The Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers could pull off a coach "trade" this offseason, in an unusual plot twist.

The Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers are in a similar spot. Their underwhelming seasons led to each organization dismissing its respective head coaches.

The Leafs let Craig Berube go earlier this week, while The Oil followed suit on Thursday. The moves created two not-so-unexpected coaching vacancies. And yes, both clubs will be looking to fill their coaching vacancies with candidates who can lead each team to the promised land.

But what if the Maple Leafs and Oilers “traded” coaches, so to speak?

Trading coaches is not something that actually happens in professional North American sports. There have been instances in which one team hires another coach while still under contract with another team. That situation triggers one team to pay compensation for hiring a coach away.

So, if Toronto hired Kris Knoblauch and Edmonton hired Craig Berube, the teams would have, in essence, traded coaches. It would be quite an interesting turn of events. However, it could be the sort of unexpected plot twist that few would have expected.

Why Knoblauch Makes Sense for Maple Leafs

If there is a coach out there who’s suited to coach the Maple Leafs, it’s Knoblauch. The 47-year-old knows what it’s like to work with high-profile superstars. His relationship with superstars like Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl can translate into a connection with Auston Matthews and William Nylander.

Additionally, Knoblauch runs a system based more on puck possession and driving offense than the grinding, dump-and-chase style of Craig Berube. That’s something the former Oilers coach could bring back to the Leafs. Toronto, at one point, played a very similar style to the one Edmonton has played the last few seasons.

So, it wouldn’t be a stretch to see the Maple Leafs wanting to bring in someone like Knoblauch. While he would be inheriting a team in transition, Knoblauch could be the answer to restoring the offensive prowess the Maple Leafs once had.

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Why Berube Makes Sense for Oilers

On the flip side, Berube actually makes sense for the Oilers. One of the main storylines following the end of Edmonton’s playoff run was the lack of accountability from coaches and players. Both McDavid and Draisaitl spoke in the media regarding how everyone needed to do their part, starting with the coaches.

The situation for the Oilers wasn’t all that dissimilar to the one the Maple Leafs faced when they hired Berube. The organization wanted to bring in a responsible adult who could instill a certain type of work ethic in the club. Berube managed that to a certain extent. But it was the latest crushing Game 7 loss for Toronto that Berube and his squad just couldn’t recover from, among other things.

With the Oilers, Berube would inherit a similar type of core, but with a roster most suited to his overall style of play. The challenge for Berube would be to incorporate more defensive reliability for the club as opposed to trying to transform them the way he tried with the Maple Leafs.

If Toronto and Edmonton chose to seemingly trade coaches, the move would be highly unorthodox, but potentially successful for both organizations.