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MLSE CEO Keith Pelley doesn’t believe rebuild is necessary in Toronto
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Photo credit: Chris Young/Canadian Press
Michael Coyle
Apr 1, 2026, 09:30 EDTUpdated: Apr 1, 2026, 09:27 EDT
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The Toronto Maple Leafs sent shockwaves through the hockey world on Monday evening when the club announced that Brad Treliving had been fired as general manager of the team. 
On Tuesday afternoon, Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment President Keith Pelley held a press conference to discuss his decision to let Treliving go and among other topics, the status of the Maple Leafs moving forward. 
Many fans have speculated that the Maple Leafs are entering rebuild territory. With a record of 32-30-13 through 75 games and sitting seventh in the Atlantic Division, the idea that a full-blown rebuild may be required to recoup some assets in order to fill a prospect and draft pick pool that is very barren at the moment.  Pelley spoke about what he sees for this team in the future. 
“Talking about a retool or rebuild, the way I look at a rebuild is you’re starting from scratch. We all know that the Maple Leafs have foundational pieces in place, so as a result, with those pieces, if we’re able to surround them with the right culture, structure and personnel both on and off the ice, then I would say we would be in a retool and not a rebuild,” Pelley said. “Having said that, I will always wait for input from the new Head of Hockey Operations.” 
The Maple Leafs currently sit 11th-worst in the NHL with 77 points, and with the only possibility of drafting in the first round this year being if they finish in the bottom-five, the question has been raised whether the Maple Leafs should tank to make sure they get that selection. Pelley vehemently shut down the notion that he was hoping for this. 
“Absolutely not, and I’m almost offended by the question. There is zero chance that the Toronto Maple Leafs will tank, I don’t believe in it, and ownership doesn’t believe in it,” Pelley said. “I grew up in an environment where, when you play sports, you try to win every single game. So in the remaining seven games, we will try to win every single game.”
As for why Pelley believes that this season could just be a bump in the road and the Maple Leafs can avoid a rebuild and get back to their winning ways next season, the MLSE President touched on some of the names in the locker room.
I think we have general pieces in 34 [Auston Matthews], 88 [William Nylander], 23 [Matthew Knies], 91 [John Tavares], and we have strong goaltending,” Pelley said. “There’s a lot of positives; we just have to surround those individuals with better pieces, and that will be the task of the new Head of Hockey Operations.”
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