Toronto Maple Leafs' choice for new head coach is starting to become clearer

It's been less than one week since the Toronto Maple Leafs fired head coach Sheldon Keefe.

With Leafs management wasting no time looking for his replacement, plenty of names have been thrown around over the past few days via reports, and even betting odds.

However, among all the potential candidates, one is beginning to look like a real frontrunner.

On Monday, Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman reported that Toronto's management team met with former St. Louis Blues coach Craig Berube over the weekend.

While former Los Angeles Kings bench boss Todd McLennan was also expected to meet with Toronto earlier this week, Friedman doubled down on Berube on Wednesday's episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast.

"I'm leaning Berube. To me, he's the guy," Friedman said. "But nothing is done until it's done."

Despite having his suspicions that the Leafs are in on the 58-year-old, Friedman stressed that official hiring could take longer than expected given the prudent nature of Toronto general manager Brad Treliving.

"The one thing about Brad Treliving is, even if everyone thinks it's obvious or people are speculating it's obvious, he wants to at least slow down the process a bit," Friedman added. "He doesn't want to rush into anything."

Treliving confirmed that in a press conference the day after Keefe was relieved of his duties.

"We're not waiting," the GM said of the team's coaching search. "We're going to be thorough. This isn't going to be something that is hastily done."

If the Leafs are in the market for experience, Berube would certainly be a logical choice.

Along with winning a Stanley Cup in 2019, Berube has coached a total of 543 regular season games with the Blues and Philadelphia Flyers, posting a record of 281-190-72.

He also has a 27-31 record in the postseason.