“I hope I’m back” — Troy Stecher makes his case to stay in Toronto: Leafs Morning Take
The entire hockey world is dunking on the city of Toronto on behalf of Mitch Marner following Vegas’ four-game sweep of Colorado to punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup Final.
Just like that, Marner has gone from playoff underachiever to legitimate Conn Smythe Trophy candidate.
Naturally, that’s where the conversation started on Wednesday’s edition of Leafs Morning Take as Jay Rosehill returned to the mix. Indisputably, this was the most shocking sweep since 2019, when John Tortorella’s Columbus Blue Jackets stunned Jon Cooper’s Presidents’ Trophy-winning Tampa Bay Lightning in four straight.
Say what you want about him, but Vegas’ late-season decision to move on from Bruce Cassidy and bring in Tortorella could wind up winning them a Stanley Cup — and Marner a Conn Smythe.
At any rate, we also discussed Mats Sundin taking in the Sweden/Slovakia game at the World Championship, presumably to get a closer look at Ivar Stenberg. For what it’s worth, we’re both still firmly on Team McKenna. Hard to believe, but the NHL Draft is now just 30 days away. Let the intrigue begin.
Meantime, we dove into the latest surrounding Toronto’s coaching search — which, honestly, still isn’t much. According to Frank Seravalli, the Leafs are expected to meet with David Carle this week, but what that ultimately means remains to be seen. We also wondered aloud if Jared Bednar is truly safe in Colorado. If the Avalanche were to move on from him, it could completely shake up the market for the multiple teams still searching for a new head coach.
Additionally, Rosie weighed in on the overreaction to the Leafs choosing to meet with Auston Matthews over Zoom instead of in person.
Then, Pending UFA defenceman Troy Stecher stopped by to discuss his first season in Toronto, the pressure that comes with playing for the Maple Leafs, and the uncertainty surrounding the organization this offseason. Most notably, Stecher revealed there have been preliminary contract talks with the Leafs in recent weeks and admitted he hopes to return next season, saying: “I hope I’m back, I really enjoyed being a Leaf.” He also weighed in on Craig Berube’s firing, the reaction to the draft lottery win, and the latest surrounding Max Domi.
Lastly, we offered up a preview of Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final. Carolina, who’s won back-to-back to games in overtime, leads Montreal in the series 2-1. This is your classic swing game. The Habs need it bad, or they could find themselves on the ropes heading back to Raleigh for Game 5.
David Pagnotta will be in for Rosie once again on the Thursday edition of Leafs Morning Take. Talk then!