Kyle Dubas has officially made his first changes to Pittsburgh's front office, and they're not small ones. It's clear that the Director of Hockey Operations is trying to erase any signs of Ron Hextall from this organization, and we doubt it will take long for him to succeed in that goal.
Along with the announcement of Dubas' hiring, he fired three key members of Pittsburgh's front office yesterday. Among those included were their Director of Hockey Strategy, Senior Vice-President of Sports Science/Performance, and their Director of Professional Scouting.
That's not a short list of people, and their roles aren't small either. Clearly, if Dubas felt so comfortable firing major members of his staff on his first day, he already has some names in mind to fill in those holes.
While it's natural for a GM or President of Hockey Operations to make changes to their staff upon their arrival, they usually give the staff a grace period to prove themselves or fire fewer people at once. Instead, Dubas went all out by firing three of Pittsburgh's most important front-office members right away.
The concern here is that Dubas may lose trust in his staff and the players in Pittsburgh by firing so many people so quickly after his arrival. While it is a business, it shows a lack of empathy for your employees and doesn't make prospective staff members feel inclined to work there.
