Apr 24, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, Canada; President and CEO of Maple Leaf Sport & Entertainment Keith Pelley (left) talks with Hamilton Sports Group President and Chief Operating Officer Matt Afinec (right) during a press conference at Hotel X. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
Less than 24 hours after Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment moved on from Toronto Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan, MLSE CEO Keith Pelley hinted more changes could be on the horizon.
Although he didn't confirm that alterations would occur, Pelley admitted on Friday afternoon that he'd be "forensically" looking at whether the Maple Leafs are using their resources in the right areas.
"I'm not worried about the size of the department or any of that. What I'm most concerned with, and concern is probably the wrong word, is are those resources being put in the right area? And that's the only thing that matters."
In early March, MLSE cut 80 jobs from their workforce. What was most shocking was the timing. The company's two biggest entities, the Maple Leafs and Toronto Raptors, were still in mid-season mode.
With Shanahan's departure, Pelley will now be the point of contact for Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving. There will be no Shanahan to bounce hockey ideas off of, only those below him, whose jobs also could be up in the air.
Under Treliving, there are five assistant general managers: Brandon Pridham, Derek Clancey (player personnel), Dr. Hayley Wickenheiser (player development), Darryl Metcalf (research and development), and Ryan Hardy (minor league operations).
One of Treliving's first hires was Shane Doan, who was brought in as a special assistant to the GM nearly two years ago. When asked on Friday if Treliving could bring in an advisor, Pelley said the Toronto GM already has lots of minds to bounce ideas off of.
"Well, you think about it if you look at the structure that we have right now, there's a lot of advisors in there right now. There's a lot of people with a lot of experience. You look at the Shane Doans. You look at Brandon Pridham. Brad and I will have that conversation," Pelley said.
"We have a wonderful asset in Craig, and we have a wonderful asset in Brad. They'll surround themselves with the resources that they need. Like I said, you can have resources, but you have to use them in the right way.
"And how we use them is something we will determine in the weeks ahead."
We're only six days into the offseason, and it already feels busy. It appears it'll only get busier as we enter June and into the NHL Draft and free agency on July 1.
