Berube betting favourite to land Maple Leafs' head coaching job

 After another disappointing end to the season, the Toronto Maple Leafs fired Sheldon Keefe as head coach on Thursday.

Keefe leaves the club with a 212-97-40 record in five seasons. His 212 wins are fifth most in club history, behind Dick Irvin (216), Hap Day (259), Pat Quinn (300) and Punch Imlach (370).

General Manager Brad Treliving said in a news release the decision was a difficult one to make, adding the team “will immediately begin the search for a new head coach, and decisions regarding the remainder of the coaching staff will follow."

While the Leafs shift their focus to finding a new head coach, it appears our friends at FanDuel have done the same thing.

Hours after the news of Keefe’s dismissal, a new market on FanDuel appeared.

So, let’s break that down.

Berube favourite to land Maple Leafs' head coaching job

Former St. Louis Blues head coach Craig Berube opened with the shortest odds to be named the next head coach for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Opening at +185, that number represents an implied probability of 35.09 per cent. That number has since moved to -125. 

Berube spent eight years with the Blues, starting as an associate in 2017 before taking over as head coach midway through the 2018-19 season.

The Blues were 7-9-3 at the time of Berube’s hiring and would win the Stanley Cup that season.

Over his final four years in St. Louis, the Blues made the playoffs three times, advancing past the first round just once.

Berube’s first NHL head coaching gig came in 2013 when he was hired mid-season by the Philadelphia Flyers. It was a short stay in Philly, as he was let go after just two seasons.

Dean Evason and Gerard Gallant come in as the next likely candidates at FanDuel for the Leafs job at +470.

Evason, the former Minnesota Wild head coach, went 147-77-27 in five years with the team.

The Wild made the playoffs but failed to win a series in the three full seasons he was bench boss.

Joel Quenneville and Todd McLellan make up the rest of the top five and are the only other coaches listed at 7-1 or shorter.

Darryl Sutter rounds out the group's 10 names, coming in at 34-1. The 65-year-old most recently coached in Calgary for three seasons.

Here is the full list of names: 

Think you know who the next coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs will be? Let us know on X @TSN_Edge