Insider reveals when the Leafs will hold Craig Berube press conference
The Toronto Maple Leafs have named Craig Berube as their new head coach, making him the 41st head coach in franchise history. Berube replaces Sheldon Keefe, who was fired on May 8.
Berube, 58, previously led the St. Louis Blues to a Stanley Cup victory in 2019. He was fired by the Blues in December after they missed the playoffs last spring. Berube has a coaching record of 281-190-72 over eight NHL seasons with the Blues and the Philadelphia Flyers. He became the Blues' head coach in November 2018, taking over on an interim basis and leading them to their first championship. He was also a finalist for the Jack Adams Award as NHL coach of the year that season.
The Maple Leafs will introduce Berube at a press conference on Tuesday.
As a player, Berube was known for his toughness, scoring 60 goals and 159 points, along with 3,149 penalty minutes in 1,054 games. He played for the Philadelphia Flyers, Washington Capitals, Calgary Flames, New York Islanders, and the Maple Leafs from 1987 to 2003. In the playoffs, he scored three goals and had an assist with 211 penalty minutes in 89 games.
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Berube was involved in a significant trade early in his career, which brought him to Toronto for 40 games before being part of a 10-player deal with Calgary that brought Doug Gilmour to the Leafs. Gilmour led Toronto to back-to-back conference finals in 1993 and 1994.
After retiring as a player, Berube transitioned to coaching, starting as a player/coach with the Philadelphia Phantoms in 2003-04 before becoming a full-time assistant. He was promoted to head coach of the Flyers in 2013-14, making the playoffs in his first season but was fired after missing the playoffs the following year. He then coached the AHL's Chicago Wolves before joining the Blues as an associate coach and eventually becoming their head coach.
Berube now takes over a Toronto team that lost to the Boston Bruins in this year's playoffs after trailing the first-round series 3-1. The Leafs, led by star Auston Matthews, have struggled to succeed in the playoffs despite their talent. Berube, who won two Game 7s during the Blues' Cup run, will aim to help the Leafs break their long championship drought, which dates back to 1967.
| POLL | ||
17 MAI | 503 ANSWERS Insider reveals when the Leafs will hold Craig Berube press conference Do you think Craig Berube as head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs is a step in the right direction? | ||
| Yes | 355 | 70.6 % |
| No | 148 | 29.4 % |
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