The Carolina Hurricanes 3-1 victory in Philadelphia on Thursday ended any suspense regarding where the Toronto Maple Leafs would finish in the final NHL standings and reduced Saturday’s season finale at Air Canada Center against the Montreal Canadiens to a final opportunity to see players wearing the Blue and White, as a summer of reorganization and rebuilding is expected.
The tumultuous season that saw the dismissal of head coach Randy Carlyle and a complete second half collapse resulted in Toronto finishing in fourth position and a 9.5% chance to win the top pick and select center Connor McDavid.
The Leafs have a 45% chance of selecting fourth (which would be their highest pick for the club since Scott Thornton was selected third overall in 1989) and a 45.5% chance of picking fifth (for the second time in four years).
With the certainty that Toronto will pick no lower than fifth, it guarantees that they will get one of the consensus top five picks (McDavid, Jack Eichel, Noah Hanifin, Dylan Strome or Mitch Marner) but which one will not be more clear until the results of the NHL Draft Lottery to be held on April 18th.
Decisions on which players will be moved, where to and what for will not be determined until mid-June, but the first steps of the new direction for the franchise should begin to take shape long before the Stanley Cup Final.
The fate of interim head coach Peter Horachek appears all but certain and could be revealed this weekend, but the status of GM Dave Nonis and other members of the organization may still be in limbo when Team President Brendan Shanahan meets with the media and the players clear out their lockers on Monday.
Shanahan has kept his cards close to the vest when it comes to whether Nonis will be held responsible for the misfortunes of the club or if his value as an experienced GM with many contacts throughout the league will keep him employed and be a part of the teardown of the roster he helped to build.
Darren Dreger indicated on TSN 1050 radio on Friday that Nonis has been included in strategy sessions for the coming offseason and could return as Leafs GM, but since Shanahan has been mum on the subject regarding any decisions going forward, anything could happen.
The search for a new head coach may begin in soon as next week, but could last into June depending on whether potential candidates have been let go by their current clubs.
Dreger continued the mention of Red Wings coach Mike Babcock in connection with the Leafs, but on top of expecting to be the highest paid coach in the NHL, Detroit’s bench boss could be looking for significant input in player personnel decisions.
The availablilty of potential candidates like Dave Tippett, Claude Julien, Bruce Boudreau, Ken Hitchcock and Todd McLellan will depend on whether they are let go by their current teams after missing the playoffs or losing in the first round.
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A critical weekend for the Toronto Marlies in their pursuit of an AHL postseason berth, as the Leafs AHL affiliate play a home-and-home with the Rochester Americans Friday and Saturday before completing their season with four straight on the road.
The Marlies won a 7-4 decision over Adirondack on Tuesday and received some help from Grand Rapids, as the Griffins defeated Milwaukee on Wednesday to keep Toronto within two points of the Admirals for the final Western Conference playoff spot with three games in hand.
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