Toronto Maple Leafs management stress they will look at “everything” this offseason to improve the hockey club after another playoff disappointment.
MLSE President and CEO Keith Pelley, Maple Leafs President and Alternate Governor Brendan Shanahan, and General Manager Brad Treliving spoke to reporters in Etobicoke on Friday after the Leafs suffered another first-round exit from the NHL playoffs this year.
Shanahan – who has served 10 years at the helm – told reporters that “accountability is on me,” as questions swirl around the future of the current roster featuring four highly-paid forwards.
“I believe that there are times when you talk about patience, and I still believe that there are times when patience is the suitable call. However, when you see patterns persist and the results don’t change, you have to adjust the way that you think about things,” he said.
“We will look at everything this summer and we will consider everything this summer, all with the intention of the one thing that we are here for, which is to make the Maple Leafs better and to win.”
Friday’s news conference comes after the Leafs parted ways with head coach Sheldon Keefe on Thursday. They said they will immediately begin the search for a new head coach.
Toronto forced Game 7 against the Boston Bruins in the first round of this spring’s playoffs after falling behind 3-1, but lost the do-or-die finale 2-1 in overtime for a seventh opening-round loss in eight seasons.
That failure to break through has sparked calls for shakeup to the “Core Four,” that includes forwards Auston Matthews, John Tavares, William Nylander and Mitch Marner.
The Leafs recently signed Matthews and Nylander to long-term deals, putting Marner and Tavares at the forefront of change talk.
Those players, who spoke on Monday, stood by one another despite coming up short in the playoffs, including going one-for-21 on the power play against Boston.
Shanahan did not reveal specific plans on Friday, but said management will do an “analysis” of everything.
“You always want your players to believe (in themselves),” he said.
“They know that there’ll be changes. They know that there are sacrifices that need to be made, and that we need to get better.”