Kyle Dubas is not only the assistant general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, he’s also the general manager of the club’s AHL affiliate Toronto Marlies.
With the likes of Connor Brown and William Nylander failing to make the Leafs roster in training camp, Dubas’s Marlies are charged with grooming some of the most anticipated Leafs forwards in years.
On Thursday — one day before the Marlies’s season opener vs. the Manitoba Moose at Ricoh Centre — Dubas hijacked the farm team’s Twitter account and spent half an hour answering questions from fans.
“If he doesn’t become GM here,” Leafs GM Lou Lamoriello memorably said of Dubas, “it’s going to be his fault.”
Well, if Lamoriello’s prognostication comes true, the Maple Leafs’ future GM is not only a stats whiz, but also a Jaromir Jagr fan, a prankster and the type of human who actually believes a hot dog is a sandwich.
Here are the highlights from Dubas’s Q&A.
Take note of Mike Babcock’s scent and his prediction that a current member of the Marlies will make a permanent leap to the Leafs roster by season’s end.
Is a hot dog a sandwich?
Do you expect any of the younger Marlies to become full-time Leafs by the season’s end? If so, who?
When you promote players to the Leafs, do they go up and down as needed or are they up permanently?
Is overgrowing players in the minors really the best way of developing them?
Do you expect a lot of player movement between the Marlies and (ECHL) Orlando Solar Bears this season?
Will the Marlies be playing the same game of high energy style and great forechecking the Leafs played last night?
With Sheldon Keefe coaching in the AHL, is his philosophy the same as Babcock’s?
What does Mike Babcock smell like?
What’s been the most refreshing part about the Leafs organization?
Is it intimidating being the youngest member of the management team for such a storied franchise?
Favourite hockey player growing up?
How did you get your start in hockey ops with the Greyhounds? What do you think made them take a chance on you at a young age?
Who are your biggest hockey influences? Is there anyone you believe doesn’t get enough credit for their impact?
Have you been faced with unique challenges because of your age?
Who are your biggest non-hockey influences on your philosophy of team management/team construction?
What do you think the overall effectiveness of analytics is?
Who is the strongest Marlie, and how much can he bench press?
Do you see the Marlies gunning for the Calder Cup this season?
With the Marlies posting solid results over the last few years, what can be done to get T.O. more excited about this team?