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Report: Keith Pelley prepared notes of potential trade returns for Maple Leafs using AI
Photo credit: Chris Young/Canadian Press
Apr 15, 2026, 12:00 EDTUpdated: Apr 15, 2026, 11:56 EDT
MLSE CEO Keith Pelley reportedly presented some potential trade returns for the Toronto Maple Leafs on trade deadline day using artificial intelligence (AI), according to The Athletic’s Chris Johnston.
“As one team source put it, fans would have been surprised to see just how involved a non-hockey executive was that day,” Johnston wrote. “Pelley didn’t come empty-handed either. He had notes that included possible trade returns that Leafs staff members believed were generated by Large Language Models and Artificial Intelligence — tools that have become increasingly influential at the top of MLSE but hadn’t been part of the usual process with its NHL team.”
Johnston also noted that Pelley’s musings with AI came from direct orders from Humza Teherany, MLSE’s chief strategy and innovation officer. While Teherany was not present that day with the Leafs, his influence loomed large due to him being one of Pelley’s most trusted advisors.
Despite Pelley’s insistence during his media availability on March 31st that he was merely an observer during the deadline on March 6, reports have emerged that it was actually the exact opposite. It is unusual for an executive with no prior experience working with a sports franchise to be this active in pivotal moments such as the deadline, especially when he was throwing around ideas and demanding the Leafs get back more assets.
This also spoke to the dysfunction within upper management at the time, as then-GM Brad Treliving was trying to move out Matthew Knies right up until the buzzer while simultaneously struggling to get meaningful returns on the rental players.
“Most vexing, even shocking, for his front office was how little interest rivals seemed to have in Laughton or McMann, two low-cost rentals who’d priced their way out of staying in Toronto. With only 30 minutes to go, Treliving emailed the NHL’s other 31 GMs to inform them the Leafs were trading Laughton,” Johnston continued. Pelley would later tell MLSE staff in his weekly “Pelley’s Page” internal newsletter that the team hadn’t drawn any offers on either McMann and Laughton with just 15 minutes to go until the 3 p.m. ET deadline.”
In addition, Johnston said that rival executives found the Leafs difficult to deal with in trade discussions, as the calls felt more like tire-kicking than serious engagement. There were many instances where the Leafs were in the final stages of trade talks, such as their pursuit of Yegor Chinakhov, but were unable to close the deal each time. It certainly helps explain why Treliving made no meaningful roster moves before the deadline other than claiming Troy Stecher off waivers.
A season mired in turmoil and chaos has resulted in Treliving being relieved of his duties and potentially the same fate for head coach Craig Berube depending on who the Leafs choose to be their next head of hockey operations. There wasn’t one singular instance that lead to the Leafs being on the verge of finishing in the bottom five of the NHL less than a year after reaching Game 7 of the second round, but a series of blunders that crescendoed into each other as the months progressed.
The revelation that Pelley implimented AI into the Leafs’ decision making at a crucial moment may help explain why he wants to hire a data-centric candidate. Yet it also highlights just how out of sorts things have gone behind the scenes amidst a disasterous season.
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