The direction that the Toronto Maple Leafs will be taking may take shape sometime this week, as the club’s hierarchy and scouts gather in Las Vegas to plot strategy for the NHL Draft in late June. After more than three weeks of being in his new position as Team President, Brendan Shanahan and Leafs GM Dave Nonis should be nearly ready to make a determination of whether head coach Randy Carlyle returns next season.
It is clear from reports over the weekend that a factor in whether Toronto makes a change behind the bench is whether a viable option is available on the coaching market that would be an improvement over the veteran Carlyle, who is well-respected throughout the league in spite of last season’s stumble.
Another factor could be the fact that there are five other NHL teams also looking for coaches and that Toronto may have to get into a bidding war with the likes of Vancouver, Washington or Carolina for a coach.
It appears that San Jose coach Todd McLellan will not be dismissed in the wake of the Sharks blowing a 3-0 series lead to the Los Angeles Kings and Detroit coach Mike Babcock is not likely to be a factor, in spite of growing speculation that the two-time Olympic winning coach may want to move on from the Red Wings after the expiration of his contract.
If the decision is made for Carlyle to return, the question is what moves will be made to implement the much talked about “culture change… of the club. The dismissal of Greg Cronin and Scott Gordon(inherited from former coach Ron Wilson’s staff) in favor of younger, more analytics-savvy assistant coaches could be helpful to the veteran bench boss, but what would be of greater assistance would be an influx of players more capable of playing an aggressive two-way game the coach is known for.
The Leafs have the eighth selection at the draft in Philadelphia on June 26th-27th, which will likely yield a good prospect who could help them in two or three years away. The approach may be simply to stay where they are and select the best player available, be it a Brendan Perlini(OHL-Niagara) or a European import like Willie Nylander, but with the organizational mandate to make significant changes, there may be a willingness to shop the pick for a NHL roster player who can help immediately or to use the pick to trade up to the top of the first round.
The Vancouver Canucks may still be of a mind to retool their roster by making veterans Ryan Kesler, Kevin Bieksa and Alexander Edler available for prospects or high draft picks, as former GM Mike Gillis left the cupboards practically bare. Buffalo is in full rebuild mode but still may be willing to move veteran defenseman Christian Ehrhoff or former Calder Trophy winner Tyler Myers if they get a significant return, like a top-10 draft pick.
Columnist Damien Cox speculated in the Toronto Star on Monday that a bid for the first overall pick held by the Florida Panthers could be another option. Panthers GM Dale Tallon indicated last week that the Panthers will shop the top pick in hopes of bringing in immediate help.
Florida has a group of young core players in Jonathan Huberdeau, Nick Bjugstad, Erik Gudbranson and Aleksander Barkov, new ownership willing to spend money, a boatload of cap room and veteran goalie Roberto Luongo still capable of being a difference maker. What the Panthers need more than another prospect like Aaron Ekblad or Sam Bennett that will take time to mature is veterans who can make them a playoff team immediately.
According to many draft experts, the 6’4… 217 lb Ekblad is fully capable of making the NHL as an 18 year old and is a right-hand shot defenseman that the Leafs have been looking to add for years. While the Leafs need to bolster the blueline has to be at the top or close to the top of their goals this summer, trading defenseman Dion Phaneuf might be part of the needed organizational shuffle and Florida may be interested in acquiring the Leafs team captain, who is locked for seven years at $7 Million per season, but could be traded anywhere before his new deal kicks in on July 1.
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Leafs prospect Connor Brown has been named the winner of the Red Tilson Trophy, the Ontario Hockey League's award most outstanding player this season.
The 20-year-old Toronto, ON native led the OHL in with 45 goals and 83 assists in 68 games and 18 points in 14 games for the Erie Otters in the OHL Playoffs.
Brown was drafted 156th overall by the Maple Leafs in 2012 and will likely join the AHL Toronto Marlies next season.
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