This summer’s John Tavares signing by the Toronto Maple Leafs was made possible through years of intelligent behind-the-scenes management by Brendan Shanahan and staff.
The organizational strategy put in place by lead visionary Brendan Shanahan has reached gospel status among Toronto Maple Leafs fans. However, management has yet to hold a press conference spilling their secret formula for building a successful NHL franchise.
So what are the guiding principles behind Shanahan’s plan? And how did it help the franchise sign the best free agent of the past decade, John Tavares?
When Brendan Shanahan was hired as team president in April 2014 the franchise was struggling significantly. Over the previous decade, the team had made the playoffs only once, but had not selected in the top four picks of any draft.
In a league where the best teams are built around top draft picks (every Stanley Cup winning team of the past 10 years had a former 1st or 2nd overall draft pick), the Leafs lacked the talent to compete for championships.
Under Shanahan’s leadership, the coming seasons saw the trades of Phil Kessel and Dion Phaneuf, as well as the dismissal of Joffrey Lupul to Robidas Island. Today, only four out of 36 players from the 2013-14 Leafs roster are still with the team (Nazem Kadri, Morgan Rielly, Jake Gardiner, and Josh Leivo).
Pain came in the form of over 50 losses in two straight seasons, but the Leafs were rewarded with a collection of high draft picks, including Mitch Marner and Travis Dermott at 4th and 34th overall respectively in 2015 and Auston Matthews at 1st overall in 2016.
The Shanaplan’s commitment to a full rebuild brought three core players as well as salary cap flexibility for the coming wave of Leafs stars.
Shanahan also went to work hiring a team of exceptional coaching and management personnel.
Mike Babcock
Since joining the team as Head Coach, Mike Babcock’s ability to place players in roles for them to succeed has been career-defining for players like Nazem Kadri.
Kadri has developed into a dependable 30-goal scorer while matching up defensively against other teams’ top lines. Babcock has also encouraged Morgan Rielly and Jake Gardiner to focus on improving different aspects of their game each year, resulting in both players having improved offensively and defensively since his arrival.
Lou Lamoriello
The addition of Lou Lamoriello, the league’s longest tenured General Manager, was a smart move. Lamoriello said this about Brendan Shanahan upon taking the General Manager job:
"“I don’t know how many of you know Brendan as well as I do […] I can tell you, if I want anybody recruited to go anywhere, I’m sending Brendan.” – (Chris Johnston, 2015)"
Along with leadership and experience, Lamoriello was also able to bring the team its first bonafide #1 goaltender since Ed Belfour through a trade for Frederik Andersen. He also brought experience that allowed Kyle Dubas to be mentored slowly. Lou’s old-school tactics were criticized by some, but in his time with the Leafs he served an important function providing structure and a strong team culture.
Kyle Dubas
Kyle Dubas was brought on board as a renowned analytics expert and served as the General Manager of the AHL Toronto Marlies, leading them to a championship this past season.
After being promoted to General Manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs in May he delivered the pitch that convinced Tavares to sign with the team.
The organization’s commitment to filling every position with the highest quality pieces possible has been clear since the Shanaplan began. Upon signing, Tavares cited the chance to play for the Maple Leafs as a “once in a lifetime opportunity,” a statement that would not have described playing for Toronto Maple Leafs teams before Shanahan arrived.
Shanahan, and Dubas, should continue to set the stage for attracting great players like Tavares for years to come.
All stats courtesy of NHL.com