kyle dubas toronto maple leafs

Kyle Dubas breaks silence for first time since being fired by Toronto Maple Leafs

For the first time since his shocking departure from the organization, former Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas has broken his silence.

Let go last Friday by Toronto after five seasons in charge of the team, Dubas took to social media to address his high-profile departure.

"While I understand there is interest surrounding the circumstances of my departure, I will not get into the specifics of what I consider to be reasonable and consistent but private discussions," Dubas said in a statement posted to his Twitter account on Tuesday morning.

"In the days that I felt I needed to assess and evaluate my own view to the future, both with respect to the necessary direction of the Club and ensuring that I had the full support of my family for what I knew would be required in the off-season and years to follow, the organization, as is their right to do, decided to go in a different direction."

Dubas first joined the Leafs organization in 2014 as an assistant general manager, before being named Lou Lamoriello's successor in 2018.

Leafs president Brendan Shanahan admitted on Friday that the decision to get rid of Dubas happened over the course of the past week, with a contract negotiation eventually shut down and resulting in the general manager's termination.

Dubas was remarkably candid about his family's own struggles over the course of the last season during last Monday's end-of-season press conference, but it seems that transparency and uncertainty about his own future in Toronto was a contributing factor to being let go.

"In the nine seasons since being afforded the opportunity to work in the National Hockey League for the Toronto Maple Leafs, [my family and I] have had the chance to learn a lot and have grown significantly through the ups and downs," Dubas added.

"We have watched our family double in size while developing meaningful relationships which will last a lifetime. It was an honour to be able to work in such an inspiring place, with dedicated, loyal people and an extremely passionate fan base."

Dubas closed out his thank you by acknowledging his coworkers over the past nine seasons.

"The impact of that and the relationships with all of the people at MLSE, from the board of directors through to the ushers at Scotiabank Arena, will forever hold a dear place in our hearts," Dubas concluded the letter.

"To the players, coaches and staff at the facility each day, past and present, thank you for your passion and commitment at every step of the journey together. It was a tremendous pleasure to work alongside you each day. We will roll from here." The former GM signed the statement from "The Dubas Family."

The Leafs remain without a full-time general manager, with Leafs assistant GM Brandon Pridham handling the bulk of Dubas' work while they seek to hire a replacement.

Lead photo by

Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports


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