John Chayka hasn't had much downtime since being named general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs in early May.
From winning the draft lottery and selecting Gavin McKenna to a busy free-agency period and then a blockbuster trade for Kirill Marchenko on the eve of the season opener, Chayka has made major changes to the roster in a bid to get the team back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
After the team split its first two games, Chayka joined Sportsnet's Real Kyper & Bourne on Friday to discuss a variety of topics.
Here are some of his notable responses:
On how data and artificial intelligence could help the Leafs
"As we think about integrating artificial intelligence or whatever you want to call these things, my perspective has always been if you can have the best evaluators going to the right games and collecting the right information and doing it in a very descriptive way and then if you have the best analysts making the best adjustments and analyzing things at a deeper level than you can watch live ... I think you can put those two things together and kind of get the best vision of what a player is and what a player can be projected to be. I think together that's a powerful approach.
"Whether it's the sport-science efforts we've put together, whether it's the different ways in which we travel, train or practise, there's a lot of ways in which people are trying to find a better way or a new way and then trying to measure whether that's truly the case. I think you're asking a lot of questions and trying to find new and different ways to improve and try to be better than the rest of the league at those things. I'd say that's always a journey."
On what he can draw from the team's first two games
"We do see a lot of glimmers of hope and a lot of things we think are good anecdotes and some data points that suggest (a potential) trend. but to actually call that something valid, it's a little too soon. We certainly feel we've added a lot of speed, we've added some more skill. We feel good about what we've seen so far."
On the Leafs defence corps
"I like our defence. Maybe I'm the high man on it, but we'll see how this plays out. I think we've got some good veteran defencemen that know how to play. As a group, it can be really strong."
On why the team wanted Marchenko
"I think Kirill is part of a larger picture for us. He's a really unique player. He was a guy we were very deliberate in targeting in terms of just his ability to not only create offence but dictate play ... and do it in a way that we think will translate when it matters ... We felt like he was the right fit at the right time."
On if the team's struggles in transitioning the puck up ice in recent years made the speedy Marchenko a good fit:
"I think it's been a trend for a few years from what I've seen. You can focus on the narratives of they've got to get bigger, stronger and grittier and in certain ways that's true and in certain times perhaps (that was the case). But ultimately, I think you've got to be able to dictate play consistently and sustainably if you want to be able to win the majority of your games. Kirill does that and he has a history of doing that."
On how to handle starts for an older goalie in Sergei Bobrovsky and Anthony Stolarz, who has battled the injury bug in recent years
"We're less focused on number of starts and more focused on the amount of rest and we do think there's a correlation not just with our goalies but all goalies that they perform better when they're well rested."
On McKenna's early play
"Our main plan is Gavin's an important player to us. Everything's he's done to date has showcased that. There's a lot of belief and resolve internally about what he can be and what he can do this year for our team. ... Even defensively, coaches are impressed by his recognition and the improvements he's already made in two NHL games. We feel like when he's at his best, he's going to be a well-rounded player who impacts the game on both sides and has a special and unique ability to create offence."
