Maple Leafs' Brendan Shanahan Issues Surprising Comments About George Parros, Player Safety
Maple Leafs President Brendan Shanahan has issued some surprising remarks on George Parros and the NHL's Department of Player Safety following a multitude of suspensions and fines handed out to various Maple Leafs players in recent memory.
With the Board of Governors meetings taking place this week, TSN's Gino Reda was able to catch up with Maple Leafs head coach Brendan Shanahan to talk all things Leafs.
Among the topics discussed were the contract statuses of Mitch Marner and Shanahan himself, as well as the secrecy surrounding Auston Matthews' injury, and of course, Shanahan's thoughts on how the Department of Player Safety has gone about its business in recent years.
The last topic seemed to strike a chord with Shanahan, who used to run the department, prior to the appointment of George Parros as head of Player Safety.
He and I like to talk from time to time, especially because I have done the job. We like to talk about different things going on around the league and some of the decisions and thought processes.
It is always better when you wait a few days or a couple of weeks to get those out. You are a little calmer. He is a little calmer. At the end of the day, you always just want what is best for your team.
George is trying to do what is best for the league. I am just trying to do what is best for the�Toronto Maple Leafs."
The Leafs have been handed some of the stiffest punishments when it comes to supplemental discipline in recent memory -- most notably, the Morgan Rielly suspension for his cross-check to the head of Ottawa's Ridly Grieg last season and the Ryan Reaves suspension for his head shot on Edmonton's Darnell Nurse earlier this year.
To hear Shanahan vouch for George Parros might be a little frustrating for some, but we should also consider the potential fallout if he had torched Parros to the media, which wouldn't have gained the Leafs any favour in their dealings with Parros either.
Perhaps Shanahan was simply being diplomatic and trying to scratch Parros' back in hopes that Parros may go a little easier on the Leafs next time a scenario presents itself where a suspension or a fine appears likely. There's no way to know for sure.
