Folks, the world has changed over the last week or more. Hope you’re all doing well and keeping a stick-length or two away from others as we all come together by staying apart in battling the spread of the sometimes deadly coronavirus.

You’re seeing fewer sports stories, obviously, because there are fewer things in sports to report. You might have even noticed I’m writing travel and transportation-related COVID-19 stories. Happy to do my part.

But your interest in hockey and the Maple Leafs remains intense and needs to be satiated. The Mailbag continues, this week, with a guest author: Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas. It was his idea.

I’ve told you before he’s a fan. He likes to stay in touch with what real fans think and this Mailbag is that kind of portal.

I sent emails to my most loyal contributors and most of you got back to me. (The rest of you should check your emails more often.)

How’s he doing with the coronavirus? How’s the team going to handle the salary cap? Any regrets?

There’s a bunch of topics you got into.

Anyway, over to Kyle ...

Kyle Dubas: Kevin & Readers, thank you for having me host this edition of the Mailbag. During this very serious and challenging time for our community and the world at large it is great to connect with some of the most passionate fans that our team has to offer.

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Question: Kyle, thanks for doing this. Can you tell us how you’re handling self-isolation and the coronavirus pandemic? What advice might you offer others in keeping your head on straight while others might be losing theirs? — Kevin M.

Dubas: Hi Kevin. Though it is a massive change from normal routine for all of our people and everyone in the world, it is made easier by knowing the impact we can all make by social distancing and doing our part to slow and stop the spread of COVID-19.

We have found that creating a new daily routine while at home has been very helpful. We are fortunate in that we still have a lot on the go with regards to scouting, player development and other team matters, so there is a lot to do, just in a very different way. I do not think I am qualified to give advice on how others can maintain their focus and their well-being while social distancing, but I can pass along what experts in the area have shared with us: maintain a solid sleep schedule, read, stay in motion even if only inside your house or condo, eat as well as you can, use this time to catch up on anything you have left on the back burner, FaceTime and call those you love, check in on those you are worried about, and set a good example for as many people as you can.

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Question: It is very well known you are a strong supporter of analytics. In your brief time as GM of the Maple Leafs, do you still feel this is the only way to go or have you opened your beliefs into sometimes veering away from analytics once in a while and just going with your gut feelings or qualitative instincts? Regardless, I wish you all the best and hope you can bring us to the promised land! Go Leafs GO! — Justin P.

Dubas: Justin, our view on analytics and data is that it serves to objectively inform all areas of our operation — scouting, player development, player contracts, coaching, tactics, etc. It has never been the only source of information that we use when making decisions with our program. We do understand why that narrative has taken hold but it is not really accurate. We are working to try to get us to the “promised land” that you mention, Justin! Thank you for your question and passion!

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Question: I have to suspect that, in Toronto’s hockey crazy market, it’s sometimes difficult for you to maintain a healthy work/home balance. How do you effectively shut off your work when at home? Does it affect your home life? Has your wife ever become irritated with you at home because of your job? (e.g.: No hockey talk tonight!) — Todd C.

Dubas: My wife becomes irritated with me for mostly non-hockey reasons, Todd! My son and I are lucky because she is really what drives our family each day. Fortunately, the entire time we have been together I have worked in hockey and our relationship is just used to the way the day rolls and the amount of time that sometimes goes into the team. She does not get a reprieve from hockey when I am out of the house either, as our son loves hockey and the Leafs and has questions the entire day about the team and our players. That said, neither of us really view it as “work.” I feel very fortunate to be able to make a living in professional sports and especially for a team like the Maple Leafs.

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Question: While it may be unfair to ask a “hindsight is 20/20” question, looking back over the period from the summer of 2018, are there any things you would’ve done differently? — Al M.

