One of the best candidates to replace Sheldon Keefe has found employment elsewhere
As the calendar turns to June, the Leafs are in an odd spot. The surprise firing of Kyle Dubas has forced them into a rushed GM search. Their coach has been here for 4 years, won one round and was likely to be fired. Now Sheldon Keefe's fate hangs in the balance, but it doesn't seem too likely that he'll be back next season. His lack of playoff success paired with the fact that he was Dubas' guy are almost sure to mean he'll be looking for employment elsewhere soon.
The timing of Dubas' firing has put the Leafs behind the 8 ball. They won't hire a new coach until the new GM comes in and has their say on who it should be. While we wait for that to happen, rival teams are already taking prime candidates off the board. The Nashville Predators, with Barry Trotz as their new GM, have hired Andrew Brunette as their new head coach. Brunette replaced Joel Quenneville behind the Florida Panthers' bench in the fallout of the Blackhawks' Kyle Beach scandal in 2021-22. Brunette led the Panthers to a Presidents Trophy win and an appearance in the 2nd round before being knocked out by the eventual Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning. The clear difference between this season and last for the Panthers has been the acquisition of Matthew Tkachuk and the miraculous playoff performance of Sergei Bobrovsky. Brunette didn't get the benefit of either during his run in Florida.
Brunette would have been a smart pickup for the Leafs. He's a good coach who came in late and still got a middling Panthers roster to play far above what they were expected to. I doubt the Tkachuk trade would have happened for them if he hadn't helped Jonathan Huberdeau put up a 115-point season. The issue with the Leafs has always been that they can't play up to their potential, I believe Brunette would have helped with that.
Between the uncertainty that now surrounds the Auston Matthews extension, the lack of an obvious upgrade over Dubas being available and now losing out on good coaching candidates, the firing of Kyle Dubas is beginning to have a snowball effect. The longer this situation drags out, the worse things will get for the Leafs, and the worse Shanahan will look for not having a plan in place before dismissing his GM.
| POLL | ||
MAI 30 | 257 ANSWERS One of the best candidates to replace Sheldon Keefe has found employment elsewhere Would Brunette have been a better option than Sheldon Keefe? | ||
| No, Keefe is a good coach | 98 | 38.1 % |
| Yes, he was great in Florida | 70 | 27.2 % |
| Yes, but only because they need a change | 89 | 34.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
