Chayka sidesteps questions about ‘really complicated’ past as he tries to ‘catch a moving train’ with Leafs

MLSE held a news conference at Real Sports Bar & Grill on Monday.

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The Leafs formally introduced John Chayka as general manager and Mats Sundin as senior executive advisor, hockey operations during a media session on Monday that featured uncomfortable questions and some tense moments.

Chayka is returning to the NHL for the first time since spending four seasons as the general manager of the Arizona Coyotes. He resigned right before the start of the 2020 COVID bubble summer playoffs.

One journalist told MLSE president and CEO Keith Pelley that he polled prominent voices around the hockey world and received an overwhelmingly negative response to the hiring.

“I must have talked to different people,” Pelley shot back.

Pelley was pressed for more details.

“We’ve conducted due diligence, and it was deep due diligence,” Pelley said. “It was a thorough process and I am quite happy with where we’ve landed.”

Oftentimes a news conference introducing a new hire is a chance for a team to turn the page and find a fresh start, but Chayka’s past featured prominently on Monday.

After Chayka left the Coyotes, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman suspended him for a year due to “conduct detrimental to the league and game.” Bettman found that Chayka “breached his obligation” to the Coyotes by pursuing a job with the New Jersey Devils.

Arizona also had to forfeit a second-round pick in 2020 and first-round choice in 2021 because it was determined that Chayka and the Coyotes had violated the league’s combine testing policy.

During Monday’s news conference, Chayka was offered the opportunity to clear the air regarding his Arizona exit.

“I’d just say that Arizona was a really complicated situation,” the native of Jordan Station, Ont. responded. “It was the biggest challenge I’ve ever taken on in my life. It was honestly the hardest thing I’ve ever done and also, in a lot of ways, the most rewarding.”

While Chayka, who became the youngest GM in NHL history at 26-years-old when he initially got the job in Arizona, did not go into detail about how his tenure in the desert ended, the now 36-year-old did offer some takeaways from the experience.

“It really teaches me the value of stability,” he said. “Through no one’s fault, there was a lot of work being done to try to find a new arena, new ownership, et cetera. As those things happened, there is a lot that gets missed. The value of stability and alignment [are] two key tenets I take from that.”

Chayka read from prepared remarks at the start of the news conference and acknowledged he would be facing questions about his past and path to this point.

“I’ve made decisions I am proud of, and I also have made mistakes I’ve learned from,” he said. “I am human. I own all of it, and I am better because of it.”

Pelley was asked about Chayka’s controversial track record in Arizona.

“I’ve read all of the reports,” Pelley said. “I’ve talked to numerous people — I won’t reveal who I talked to — who were close to the process. We’ve done extensive due diligence, and I am very comfortable and confident in where we’ve landed.”

Chayka stressed that he has “a lot of really great relationships around the league” and pointed out that he was able to complete a lot of transactions with the Coyotes.

“There are always going to be naysayers,” Chayka added. “That is the reality of this. The one thing I really love about this opportunity in this market: You either win or you lose. The rest is kind of noise.”

Chayka, who had his wife and three young children watching from the first row at the news conference, admitted the media scrutiny in Toronto will be far different than what he’s dealt with previously. But he also mentioned that it is the passion of this market that makes this a dream job.

“It is special,” said Chayka, who fell in love with the game by going to Maple Leaf Gardens with his dad as a kid. “It has been a long path. I am still a young guy, but it is tough to put into words, if I am honest. It is a historic franchise. You’re the steward of a brand that is globally recognized. It is a big obligation as well. I embrace that.”

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Pelley revealed that the Leafs spoke with 27 people in what he described as a “comprehensive” search process, which began after Brad Treliving was fired on March 30. What ultimately convinced Pelley that Chayka is the right man for the job?

“We were incredibly impressed and encouraged by John’s vision that he shared with us,” Pelley said. “One of the key characteristics that came through in the entire process: He is methodical and measured.”

Pelley objected to the idea that Chayka will need to play catch up after being out of the league for almost six years.

“There is no concern from my side,” he said. “He knows the players in the league.”

“I didn’t live off the grid,” Chayka said. “I stayed obsessed with the game, our league, the role of process, data, and integrated decision making.”

Pelley defended the search process, which was guided by Neil Glasberg from The Coach’s Agency. He denied a report that former Leaf Tie Domi, who is a close friend of Sundin, was involved.

“There have been countless erroneous reports and inaccurate information over the past six weeks,” Pelley said.

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Chayka’s vision for the team in the short term is unclear as he is still gathering information.

