The Toronto Maple Leafs had a lot to explain to their fan base on Tuesday.
Toronto Sun reporter Steve Simmons went viral for his direct questions to Keith Pelley that left the Maple Leafs President and CEO struggling to find the right words while sitting next to his newly hired general manager John Chayka.
“We talked about the due diligence that you did on John prior to hiring him, and now hiring him,” Simmons said.
“In the past, say three to four days, I’ve been in contact with about 20 people who work in the National Hockey League, many of whom are prominent names that we all know. Of the 20 people I spoke to, one was supportive of John’s hiring. The other 19 thought it was a sham, to be perfectly honest. Words were used like ‘con artist, liar, salesman.’ How did you come to a different conclusion than I was able to come to in a very short time?”
“Must have talked to different people,” Pelley replied.
“That’s it?” the reporter fired back. “The hockey world today is astounded by this announcement. And your response is that?”
Pelley responded that there was “deep due diligence and a thorough process,” though he didn’t elaborate on what that entailed.
Simmons then appeared on the “Off the Roster” podcast to tell a bizarre story involving Chayka from just after his time with the Arizona Coyotes, where he was the youngest general manager in NHL history at 26 years old.
Chayka took over the Coyotes job in 2016, abruptly resigned in 2020, and was later suspended by the NHL for violating league rules after discussing prospective roles with the Devils.
Bill Armstrong, now the general manager for the Utah Mammoth, then took over as the general manager in Arizona.
“In his office, he had six computer terminals, and it looked like he was a Wall Street trader. There was data on every screen. Bill Armstrong goes in for his first day of work, and he’s trying to see how this all works,” Simmons said. “Well, he’s got one computer working in front of him, but he can’t get the others to work. He’s trying to figure out how to get the others working. So he calls the IT guy, who comes in and he sees ‘none of those other computers are set up.’ It’s basically fake information on those screens. He had six computer terminals on his desk, and five of them were not working.”
Chayka did not respond to Simmons’ questioning during the viral press conference moment, but fans are outright upset about the hiring, given his past transgressions, including a league suspension.
The Maple Leafs are coming off their worst season since 2009, though they still have plenty of high-end talent led by perennial MVP candidate Auston Matthews.
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