On Monday and Tuesday, the Penguins in the thick of a playoff run had two huge games against teams in the thick of the race with them. The Penguins rifled in a total of 13 goals and largely dominated both the Islanders and Red Wings. Dubas had his hands all over the blueprint of those wins. Kyle Dubas acquisitions combined for a total of 31 points over the last two games. That includes 7 goals from players new to the team this season. Oh, and the goaltender he acquired mid-season looks like he will assuredly be the game 1 starter in the playoffs. Dubas’ moves have made nary a ripple in the league wide NHL dialogue. That’s why Kyle Dubas Is GM of the Year
No one cared that Anthony Mantha got a prove-it, bonus ladened, contract. He now has 30 goals on the season, three of which game during the back-to-backs that just occurred.
No one made much to-do about Justin Brazaeu getting a 2-year 1.5M contract. He had four points over the last two games and has also had a career high in goals, assists, and points.
Absolutely no one thought Parker Wotherspoon was going to have any impact in the NHL. Well, Parker is now a top-pair defensemen making a mere million bucks over the next two seasons (he also added a pair of assists in the past two games).
Elmer Soderblom was acquired late on trade deadline day for one of the thousand 3rd round picks that Dubas had acquired. He has played brilliantly on the fourth line for the Penguins, possibly being the team’s best player against Detroit. He also was an assist shy of a Gordie Howe hattrick against the Islanders the night before.
Ben Kindel was Dubas’ first pick in last season’s draft. He was mocked for the pick, called a clown. Kindel has been one of the best 18-year-olds drafted outside of the top 10 in NHL history. He was a dominating force on Long Island Monday night. He only produced one point, but he absolutely aced the eye test. What a player. Imagine the world where the Penguins win the lottery draft Matthew Schaefer and still get Kindel later in the first (since they were the only team who cared about his talent).
Then there’s the Russian magician Egor Chinakhov. Recently elevated to the topline with Sidney Crosby. A complete game breaker. I sit up in my seat every single time this guy gets the puck. Doesn’t matter if he’s at his own goal-line, his speed is so electrifying that within a blink he could be in a scoring position. Egor finished Tuesday night with a goal (and assist) but we all over the place and could have easily notched three goals. Unlike the above acquisitions there was some buzz about this trade acquisition. Most of the noise was that Dubas paid too much. I really don’t think a 2nd and 3rd round pick is an overpayment for a guy who is scoring at 30-40 goal pace with his new team. He’s also well beyond lightning in a bottle mode. He has had a myriad of new linemates, now including Crosby, and all he has done is continue to look incredibly impressive. I will never get over his shot; it is just so insane to comprehend.
Individual pieces are great; you need good pieces to build a good puzzle. Someone needs to put the puzzle together. Dan Muse is a puzzle master. He took all the pieces Dubas has distributed to him and has consistently built the Mona Lisa. Without the hire of the largely dismissed Muse the Penguins would be nowhere.
Kyle Dubas is the GM of the year. Hell, he might be the GM of the millennium for all that he has done for this team. He shouldn’t even be in America, let alone Pittsburgh. Those dumbasses that own and run the Maple Leaf’s ran him out of town. The fans did too. They decided that the dude who traded away Matthew Tkachuk, lost Jonny Hockey in FA, and shipped out Sam Bennett (reigning Conn Smythe winner) was the proper replacement. That dude then hired a coach so morally opposite of the team he was fielding that he lost the room in less than 2 seasons. Dubas’ replacement in Toronto has officially been relieved of his duties, and the coach is bound to follow. The Maple Leaf’s are now looking for a “data-driven” GM, someone who can appropriately find value in the draft, pick around the margins in free agency, and make under the radar trades that can bring the Leaf’s back to contention. It’s almost like they want Kyle Dubas. Yet, those complete morons in Toronto will still besmirch Dubas’ name. He brought the laughingstock of the league to relevancy. He won a playoff series with the team; they never do that! As soon as a new GM came in and started finking with Dubas’ work they fell off a cliff. Dubas navigated a shitstorm of obstacles during his time in Toronto namely: Covid ruining the salary cap and the value of the core 4s contracts, dumb-dumb Shanahan consistently undermining Dubas, and ownership having dollar signs in their eyes instead of Stanley Cups.
You have to be a complete lunatic. Truly someone devoid of brainpower to look at the Leafs and look at the Penguins and think that the Leafs did the right thing getting rid of Dubas. The Penguins are going to make the playoffs because of the plays they have made on the ice. However, those plays would have been impossible if not for the moves made by their President of Hockey Ops and GM Kyle Dubas.