“We’re going to have a very detailed plan,” he assured. “We are trying to catch a moving train here. We have scouting meetings coming up in the next two weeks — amateur and pro — and we have the combine followed by the draft and free agency. Really, the first order of business is connecting with the players and getting feedback.”

The Leafs are coming off a disastrous season, which saw them plummet from the top of the Atlantic Division to fifth-last in the overall standings.

Chayka is not ready to set a timeline for Toronto’s return to contention.

“The optimistic, hopeful side is that this team has a lot of latent upside,” Chayka said. “A lot of the players underperformed. I think there is a lot of opportunity to get in there and find ways to do a better job with the internal group. Having said that, it is a reality that we will have to make some changes and fill some holes. There are some fundamental ways in which we’re going to have to change the team.”

In particular, Chayka highlighted a need to improve on defence. Toronto finished 31st in goals against per game despite having a top-10 penalty kill.

“There are a ton of amazing pieces that are very valuable,” Chayka said of the roster. “I’m really focused on that and getting that back on track. There are parts of the game and parts of the roster that we need to improve on. I don’t think it is any secret. I think the defence core needs to be improved. We need maybe a different mix and maybe some different looks, with how we exit the zone and move through the neutral zone. There are just a lot of ways in which we can improve the team — team speed — but ultimately, we’re sitting here in May. It is a long offseason. It is my job to go out and make some moves to make the team better.”

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Chayka has exchanged text messages with Leafs captain Auston Matthews.

“I just came from an organization where we spent our entire existence looking for that exact player,” Chayka said. “We are incredibly fortunate to have Auston. It is our job to sell him on what we are capable of in terms of reaching the ultimate goal. I know that is what is most important to him.”

On locker clean-out day, Matthews was asked about his future with the team.

“I can’t predict the future,” he said. They have to hire new leadership at management and stuff like that. So, I don’t really know. Like I said, I can’t predict the future."

The star centre, who grew up in Arizona and continues to live there in the summer, has two years remaining on his contract.

“I’ve grown up around Auston, or he has grown up around me, I guess,” Chayka said. “He is an incredible player and an incredible person. I know the team hasn’t gotten to the level he would like or the fans would like. I think he understands that. We are talking about an Olympic champion, a top goal-scorer, and an amazing person. It is my job to build around him.”

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The future of Craig Berube as head coach is also still to be determined. Chayka spoke to the veteran bench boss on Sunday night.

“He is a guy who has been a respected leader for decades in the National Hockey League,” Chayka said. “I think he is a tremendous coach, a Stanley Cup coach, and a good person. We had a good conversation. It was brief. We will get together later this week with Mats and go through it all. Mats and I are coming in as outsiders. He spent the past few years with the team. We want to listen, learn, understand his perspective, and go forward from there.”

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Pelley believes that Chayka and Sundin will work well as a team.

“When we identified an opportunity to go in a different direction and bring two stellar, complementary hockey minds together in John and Mats, we jumped on it,” Pelley said. “We jumped on it.”

Pelley pointed out that the pair first met back in 2012 at the Memorial Cup.

“They’ve kept in touch,” Pelley stressed. “More importantly, the respect they have for each other, and the way they talked about each other, was palpable during the entire process.”

“The things I can complement him with are things that really come out of the experience of 18 years [as a player in the NHL], 13 years with the Leafs, and 11 years as captain,” Sundin said. “He is a super-intelligent, progressive, hard-working guy. He understands the game.”

Chayka appreciates how humble Sundin is despite being a Hall-of-Fame player.

“If we are going to take on this challenge, it is going to take special people,” Chayka said. “Mats Sundin is a special person.”

“We have completely different experiences,” Sundin said. “He has a different background. But we both have a really common vision of what a winning team looks like, which is very important. There is no prestige. He is hardworking. There is a mutual view that winning is the only thing that matters.”

This will be Sundin’s first job in an NHL front office.

“It was actually great timing,” he said. “My kids are a little older. I’ve been watching the game from the outside and I’ve done some work for the Swedish national team and watched prospects in Europe while also watching the whole league develop. It was a perfect time to come back with a perspective from the outside for a long time.”

Pelley thanked the 55-year-old Swede for moving his family back across the Atlantic Ocean to Toronto where he last played during the 2007-08 season.

“At the time of the interviews, it was really fascinating; neither John nor Mats talked about titles at any time,” Pelley revealed. “They only talked about goals, and that is to win the Stanley Cup. In fact, I don’t even think Mats knew what his title was until he got the contract himself. I can tell you, unequivocally, that these two gentlemen are totally focused on one thing, and that is bringing the Stanley Cup to Toronto.”