Getty Pro golfer Rory McIlroy says changes are coming to Toronto.
Professional golfer Rory McIlroy says the Toronto Maple Leafs will make significant changes this off-season after he had dinner with someone involved with the team.
McIlroy was in Hamilton, just outside of Toronto, for the Canadian Open from May 30-June 2. During his time in the area, McIlroy revealed he had dinner with someone in the Maple Leafs organization and he revealed the person told him they are expecting to make major changes this offseason.
“I don’t know much about the Leafs, I had dinner with someone that’s pretty intimately involved a few nights ago, so sounds like they’re making some changes this off-season and hopefully that’s the catalyst to making a run in the playoffs and maybe getting that Stanley Cup,” McIlroy said, via Toronto Sun.
The biggest change that the Maple Leafs have been linked to this summer is trading Mitch Marner. The skilled forward has one year left on his deal and he has been the subject of trade rumors since Toronto was eliminated in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs to the Boston Bruins.
Whether or not a Marner trade was what McIlroy was referencing is uncertain, but the Maple Leafs offseason will be one to watch as major changes are expected to take place.
Maple Leafs Exec Says Team Will ‘Consider Everything’ This Offseason
McIlroy’s comments also fall in line with what Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan had said at the year-end press conference.
After another first-round playoff exit, Shanahan said Toronto will consider everything this summer.
“The ultimate responsibility is on me. The accountability is on me. Our playoff results have not been good enough. That’s on me. The results that we have had in the playoffs, our players know, we know, I know, they are unacceptable,” Shanahan said during a May 10 press conference.
“We do an analysis at the end of every season, we look at our team, we look forward and we look for ways to be better. We do that every year. In the past, I believe there are times where you talk about patience, and I still believe there are times where patience is the suitable call.
“However, when you see patterns persist and the results don’t change, you have to adjust the way that you think about things. We will look at everything this summer, and we will consider everything this summer. All with the intention of the one thing we are here for, which is to make the Maple Leafs better and to win,” Shanahan continued.
Along with Marner, the future of captain John Tavares has also been the subject of trade rumors.
Maple Leafs Having Talks With Tyler Bertuzzi: Report
One player who Toronto may bring back is forward Tyler Bertuzzi.
Bertuzzi inked a one-year deal in free agency with the Maple Leafs and after completing the one-year deal, it has been reported there is mutual interest between them in getting an extension signed.
According to NHL insider David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, Toronto has started to have discussions with Bertuzzi’s camp.
It’s still very early in the process to project where this will go, but the #LeafsForever have started contract discussions with pending UFA winger Tyler Bertuzzi.
“It’s still very early in the process to project where this will go, but the Maple Leafs have started contract discussions with pending UFA winger Tyler Bertuzzi,” Pagnott wrote.
Bertuzzi recorded 21 goals and 22 assists for 43 points in 80 games with the Maple Leafs.
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Rory McIlroy Hints at Maple Leafs’ Offseason ‘Changes’ After Meeting With Exec