Timeline: How Kyle Dubas Ended Up In Pittsburgh

After making changes to management April 14, the day after Pittsburgh's season ended, the Penguins immediately began searching for new leadership, undergoing a thorough process that cumulated with Kyle Dubas being named President of Hockey Operations.

"I think the process was a massive success, because we're sitting here right now with Kyle," said Co-Head of Fenway Sports Management and Pittsburgh Penguins Alternate Governor Dave Beeston. "So, we were really happy. We ran a robust search, as everyone was aware of. We took our time, because we wanted to get it right, not do it quickly. So, I think we're really, really happy with the way it ended up."

Here's how the home-run hiring came together.

Friday, May 12

After the Toronto Maple Leafs advanced to the Second Round, the Florida Panthers eliminated them in five games.

Monday, May 15

When Dubas did his season-ending media availability, at the time, he felt like he didn't have it in him to go anywhere else after a difficult season with Toronto. Dubas said that if he didn't return to the Maple Leafs, he didn't see himself joining another organization, not wanting to put his family - wife Shannon and children Leo and Lennon - through a big change following such a tough year.

In hindsight, Dubas admitted that he might have gotten ahead of himself.

"Maybe I was too honest that day with how I was feeling in that exact moment," Dubas said with a wry smile. "But, it's in the past."

Friday, May 19

Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan announced that the club had decided to part ways with Dubas, whose contract was set to expire on June 30. After the news came out, Dubas was inundated with calls and texts, and had people wanting to come over to the house. "It's nice, but it's also sad," he said.

Dubas had spent the previous nine seasons as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs organization, including the last five as general manager. At the time of his hiring in 2018, Dubas became the second-youngest general manager in NHL history at age 32.

He set the franchise record in Toronto for the fastest general manager to earn 100 and 200 regular-season wins, needing only 176 and 376 regular season games, respectively, to reach the historic milestones. Overall, the Leafs compiled a record of 221-109-42 with a .651 points percentage under Dubas as general manager, qualifying for the playoffs each year during his tenure.

Saturday, May 20

Very early the next morning, Dubas got a call from a Massachusetts area code while on the phone with someone on his staff in Toronto. After finishing that conversation, Dubas saw he had a message from Sam Kennedy, president and CEO of the Boston Red Sox, who are also owned by Fenway Sports Group. Kennedy told Dubas they had received permission from the Maple Leafs to speak with him.

"I've been in contact with the CEO of Fenway, Sam Kennedy - he and I are very close," Shanahan said. "We've talked over the last week, several times, about Kyle. Fully endorse Kyle. Told Sam he would be great for their organization, and I'm very happy for him."

Dubas' initial inkling was that he and his family needed to take a breath before entertaining other options. But, later in the day, Shannon said she thought they should at least go and meet with Fenway Sports Group. She felt it was worth it to at least explore the opportunity, saying, "what if they're great people, and they have a long-term view of the organization that's going to be a great fit for you in terms of what everybody is about that you're going to work for and work with?"

She also brought up the fact that they would be moving regardless, and they might as well do it now, before Leo and Lennon, ages 6 and 2, got too entrenched. With that, Kyle agreed to take the next step.

Sunday, May 21

Dubas met with Fenway Sports Group leadership at the home of John Henry, Principal Owner. Also present were Chairman, Tom Werner; Co-Head of Fenway Sports Management and Pittsburgh Penguins Alternate Governor Dave Beeston; and Kennedy.

"From my view, it was just a remarkable meeting in terms of hearing the way that they view a sports organization, the way that they want to build things out - the short-term competitiveness, but also the long-range capacity to build an organization that can sustain success," Dubas said.

Week of May 22

After that, Dubas had conversations with Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan and captain Sidney Crosby. Those talks were paramount in his decision to come here.

"I thought that those were very important people for me to get a real deep sense of where they felt the organization was at and where it will be going, so that I knew coming in where they felt the Penguins were at, and what they felt the Penguins would need for somebody in this role," Dubas said.

Memorial Day Weekend (Saturday, May 27 and Sunday, May 28)

Finally, the Dubas family traveled to Pittsburgh so that they could get a feel for the city, with Penguins senior vice president of communications Jen Bullano Ridgley and director of team services Jason Seidling doing an incredible job of serving as tour guides.

Bullano Ridgley and Seidling are what Sullivan would term "unsung heroes," who do so much work behind the scenes for this organization and have earned the trust and respect of leadership here and at Fenway Sports Group. Penguins ownership relied on them to show the Dubas family around Pittsburgh over the weekend, with Kyle saying all the credit goes to Bullano Ridgley and Seidling for making him and Shannon feel confident enough to make this move as a young family.

"Every single thing that I've heard about the city of Pittsburgh and the people in Pittsburgh has been proven very true by our experience here and getting to know the staff that we have, and being able to tour the city in the way that we have," Kyle said. "So, there's a deep feeling of appreciation from our family to everybody that's made us feel very comfortable in this decision."

Thursday, June 1

After making the decision to accept the role of Penguins president of hockey operations early this week, the team announced the hire on Thursday. Dubas conducted media availability flanked by Beeston and Werner, with Henry standing close by. He had already impressed those men with his philosophy, integrity, plans for the Penguins, and leadership skills - which all came across this afternoon to the assembled media and fans.