James Mirtle of The Athletic posed a poll question Wednesday on Twitter to all of Leafs Nation, asking if fans agree with the Leafs bringing back their GM and coach. The response, at the time of writing this piece, is over 6500 responses.
The overwhelming majority (82%) voted "Yes", in favour of Kyle Dubas and Sheldon Keefe returning. This isn't shocking, as the Leafs strung together a fantastic season collecting 115 pts, good for 4th in the NHL, and a strong postseason effort to build off of, albeit not the results ultimately expected. This is good news, as it seems the organization and the fans are on the right page and have noticed tangible improvements and real progress. In Toronto, that's not usually the case.
With Brendan Shanahan announcing his trust in Dubas, and reports coming out that Dubas should be seeing an extension coming, it's clear that this management and coaching staff are being trusted and given some optimism for the future and to bring home some postseason success.
Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun posted his response to Mirtle, stating, "Yes, but the answer changes if it's another first-round exit next spring". Clearly, the reigns are a little looser but still firm when it comes to expectations for this team, coaching and management. the fan perception is a stark contrast compared to the sheer panic from last year's heartbreaking end.
POLL | ||
MAI 18 | 300 ANSWERS Leafs Nation reacts to Shanahan bringing back Dubas and Keefe Were the Leafs right to bring back Dubas and Keefe? | ||
Yes | 232 | 77.3 % |
No | 68 | 22.7 % |
List of polls |