Maple Leafs confronted at John Chayka's introductory press conference as hire draws criticism

The Toronto Maple Leafs announced the hire of John Chayka and Mats Sundin on Sunday, with Chayka set to join the team as general manager and Sundin set to become a senior executive advisor of hockey operations. But it took little time for the hire, specifically of Chayka, to receive significant pushback. Chayka Chayka’s controversial hire led to a very tense introductory press conference on Monday, where Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE) president Keith Pelley was peppered with skeptically-posed questions.

Little of the focus was on Sundin, a franchise legend who spent 13 seasons with the Maple Leafs and has a statue outside Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena. Instead, most of the conference was about Chayka, who hasn’t worked in the NHL since resigning as the Arizona Coyotes’ GM in 2020 . Chayka had been hired by the Coyotes in 2016, becoming the youngest GM in the league at age 26.

A month after his resignation, the NHL sanctioned the Coyotes for illegal pre-draft testing for more than 20 Canadian Hockey League prospects, which violates the league’s combine testing policy. And in 2021, Chayka was suspended for one year by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman for “conduct detrimental to the league and game” for pursuing jobs with other teams while still under contract with Arizona. All of that hung over the conference, which hit a climax with a question from the Toronto Sun’s Steve Simmons.

Simmons confronted Pelley on the hire, saying that he had spoken to 20 people who work in the NHL, and 19 of them had not been supportive of the Chayka hire. Simmons added that some of those sources had called the hire a “sham,” describing Chayka as a “con artist,” “liar” and “salesman. ” Pelley’s initial answer was simple: “I must’ve talked to different people.