Kyle Dubas won't be taking on a new GM after all

Kyle Dubas’s departure from Toronto made headlines for obvious reasons.

But he didn’t have to wait long to find a new job. Just days after his dismissal by the Leafs, the Penguins announced his hiring as interim GM and president of field hockey operations…

And his original plan was to find a general manager so he wouldn’t have to fill both roles.

The talk at the time was that Dubas would still be making all the decisions in Pittsburgh (or nearly so)… And that his GM would serve as a puppet.

But in life, there are only the fools who don’t change their minds. Dubas and the Penguins changed their minds, and in the end, Dubas won’t be hiring a new general manager for the Penguins.

He will assume the role full-time and retain his duties as President of Hockey Operations.

The Penguins are proud to announce a handful of promotions in our field hockey operations department.

Congratulations to Kyle Dubas, Andy Saucier, Erik Heasley, Amanda Kessel, and Trevor Daley.

– Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) August 3, 2023

It’s special, I think. But it tells me that Dubas wants to be in control in Pittsburgh, and if the organization offered him the GM position, it’s because they have confidence in him on the management side.

And all in all, that’s understandable. Kyle Dubas is far (very far) from being a bad general manager, and his years in Toronto speak for themselves.

The Leafs may never have made it far in the playoffs under his watch, but Dubas succeeded in his mission year after year by putting together a highly talented team on the ice.

He wasn’t the one who was paid to score goals, and he wasn’t the one who was paid to stand up in the playoffs. It’s not as if he was responsible for the lack of effort on the part of certain players, and criticism of him was often too easy in the Queen City.

He’ll have his work cut out for him in Pittsburgh, though. The goal right now is for Sidney Crosby, Kristopher Letang and Evgeni Malkin to win a fourth (and final?) Stanley Cup before they retire…

But the whole thing could get pretty complicated, given that the Pens are still looking to improve their roster, and given that the club doesn’t have a lot of resources to make a deal that could immediately help the club on the ice.

Kyle Dubas pulled several rabbits out of his hat when he was in Toronto. Will he be able to do the same with his new team in Pittsburgh?

Gossip

– Ouch.

Ducks’ Isac Lundestrom out six monthshttps://t.co/HACc51S9Qq

– RDS (@RDSca) August 3, 2023

– I’m going with Alex DeBrincat. How about you?

Vladimir Tarasenko(@Senators), Alex DeBrincat(@DetroitRedWings) and Reilly Smith(@penguins) will all be starting 2023-24 on a new team in the Eastern Conference. #NHLStats pic.twitter.com/ykQESFGvPU

– NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) August 3, 2023

– A fine summer so far for Matias Maccelli.

First a two-year contract coming off a fine rookie season and now engaged. One heck of a summer for #Yotes forward https://t.co/CfutrhTULp

– Jon Lane (@JonLaneNHL) August 3, 2023

– But, come on?