The Toronto Maple Leafs search for their next head coach has taken numerous twists and turns. After chatter emerged last weekend claiming that David Carle was set to join the organization, new information suggests the Leafs are scraping the bottom of the barrel.
Reports emerged on Wednesday confirming that the Maple Leafs have spoken to two former coaches: Peter Laviolette and Patrick Roy.
The reports first emerged with Darren Dreger of TSN and were later discussed by Elliotte Friedman in the Wednesday edition of the 32 Thoughts Podcast.
Friedman noted that the Maple Leafs have gone through numerous Zoom calls with potential candidates, roughly 15 thus far. At this point, nothing seems firm. In fact, there’s no indication that Roy, Laviolette, or anyone, for that matter, has had an in-person interview.
If that’s the case, it seems that GM John Chayka could be stuck between a rock and a hard place. With Bruce Cassidy off limits and David Carle seemingly uninterested in joining the Toronto Maple Leafs, there really isn’t much out there.
That’s why Roy and Laviolette seem like last-ditch candidates for the organization. The New York Rangers dumped Laviolette after the 2024-25 season, one in which the Blueshirts went from the Presidents’ Trophy to missing the playoffs. New York hired Mike Sullivan to replace him.
Roy, the other candidate on the Maple Leafs’ radar, got an unceremonious heave-ho towards the end of this season. With the New York Islanders sinking in the playoff race, the team tried to salvage its playoff hopes by bringing in Peter DeBoer. The move largely worked, but the damage to the Islanders’ playoff chances was already done.
Neither Roy nor Laviolette Will Solve Maple Leafs’ Issues
It makes sense that the Maple Leafs want to cast a wide net. After all, there’s no point in keeping a narrow focus at this stage in the process. However, it seems that the organization is bent on hiring Carle.
And if Carle doesn’t want to jump ship to come to Toronto, well, there’s not much else the team can do about it. That’s why talking to veteran coaches seems like the next step to take in this entire process.
The Maple Leafs, however, can do much better than Roy or Laviolette. It might seem like the Leafs are either waiting for Carle to make up his mind or some other candidate to emerge.
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Carle Not Quite Out of the Running
Speaking of Carle, one of the things that Friedman touched on was how his sources state that David Carle is not entirely out of the running.
The truth is that he can’t confirm the situation either way. Sadly, that’s the state of affairs with Carle and the Maple Leafs. Some pundits claim he’s the leading guy. Others have dismissed Carle to Toronto entirely.
Judging from experience, the truth has to be somewhere in between. In all likelihood, Carle may have shown some mild interest, but isn’t about to leave his current job. Maybe he hasn’t entirely shot down the Maple Leafs. Perhaps Carle is just taking his time to ponder the situation.
There might even be a situation in which the University of Denver might be reluctant to let him go so easily.
Regardless of the chatter, the Maple Leafs need to make a decision sooner rather than later. While there is no pressure to hire someone tomorrow morning, the club needs clarity as it looks towards the 2026 NHL Draft and the opening of free agency on July 1.
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