As players and coaches continue to move around the NHL carousel, the Philadelphia Flyers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers] keep managing to find a way to be at the center of it all. This time, with former Flyers head coach Craig Berube getting the boot by the Toronto Maple Leafs, another ex-Flyers bench boss could be stepping in to replace him. According to TSN NHL insider Darren Dreger [https://x.com/DarrenDreger/status/2062126897308307529?s=20], former Flyers head coach Peter Laviolette will be one of the candidates to become the next Maple Leafs head coach, in addition to legendary goalie and, more recently, ex-Islanders head coach Patrick Roy. Laviolette, 61, last coached in the 2024-25 season for the New York Rangers, guiding the team to a disappointing 39-36-7 record on the heels of a 55-24-4, Presidents' Trophy-winning campaign in 2023-24. If hired by the Maple Leafs, Laviolette would be kicking off his latest escapade in the NHL Eastern Conference. The veteran bench boss has previously coached the Islanders, Carolina Hurricanes, Washington Capitals, Flyers, and Rangers to varying degrees of success. Where Did Flyers Head Coach Rick Tocchet Rank in Jack Adams Award Voting? [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/193428f3-ee9d-4de4-9b91-05a5f5998509.jpeg] Where Did Flyers Head Coach Rick Tocchet Rank in Jack Adams Award Voting? Philadelphia Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet earned a handful of first-place votes on this year's Jack Adams Award ballot. [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers/latest-news/where-did-flyers-head-coach-rick-tocchet-rank-in-jack-adams-award-voting] Laviolette led the Hurricanes to a Stanley Cup win in 2006 and brought the Flyers to the 2010 Stanley Cup Final, but has seen much less success since, reaching the Final just once in the last 15 years. In five years with the Flyers, Laviolette was 145-98-29 with a 23-22 record in the Stanley Cup playoffs. In any case, the Maple Leafs coaching search is worth monitoring to the Flyers because they own Toronto's 2027 (or 2028, in a rare event) first-round pick [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers/latest-news/flyers-set-to-benefit-from-maple-leafs-nhl-draft-lottery-win], and you can bet they will be one of the teams in on superstar center Auston Matthews if the ceiling falls out there. Laviolette is just two years removed from a Presidents' Trophy with the Rangers and has as good a track record of making the playoffs of just about anyone out there, which could very well bring down how high the Flyers' pick from the Maple Leafs ends up being.
