The bottom line here is that the Leafs have underachieved greatly in recent years. The rosters have been built specifically to help the team succeed in the playoffs, but for whatever reason, they have floundered when the games matter most and a lot of that is on the head coach. He is supposed to prepare these guys for battle and make decisions and alterations based on what gives the team the best chance to win. Quite simply, Keefe hasn't executed in the playoffs.
Now, with his job in jeopardy, Sports Interaction has revealed the betting odds on who might replace him. Per Sports Interaction, the top 5 options to land the head coaching gig in Toronto are:
Joel Quenneville (3.49)Spencer Carbery (4.00)Gerard Gallant (6.01)Bruce Boudreau (9.00)Andrew Brunette (9.00)
There are also some very interesting names a little lower on the list, including Doug Gilmour, Wendell Clark and Tie Domi. The odds are long on all 3 - especially Domi, who comes in at a whopping 81:1 odds. Gilmour would pay 34:1, while Clark would pay out 51:1.
Four names that I found pretty funny were the final four names on the list, in Mike Babcock, Kevin Bieksa, Don Cherry and Paul "Biz Nasty" Bissonnette, who all have odds that exceed 100:1.
You can see the full list below.
POLL | ||
22 MAI | 364 ANSWERS Betting odds for the Leafs' next head coach revealed and some interesting names made the list Who do you think the next Leafs head coach will be? | ||
Quenneville | 187 | 51.4 % |
Carbery | 21 | 5.8 % |
Gallant | 50 | 13.7 % |
Other (or Keefe stays) | 106 | 29.1 % |
List of polls |