By Pepper Parr
June 15th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
It is that time of year when Convocations take place at universities across the country.
A Convocation at Brock University, they have established a presence in Burlington where they will be part of the former Bateman High School site when it opens, included Kyle Dubas who addressed the students.
Kyle Dubas, addressing a Brock University graduating class after being given an honorary doctorate.
When Kyle Dubas (BSM ’07) learned he was receiving an honorary doctorate from Brock University, his mind began to whirl about what he would say to the Class of 2023.
That message became clear on May 19, when he was fired as General Manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
During his Convocation address on Wednesday, June 14, the proud Brock Sport Management grad, who has since become President of Hockey Operations with the Pittsburgh Penguins, explained why some of the hardest days of his professional career are what drew the most inspiration.
“People often say if you find a job you love, you’ll never work a day in your life. However,” Dubas said, “no matter how much you love your job, there will always be days that feel like work and there will always be days that are difficult.
“Find something that you really still love when it gets incredibly hard. When you fail, when you lose, when people tell you that you aren’t very good, when people doubt you: that’s what you’re probably meant to be doing. If you can find that thing you still love when it becomes hard, that’s for you. Invest in yourself when you get there.”
Kyle Dubas served as Maple Leafs General Manager, did his best but could not make the team Stanley Cup winners
Dubas learned to invest in himself from his late grandfather, Walter. At 18, Dubas was offered a scouting position for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds — his hometown Ontario Hockey League team, which he would go on to become General Manager of from 2011-14.
The scouting position offered minimal pay and required a car, meaning costly car insurance for any teen driver.
Many people encouraged Dubas to turn the job down — the cost was simply too much, they said.
But his grandfather brought another opinion to the table.
“He said, ‘everyone is looking at it as a cost, look at it as a bet,’” Dubas recalled. “I never looked at that opportunity as a cost, I looked at it as an investment in myself. Without that investment and without that advice, I wouldn’t be here today.”
“If the right opportunity comes along, even if everything is not perfect, look at it as an investment in yourself and what you really want to do,” he said.
Kyle Dubas seemed to know he was going to be fired – the Pittsburgh Penguins announced he was joining that team before the Maple Leafs could announce they were letting him go. Feathers were ruffled.
Following his time with the Greyhounds, Dubas spent nine seasons as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs organization, including the past five as General Manager. At the time of his hiring in 2018, he was the second-youngest General Manager in NHL history at age 32.
When his career pivoted and he had to determine where to head next, the people he relied upon most to “help me make that decision and to help me get back up on my feet” were his close friends — fellow graduates from his 2007 Brock class.
“I was able to reflect back and realize that along the way when you fail … when you lose, when you don’t reach your goal, every time when you make a bad trade or a bad signing or you don’t hire the right people, it’s always the same people that are there to help you and lift you up,” he said, adding many of those lifelong friends are made in university.
Dubas encouraged Brock’s Class of 2023 to “always invest in yourself when you can. Always be there for your fellow graduates along the way, especially when they stumble and fall.”
