Dubas reveals why he yelled at fans during Leafs playoff game

Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas has plenty of questions to sort out about his future in the coming days and weeks.

But today, he also took a moment to address something from his past: a widely circulated video of himself yelling at the crowd during Toronto’s first round of the playoffs against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

In the scrum following a hit from Toronto’s Morgan Rielly on Tampa Bay’s Brayden Point in Game 3 against the Lightning, three players on each team received penalties, with Toronto ending up on a two-minute power play following a series of fights and a whole bunch of pushes and shoves.

In the moments after, Dubas got into a yelling match with the Amalie Arena crowd, seated in a box quite close to the home audience.

Super classy #TorontoMapleLeafs GM yelling at #GoBolts fans after O’Reilly hits Point. #TORvsTBL pic.twitter.com/lQbhpvWl86

— The Kirkentobers (@thekirkentobers) April 23, 2023

Another angle showed that Dubas was using a series of expletives directed toward the Tampa Bay crowd.

@buffyclements1972 Keith Dubas with @mapleleafs yelling at @tblightning fans at game 3 tonight. Ive never seen a GM yell Fuck off and fuck you at fans before. Great sportsmanship yall should be proud #nhl #nhlplayoffs #tampabaylightning #torontomapleleafs #game3 #amaliaarena #hockey #nhlplayoffs2023 ♬ original sound – Buffy Clements

“I thought it was the right thing to do in the moment. I don’t know that my language was appropriate for this position,” Dubas told reporters today at the Leafs’ end-of-season media availability. “I’m an emotional person, sometimes they show outwardly and I’m deeply passionate about what we do and our people here, the people I work with, the people who work for me. And so when you’re in it for years at a time with people and you want them to have success, you’re going to be emotional, that’s me. I know some people might not like it or care for it, but that’s me.”

The Leafs ended up winning Game 3 in overtime by a goal from Rielly himself.

“Whether I should or shouldn’t [be passionate…] I leave that to you all to decide looking back on it,” Dubas added. “But anyway, it’s Morgan Rielly. It’s our fans. They’re passionate, obviously, and I am as well and that was that.”

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