The Toronto Maple Leafs Need a Coaching Change
The Toronto Maple Leafs may have a 21-12-8 record with 50 points, but they are struggling.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are at the halfway point of their season, and out of their 21 wins, only 13 have come in regulation.
That puts them 25th in the league in that category. In the company of the NHL's biggest losers.
The Leafs have proven that almost no lead is safe. Giving up a lead and then losing in regulation or overtime seems to be a recipe for disaster.
The Leafs need to find a way to win games in regulation, and it is up to the coach to help them figure it out. Sheldon Keefe may have signed a contract extension, but that doesn't guarantee his job is safe.
If Leafs general manager Brad Treliving decides the team needs a change, it's easier to fire one coach than 23 players. Yes, a lot of the blame should be directed at the players, but they are playing to the coach's system. If that system isn't working, maybe change is needed. A new voice and a new direction could be what the players need.
If it is indeed time for a coaching change, who should the next head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs be?
I'm sure there is no shortage of candidates to fill what should be a coveted job in the NHL. Now, some will point out Keefe's 187-83-38 record as a means to say he's a good coach, but any coach with these players can look good. Only one playoff series win is a glaring hole in Keefe's overall record. Here are a few options as to who could replace him.
(Stats from hockey-reference.com)
Guy Boucher
Guy Boucher is currently working alongside Sheldon Keefe as an assistant coach. His role with the Leafs right now is running the power play.
The Toronto Maple Leafs power play is 6th in the NHL, and credit to Boucher for his willingness to change things up when he sees that something isn't working. but with their personel, the Leafs should be ranked higher than 6th.
One has to wonder if Treliving's signing of Boucher was a backup plan for if he needed to fire Keefe. It's easier on the GM if your coach's replacement is already with the team. If Keefe is fired, Treliving could promote Boucher to head coach on an interim basis until the summer. See how he gets the Leafs to perform in the playoffs before making him the head coach long-term.
Although Boucher's coaching record of 191-186-46 is not as impressive looking like Keefe's, Boucher has coached a team beyond the second round of the NHL playoffs on two occasions. Helping this Leafs team get beyond the second round is job number one for any coach this season.
Another plus to making Boucher the new head coach is that he already knows the players. A new coach coming and not knowing the players is more of an adjustment than promoting from within. I think Boucher is Treliving's first option, but I also think Treliving will look at all of his available options.
Craig Berube
Craig Berube has been a head coach in the NHL for eight seasons.
He has coached some awful teams but still managed to compile a record of 281-190-72. Berube struck gold during the 2018-19 season when he coached the St. Louis Blues to a 38-19-6 record after taking over the team from Mike Yeo (7-9-3). He then coached the Blues to a 16-10 record in the playoffs to become the 2019 Stanley Cup champions.
Berube is currently available due to being fired by the Blues after a slow start with a 13-14-1 record for 27 points in 28 games. Berube recently joined Nick Alberga and Jay Rosehill on the Leafs Nation podcast and stated that it would be an honor to coach for the Leafs if they gave him the opportunity. Now, we wait and see if Treliving gives Berube that opportunity.
With the type of coach Berube is and the style he likes to play, I think he and Treliving would work well together. To me, Berube is the type of coach who can get the most out of guys like Tyler Bertuzzi and Max Domi. The stars of the team will always be the stars and will usually find a way to put the puck in the net. It's the secondary guys and the grinders who need a push, and I think Berube can do that.
At the end of the day, the Leafs need to be harder to play against, and I think Berube could make that happen.
Gerard Gallant
Gerard Gallant is a veteran head coach with a 369-262-4-70 record in 705 games behind the bench.
It is safe to say that Gallant knows a thing or two about coaching in the NHL. The fact that he isn't coaching this season is unbelievable. He coached the New York Rangers to a 47-22-13 record last season but was let go after the Rangers failed to advance to the second round.
Gallant has coached in 60 NHL playoff games with a record of 31-29. His most successful playoff run came in 2018 when he took the expansion Vegas Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup final in the team's first NHL season as a franchise. He took a team full of castaways from other franchises and turned them into a cup contender.
Gallant has coached some notable stars, such as Rick Nash, Jaromir Jagr, Aleksander Barkov, Mark Stone, Artemi Panarin, and Adam Fox. He'll know how to handle Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, John Tavares, and Morgan Rielly. Like Berube, I think Gallant will be able to get the most out of Bertuzzi, Domi, Noah Gregor, and other secondary scorers on the team.
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Gallant would preach about the need to battle not just every night but on every shift. He will expect a lot from his star players, but he'll be just as hard on them when they underachieve. There is no time for taking a night off, and too often that's what Leafs players do. Gallant has the know-how to turn the Leafs into a team that's hard to play against.