There are a lot of rumours swirling around as the Toronto Maple Leafs’ front office transitions to the Kyle Dubas era, but one has stuck out as a real change in direction.

James Mirtle, the Editor-in-Chief of the Athletic, posted an article that explains how the first major change under Kyle Dubas will be the team’s draft strategy. He points out that while the executives worked in silos in the past, Dubas has been preparing for this job for a long time. Mark Hunter had led the charge for most of the team’s draft prep to this point and there was one name that reportedly kept coming up under his leadership.

According to Mirtle’s article, that name is Ryan McLeod and before Hunter left, he was likely a first-round target for the team. Mirtle believes he will have dropped significantly in any kind of draft ranking the Leafs have because he isn’t a “Dubas pick”:

“McLeod, you see, is a safe, low-ceiling type, someone who probably tops out as a second-line centre, if all things go well. He’s also one of the oldest first-year eligibles in the draft — with a late September birth date — and this was his first season with big point totals in junior.”

Dubas on the other hand is much more likely to go for a pick with more upside.

This also aligns with the more forward thinking reputation that Dubas has earned. In 2015, the Leafs took advantage of some highly-skilled, smaller players that put up a lot of points in junior. Jeremy Bracco is probably the best example of this strategy (Although, Mitch Marner, Martins Dzierkals and Dmytro Timashov also fit the mould) and there was a clear shift after Mark Hunter starting leading the Leafs draft strategy in 2016.

You never know what the Leafs would have done under Dubas, but it’s interesting to think that the player that many people in the analytics community pointed at as being a “Dubas pick” in 2016 was Alex DeBrincat.

The Leafs drafted Yegor Korshkov with the 31st pick in the 2016 draft and only nine picks later, the Chicago Blackhawks drafted DeBrincat. At this point, one pick has looked a lot better than the other. DeBrincat just played his first NHL season and put up 52 points in 82 games whereas Korshkov actually dropped off a bit in 2017-18, scoring 26 points in 52 KHL games.

If you’re interested in reading more about the Leafs change in draft strategy, you can read Mirtle’s full piece by clicking here.