Kyle Dubas admits to past mistakes but can't promise he won't make them again in Pittsburgh

It was a fruitful era for the Toronto Maple Leafs with former general manager Kyle Dubas at the helm. Under his tenure, the Leafs were a routine powerhouse in the regular season and always viewed by pundits as having a chance to make a deep playoff run.

Unfortunately, the Leafs only won a single postseason series under Dubas, and he would be terminated by team president Brendan Shanahan not long after their Round 2 postseason loss to the eventual Eastern Conference champion Florida Panthers. He's since been hired by the Pittsburgh Penguins as President of Hockey Operations. 

Earlier this week, Dubas made the commencement speech at his alma matter of Brock University, and was awarded an honorary doctorate. 

During the speech to the graduates, Dubas made some admissions that included revealing that his departure from Toronto was the first time in his life that he'd been terminated from a job - while also seemingly hinting that it's a possibility at some point down the road to happen again. 

“I’d never been fired before,” Dubas said. "That was my first time, hopefully my last, but I’ll probably get that same conversation again at some point. That’s life and the way that it goes.”

“Though I felt honoured, I felt a great deal of imposter syndrome as well. But, on May 19, I was fired from my job with the Toronto Maple Leafs,” he said, laughing with the crowd of graduates.

“After I was fired, in the ensuing days between the end of my time with Toronto and the beginning of my time with Pittsburgh, it became crystal clear to me what I wanted to impart today and what I wanted to share with everybody.”

Dubas, who graduated from Brock University in 2007, would be offered a scouting position with the the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League, of whom he would eventually become general manager.

“When things come up and they don’t seem perfect and you think there may be a cost to them, either a toll on you, or in terms of making less money somewhere, if you think it’s the right opportunity, don’t look at it as a cost, look at it as an investment in yourself,” he said. "Find something that you still love when it gets incredibly hard. That’s really what you’re probably meant to be doing.”

“In closing, always invest in yourself when you can. Always be there for your fellow graduates along the way, especially when they stumble and fall, and always be proud that you graduated from Brock University."