Are you comfortable with Nonis steering the ship?

This will be relatively brief: while we could say that there has not been that much activity in this part of the hockey world since the Leafs were eliminated by the Bruins several weeks ago, it’s not as though nothing has happened.

Even before last week’s (surprise?) trade, we saw Dallas Eakins leave the organization to take on his first NHL head-coaching job, Leo Komarov head to the KHL and Colton Orr being re-signed.  There was apparently a cheeky little deal in place that would have sent a player to Toronto from Tampa (along with Lecavalier, who would be bought out and then re-sign with Tampa), but that was too larcenous even for the NHL to accept.  And we will finally see the long-awaited Komisarek buy-out this week.

But of course, the big news was indeed the deal that brought young netminder Jonathan Bernier to town.

That last transaction may have been the beginning of Dave Nonis placing his imprint on this roster—and the team’s future.

There are decisions to be made this summer, and those roster scenarios will kick in this week as well as during and after the upcoming entry draft.  Things will likely really kick into gear after the draft, as all 30 NHL teams prepare for free agency on July 6.

It feels like the Leafs are poised to do some damage for the first time in a decade.  They have some youth, they can skate, have some grit, too, and now have two young number-one goaltenders (whether both will be around come training camp, I don't know).  They are developing two of the most promising young mobile, offensive defenseman in the game in Jake Gardiner and Morgan Rielly.  They've amassed an interesting player pipeline, with some skill and size.  And they are coming off an impressive showing in the playoffs against the eventual Cup finalists from Boston.

They have spent years assiduously building the roster to a point where they may well be able to compete with the best in the Eastern Conference.  As we discussed here not that long ago, I believe they need three or four more “pieces”.  Some of those pieces will likely be more easily attainable than others.

The man in charge now is Dave Nonis.  He’s not going anywhere.  He’s clearly calling the shots.

Less than a year “on the job”, but here as the top lieutenant to Burke for years before that, are you comfortable that he is the right guy to get this team to the level they must achieve to be legitimate contenders?

I’ll let you run the show on this one:  I have my own ideas, but I don’t have anything too dramatic to say about Nonis.  As I’ve said here before, I like that the temperature in the front office has been dialed way down since January.  I can live without bravado and hubris, and without proclamations about “moving up in the draft” and such things on a regular basis.

Nonis is his own man, and seems to put a higher premium on goaltenders, for example, than did his predecessor.  But is his blueprint really that much different from Burke’s?

What are you seeing in his decisions to this point that might provide some insight as to whether he is the right man for what the Leafs need to do next?  What do they need to do next?

What is a “Dave Nonis” team?  And do you even care if there is such a thing?

Maybe you are more apt to believe that a GM is best advised not to be beholden to his reputation or a pre-prescribed script to make the team over in his own image.  Maybe you believe a good GM simply needs instead to be able to adjust on the fly to an evolving roster and a changing league.

In other words, you maybe don’t care how we get there, as long as we get ultimately get there.

Is Nonis the man to get us there?