Brendan Shanahan will be joining the National Hockey League’s hockey operations department, TSN’s Darren Dreger reported on Insider Trading Thursday.
Shanahan, 56, is set to take the job following 11 years as the president and alternate governor of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Etobicoke, Ont. native did not have his contract renewed following Toronto’s second-round exit to the Florida Panthers this past spring, ending his tenure with just two playoff series victories with the Maple Leafs.
“Sources say that Brendan Shanahan will be joining the National Hockey League’s hockey operations department,” Dreger said.
“He will spend time in the New York office. He’ll spend time in the Toronto office and he’ll attend general manager meetings, board meetings, no question about that, in an advisory capacity, another experienced voice as part of that process.”
Shanahan, a 22-year NHL veteran, guided the Maple Leafs to the playoffs for nine consecutive seasons from 2016-25.
He took the job over in April 2014, overseeing the hiring of head coaches Mike Babcock, Sheldon Keefe and Craig Berube. He also hired three general managers, Lou Lamoriello, Kyle Dubas, and Brad Treliving, during his time with the team.
Following his departure from Toronto, the Maple Leafs granted the New York Islanders permission to speak with Shanahan on taking on a role with their front office, but no hire was made under new general manager Mathieu Darche.
Dreger also noted that despite taking on the new role, the door is not closed on Shanahan making a move to an NHL front office in the future.
“But I also believe he’s following a path that Ken Holland went down not that long ago as well en route to becoming the general manager of the Los Angeles Kings.
“So, if an opportunity presents, whereby a team decides it’s going to make a significant change atop its hockey department, I would suggest that Brendan Shanahan would be a leading candidate for a job like that as well. “
