Kyle Dubas reportedly met with some members of the Pittsburgh Penguins organization at the Penguins practice facility, including captain Sidney Crosby.
According to Taylor Haase of DK Pittsburgh Sports, Dubas was at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex to meet with some members of the team in a session that extended well into Tuesday night. Crosby was at the facility that night and is believed to have met with Dubas, along with several members of the Penguins public relations staff.
Dubas is now one of the finalists for the position as the Pens' GM search dwindles down. Carolina Hurricanes assistant GM Eric Tulsky and New Jersey Devils assistant GM Dan MacKinnon are more recent candidates who have been ruled out, reportedly leaving Dubas and Tampa Bay Lightning assistant GM Mathieu Darche as the two finalists according to multiple outlets.
The Penguins are looking for a new GM after firing both Ron Hextall, who filled that role, along with team president Brian Burke, in a season where the Penguins missed the playoffs for the first time since 2006. With the likes of Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang all 36 by the start of next season, the Pens will look to try to take as many shots at the Stanley Cup as they can while those three are still playing.
Dubas was previously the general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, a position that many were uncertain he would hold after another disappointing playoff performance. While they did manage to win their first playoff series since 2004 after beating the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games, they then had a disappointing showing against the Florida Panthers in the second round where they faced a 0-3 deficit before losing in five games and couldn’t score more than two goals a game. They only got three goals total in the series from their core forward group of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, John Tavares and William Nylander.
Dubas notably said last week during the Leafs' locker room clean-out that if he wasn’t working for the Leafs last season, he would be taking a year off due to the stress the position put on himself and his family, so him considering the position comes at a bit of a surprise. However, with him being let go as opposed to mutually parting ways, he may be more thirsty to get back into the game.
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