Maple Leafs Nylander Practice Story: Chayka Begins 33rd Coach Search
The maple leafs nylander practice story now centers on a coaching reset: Toronto fired Craig Berube on Wednesday and started a wide search for its 33rd head coach. John Chayka said the club will take its time and look broadly, with the next hire expected to shape how the Maple Leafs play and who fits around that style.
“We will have a thorough process. It will be a wide search. We’ll take our time. We’ll try to get it right. It is the most critical decision as a general manager,” Chayka said Wednesday after the move. He also said the team will talk to as many people as it can with varying backgrounds.
Chayka Widens The Maple Leafs Search
Experience in the NHL and in larger markets could count in the Leafs’ favor as they sort through candidates. Chayka said nothing is off the table at this stage, which leaves room for established names and for coaches with different routes to the bench.
Bruce Cassidy fits the first category. He has a recent Stanley Cup ring, a 4 Nations Face-Off championship and an Olympic silver medal, and last month he said, “Yeah, it would be kinda cool to do it. I’ll tell ya what would be cool is to win a Stanley Cup in a Canadian city right now, because it’s been a while. That would be something else.”
Malhotra Brings Toronto Ties
Maninder Malhotra is another option with a different profile. He coached the AHL Canucks in Abbotsford to 44 wins and the 2025 Calder Cup, and he served as an assistant in Toronto from 2020 to 2024. He also said, “Growing up in Toronto, you obviously understand the gravitational pull that the Leafs have on the community.”
That background comes with a wrinkle. Abbotsford missed the playoffs this past season, so the discussion around Malhotra is not only about familiarity, but about whether Toronto wants to pair local ties with a coach whose current résumé also includes a championship run and a recent season that fell short of the playoffs.
Maple Leafs Define Their Style
Chayka said the process starts with identity. The Leafs need to identify how they want to play hockey first, then find players and a head coach that match that style and culture.
That puts the decision at the center of the roster plan, not just the bench. Toronto has already fired Berube, and the next hire will tell the market whether the club is leaning toward a proven NHL voice, an internal-style candidate, or someone else from the wide pool Chayka described.
