The brilliant history between Mike Gillis and Mats Sundin builds something big in Toronto
If the Maple Leafs were to hire Mike Gillis then Mats Sundin may not be far behind as it was Gillis who brought Sundin from Toronto to Vancouver in the first place.
With Sunny Mehta hired by the New Jersey Devils, it made Mike Gillis arguably the frontrunner for the Toronto Maple Leafs vacant GM and Team President position. He's been interviewed twice and it seems like the team is heavily interested in bringing in the former Canucks GM.
However they also seemingly want to bring in the most iconic member of the franchise as well, with the Maple Leafs eyeing former captain Mats Sundin as someone who can bring in a voice that cares deeply about where the team is headed and engrained so heavily in the ethos.
Gillis brought Sundin in once...and definitely should do so again
Well wouldn't you know it, it sounds like the two might work pretty great together considering that Gillis already loves Sundin — he pried him away from Toronto after all.
Interestingly enough, when Sundin left Toronto after 13 years as leader and franchise icon it was Gillis who signed him to the Canucks in 2008, where he shortly retired after one season with Vancouver.
With all the hoopla around Gillis coming into Toronto, he knows how important Sundin is to the fabric of the identity of the Maple Leafs. He's never had a bad word said about him, fans young and old love him, and he was around when Toronto was arguably had their most recent postseason success.
Plus, as an advisor to Gillis, Sundin doesn't have to do a lot of the heavy lifting but can use his highly intelligent mindset to help sway decisions; especially when it comes to Swedish players.
The only real knock you could have on Sundin is that he doesn't have a ton of experience in the front office, however it's more about bringing in a voice who people actually listen to.
How the new two-man power couple of Gillis and Sundin can transform Toronto
With Gillis helming the hard-data and roster construction aspect of things, he's going to have a lot of work to do in terms of stripping things down and building it back up.
That's where Sundin comes in, as he knows the type of player it takes to not only be successful in Toronto but who can understand and adapt to the constant pressures and scrutiny but most of all — take some accountability.
With Keith Pelley trying to bring in a brand-new face to the leadership group, you can't get any different than Gillis; a guy who knows the numbers and is ahead of the curve and Sundin; a legend who's name invokes much better times.
For the fans who desperately need to be shown that Toronto is willing to go outside the box, reuniting Mats Sundin and Mike Gillis could end up being the antidote the team needed all along.
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