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Ex-Leafs President Brendan Shanahan's Comments Catch Many in Leafs Nation by Surprise
Photo credit: Dan Hamilton | Imagn Images
Former Maple Leafs President Brendan Shanahan spoke publicly for the first time since being fired by MLSE and made some surprising comments about the organization.
Fired by the Leafs on May 22nd, Shanahan has remained out of the spotlight since.
The architect of what was dubbed "the Shanaplan", Shanahan spent nine years with the organization attempting to bring a Stanley Cup to Toronto. Three coaches and General Mangers, however, led to just two playoff round victories in nine years. Because of this, he was dismissed this past summer.
Brendan Shanahan Breaks Silence on Time With Maple Leafs
Despite remaining out of the spotlight all summer, in episode 4 of the NHL's Amazon Prime Video series "Faceoff: Inside the NHL", the Hockey Hall of Famer spoke publicly for the first time.
In the interview, Shanahan shared that he had two goals when he joined the Leafs and explained why that although there was an immense amount of fan pressure for changing the 'Core Four' earlier in his tenure, he stayed the course.
"I came here 11 years ago and I had really two goals: I wanted to rebuild the Toronto Maple Leafs organization, on and off the ice, and I wanted to win a Stanley Cup."
Although he failed to win a Stanley Cup, it is hard to argue that he didn't change the organization for the better off the ice, adding a wealth of resources to player development, medical and becoming a league-leading organization in how it treats its players.
"I'm disappointed that I wasn't able to finish the job, but I think we've rebuilt the Toronto Maple Leafs."
His dismissal from the Leafs didn't come as much of a shock, but Shanahan has not held any grudge against his favourite childhood team and believes he laid the foundation for a Stanley Cup winner.
"You're going to have decisions that you'd like to have back, but I think what we've built, I'm confident that they can still get the job done," Shanahan said. "Unfortunately, I won't be around to see it finished, but it would give me a lot of joy to see them finish it... I leave here now with nothing but gratitude."
As the Leafs begin a new era without Mitch Marner, many are hoping that the changes Brad Treliving has made this off-season will lead to the deepest playoff run since 2002 with Shanahan cheering them on.
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 4 | 1161 ANSWERS Ex-Leafs President Brendan Shanahan's Comments Catch Many in Leafs Nation by Surprise Did Brendan Shanahan accomplish his goal of rebuilding the Leafs organization? | ||
| Off the ice, definitely | 158 | 13.6 % |
| Sort of, pieces are there but no success yet | 463 | 39.9 % |
| No, it was a disaster | 242 | 20.8 % |
| Would have been better if he made changes sooner | 298 | 25.7 % |
| List of polls | ||
