TORONTO — The president’s boss set the bar one year before he dropped the hammer.
“The fans here not only deserve, they demand a championship. And there’s no complacency,” Keith Pelley declared in May 2024.
Pelley, the brand-new chief of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, was just weeks on the job. This was the first time his direct report, Toronto Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan, had a single superior whom fans could identify. A boss with a face and emotions. One who could pump a fist in victory or shake his head in embarrassment if, say, one of his sports teams crumbled in the big moment and got booed off the ice.
Already, Pelley was demanding results publicly, with Shanahan sitting on the same dais, sitting a quick outlet pass away.
That sentiment felt new, refreshing. Even if so many of the characters charged with reaching Pelley’s high bar in 2024-25 were the same ones he inherited, the same ones that have now reached the post-season nine consecutive times but the second round just twice and never beyond.
“We’re not here to sell jerseys. We’re here to win. And we’re gonna do everything we possibly can to do that,” Pelley went on that day. “As much as I love the city and Toronto is my home, that was not the allure for me to come back. The allure for me to come back was the possibility and the commitment to be successful in winning with the Toronto Maple Leafs.”
That same magnet drew Mimico, Ont., native and Hockey Hall of Fame player Shanahan back here too, 11 long years ago, that seemingly whisked by in a blink.
Less than a year after Pelley gave his introductory speech — and four days after a handful of those jerseys he wasn’t trying to sell were thrown onto Scotiabank Arena’s ice in disgust — Shanahan was dismissed.
On Thursday, Pelley met with the MLSE board, which is composed of ownership stakeholders Rogers (which owns Sportsnet), Bell, and Larry Tanenbaum, to discuss Shanahan’s fate.
Shortly thereafter, the club announced it would not be renewing Shanahan’s contract, which expires on June 30.
“It was determined that a new voice was required to take the team to the next level in the years ahead. The franchise will be forever grateful for Brendan’s contributions and wish him and his family every success and happiness in the future,” Pelley said in a statement.
General manager Brad Treliving, who was hired by Shanahan in the 2023 off-season, will remain safe, according to insider Elliotte Friedman.
While departing under disappointing circumstances, the well-compensated Shanahan, 56, should be fine, too.
The former New York Ranger and New Jersey Devil has already been granted permission to speak with the New York Islanders about their front office opening, ironically following the dismissal of Lou Lamoriello — whom Shanahan hired to guide these Leafs early in his tenure.
Shanahan’s 11-year run began with a scorched-earth rebuild in 2014. He was successful in winning the Mike Babcock sweepstakes in the summer of 2015, securing the most prized free-agent coach at the time.
Shanahan was in the building when, after strategically bottoming out, the Maple Leafs won the 2016 draft lottery and the right to draft franchise cornerstone Auston Matthews first overall.
He took a chance on rookie GM Kyle Dubas and was instrumental in securing prized free agent John Tavares in 2018.
Shanahan also updated the logo, unveiled Legends Row, oversaw the Leafs’ centennial celebrations, and established — repaired, in some cases — strong connections with the team’s alumni.
What he did not do was deliver an on-ice product that, while brimming with high-end individual talents, reached greatness.
Under the “Shanaplan,” the sum of the hockey team never equalled the president’s assembled parts.
Moreover, by guaranteeing the security of Matthews, Tavares, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander via trade protection, Shanahan failed to adjust his strategy in the face of mounting evidence.
He helped create a culture of comfort, not Cups.
Letting stars like Zach Hyman and, in all likelihood, Marner also walk away from their hometown team with nothing, for nothing, will be part of Shanahan’s legacy too.
“While I am proud of the rebuild we embarked on starting in 2014, ultimately, I came here to help win the Stanley Cup, and we did not. There is nothing more I wanted to deliver to our fans, and my biggest regret is that we could not finish the job,” Shanahan said in a statement.
“I greatly enjoyed working with Brad and Craig (Berube), and I firmly believe they are excellent in their roles and have done a great job in their time with the team.
“Also, I want to thank the players, they are committed and passionate about delivering a championship to this city and will do everything within their power to accomplish that goal. I wish them all the very best.”
Much like Dubas and former coach Sheldon Keefe in lost seasons before him, Shanahan already knew he was on thin ice entering his final season with the Maple Leafs. Hence, the exit strategy.
As a man who made his name with victories, he knew that results mattered. That no matter how badly you want them, this is the cost of coming up short.
That day when new boss Pelley spoke in May 2024, Shanahan, too, said something prescient and true before heading into this encouraging, disappointing lame-duck campaign.
“I’ve been in this game a long time. Whether it’s myself or the players or staff, we know how it works,” Shanahan said that day.
“We’ve all seen the good, the bad, and we accept the consequences that might come to any of us.”
Pelley will address the media at Scotiabank Arena at 1 p.m. on Friday to discuss Shanahan’s departure and what comes next.
