D.J. Smith’s familiarity with key Leafs player could be an asset: Leafs Morning Take

The Montreal Canadiens have now won as many playoff series this postseason as the Leafs have won in the Auston Matthews era.

Let that sink in.

Needless to say, we were pretty annoyed and agitated kicking off the Tuesday edition of Leafs Morning Take as we returned from a beautiful long weekend.

The Stanley Cup Playoffs are down to four teams. From a Leafs fan’s perspective, the nightmare scenario would obviously be Montreal and Vegas meeting in the Stanley Cup Final. Naturally, we debated who we would root for if that happened. SPOILER: It has to be Vegas, right? That said, Montreal deserves a ton of respect. They’ve built that team the right way. You can respect what they’ve accomplished while still despising them. They’re a rival — and that’s never going to change.

After venting for a few minutes, we finally got into some Maple Leafs talk. First up, we dissected the news of the Leafs parting ways with Brandon Pridham and Derek Clancey. Neither move came as much of a surprise, as it was widely expected that John Chayka would shuffle the deck chairs a bit. That said, we did take a moment to recognize Pridham for his contributions over the past 12 years with the organization, especially his work managing the salary cap. Looking ahead, it’ll be interesting to see who Chayka brings in. In the span of a week, Shane Doan, Pridham, and Clancey have all departed the organization.

Meantime, D.J. Smith stopped by to touch on both his recent coaching experiences and a potential return to the NHL spotlight. Now part of Team Canada’s staff at the World Championship, Smith reflected on his time in Switzerland, including reconnecting with current national team players Morgan Rielly and John Tavares. Smith also spoke about his growth and evolution as a coach in recent years, along with his reaction to the Toronto Maple Leafs’s coaching vacancy. While he was complimentary of the Los Angeles Kings organization—where he finished the season as interim head coach—he acknowledged that a potential opportunity in Toronto would be of interest. The conversation also dug into the pressure that comes with coaching in the Toronto market, what it’s like working in the city, and how his previous experience with the organization could factor into his candidacy if he gets an interview for the open role.

We’ll be back on Wednesday at 11 AM ET. Talk then!