Maybe there's another reason why Kyle Dubas has not yet been extended by the Leafs

We all know that it's a pivotal season ahead for the Leafs. This team needs as many wins as they can get, but really, only one matters. The Stanley Cup. As GM Kyle Dubas said in his recent media availability, the Buds are not focused on winning one round. They're focused on winning four.

Dubas admitted this week that he understands why he does not yet have an extension offer on the table. He acknowledged that it's the right move for the team's senior executives and ownership group to wait and judge him based on his whole 5-year body of work rather than to judge him before that body of work is complete. But is there another reason why he may not yet have an extension in place after building the most electric Leafs team most of us have ever seen and the best team, statistically speaking, in franchise history in 2021-22? There just might be.

Slovak scout Sam Tirpak believes that the Leafs and Dubas may be playing some mind games with the players. Perhaps the players thinking Dubas' job is on the line this season will wake them up to the gravity of the situation and the fact that, in the event of another catastrophic failure, wholesale changes are coming. Maybe the goal here is to see if the players can elevate their game to not only save his job, but to spare themselves from the uncertainty that comes with the departure of one GM and the arrival of another.

If this is the case, it could be a brilliant way to align organizational goals with team goals. The players want to win. The organization wants to win. The team wants to stay together. The best way for them to stay together is to show the current management regime and ownership group that they can win together. If the organization paints a picture that Dubas could be the first one gone in the event of another failure, it's almost a certainty that the team would see significant change next summer. Heads would roll and bodies would move. However, if the players play for each other and if they play to save Kyle Dubas' job, there's a chance that the band stays together and that the future of the team would be better for it.


At the end of the day, if the Leafs walk away from Kyle Dubas, he'll be snatched up at the first opportunity that opens up. That's not a matter of opinion. That's a matter of fact. He's a forward-thinking GM who has an eye for talent and who preaches organizational excellence and accountability. Those types of executives are not a dime a dozen. He's a rare individual and I think, in a lot of ways, that this fanbase doesn't appreciate what we have and won't appreciate what we had until it's gone.

100% of the fanbase should be behind Dubas as GM, because quite honestly, not every GM is as adaptable, understanding and driven to succeed - but it's the accountability that really sets him apart. This is a guy who is willing to go out on his shield to support the team that he has assembled rather than to create a scapegoat and blame someone else for the Leafs not accomplishing their goals. Let's just hope the team is willing to go to war for him the same way he's done for them - especially this core. If they elevate their game and play to save his job, maybe they'll not only succeed in that, but also in the ultimate goal of bringing a Stanley Cup back to Toronto.