Former Stanley Cup-winning head coach Peter Laviolette called the Maple Leafs’ vacant head coaching gig a “top job” in hockey.
Laviolette, who won the Stanley Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2006, is one of the most successful head coaches in NHL history, sitting at seventh in the all-time wins list by coaches with 846. He has been the head coach for six teams in the NHL, with his most recent team being the New York Rangers in 2024-25. However, after the Rangers missed the playoffs that year, they fired him, despite winning the Presidents’ Trophy as the league’s top regular-season team the year before.
After taking last year off from coaching, it appears that the 61-year-old American will be in the mix this year for vacant coaching jobs around the NHL this offseason. One such open gig is in Toronto, where the Maple Leafs are looking for a new head coach after firing Craig Berube earlier this week.
Peter Laviolette Expresses Interest in Maple Leafs Job
Speaking to TSN OverDrive, Laviolette was asked what his thoughts were on Toronto’s vacant head coaching job, and the veteran bench boss had nothing but good things to say about the role. Although he stopped short of outright asking for a job interview, you could tell from his words that he’s interested in the gig.
“It’s a top job, I’m not saying it for me, in general. It’s the Maple Leafs. They have great players, they have the No. 1 pick, an amazing fanbase. There’s a lot of potential there,” Laviolette said (via Hockey Patrol).
Laviolette also noted that when the Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup in 2006, they were not expected to be good that year. The Maple Leafs finished 28th in the NHL this past season out of 32 teams, so perhaps Laviolette was trying to say he can help the team turn things around quickly in Toronto.
“When we won the Cup, Sports Illustrated came out and ranked 30 teams; Washington was 30th, and Carolina 29th. The last comment was ‘Feel free to make them 30th’. That’s the year we won the Cup. You can’t just base things on what happened, it’s what you’ve built going forward,” Laviolette said.
John Chayka Searching for New Leafs’ Head Coach
After firing Berube this week, the Maple Leafs are searching for a new head coach to lead the squad going forward. New Leafs GM John Chayka and senior advisor Mats Sundin are leading the search as they look to find someone who will get the most out of the Leafs’ roster, which includes stars like captain Auston Matthews and William Nylander.
When Chayka spoke to the media this week following Berube’s firing, he mentioned that the team would take its time searching for its new bench boss, and that he would conduct a wide-ranging search to find the right person. The Leafs could sign someone young to lead their team going forward, but Chayka also said that a coach having experience in big markets would be a plus. Laviolette, who has coached in big-market cities like New York City and Philadelphia, would clearly fit that bill, so it will be interesting to see if he ends up getting a job interview with Toronto for the job.
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