angeles Angels.
Mize takes the spot held by Boston‘s Garrett Crochet, who is scheduled to start Saturday against Tampa Bay. Mize gives the Tigers six All-Stars, most of any team and tied for the franchise record.
Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia will replace Tampa Bay‘s Brandon Lowe, who went on the injured list with left oblique tightness. The additions of Estévez and Garcia give the Royals four All-Stars, matching their 2024 total.
The Seattle Mariners announced center fielder Julio Rodríguez will not participate, and he was replaced by teammate Randy Arozarena. Rodríguez had been voted onto the AL roster via the players’ ballot. The Mariners, who have five All-Stars, said Rodríguez will use the break to “recuperate, rest and prepare for the second half.”
Arozarena is an All-Star for the second time. He started in left field for the AL two years ago, when he was with Tampa Bay. Arozarena was the runner-up to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the 2023 Home Run Derby.
Rays right-hander Drew Rasmussen, a first-time All-Star, is replacing Angels left-hander Yusei Kikuchi, who is scheduled to start Saturday night at Arizona. Rasmussen is 7-5 with a 2.82 ERA in 18 starts.
San Diego added a third NL All-Star reliever in lefty Adrián Morejón, who replaces Philadelphia starter Zack Wheeler. The Phillies’ right-hander is scheduled to start at San Diego on Saturday night. Morejón entered the weekend with a 1.71 ERA in 45 appearances.
DETROIT — Cal Raleigh hit his 37th and 38th home runs in Seattle‘s 12-3 victory over Detroit on Friday night to move within one of Barry Bonds’ 2001 major league record for homers before the All-Star break.
Raleigh hit a solo homer off former teammate Tyler Holton in the eighth to tie the American League record of 37 before the All-Star break set by Reggie Jackson in 1969 and matched by Chris Davis in 2013.
“[Holton] and I are really good friends, and I’ve caught a lot of his pitches,” said Raleigh, who was in the lineup as the designated hitter instead of at catcher. “I don’t think that helped much, but I’m sure he’s not very happy with me.”
Raleigh hit a grand slam off Brant Hurter in the ninth.
“I didn’t even know it was a record until just now,” Raleigh said. “I don’t have words for it, I guess. I’m just very grateful and thankful.”
It was Raleigh’s eighth multihomer game this season, tying Jackson (also in 1969) for the most such games before the All-Star break in MLB history, according to ESPN Research. He also tied Ken Griffey Jr. for the most multihomer games in Mariners franchise history.
Seattle has two games left in Detroit before the break.
“Cal Raleigh … this is just unbelievable,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “He’s already set the AL record and now he’s only one short of Barry. There are two games, so who knows?”
Raleigh hit 10 homers in March and April, 12 in May, 11 in June and has five in July.
“This is a very boring comment, but baseball is all about consistency,” Wilson said. “This hasn’t been one hot streak, he’s doing this month after month. That says everything.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike