Maple Leafs brass says 'everything must be on the table' in order to improve

TORONTO -- The dismissal of Sheldon Keefe as coach is unlikely to be the only significant change the Toronto Maple Leafs will make this offseason, the team’s hierarchy indicated Friday.

At least that was the line offered by Toronto's management team of incoming Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment president Keith Pelley, longtime team president Brendan Shanahan and first-year general manager Brad Treliving.

Making their first public comments since the Maple Leafs were eliminated in seven games by the Boston Bruins in the Eastern Conference First Round last Saturday, all three vowed to change the narrative of a team that has won one Stanley Cup Playoff series in the past 20 years.

“There’s no complacency. We’re not here to sell jerseys. We’re here to win,” proclaimed Pelley, named to his position April 2.

Come postseason time, the Maple Leafs have failed to do that. Since 2016, when center Auston Matthews, forwards Mitch Marner and William Nylander and defenseman Morgan Rielly first started playing together as the backbone of the team, Toronto has gone 1-8 in playoff series.

“Our playoff results have not been good enough. That’s on me,” Shanahan said. “The results that we’ve had in the playoffs, our players know, I know, we know, they’re unacceptable. They’re unacceptable to our fans and those who support the Maple Leafs.”

How do they expect to alter that narrative when talented Toronto teams have come up short in the postseason time and time again?

“When you go through a season as we have, everything must be on the table," Treliving said. "Everything needs to be looked at. Everything needs to be considered.”

The GM added that the time for patience has run out.

“I think we're at a point where we see this repeatable, and we've got to dig in,” he said. “The results, sitting here today, when we think we should still be playing, isn't acceptable.”

What actual moves are made remain to be seen, but here are some indications of what lies ahead for the organization from what was gleaned Friday:

How much urgency is there to quickly replace Sheldon Keefe, who was dismissed as coach on Thursday?

Though Treliving would not comment specifically when asked about reports former St. Louis Blues coach Craig Berube was the leading candidate to replace Keefe, he said the process of finding a replacement began Thursday, immediately after the job became open. With several coaching vacancies around the NHL, there is an understanding the clock is ticking.

“We're not waiting,” Treliving said. “We're going to be thorough. This isn't something that's going to be hastily done, but we certainly know that there's some quality candidates out there. We want to get them as fast as we possibly can.”

Was Keefe made a scapegoat for the team’s postseason shortcomings?

Keep in mind Keefe had an regular-season record of 212-97-40 and ranks fifth in Maple Leafs history in coaching wins.

“We had gotten to a place where just a new voice was needed,” Treliving said. “And that's the unfortunate part of this business. I do not believe that you turn coaches and you keep turning coaches. I don't think that is the recipe for success at all. I just felt at the end of the day, when I look at the totality of his time here, a change was required.

“I know Sheldon's not going to be out of work long. This is a really good coach.”

Is it time for the so-called Core Four of Matthews, Nylander, Marner and captain John Tavares to be broken up?

There were plenty of hints forwarded Friday that one or more big names could be moved. Easier said than done. Matthews and Nylander each was signed to a long-term contract within the past year and Marner and Tavares each is in the final year of his contract, each with a no-move clause.

Shanahan has been a proponent of the Core Four in the past, even though the team-building formula of having four forwards gobbling up almost half the space under the NHL salary cap has not resulted in playoff success. On Friday, however, he seemed to have changed his tune.

“I don't question the dedication (of all our players),” he said. “But I do question just our ability as a group to get it done in those difficult times, and that's why we have to make some changes and we'll continue to look at changes with the goal in mind. What makes the Maple Leafs better, not just in the regular season, but come playoff time.”

Added Treliving: “We need to find a way to do the hard unsexy things longer, and they're not related to skill."

Could Shanahan be replaced as Maple Leafs president?

Pelley gave Shanahan a vote of confidence despite the fact Toronto has won one playoff series in the 10 years the Hall of Fame forward has been in charge of running the team.

“Brendan is the president of the Toronto Maple Leafs,” Pelley said. “He's a champion. He's a three-time Stanley Cup winner. What I saw in my four weeks here with the two gentlemen beside me showed me that the chemistry and unity is being built at the highest levels.”

What aspects of the team’s shortcomings are the most disturbing?

Two areas were identified. First, a team of goal-scorers who scored two goals or less in six of the seven games against the Bruins. Second, a power play that went 1-for-21 against Boston.

“I really feel that the fall, the ultimate area that we fell short on, is a consistent pattern that we've had," Treliving said. "We didn't score enough goals. And special teams were the second, we were the second-best team in special teams in the series. And those are areas that we tried to look at over the course of the summer, but we will continue to look at.”

What are the team’s plans in goal for next season?

With Ilya Samsonov set to become an unrestricted free agent July 1, Joseph Woll will be given every opportunity to run with the starters’ job, health permitting. There’s the rub: Staying fit has been an issue for the 25-year-old, who missed two months of the regular season with an ankle issue, then was forced to sit out Game 7 against the Bruins with a back injury.

“I've got faith in Joe,” Treliving said. “Now, like everybody else, there's questions. The biggest question with Joe is, he's gotten injured a lot. We have to dig into that. Sometimes that happens. Sometimes bad luck happens. Is there a training issue that we have to deal with? Do we need to change something in his off-ice routine? All those things is what we have to dig into.

“I believe in Joe as a goaltender. We have to support Joe.”

Woll was 12-11-1 with a 2.94 goals-against average, .907 save percentage and one shutout during the regular season and 2-0 with an 0.86 GAA and .964 goals-against average in the playoffs.

Finally, what were the specific injuries to some of the Maple Leafs key players against the Bruins?

Treliving provided the following rundown:

Matthews became “really sick” after Game 2, then suffered a hit in Game 4 that presented "head injury" issues that kept him out until Game 7; Nylander missed the first three games with severe migraines; Woll sprained his back in the final moments of Game 6 and was forced to miss Game 7; forward Bobby McMann sustained a sprained MCL in the final week of the regular season; and forward Connor Dewar had shoulder surgery this week.