Dubas: I don’t think it is an unfair question at all, Al. I appreciate you asking in such a straightforward way. Looking back, I have said before and will say again that the way the William Nylander contract negotiation dragged is something I would like to have done differently for sure. That’s the one area where the process behind how the negotiation was executed was poor and that’s my fault. There are a lot of other things I would change or do differently, but the Nylander negotiation is the major area where I feel the most regret. As the years go on, there will be plenty of decisions which you will look back on and feel that I have made a poor choice. Please don’t let me off the hook! You win some, you learn some.

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Question: Thanks for the opportunity to talk to Kyle. I guess my question for Kyle would revolve around the salary cap for next year. I can easily see a scenario where the cap takes a pretty significant hit. If the league is unable to come back and unable to award the Stanley Cup this year, there will be no gate revenues nor broadcast revenues to cushion the bottom line. How could the league deal with this, and how would the Leafs fare? Thanks. — Andrea

Dubas: That’s a question far above my pay grade, Andrea!! Whatever the economic landscape is, we will have to adapt and find a way to put the best team possible on the ice as we continue to grow toward our goal of being a perennial contender for the Stanley Cup. We have a long ways to go, but how we overcome the obstacles along the way will likely be the biggest determinant of whether we get there.

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Question: Hello Kyle, thanks for doing this. Can you look us Leaf fans in the eye and explain your failure to properly address the inability of our current defensive corps to keep the puck out of our net? You are responsible for the current personnel, like Tyson Barrie. Sorry Kyle, Barrie is a bust — can’t defend, can’t score — and you gave up Nazem Kadri for Barrie. Bad trade! One need only to look at our goals against compared to the Bruins. As a season-ticket holder who pays for his tickets without corporate subsidy, our players have taken too many nights off and that is completely unacceptable. The buck stops with you! — Dan W.

Dubas: Hi Dan! First off, you’re right! The buck does stop with me and if our team doesn’t reach its potential, it is on me. Brendan Shanahan has entrusted me to lead our program on the hockey side, and our staff and players place their trust in me to lead us in the right direction. So in the end, any issues or failures fall on me, absolutely!

Your honesty and direct criticism are also appreciated (and I mean that sincerely). The passion of Leafs fans (similar to that of Greyhounds fans in the Soo during my time there) never lets us rest on our laurels. When they think we stink, they let us know directly. It keeps you moving and reminds you that this is not a position to be taken lightly as there are millions of fans who are trusting in you to get the job done.

That said, I will take this time to slightly disagree with some of your points.

1. Keeping the puck out of our net ... When Coach Keefe took over, we were 25th in the league in goals against per game (3.44). Since he took over, we have been in the middle of the NHL pack and cut our goals against to 3.04 per game. Is that where we ultimately aspire to be? No, we aspire to become as staunch defensively as the teams you mention (at about 2.5/game). Getting there revolves around one of the issues you allude to in your question — mindset. We have shown at times that we can really give an excellent defensive effort against some of the best offensive teams in hockey and then other nights leave our entire organization and fans feeling frustrated.

2. Tyson Barrie … Tyson is one of the top-scoring defencemen in the NHL over the last three seasons and since mid-November has been right around the top 10 in scoring among NHL defencemen. I don’t think we set Tyson up for success the way we could have but he has really stepped up at both ends of the ice, especially as players like Morgan Rielly, Jake Muzzin and Cody Ceci have been injured.

Thank you for the questions and for your direct criticism. Though we may disagree, I appreciate your constant support of the Leafs and will do all I can to make you proud, Dan.

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Question: Thanks for doing this. Kevin’s reporting and Mailbag have become my portal to a lot of things to do with the Leafs. Strange days we are in and while keeping things in perspective, I miss the game more than I would have guessed. A question: With the benefit of some hindsight, has your position with the team been more or less intense than you originally anticipated? Thanks for what you do. — Doug

Dubas: Good question, Doug. It certainly has not been less intense. There have been so many unique experiences over the last 22 months between contracts, trades, staffing decisions, controversies, injuries, and now the coronavirus pandemic putting our season, rightfully, on hold. All of that said, we have a great staff who share their tremendous experience and help us ride the waves as they come.

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