Ballard was a very hands-on owner who quickly became known for being irascible and cantankerous.
He tried to micromanage the team, interfering with coaches and players.
Soon after taking over as majority owner, he forced out several longtime front-office personnel and replaced them with his own men.
For example, he cut the salary of chief scout and former Leafs star Bob Davidson by almost two-thirds, forcing Davidson to resign.
Davidson had served in the Leafs organization for almost 40 years in various capacities.

Ballard's opposition to European players was so virulent that a Leafs scout used Ballard's time in jail to sign Börje Salming, one of the NHL's first great European players.

After Ballard took control during the 1971–72 season, one of the first challenges he faced was the creation of the World Hockey Association (WHA) as a competitor to the NHL.
At the time, NHL teams relied on the reserve clause to keep players from jumping to other teams in the league, but the clause could not prevent players from leaving the NHL to join a different league.

At the end of the 1971–72 season, the Leafs only had three players signed to contracts for the next season: Rick Kehoe and veterans Jacques Plante and Bobby Baun.
But Ballard did not take the unproven WHA seriously as a competitor and so was outbid on the services of several players in the Leafs organization.
The biggest loss was goaltender Bernie Parent, a superstar in the making, who was offered a WHA contract with financial terms far beyond what Ballard was prepared to match.
Along with Parent, Rick Ley, Jim Harrison, Brad Selwood, and Guy Trottier all left the Leafs for the WHA before the 1972–73 season, as did some minor league prospects in the Leafs' system as well as the team's minor league coach, Marcel Pronovost.
Paul Henderson and Mike Pelyk followed a year later.
The players who stayed could use the threat of joining the WHA to negotiate better contracts, and Ballard always blamed the WHA for inflating players' salaries.
Ballard never forgave the WHA for this, and became the leader of the hardline faction of NHL owners who opposed any merger with the upstart league.

In 1973, the WHA moved the Ottawa Nationals to Toronto as the Toronto Toros.
 A year later, they moved to the Gardens.
 Toros owner John F. Bassett (son of the elder John Bassett) had negotiated a lease with the elder Ballard's son, Bill.
 However, by the time the Toros played their first game at the Gardens, Ballard had been released from prison.
Angered that the WHA was literally in his backyard, the elder Ballard made the Toros' lease terms as onerous as possible.
This became clear when the arena was dim for the first game.
 When an outraged Bassett complained, Ballard demanded $3,500 for use of the lights.
He also removed the cushions from the home bench for Toros' games (he told an arena worker, "Let 'em buy their own cushions!")
and denied them access to the Leafs locker room.
These demands made it financially impossible for the Toros to survive in Toronto, and after the season they moved  to Birmingham, Alabama.

When the NHL finally did take in four WHA teams after the 1978–79 season, Ballard refused to support the deal.
He was not only angry at how the WHA had decimated his roster earlier in the decade, but also wasn't enamored at the prospect of reduced television revenue.
The WHA had insisted on bringing in all three of its surviving Canadian teams, meaning revenue from CBC telecasts now had to be split six ways rather than three.

At the time Ballard took over, the Leafs' captain was Dave Keon, who had been with the team since 1960.
Ballard and Keon never got along, and when Keon's contract expired in 1975, Ballard let it be known that Keon had no place on the team.
However, he insisted on receiving compensation for Keon, and set the price so high that potential suitors shied away, in effect preventing Keon from joining another NHL team.
Keon was forced to move to the WHA's Minnesota Fighting Saints.
When the Fighting Saints folded,  Keon received an offer from the soon-to-be dynasty New Y
Ballard was a very hands-on owner who quickly became known for being irascible and cantankerous. He tried to micromanage the team, interfering with coaches and players. Soon after taking over as majority owner, he forced out several longtime front-office personnel and replaced them with his own men. For example, he cut the salary of chief scout and former Leafs star Bob Davidson by almost two-thirds, forcing Davidson to resign. Davidson had served in the Leafs organization for almost 40 years in various capacities.
Ballard's opposition to European players was so virulent that a Leafs scout used Ballard's time in jail to sign Börje Salming, one of the NHL's first great European players.
After Ballard took control during the 1971–72 season, one of the first challenges he faced was the creation of the World Hockey Association (WHA) as a competitor to the NHL. At the time, NHL teams relied on the reserve clause to keep players from jumping to other teams in the league, but the clause could not prevent players from leaving the NHL to join a different league.
At the end of the 1971–72 season, the Leafs only had three players signed to contracts for the next season: Rick Kehoe and veterans Jacques Plante and Bobby Baun. But Ballard did not take the unproven WHA seriously as a competitor and so was outbid on the services of several players in the Leafs organization. The biggest loss was goaltender Bernie Parent, a superstar in the making, who was offered a WHA contract with financial terms far beyond what Ballard was prepared to match. Along with Parent, Rick Ley, Jim Harrison, Brad Selwood, and Guy Trottier all left the Leafs for the WHA before the 1972–73 season, as did some minor league prospects in the Leafs' system as well as the team's minor league coach, Marcel Pronovost. Paul Henderson and Mike Pelyk followed a year later. The players who stayed could use the threat of joining the WHA to negotiate better contracts, and Ballard always blamed the WHA for inflating players' salaries. Ballard never forgave the WHA for this, and became the leader of the hardline faction of NHL owners who opposed any merger with the upstart league.
In 1973, the WHA moved the Ottawa Nationals to Toronto as the Toronto Toros.  A year later, they moved to the Gardens.  Toros owner John F. Bassett (son of the elder John Bassett) had negotiated a lease with the elder Ballard's son, Bill.  However, by the time the Toros played their first game at the Gardens, Ballard had been released from prison. Angered that the WHA was literally in his backyard, the elder Ballard made the Toros' lease terms as onerous as possible. This became clear when the arena was dim for the first game.  When an outraged Bassett complained, Ballard demanded $3,500 for use of the lights. He also removed the cushions from the home bench for Toros' games (he told an arena worker, "Let 'em buy their own cushions!") and denied them access to the Leafs locker room. These demands made it financially impossible for the Toros to survive in Toronto, and after the season they moved  to Birmingham, Alabama.
When the NHL finally did take in four WHA teams after the 1978–79 season, Ballard refused to support the deal. He was not only angry at how the WHA had decimated his roster earlier in the decade, but also wasn't enamored at the prospect of reduced television revenue. The WHA had insisted on bringing in all three of its surviving Canadian teams, meaning revenue from CBC telecasts now had to be split six ways rather than three.
At the time Ballard took over, the Leafs' captain was Dave Keon, who had been with the team since 1960. Ballard and Keon never got along, and when Keon's contract expired in 1975, Ballard let it be known that Keon had no place on the team. However, he insisted on receiving compensation for Keon, and set the price so high that potential suitors shied away, in effect preventing Keon from joining another NHL team. Keon was forced to move to the WHA's Minnesota Fighting Saints. When the Fighting Saints folded,  Keon received an offer from the soon-to-be dynasty New Y
Harold Ballard