"There is a feeling of this being the final days of Craig Berube as the Maple Leafs' head coach. Nothing has gone as planned this season and with a lineup card tailored to his style of play and the results not coming, he's an easy target for a GM that is hoping that he can get one coaching change before the blame shifts to him. Toronto fired assistant coach Marc Savard on Monday, which may serve as a precursor for larger change."
"Derek Lalonde is in many ways the obvious choice to replace Craig Berube on an interim basis. He's a former head coach that was specifically brought in as a sounding board for Craig Berube on the big decisions and to a lesser extent make his case as the guy who the team would comfortably hand the reins over to if things went sour with Berube."
"The thing is, Lalonde hasn't stood out as a bright spot behind the Leafs bench. He's helped keep the penalty kill afloat while the club has moved on from Mitch Marner and David Kampf, and lost some speed, so while his passive penalty kill approach isn't enjoyable, it has been effective with the personnel the Leafs have to implement it."
Craig Berube appears likely to be replaced after a season where results failed to match a lineup built for his style, and assistant coach Marc Savard was recently fired. The organization may follow NHL convention by removing the coach before the general manager, but GM Brad Treliving also faces criticism and could be on the way out. Internal options are under consideration for interim roles. Derek Lalonde is a leading internal candidate for interim head coach; he has prior head-coaching experience and has helped stabilize the penalty kill. Lalonde's passive penalty-kill methods suit current personnel but do not firmly position him as a long-term head coach.
Read at TheLeafsNation
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