On Wednesday, the Toronto Maple Leafs finally did the inevitable as they fired head coach Craig Berube after just two seasons with the team. As a former Stanley Cup winner with the St. Louis Blues back in 2019, the Maple Leafs were hoping that Berube could lead the club to a similar destiny. But with the 2025-26 Leafs season being a major disappointment, the 60-year-old coach couldn’t survive the offseason overhaul being made by Toronto.
With Berube now gone, who should come in and take his place? The Leafs can pursue some young, up-and-coming candidates to get a new focus and vision for the team. Or they should take the safe bet and go with a proven winner to help make the turnaround as fast as possible. With the latter likely what the new Maple Leafs management have in mind to get Toronto back into contention, let’s take a look at 3 head coach candidates that the Leafs should pursue to get someone that is established.
Bruce Cassidy
Without question, the no-brainer option would obviously be Bruce Cassidy. After all, with Cassidy being out of work since late March following his surprise dismissal from the Vegas Golden Knights, he should already be engaged and raring to go to get his chance with another NHL team pronto. The 60-year-old former head coach definitely has the track record to be an attractive candidate as every team he had led in the NHL in which he had survived the whole season for his coaching career made the Stanley Cup Playoffs each year.
With a career 470-254-9-96 record and a .567 winning percentage behind the bench, Cassidy knows how to get it done when it comes to winning. Added to the fact that he recently led the Golden Knights in 2022-23 to their first ever Stanley Cup win, he will be craving for more and the Leafs need exactly that type of motivation to get back on track.
Peter Laviolette
When it comes to one of the most experienced head coaches in the league, Peter Laviolette definitely qualifies as one of them. That is because he has worked a grad total of 1594 career regular season games behind the bench during his elusive 23-year coaching career. More importantly, with 846 wins in total, Laviolette finds himself seventh on the all-time wins list for NHL head coaches.
In addition, Laviolette has spent 17 of his 23 seasons coaching in the Eastern Conference, including tenures with the New York Islanders, Carolina Hurricanes, Philadelphia Flyers, Washington Capitals and New York Rangers. As a result, his familiarity with the style of play for teams within the conference could prove to be advantageous for the Maple Leafs going forward.
Bruce Boudreau
Finally, the sentimental favourite has to be none other than Bruce Boudreau. As a former Leaf and diehard fan of the Leafs, Boudreau had previously expressed he would be more than happy to join Toronto in a coaching role. On top of that, he holds a successful winning record as a former NHL coach, compiling a 617-342-128 mark behind the bench. Boudreau would lead his teams to the playoffs in 10 of the 16 seasons that he has coached in the league.
More significantly, Boudreau never had the chance to reach the Stanley Cup finals during that time, something that him and the Maple Leafs also have in common. Perhaps they can have the distinct opportunity to overcome that hurdle together with the 71-year-old former coach helping to lead the way. In addition, with the Leafs already moving towards making former players the face of the franchise with Mats Sundin coming in for a senior executive management role, it is time to make Boudreau’s dream come true and make him the face of the team at ice level.
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