The Toronto Maple Leafs announced they have brought in Craig Berube to be the team’s 32nd head coach. He was heavily rumoured to be joining the Leafs bench, and the move has been made official. He succeeds head coach Sheldon Keefe who was fired on May 9 following Toronto’s Round 1 loss to the Boston Bruins. While Keefe is not entirely to blame, it is clear the team needed a new leader behind the bench.
While Berube was head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers from 2013-15, he is more known for his position as head coach of the St. Louis Blues where he went 281-190-72 in six seasons. He won a Stanley Cup his first season with the team and went to the playoffs just three times since. After missing the playoffs in the 2022-23 season and struggling to start the 2023-24 season, the Blues parted ways with Berube. Now just months later, he lands a gig as head coach on one of the most heavily scrutinized teams in the NHL.
In addition to coaching, Berube has experience as a player. He totaled 17 seasons in the league, appearing in 1,054 games, 40 of which for the Maple Leafs in the 1991-92 season where he scored five goals and 12 points. Now returning to Toronto, he will be in a tough position to bring playoff success to the Original Six franchise that has not won a Stanley Cup since 1967.
As the Maple Leafs make their first major decision of the offseason, fans should expect many more moves to come. Whether it is a Mitch Marner trade or bringing in a star goaltender, it is apparent from the Maple Leafs’ management perspective that change is needed to bring Toronto its 14th Stanley Cup. For now, fans will have to wait to see how the rest of the coaching staff rounds out and which current players will be left out next season.
