Dubas was going to leave the Leafs and Spezza was sure to follow.  Pretty simple to me.

I'm still not following. Spezza was Dubas' guy so if Dubas left Spezza was going to go with. How does that support the notion that it was predetermined? That a possible outcome has predictable consequences doesn't mean that the outcome is a sure thing.

Who's suggesting that Spezza wasn't going to follow Dubas?

Whether you agree or disagree, all signs point to Dubas having had the Penguins' job lined up if things went sideways with the Leafs.  This was starting to be reported in the months prior.  Him leaving, signing a long-term, massive deal to boot, and Spezza tagging along for the ride is not the least bit surprising.

This to me affirms that whatever friction there was between Shanahan and Dubas was far too large to bridge, and Dubas had this whole thing planned all along. 

How does it do that? Spezza was clearly Dubas' guy so when Dubas left it made sense that Spezza would go too just like guys on Nick Nurse's staff have joined him at his new job. I'm not sure what that actually says about the circumstances of his departure.

Dubas was going to leave the Leafs and Spezza was sure to follow.  Pretty simple to me.

This to me affirms that whatever friction there was between Shanahan and Dubas was far too large to bridge, and Dubas had this whole thing planned all along. 

Didn't care for Dubas, so I'm not rankled by this one bit.  He does deserve an Oscar for that sob performance he put on in his final press conference though.

Oh my god. Does this mean that the Panthers success wasn't about some sort of supernatural level of toughness and competitive spirit but was actually just a fairly ordinary team who got a run of unsustainably hot goaltending? And that without that level of play in net they'd look just as vulnerable as everyone else? Holy smokes. What a suprise. If only some people had said that it wasn't because of outstanding character and internal fortitude but simply the way the randomness of the playoffs can shake out. I'm really torn up about this. The incredibly minor level of hockey knowledge I have, which reduces every single thing to whether or not players are tough enough, has been completely shattered.

The NHL should make the regular season for the Stanley Cup and the playoffs a totally separate tournament.

Completely fine with the move.  Treliving's Spezza.  No issues with that.

Most impressive is that he was convinced (which may not have taken a lot at this point) for him to leave the Winnipeg/Arizona franchise which he's been with his entire professional career.

If I were to venture a guess, Keefe is going to be fired in the next few weeks before the draft. 

Shanahan and Treliving are saying all the right things about him, but once the dust settles and they "evaluate" things, I bet the trigger is pulled knowing a shakeup is in order.

If and/or when that ends up being the case, it will be interesting to see if he is made coach in Pittsburgh.

Quite bluntly, the way this entire situation has played out from all parties involved, Dubas comes out looking like a conniving little b!tch.

The more I think about this, the more I see Treliving not being the sexy pick, but the safe pick.  Hope he is able to get this team to take the next step.

Here's hoping he rectifies the goaltending situation and revamps the aging and underwhelming D core.

Not fond at all of Keefe being kept, but the new GM usually likes to keep that one bullet for later on, so I guess we have to live with it.  I was looking forward to a good purging in the organization from top down -- from GM, coach, and even a core forward or two.

Not the sexy pick I was looking for, but I don't think it'll be that far off from what Dubas provided, so I'll live with it.  Just have to see now what his plans are, because the next two years are going to be critical (well, the next month...).

Look at our shiny new GM!!!  We ONLY got him because he got fired from his last job!  Isn't he great!?!?!?!?!?!!!???!!!?  He failed so hard at his last job that he was fired, but things will be different this time!  WE PROMISE!!!!

Does the same apply to the team that hires Dubas?

Same applies to a huge swath of all GM and coach hires.

That was kind of my point...

What's every ones acceptable number for Matthews?  I would do 8 years $100 million. 

He can get more with the more years he signs.  I'm okay with $13 million a year even though it'll put him about McDavid and MacKinnon, which I don't think he should be the highest paid player if all things were equal.

If he is looking for a shorter contract, then less money.

Still boggles my mind that Dubas gave him the money he did on his last contract and only got 5 years out of it.

Look at our shiny new GM!!!  We ONLY got him because he got fired from his last job!  Isn't he great!?!?!?!?!?!!!???!!!?  He failed so hard at his last job that he was fired, but things will be different this time!  WE PROMISE!!!!

Does the same apply to the team that hires Dubas?

I don't necessarily see anything really wrong with it, but the whole situation gets more bizarre as time passes.