Joe Pavelski is going from coaching his son's team to a Maple Leafs head coaching interview

Joe Pavelski is a brand new name in the Maple Leafs coaching search and it's a huge step up from his current job coaching his son's team.

Elliotte Friedman noted that Joe Pavelski is going to be interviewed in the next round for the Maple Leafs, and it's certainly a far cry from his previous reports where he stated the team wanted experience. Pavelski is inexperienced but highly respected, and if he were to come over it would be a huge step up.

Pavelski, a veteran of over 1,300 games with over 1,000 points, last played during the 2023-24 season with the Dallas Stars but is most well known for his time spent with the San Jose Sharks, where he spent 13 seasons and became one of the franchise's most beloved legends alongside Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton.

But he's currently coaching minor hockey, so it's a far cry from where he used to be. However the fact he's coaching his son does make things a little more personal, and it's certainly a nice break from the rigours of the NHL schedule.

Pavelski is coaching his son in minor hockey and Toronto still wants to interview him

However, he may be itching to get back into it according to Elliotte Friedman.

Friedman noted on 32 Thoughts that Pavelski's name has come up in the search for the Maple Leafs head coach, but that it completely goes against everything said up to that point - and Pavelski seems equally interested in the position:

I am under the impression Joe Pavelski is getting an interview. It flies in the face of what I said, and I don't know all the connections, but #1, this is a player who is hugely respected. #2, what's the story we heard? Tomas Hertl. He sees he hasn't scored, he calls him, tells him to relax - Hertl breaks the slump.

We know [Pavelski] is a motivational genius. A 7th round pick with anincrdible career and Martin St. Louis before he was hired was coaching minor hockey and what does Pavelski do?

He coaches with the Madison Capitals and he coaches his son Nate...I heard he is legitimately interested and I heard he will be in that next group.

That's a stunning development given that Pavelski's name is legitimately the first time we've heard him being involved in an NHL capacity especially given he retired only a few years ago.

Martin St. Louis made the same decision before making the jump and helped turn Montreal into a contender

He's 41, so he's the young coach Toronto needs, but he also has that genuine NHL leadership quality that some coaches lack.

Perhaps Toronto's experience quota doesn't always involve coaching, and it could be how to adapt and relate to players and how to manage slumps and lulls in the offence. Someone like Pavelski is great at that, and as a beloved and respected veteran - people will listen.

But it's the same path Martin St. Louis took. Another respected and esteemed veteran, St. Louis was brought in to settle a Montreal team down and only in a few seasons took them to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Pavelski isn't guaranteed the same amount of success of course, and we don't know how the lineup will look or work with him helming the team, nor do we know what that lineup even consists of.

But in this world of modern coaches and modern philosophy, you need to have someone who can understand the game that's evolved, while also being able to motivate and adapt to any situation. Pavelski did that for years on the ice, and though he never won a Cup; he's one of the greatest American players of all time.

You know who else is too? Auston Matthews. It makes a lot of sense and perhaps taking an outside the box pick will lead Toronto back to contention despite all odds.

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Maple Leafs considering five or six players at first overall and it is not a lock that it is McKenna