BREAKING: Penguins Name Dubas President of Hockey Ops

Kyle Dubas won’t be the next general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins, but he will fill a prominent role in their front office.

He was named the team’s president of hockey operations Thursday morning.

There is no word yet on who will succeed Ron Hextall as GM. Three currents NHL assistant GMs — Mathieu Darche (Tampa Bay), Steve Greeley (Dallas) and Jason Botterill (Seattle) — are believed to be in contention for that job, although there have been suggestions in Canada that longtime NHL center Jason Spezza, who quit a front-office position with the Maple Leafs last month, could be in line for it.

Per an announcement by the team, Dubas “will oversee all aspects of the Penguins’ hockey operation department, including establishing the strategic vision and philosophy for the franchise.”

Dubas, 37, was general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs for five seasons before being fired last month, shortly before his contract was to expire.

He is scheduled to speak at a press conference today at 12:30 p.m.

In a statement released by the team, Dubas said “the ownership group, (Fenway Sports Group) leadership and the Penguins staff on the ground in Pittsburgh have been absolutely outstanding. Everyone has demonstrated a clear commitment to building a best-in-class hockey operation.”

Dubas will be the second president of hockey operations in franchise history.

The first, Brian Burke, was fired April 14, along with Hextall and assistant GM Chris Pryor.

A statement the Penguins’ press release attributed to FSG principal owner John Henry and chairman Tom Werner said, “Throughout his career, Kyle has proven himself as a forward-thinking hockey mind and embodies all of the qualities — integrity, intelligence and an unwavering commitment to building a winning culture — that we value in a leader at the Penguins and within Fenway Sports Group. We have done exhaustive work narrowing down candidates throughout this process, but it did not take long to be impressed by Kyle.”

Eddie Olczyk, a former Penguins player, broadcaster and coach, was among the other candidates for the Pittsburgh Penguins’ president of hockey operations position.