Leafs now at risk of missing out on their top coaching candidate

It was reported that the Leafs met with Berube on Saturday and parts of Sunday and were scheduled to interview McLellan yesterday after he was seen boarding a plane from Los Angeles to Toronto Sunday afternoon. Now that those interviews are complete, the two likely candidates for the Leafs' job are now continuing their due diligence.

Today, Daily FaceOff's Frank Seravalli reported that the Winnipeg Jets have jumped into the Craig Berube sweepstakes and are slated to interview the 2019 Stanley Cup Champion for their vacant head coaching position after Rick Bowness announced his retirement earlier this month. The meeting is believed to be taking place via a Zoom call.

Understandably, the Leafs don't want to rush a decision, but the longer they wait to name a coach, Berube, who many believe is the ideal candidate, the stronger the possibility that he ends up somewhere else.

Leafs GM Brad Treliving made it clear during his press conference Friday that he wanted to conduct a thorough search, but that he also wanted to get it done quickly before he missed out on his top candidates. He may have to pick up the pace a little more than he has already if he believes that Berube is the ideal candidate. If he fails to land Berube or chooses to go with anyone else, aside from Rod Brind'Amour (if he becomes available), he may face a ton a backlash from the Toronto media and fans.