Toronto Maple Leafs Fire GM Dave Nonis, Coach Peter Horachek And Staff

The Toronto Maple Leafs fired general manager Dave Nonis, interim head coach Peter Horachek and his staff on April 12. The Maple Leafs finished the 2014-15 NHL season with a 30-44-8 record and missed the playoffs for the second straight year.

The Toronto Maple Leafs fired general Dave Nonis, interim head coach Peter Horachek and his staff on April 12. 

The Maple Leafs issued a press release about the organizational change on their official website on Sunday:

“Brendan Shanahan, President and Alternate Governor of the Toronto Maple Leafs, announced today that the club has relieved General Manager Dave Nonis and Interim Head Coach Peter Horachek of their duties.

“The club announced that coaches Steve Spott, Chris Dennis and Rick St. Croix (goaltending) have also been relieved of their duties while Steve Staios will resume his duties as Manager of Player Development.

“As the club seeks a new general manager, Leafs’ Assistant General Manager Kyle Dubas and Director of Player Personnel Mark Hunter will share the responsibilities on an interim basis.”

Nonis still had three years left on his deal, per The Canadian Press. 

ICYMI, today’s top story: @MapleLeafs fire GM Dave Nonis, coach Peter Horachek, scouting staff http://t.co/8B5LFyjCGq pic.twitter.com/X6AXwczjma— TorontoStar (@TorontoStar) April 13, 2015

According to The Toronto Star’s Kevin McGran, the Maple Leafs also dismissed several scouts, some of them hired on a part-time basis. Maple Leafs president and alternate governor Brendan Shanahan will speak to the media on April 13 at at the Air Canada Centre at 2 p.m. 

The Leafs finished the 2014-15 NHL season with a 30-44-8 mark. Their 68-point campaign was their worst since 1996-97. They were on pace to locking up a playoff spot in January when Horachek replaced Randy Carlyle as head coach. Horachek went 9-28-5 the rest of the way, paving the way for his dismissal on Sunday, per The Canadian Press. 

The Maple Leafs brought Nonis on board in Dec. 2008 as  senior vice president of hockey operations who worked alongside then-GM Brian Burke. ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun says Nonis eventually became Toronto GM in Jan. 2013, helping the team make the postseason fo the first time since 2004.

He went 94-97-21 during his tenure as Maple Leafs GM, per The Toronto Sun’s Rob Longley.

Ray Shero, Paul Fenton among 6 potential Toronto Maple Leafs GM candidates. http://t.co/yEmPZEgBTe #nhl #TMLtalk pic.twitter.com/MFSlVcE1YV— HockeyNightInCanada (@hockeynight) April 12, 2015

LeBrun also expects massive changes in the Maple Leafs’ lineup with Shanahan, who joined the team last spring, in tow.

Longley identifies captain Dion Phaneuf and forward Phil Kessel as among those Maple Leafs players who are expected to be dealt this offseason. 

McGran notes Shanahan is not much of a talker, but he does emphasize building a contender through the draft and analytics. “Shanahan’s direction is one this franchise has never tried,” says McGran. 

Since the Maple Leafs last won the Stanley Cup in 1967, they have traditionally dealt younger players and draft picks for more experienced ones as well as signing free agents in hopes of making regular playoff appearances, per The Toronto Star. 

Shanahan made it clear to McGran he will not go the free-agency route. In fact, Toronto reversed course during the 2014-15 NHL season when they traded seasoned veterans for younger players and draft picks. 

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