Leafs news turned to the coaching search on Tuesday when John Chayka said the Toronto Maple Leafs are in the final phases of hiring a coach and should make a decision in the next several days. The job has been open since May 13, and the move now sits at the center of Toronto’s offseason plan.
Chayka Sets the Timeline
“I think we are on the final phases at this stage,” Chayka said Tuesday. “It's been a pretty thorough process so far and we've taken our time with it.” He added, “We've had some in-person meetings recently and we are getting down to decision time, so it should be in the next, you know, several days.”
That gives the Maple Leafs a short runway to settle the position after going without a head coach since Craig Berube was fired on May 13. Berube went 84-62-18 in two seasons after replacing Sheldon Keefe, a span that ended with Toronto still searching for a different direction behind the bench.
Toronto's Organizational Shift
Chayka has already framed the coaching change as part of a larger reset. Last month, he said, “We didn't make this decision in a vacuum.” He also said, “It's a bigger picture decision and it's not just about the coach. … Just feel like there's some things we need to change and do better and be better, and that starts with (Mats Sundin) and myself at the top with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment CEO Keith (Pelley) and the board aligned on a vision and the path ahead.”
The structure around the decision has changed quickly. The Maple Leafs hired Chayka as general manager and Mats Sundin as senior executive adviser on May 3, then fired Berube 10 days later. Toronto’s front office now has to line up a coach with the roster and the broader vision Chayka has described.
Roster Moves Keep Coming
The coaching search is happening while the roster is still being reshaped. On Tuesday, Toronto traded goalie Joseph Woll and defenseman Simon Benoit to the Philadelphia Flyers for goalie Samuel Ersson, defenseman Emil Andrae and a third-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.
Chayka said of the trade, “Mats and I have been working pretty hard now for the last several weeks coming up with what we think is a pretty comprehensive offseason plan, and this is a move we feel that is a part of that.” He also said, “There's lots of work to be done with the roster.” On Ersson specifically, he said, “(Ersson's) a good young goaltender; he's someone we identified with upside and someone our staff could work with, so we will get together with (director, goaltending development and scouting) Curtis McElhinney and make that decision.”
The coaching call lands with real urgency because Toronto finished last in the Atlantic Division, 15th in the Eastern Conference and missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2016-17 after losing its last seven games. The club also has the No. 1 pick at the 2026 Upper Deck NHL Draft in Buffalo on June 26, so the next coach will walk into an offseason that already has major roster decisions attached to it.
