{"id":559061,"date":"2026-04-25T10:30:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-25T10:30:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/559061\/"},"modified":"2026-04-25T10:30:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T10:30:15","slug":"latest-on-maple-leafs-gm-search-pro-hockey-rumors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/559061\/","title":{"rendered":"Latest On Maple Leafs GM Search \u2013 Pro Hockey Rumors"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a new update from Sportsnet\u2019s Elliotte Friedman on his\u00a032 Thoughts<\/a> podcast, the Toronto Maple Leafs are likely down to their final two candidates for their open General Manager position. Still, Friedman doesn\u2019t expect anything to be announced soon as the Maple Leafs continue to do their due diligence on each candidate, who couldn\u2019t be more different.<\/p>\n

One of the candidates is Scott White<\/a>, Assistant General Manager of the Dallas Stars, as reported<\/a> a few days ago. White was hired by the Stars organization after the 2005 lockout, working his way up from their AHL affiliate to the AGM position in 2016. In his developmental philosophy, White typically values players of high character, often providing prospects and draft options with numerous character assessments.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not to say he doesn\u2019t value talent, but he is keenly aware of what a bad locker room can create, even with the necessary talent to win. Unsurprisingly, the Maple Leafs are interested in allowing that philosophy to dictate the future of the organization. Toronto has undeniable talent, but the team has struggled to mesh well in recent years. White would be an interesting candidate to come in and make some blunt changes to reshuffle the team\u2019s chemistry.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Friedman shared that John Chayka<\/a>, former General Manager of the Arizona Coyotes, is the other finalist, and likely the favorite. Chayka has not worked in the NHL since he left the Coyotes organization in 2020, as he\u2019s largely focused on his company, Compass Restaurant Group, along with his wife.<\/p>\n

Additionally, it was unlikely he would find another General Manager role before that due to some controversy surrounding him toward the end of his time in Arizona. Chayka was suspended from the NHL by Commissioner Gary Bettman for pursuing opportunities with other clubs while under contract with the Coyotes. Additionally, the Coyotes were forced to forfeit a second-round pick in 2020 and a first-round pick in 2021 for hosting a private scouting combine for draft-eligible prospects under Chayka.<\/p>\n

Still, Chayka has what the Maple Leafs want. He has a shrewd analytical mind, similar to Eric Tulsky<\/a> of the Carolina Hurricanes and Sunny Mehta<\/a> of the New Jersey Devils. Like White, Chayka would likely implement changes to enhance the team\u2019s talent; however, concerns about the locker room atmosphere may persist.<\/p>\n

Friedman pointed out that although the team has narrowed its choices down to two finalists, neither White nor Chayka has advanced to the second round of negotiations, which involves meeting with the Maple Leafs\u2019 ownership group. The first candidate to reach this stage is likely to be named the team\u2019s next General Manager in a few weeks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In a new update from Sportsnet\u2019s Elliotte Friedman on his\u00a032 Thoughts podcast, the Toronto Maple Leafs are likely…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":559062,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5106],"tags":[5,59498,20,5172,30,4,61904,66,31,5171],"class_list":["post-559061","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-toronto-maple-leafs","tag-hockey","tag-john-chayka","tag-maple-leafs","tag-mapleleafs","tag-newsstand","tag-nhl","tag-scott-white","tag-toronto","tag-toronto-maple-leafs","tag-torontomapleleafs"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116464885677649441","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/559061","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=559061"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/559061\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/559062"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=559061"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=559061"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=559061"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}