A clear favorite is emerging for the Oilers' coaching job after Friedman report
Bruce Cassidy and Kris Knoblauch are suddenly tied to the same Edmonton question, and Elliotte Friedman just gave the Oilers real traction in it.
Friedman said that if Cassidy has the choice, it is probably Edmonton. That does not finish the story, but it shifts the board fast.
Toronto just fired Craig Berube on Wednesday, with new general manager John Chayka and senior executive adviser Mats Sundin driving the decision.
So the Maple Leafs are open, loud, and looking. Edmonton is different. The Oilers still list Knoblauch as head coach and Stan Bowman as general manager, which makes this more complicated and a lot more interesting.
That is why Friedman's comment lands. Cassidy is not being tied to a clean vacancy only. He is being tied to a team that already has a coach and still looks like a stronger win-now fit.
It is not hard to see why. Edmonton offers a roster built to push right away, while Toronto is still trying to figure out what its next version even looks like.
Toronto's move on Berube came after what Sportsnet called a disappointing season, and the firing opened a search that now starts under pressure from day one.
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Elliotte Friedman leaks major update on the Oilers' next head coach
Cassidy was fired by Vegas on March 30, and the Golden Knights replaced him with John Tortorella. He left with a 178-99-43 record over 4 seasons and a Stanley Cup on his résumé.
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That kind of coach usually does not chase a long reset. He looks for a bench where the expectation is to win now, not one where the front office is still tearing things down and sorting out the room.
Edmonton fits that better on the surface. Even the tension around Knoblauch adds to it, because it suggests the Oilers are thinking aggressively instead of sitting still.
Toronto can sell market size, pressure, and star power. But after firing Berube, the Leafs also have to sell stability, and that is a tougher pitch when the new leadership group just arrived.
That does not mean Cassidy is headed to Edmonton. Friedman made it clear this can still move in different directions. The point is that the Oilers sound like the destination that matches Cassidy's clock.
And that is the real sting for Toronto. The Leafs finally have a coaching opening, but the coach with the biggest name may still look west and see the better chance to get right back into the race.
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YESTERDAY
MAY 13, 2026
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| G | A | PTS | ||
| Nick Foligno | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Parker Kelly | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Brett Kulak | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Matthew Boldy | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Brent Burns | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Martin Necas | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Nico Sturm | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Jack Drury | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Marcus Johansson | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Nathan MacKinnon | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Quinn Hughes | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Kirill Kaprizov | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nicolas Roy | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Devon Toews | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Jack Ahcan | - | - | - | |
| Mackenzie Blackwood | - | - | - | |
| Ross Colton | - | - | - | |
| Brock Faber | - | - | - | |
| Marcus Foligno | - | - | - | |
| Ryan Hartman | - | - | - | |
| COMPLETE STATS | ||||