Tinus Luc Koblar scores in style for @norskishockey! 🔥🇳🇴 #MensWorlds #IIHF
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Maple Leafs notebook: Tinus Luc Koblar stands out for Norway, Derek Lalonde reportedly to interview for HC

Photo credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
May 20, 2026, 08:45 EDTUpdated: May 20, 2026, 08:36 EDT
Welcome to an offseason edition of Maple Leafs notebook, where we examine current events in the hockey world. As the Maple Leafs continue their offseason, several players are thriving at the 2026 IIHF World Championship, while the organization continues their search for the next head coach.
Tinus Luc Koblar continues to stand out for Norway
Tinus Luc Koblar is continuing to impress on the world stage, leading Norway to a 4-0 victory over Italy on Tuesday. Koblar scored Norway’s fourth goal, and has now recorded two goals and three points in three games. It will be compelling to see how Koblar fares against tougher competition, with a date against Canada set for Friday, where he’ll square off against Morgan Rielly and John Tavares among others.
Koblar was a surprise when the Toronto Maple Leafs selected him in the second round of the 2026 NHL Draft. Through the opening week of the Worlds, Koblar is showing off his scoring touch, while playing a central role for one of the tournament’s upstarts. It could certainly bode well for Koblar heading into training camp, where the organization will examine his skating, scoring touch and hockey intelligence under a microscope.
Maple Leafs will reportedly interview Derek Lalonde for head coach
Toronto will interview assistant coach Derek Lalonde for the head coaching vacancy, David Alter of The Hockey News reports.
Lalonde joined the Maple Leafs as an assistant in June 2025. He spent parts of three seasons as the head coach of the Detroit Red Wings, before he was fired midway through the 2024-25 campaign.
The 53-year-old was widely considered responsible for the Maple Leafs’ penalty kill, which operated at a 81.2 success rate, the eighth-best total in the NHL. It’s somewhat surprising Lalonde is under consideration for the job, after the Maple Leafs fired head coach Craig Berube and appear intent on charting a new direction at all levels. Maple Leafs general manager John Chayka stated that the team would conduct an expansive search, with the aim of speaking to as many candidates as possible. Lalonde’s interview could be mere due diligence.
Jay Woodcroft, David Carle and Manny Malhotra have been widely discussed as potential front-runners for the role.
Breaking News
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- Gavin McKenna lists Nikita Kucherov and Patrick Kane as his NHL comparables
- Ben Danford praises stellar play of Artur Akhtyamov ahead of Calder Cup Final
