Will Leafs get their man?

The race for Brian Burke is on.

And the Maple Leafs, after months of inactivity in their quest for a hockey head honcho, are on the fast track.

After learning yesterday Burke and the Anaheim Ducks will officially sever their relationship in the coming days, Leafs president Richard Peddie will talk with team board members and take his search committee out of mothballs to assess hiring the NHL's most coveted front-office free agent.

"One always evaluates whether the action plan you have in place has to be adjusted when things happen and we need to have that conversation internally," said Peddie, who is travelling with the Leafs on their western Canadian swing.

While Peddie wouldn't discuss Burke specifically, he made it clear the Leafs would be prepared to move on an opportunity it deemed advantageous, even though the team's executive search squad had been waiting for several high-end candidates to become available in the spring.

"Everything is flexible. We hired (basketball head) Bryan Colangelo in the middle of a season. That door is not closed," said Peddie, the CEO of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment.

"We have to go back and think about it," he continued. "The (Leafs) board obviously knows of this event. They're not deaf and blind. If we're interested, there are still procedures that have to be followed so that we're not tampering. You could open yourself up to fines if we don't do it right."

The Ducks let it be known that Burke - who was in Toronto at the start of the week for a sports conference - would not be signing a contract extension, citing family reasons. Anaheim team president Michael Schulman then decided that since Burke would not be staying, he would be cut loose and underling Bob Murray will run the team.

Burke, 53, will stay as a consultant to help Murray transition into the role, but that posting is expected to be short-lived. Burke said he was waiting for formal word from Schulman as to when he can begin entertaining other offers, but he is hoping to have his future decided within 30 days.

"I'm going to try to get off the payroll as quickly as I can, once I'm told what's an appropriate time frame," said Burke. "Once they tell me it's time to start looking, I'll start looking in earnest."

Schulman said he would officially notify NHL commissioner Gary Bettman that Burke was free to discuss potential employment with other teams within a week or two.

At the Ducks' press conference yesterday, Burke would not address the possibility of going to Toronto.

"I don't know what's out there (league-wide). I don't know what happens next," said Burke, noting that he wants to remain an NHL GM making personnel decisions.

Burke has long let it be known he would like to move east to see his family more. He has four children from a previous marriage living in the Boston area and speculation has been rampant that he would land in Toronto.

There is also thought to be some interest in Burke from other teams, including the Bruins and Ottawa.

The Leafs interviewed candidates to become the team's president and general manager last summer, but the Ducks denied permission to talk to Burke. When Toronto decided to put its search on hold, the interim tag was lifted off Cliff Fletcher and he became the team's full-fledged GM.

Fletcher seemed comfortable with the notion that his successor could be identified shortly.

"As for my future, if I spend next winter in Arizona (where he and his wife maintain a home), I'm not going to be disappointed," he said. "Where there's going to be a change, there's going to be a change."

Peddie praised the work Fletcher has done, clearing out some of the team's overpriced veterans and bringing in younger, enthusiastic players under the guidance of impressive new coach Ron Wilson.

"Cliff doesn't want this job long term. That's the contract we've done with him," said Peddie. "We expect him to do the job a while longer, how much longer I don't know."