Analysis | Here’s what Brad Treliving’s past says about the future of the Maple Leafs

It’s not that new Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving wants to be in on every trade, but he gets into just about every trade conversation.

If a player is on the market, he just has to find out what’s going on. What’s the price? Who else might be available? Which other teams are serious? What are they willing to move? Are the teams that missed out still shopping? Could there be a trickle-down effect that helps his team?

These questions are likely to be asked in bunches as the Leafs enter the busiest week of the NHL off-season with the draft starting Wednesday night, followed by the start of free agency at noon Saturday.

There might not be an obvious fit for a trade with a Treliving team, but the former Calgary Flames GM — according to those who know him — leaves no stone unturned.

“The one thing I’ll tell you about Brad, he’s a dog on the bone,” said another former Flames GM, Craig Button, now TSN’s director of scouting. “He wants to improve the team in every regard. He’s always exploring.”

With Treliving now in charge of the Leafs, a team with plenty of holes to be filled and questions about roster makeup to be answered, there has been no rush to make moves or re-sign impending free agents. That’s another sign of the kind of GM he is: patient.

“Some managers are too cautious; some managers are too aggressive,” said Button.

Treliving appears to be the right balance of both.

“Ultimately, there’s really two types of managers,” says one-time Tampa Bay Lightning GM Brian Lawton, formerly an analyst on NHL Network. “There are the guys that are going to make three or four decisions a year, but in their minds they’re getting paid to make these three or four directional decisions. Then there are the guys that are going to be a lot more hands on, more of a doer, and still make those three or four decisions.

“I would say Brad is more of a doer because of his background. He’s going to be involved in things more. He’s going to have a lot more resources now.

“That doesn’t necessarily equate to success. It should improve your odds mathematically, but it doesn’t always work out that way. To me, it’s the guys that are doers also that tend to do better. That’s the kind of guy Brad is. He’s going to be involved. He’s not going to be in the ivory tower and directing everybody. He’s going to be out there in the field.”

Lawton compares Treliving’s approach to that of Doug Armstrong, whose St. Louis Blues won the Stanley Cup in 2019, with many crediting some shrewd trades and signings as well as building relationships.

“One thing I like about Brad is, I think that he’s got a really great macro view of the business,” said Lawton. “He’s been at it a long time. A little bit of Doug Armstrong in him, and I think very highly of Doug. I think Toronto thought very highly of Doug.”

The Leafs were believed to be interested in interviewing Armstrong for the job before awarding it to Treliving.

“By that I mean, he’s not going to overreact,” said Lawton. “One of the things that I see from a lot of managers in today’s world is a lack of action, because you can lose your job by taking action. There’s a lot of guys who don’t take action until it’s evident that they could lose their job, versus people like Brad and Doug in particular that I think are more proactive, not worried about losing their jobs.”

Treliving’s biggest issue in Toronto might be delegating.

The Leafs staff is believed to be the biggest in the NHL, far bigger than the Flames or Arizona Coyotes — the team where Treliving got his NHL start as assistant GM, and perhaps where his Armstrong-like “macro” view has its roots.

That experience — running a team with a skeleton staff — meant Treliving had to immerse himself in every aspect of hockey operations: from scouting to travel to forging relationships with owners, families, players and agents.

“He’s done the work and he’s dug in and spent time in the scouting field, in the free agency world, and as a manager,” said Button. “Managing those resources — more resources — can work for him. He’s got a firm grasp on all the different areas.”

Treliving’s record

There are many ways to judge a general manager. That Treliving hasn’t won a Stanley Cup is probably the biggest X beside his name, but that’s also true of 27 other current GMs.

The Flames were 362-265-73 in nine seasons under Treliving, a points percentage of .569 that is a middling 16th-best over that span and seventh-best among Western Conference teams. His Flames made the playoffs five times over nine seasons and reached the second round three times, but no further.

“Brad built teams in Calgary that have been right there, real contenders,” said Button. “You can look back and say why didn’t it really happen, the pandemic. But Brad did some really strong work in Calgary.”

Draft class

His drafting record is also middling. It’s hard to miss when you’re picking near the top, thus success with Matthew Tkachuk (sixth overall in 2016) and Sam Bennett (fourth overall in 2014). A couple of draft classes in particular stand out:

“If you get three players out of every two drafts, you’re doing exceptionally well,” said Button.

None of the players drafted since 2017 have made much of an impact, though that’s understandable since it takes longer for some to develop and the Flames roster have been a hard one for young players to crack. The best of them, Juuso Välimäki, was lost on waivers. Treliving likely came to regret that move. He was trying to tuck a frequently injured player in the minors to get playing time, but the Coyotes claimed him and he has thrived.

“The managers get credit for the good picks and the scouting staff gets the blame for the bad picks,” said Button. “Managers are not drafting, they’re not scouting. I don’t think they should get credit or blame.”

Treliving, however, won’t be able to participate at the Leafs draft table in Nashville this week. Chris Johnston of NorthStar Bets reported that a condition was put in place by the Flames when they granted Toronto permission to talk to Treliving, who was still under contract in Calgary. The Leafs have the 28th pick, plus fifth- and sixth-round selections.

Cap management

Treliving has been remarkably conservative on the free-agent front. On his watch, only 13 free agents have received deals with an average annual value above $3 million (U.S.), with Nazem Kadri’s seven-year, $49-million contract last summer the most lucrative he handed a player who wasn’t already with the Flames. Goalie Jacob Markstrom’s six-year, $36-million deal seemed to be money well spent in 2020.

(Jonathan Huberdeau is the Flames’ highest-paid player. Treliving acquired him from Florida before Huberdeau agreed to an eight-year, $84-million extension that kicks in this year).

His Flames stayed under the salary cap for the most part, but close to it, and rarely used long-term injured reserve to find cap space. They also used largely homegrown players, who tend to be cheaper, while filling in the blanks with free agents.

Trade winds

The trade with Florida — Tkachuk for Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar — may go down as the most overanalyzed in history. Safe to say, it’s too early to draw conclusions after one year. The Panthers went to the Cup final, but didn’t win. The Flames missed the playoffs, although they had more points than the Panthers.

“I thought in a lot of ways (the Flames) got better quicker than I thought Florida would. It didn’t work out that way,” said Lawton. “It couldn’t have worked out worse for the Flames. The good news is that these things tend to (be judged) on a lot more than just the first year.”

It’s worth noting that Treliving pulled off that trade — to generally good reviews at the time — with a figurative gun to his head after Tkachuk said he wouldn’t sign an extension. Treliving did that with another player, too. Fox, a Flames pick, told the team he wouldn’t sign and got Treliving to trade his rights to Carolina. As part of a bigger swap, Treliving also sent Dougie Hamilton to the Hurricanes and got real value in centre Elias Lindholm and defenceman Noah Hanifin.

So Treliving is not afraid to trade core pieces, and has received core players in return at the same time.

They haven’t all worked out, such as the Travis Hamonic deal in 2017: a first-round pick and two seconds for a middling defenceman.

“I don’t care about people that make mistakes,” said Lawton. “Everybody makes mistakes. The ability to correct and fix them and get back in the ring is what really impresses me. And I think Brad has that gumption.”

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