When push comes to shove, it appears both the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Edmonton Oilers could be looking at fresh faces to lead their teams for next season.
In Toronto, the cracks are evident. The post-Mitch Marner era has not exactly gone according to plan, and even with Auston Matthews out for the season, the Leafs still can’t get to tanking, racking up consecutive wins over the Boston Bruins and New York Rangers.
In Edmonton, it appears to be a make-or-break season for Kris Knoblauch, especially with pressure mounting after Connor McDavid’s effusive praise for Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper. With both Toronto and Edmonton possibly on the lookout for a new head coach, one insider believes a familiar name could pop up in the discussions.
Oilers, Maple Leafs Could Unknowingly Find Common Ground in HC Search
On the March 23 edition of Leafs Morning Take, David Pagnotta wondered, “I wonder if they [Toronto] go, if they do make a change, I wonder if they go the younger route.
“I know we’ve had the first-year coach before, but do you go back to a familiar face in that organization? Do you go to Manny Malhotra? Do you explore that? Because I can tell you he’s on the radars of a few different teams out there looking to either make or considering a coaching change for next season.”
Noted hockey scout Cam Robinson also noted that Malhotra, the Abbotsford Canucks head coach, lost a lot of talent last year but still managed to keep the train rolling.
While that proved difficult this year, what with Vancouver bottoming out and borrowing players, Malhotra still held his own. He also has experience on an NHL bench under Sheldon Keefe for four seasons, from 2020-21 to 2023-24.
Malhotra’s already coached in Toronto, which means the market won’t exactly be a culture shock. And if Toronto’s not a shock, Edmonton surely won’t take getting used to. First-year head coaches this season also have a stellar track record; Exhibit A: Marco Sturm in Boston, Exhibit B: Dan Muse in Pittsburgh.
Over in Edmonton, McDavid’s praise for Jon Cooper went a long way in sparking speculation that he’s not all that happy with the way the Oilers coaching staff goes about its business.
Edmonton brought Paul Coffey back to the bench to shore up their defensive system and also made a couple of moves at the trade deadline, though we’re yet to see them reap the absolute benefits of those changes.
While McDavid clarified that he didn’t intend for his comments to snowball into criticism of his head coach, the fact is that Knoblauch signed a three-year extension which runs through the 2028-29 season. But if another edition of the Stanley Cup Playoffs fails to deliver the Holy Grail, the Oilers head coach will be firmly on the hot seat.
READ MORE: Jon Cooper Says His Piece After Connor McDavid’s Take on Oilers HC Snowballs Into a Whole Thing
