When will Kyle Dubas be just a general manager?

Opinions on the first-year GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs seem to be decidedly
split, polarised between the camp who believes he's a young, math-obsessed
disrupter and that which views him as a certified genius who can do no wrong.

Certainly, he's considered young and new-age for this specific role, but it's
not as though he doesn't have the background for it. And yes, he's shown rather
 well so far, but not every decision he makes will turn into gold.With Dubas
now the GM of the Maple Leafs, it';s more important than ever to pump the
brakes on the competing narratives that surround him. (Rene Johnston / Toronto
Star via Getty Images)

Balance is critical when evaluating anyone, let alone the GM of one of the
National Hockey League's most storied franchises - one which plays in one of
the world's biggest and most rabid hockey markets.

Dubas deserves such balanced assessment, regardless of the lenses it's
convenient or satisfying to view him through.

After all, he's no revolutionary.Maple Leafs' Dubas Paid His Dues

Dubas turns 33 in November. He's got a wife and kid. He's spent over 20 years
working in hockey. He's not some young whippersnapper or hockey neophyte; he's
no flash in the pan.Dubas' History Far From Dubious

Born in Sault Ste. Marie, Dubas joined his hometown Sault Ste. Marie
Greyhounds, for whom his father and grandfather both worked, at age 11. He
progressed from being a stick boy to working in the locker room, before joining
 the team's hockey operations department at 14, helping out on the business
end, as well.

While completing his degree in Sport Management at Brock University, Dubas
started scouting for the Greyhounds. Later, he became the youngest agent
certified by the National Hockey League Players' Association, landing a job
with Uptown Sports Management.

At 25, Dubas was hired as the Greyhounds' GM, emphasising a focus on "culture"
and "grit" - two things he's not exactly best-known for. Sure, that was a long
time ago, but this component of his hockey worldview is rarely - if ever -
talked about.Dubas cut his managerial teeth with the Sault Ste. Marie
Greyhounds. (Courtesy of ontariohockeyleague.com)

Three years later, Dubas was brought on as an assistant GM in Toronto, and also
 given the responsibility of running the Toronto Marlies, the Maple Leafs'
American Hockey League affiliate.

Now, after four years learning from front-office legend Lou Lamoriello, and
fresh of a Marlies Calder Cup win, Dubas is running the show in Toronto.Dubas
More Conventional Than Portrayed

With two decades of hockey experience under his belt, including in business
development, hockey operations, player representation, scouting and management,
 Dubas deserves a lot of runway to implement his plan for the Maple Leafs.

Certainly, he's following in the footsteps of a giant in Lamoriello who,
despite his teams' mixed on-ice results following the 2004-05 lockout,
certainly knows how to implement an organisational culture. All eyes will be on
 Dubas - and rightly so - to see how his approach differs in this regard from
that of his predecessor, who was able to both shore up a notoriously leaky
Leafs' organisation and instill professionalism in nearly all facets of the
franchise.If nothing else, Lamoriello got the administrative side of the Maple
Leafs in order, righting an infamously dodgy, indiscreet ship. (Photo by Dave
Sandford / NHLI via Getty Images)

And yes, Dubas beat out the well-respected Mark Hunter, also an assistant GM in
 Toronto (he';s since left the team), for the Maple Leafs' top job. An
experienced and well-regarded scout and developer of talent, Hunter will
certainly be scooped up by an NHL team sometime soon.

Fair or not, Dubas will be forever compared to his former coworker and, until
the Maple Leafs experience significant, sustained success, there will always be
 whispers questioning whether they made the right decision.

Still, from his experience to his education, Dubas has paid his dues and has
nearly every single qualification one would expect a team to traditionally look
 for when selecting a GM.Maple Leafs' Dubas No Miracle Worker

On the other hand, don't expect Dubas to be turning water into wine anytime
soon, either.

The best example of this has to be with regards to the Maple Leafs snagging the
 prized fish in unrestricted free agency, signing John Tavares to a seven-year,
 $77 million contract.

Yes, Dubas is the GM of record when it comes to this momentous signing.
Whatever the outcome of Tavares' tenure with the Maple Leafs, his signing is
sure to be a defining moment of Dubas' career - more than likely for the
better.Their legacies forever intertwined, Dubas and Tavares have the chance to
 do great things in Toronto. (Charles LeClaire / USA TODAY Sports)

And credit where credit';s due; the Maple Leafs haven';t always had the easiest
 time attracting big-name free agents, while this iteration had the added
disadvantage of having Mike Babcock as their head coach, who is rumoured to
have his own player-repelling qualities.

However, it's not as though Dubas practised some sort of black magic to make it
 happen.How Much Did Dubas Do to Land Tavares?

Tavares' former team, the New York Islanders, have done nothing but spin their
wheels in the nine seasons since his first-overall selection in the 2009 draft,
 battling constant uncertainty in areas ranging from ownership, to management,
to a place to play, and iced mediocre - at best - teams throughout the entirety
 of his tenure.

