Canucks Ask Maple Leafs For Permission To Speak With Front Office Candidate

The Vancouver Canucks and Toronto Maple Leafs are both knee deep in their searches for a new general manager (and/or president of hockey operations in the Leafs' case). But Vancouver is eyeing a Toronto front office name as a candidate for their own job opening. Insider Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet explains:

According to several sources, the Canucks asked Toronto for permission to speak to special advisor to the GM, Shane Doan.
What potential role the Canucks see for Doan is unclear. He’s never expressed a desire to be a full-time GM, but could definitely be a part of a group.

Doan, now 49, was a 21-year NHL veteran who played all but one year of his two+ decades in Phoenix. He was a 13-time 20-goal scorer.

He's been working in the role of Special Advisor to the General Manager for the Leafs since June of 2023. He had been acting as a liaison between management and players, assisting with development and mentoring young players. The insider added that Doan "received strong recent reviews from other members of the organization for how he handled things as this season went sideways."

As Friedman notes, however, Doan hadn't seemed to be a candidate for a GM job, either in Toronto or elsewhere, as that wasn't a stated goal of his. But maybe the Canucks have something in mind that will tickle his fancy. Especially considering the fact that currently in Toronto, Doan's role would seem to be up in the air until a new hockey operations boss is brought in. He might want to be proactive and take something with more certainty in Vancouver, if that's what comes to fruition.

Both the Leafs and the Canucks are leaving no stones unturned in their searches, and have been taking their time naming a new GM. Toronto is thought to be pretty far along in the process, however, and some reports suggest they might be nearing a final decision sometime later this week.

As for Vancouver, it's anybody's guess, at this point, which direction they're headed.