- Friedman thought the Leafs were about to hire Peter Laviolette on Saturday before it flipped
- Toronto is back to three to five candidates while Laviolette now looks LA-bound
- Read below for the full breakdown on the Kings job and Toronto’s search
Peter Laviolette was hours away from running the Toronto Maple Leafs bench.
That’s how Elliotte Friedman framed it on the 32 Thoughts podcast. He said there was a point Saturday when he figured Toronto was about to hire Laviolette.
Then the wind changed. By the time Friedman spoke again, the read had flipped, and now there’s a decent chance Laviolette ends up in Los Angeles instead.
Toronto first opened the door to Laviolette earlier this offseason, adding him to a candidate group that also included Patrick Roy.
Now the Leafs are back to a full interview circuit. Friedman said they’re down to three to five candidates this week after conducting around 15 virtual interviews, Laviolette’s included.
He never hid his interest in the gig. Laviolette laid out the appeal a few weeks ago:
“I think Toronto’s an unbelievable city. It’s the Cowboys, it’s the Yankees, you know what I mean,” Laviolette said. “It’s as big as far as hockey goes, so I would think that every coach out there that’s available would throw his hat in that ring, and I’m no different in that regard.”
The 61-year-old now looks more likely to head west. Friedman has him as one of three names in the Kings’ search under GM Ken Holland, alongside Jay Woodcroft and interim coach D.J. Smith.
The résumé works for either bench. Laviolette won a Stanley Cup with Carolina in 2006 and has coached the Islanders, Hurricanes, Flyers, Predators, Capitals, and Rangers.
He took this past season off after New York moved on from him following 2024-25.
What pushed Toronto off the gas in those few hours, nobody outside the room knows yet. Whatever it was, it nudged one of the most experienced coaches on the market toward a different job.