The other rumoured frontrunner, the San Jose Sharks, have an ageing core, lots
of long-term, high-priced contracts that have the potential to turn ugly and
one of the worst travel schedules in the NHL. Despite the Sharks offering more
money, not to mention San Jose having beautiful weather and less media
pressure, neither Tavares' probability of winning a Stanley Cup, nor the
overall window to do so, would have been as large in San Jose as it is in
Toronto.

Told the Sharks ended up offering more than $13M per season for Tavares. The
Islanders upped their offer from $11M per to $11.25M.

- David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) July 1, 2018

Meanwhile, the Maple Leafs have a cadre of young stars, a boatload of quality
complementary talent and a bountiful pipeline to replenish the team for years
to come. They've got a stable administrative side, as well, and Tavares,
playing Canada's most popular sport in Canada's most populous city, will have
all the exposure and opportunity he needs to ensure his personal brand thrives,
 both on the ice and off it.

Plus, it doesn't hurt that Tavares grew up around Toronto, played his minor and
 junior hockey around Toronto, and that the Maple Leafs were his childhood
team.

So, even without Dubas, the Maple Leafs still had a heck of a lot going for
them.Tavares' Contract Terms Not Unheard Of

As for the contract itself, it's heavily skewed towards signing bonuses,
offering Tavares the vast majority of his salary in one giant chunk each year.
Obviously, this is awesome for the player (not the worst thing to wake up to),
while also providing de facto protection from an NHL lockout. Interestingly, he
 was awarded this contract even after commissioner Gary Bettman advised teams
to stop issuing such signing bonuses.

The contract looks good, yes; Tavares took a bit of a discount from what he was
 offered elsewhere to play for the Maple Leafs, which should ensure Toronto has
 some breathing space when it comes to re-signing their young stars coming off
entry-level deals. Dubas deserves massive credit for making that happen.

However, as for the contract';s structuring, said strategy is open to any team.
 Literally any team, many of which could afford to offer Tavares more, could
have structured a deal in this way. Any team can structure any contract they
sign this way. It's legal. It's within the rules.

Does this make Dubas a genius? Not on its own, no. All he did was follow the
letter of the law prescribed by the Collective Bargaining Agreement (no doubt
helped by assistant GM Brandon Pridham, an expert on both the CBA and salary
cap).

A worrying aside for the Maple Leafs: Bettman and the NHL have cracked down
before on unusual salary structures and retroactively punished teams for
contracts that were legal when signed.Bettman likely isn';t overly thrilled
with the structure of the contract Dubas and the Maple Leafs gave Tavares. (Amy
 Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Still, it's a move that looks darned good on Dubas, there's no getting around
that. It's just, it shouldn't really surprise anyone, nor is it altogether
unheard of.What Do We Really Know About Maple Leafs' Dubas?

So, what do we really know about Dubas?

From a nuts and bolts perspective, he's well-educated - formal and otherwise -
and highly experienced. He knows the business side of hockey. He knows the
hockey side of hockey. He knows how to evaluate talent. He knows how to manage
talent. He knows how contract negotiations work - from both sides of the table.

He appears to be a good communicator, too, having not only been hired for a
number of jobs seemingly reserved for other, older, more well-known
individuals, but also having been able to bring his own ideas along to these
positions, too. Dubas seems to have made quite the good impression on Tavares,
as well, selling him on a plan for the team, and then designing a contract
maximally attractive to the superstar.Tavares had the chance to go literally
anywhere, and he chose Toronto, at least in some part because of Dubas. (Brad
Penner / USA TODAY Sports)

Finally, and perhaps most significantly, Dubas has shown an encouraging ability
 to not necessarily produce revolutionary ideas that throw the hockey world
asunder (for better or worse), but to simply use the widest-available net to
gather ideas, interpretations and practices - and to explore these ideas,
interpretations and practices to their fullest.

Whether it's the serious use of analytics (in conjunction with - not exclusive
of - other methods of player evaluation), frequently trading down at the draft
or the unorthodox structure of Tavares' contract, it's clear Dubas is neither
intimidated by the old guard nor bound by convention.

He';s everything an NHL GM should be, then.Maple Leafs' Dubas Deserves Balanced
 Treatment

So, yes, it might be easy - satisfying, even - to view Dubas through any one
of a number of lenses, whether according to one's personal opinions, worldview
or whatever the going narrative is.

However, like all GMs, Dubas is a complex combination of his own experiences,
opinions and viewpoints, whether they be traditional, progressive or downright
experimental.

Sure, Dubas is a bit of an anomaly, but there has to be some middle ground
between "revolutionary boy genius" and "revolutionary disturber of hockey
order."

The Maple Leafs play in one of the NHL's toughest markets, so there'll be no
shortage of scrutiny placed upon Dubas, and his development and stewardship of
the most promising Leafs team in decades. And rightly so.

Let's just make sure he's scrutinised with clear eyes.

The post Maple Leafs' Dubas Is No Revolutionary appeared first on The Hockey
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