Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan had some encouraging words for Steve Staios when he heard about the offer he had from Hamilton Bulldogs owner Michael Andlauer to become the team's next president.
"He had some pretty funny comments. But basically he told me I'd be an idiot if I didn't take this chance," Staios said as he was introduced as the team's president Friday morning.
Staios is a Hamilton native, journeyman defenceman and sometimes winger who logged 1,0001 games in the NHL and made it to within one game of the Stanley Cup with the Edmonton Oilers.
In doing so, he left the Toronto Maple Leafs organization where he spent the last three seasons as a player development advisor. In January, he was brought down to the bench where he served as an assistant coach in a disastrous second half of the season for the Leafs.
Staios thanked the Leafs for giving him a chance immediately after he hung up the skates after 18 seasons in the NHL.
"I had a good relationship with Brendan Shanahan, (director of player personnel) Mark Hunter and (assistant general manager) Kyle Dubas and the development model was really starting to take shape, so I'm proud of what I was able to accomplish," Staios said. "We have some structure there we feel like it's a seamless transition now, me moving out and Scott Pellerin who was my assistant manager he's going to move into my spot."
"It would have been an interesting run in Toronto for the next three to five years with development probably being at the top of the list with that group, with the rebuild in the future … But this is as good of a situation for me to be in."
