Steve Simmons goes at Keith Pelley for hiring John Chayka. This was something.
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‘Sham,’ ‘con artist,’ ‘liar’: Reporter rips into Maple Leafs’ hiring of John Chayka
Photo credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
By Zach Laing
May 4, 2026, 14:30 EDTUpdated: May 4, 2026, 14:40 EDT
Leave it to the Toronto Maple Leafs to be nothing short of a source of entertainment.
In a move that took the hockey world by surprise, the Leafs announced Sunday they hired John Chayka as general manager, and Mats Sundin as senior executive advisor. The Sundin news was tolerable, given his 13-years as a player in the Leafs organization, but the Chayka news went over like a lead balloon.
It all came to a head when Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment CEO Keith Pelley introduced the pair at a Monday press conference. When fielding questions, things got tense when Toronto Sun reporter Steve Simmons pressed Pelley on the decision to hire Chayka.
Simmons: For Keith, you talk about the due diligence that you did on John prior to hiring him and now hiring him. In the past, say, three-to-four days, I have been in contact with about 20 people who work in the National Hockey League, many of whom are prominent names that we would all know. And of the 20 people I spoke to, one was supportive of John’s hiring and the other 19 thought it was a “sham,” to be perfectly honest. Words were used like “con artist,” “liar,” “salesman.” How did you come to a different conclusion that I was able to come to in a very short time?Pelley: I must have talked to different people.Simmons: That’s it? Because I know the hockey world today is astounded by this announcement.Pelley. Okay.Simmons: And your response to that?Pelley: Is we’ve conducted due diligence, and it was deep due diligence. It was a thorough process and I’m quite happy with where we’ve landed.
Chayka, 36, steps into one of the biggest roles in hockey after being out of the game for the last six years. His most previous role came as the general manager and president of hockey operations for the Arizona Coyotes. It was a job that ended in controversy, however, when he was forced to resign, and was suspended from the league.
The NHL found the Coyotes had been conducting “illegal pre-draft testing for more than 20 prospects from the Canadian Hockey League,” ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reported. Arizona was forced to forfeit their 2020 second-round pick and 2021 first-round pick as a result.
Chayka has been out of the league since, leaving many to wonder why the Maple Leafs went the direction they did.
Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s managing editor, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the Daily Faceoff DFS Hockey Report. He can be followed on X at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.
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