Leafs fire coach Carlyle

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Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Randy Carlyle was fired on Tuesday. The team’s general manager says the team was not trending in the right direction.

Carlyle took over behind the Leafs’ bench in March of 2012. The Leafs made one playoff appearance under Carlyle, losing in the first round in 2014 to the Boston Bruins in heartbreaking fashion. General Manager Dave Nonis says the move was necessary for the team to move forward, and do better.

Fresh off a 2-5 road trip, the team is clinging to a wild card playoff spot in the east. But the team is also clinging to some bad habits and streaky on ice behaviour. The only thing consistent about the Leafs is their inconsistency.

Last Saturday’s loss in Winnipeg ended up being Randy Carlyle’s last game in Toronto. The (2-5) trip may have sealed his fate in an up and down season.
In the wake of the Leafs 5-1 loss to Winnipeg, Randy Carlyle told reporters that the coaches had been trying and preaching and begging, coddling, kicking, and doing whatever they could to get the players to do things the right way.

But, for whatever reason, the players had seemingly tuned Carlyle out. The message wasn’t getting through. The Leafs have been a streaky inconsistent team. Assistants Peter Horachek and Steve Spott will handle the coaching duties, with Horachek, a Stoney Creek native, likely to assume the interim head coach role.