Leafs extend coach Carlyle’s contract for 2 years
Posted May 8, 2014 3:06 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have given coach Randy Carlyle a two-year extension, the team announced on Thursday.
Assistant coaches Scott Gordon, Greg Cronin and Dave Farrish will not return next season.
In 2013-14, Carlyle’s team struggled to find its identity from the previous season. The Leafs got off to a strong start and appeared to be primed for a playoff position before completely collapsing with a 3-13-0 record in their final 16 games. After the Leafs failed to qualify for the post-season (finishing sixth in the Atlantic Division), MLSE CEO Tim Leiweke moved quickly to hire Brendan Shanahan and the new president said he would take a few weeks to evaluate the entire organization.
Carlyle faced heavy criticism throughout the 2013-14 campaign for failing to adjust his system to his personnel and for his club’s horrendous puck possession, penalty killing and defensive zone coverage. In 2013-14, the Leafs were routinely outshot and were too reliant on their goaltenders, a big factor during the team’s late-season slide when they fell from ninth to 23rd in the standings.
In parts of three seasons in Toronto, the 58-year-old Carlyle registered a 70-62-16 record after he was hired to replace Ron Wilson late in the 2011-12 season. Carlyle helped the Leafs end its seven-year playoff drought during the lockout-shortened 2013 season when the team finished with the fifth-best record in the Eastern Conference.
Before joining the Leafs, Carlyle coached parts of seven seasons with the Anaheim Ducks where he led the team to its first-ever Stanley Cup in 2006-07.
