New Coaches in 2024-25: Craig Berube, Toronto Maple Leafs
Can Craig Berube do something that hasn't been done in 57 years and bring the Maple Leafs back to Stanley Cup glory?
Craig Berube was a hard-nosed, tough-to-play-against winger who never backed down from a fight. He wasn’t gifted offensively - his career-high was only eight goals - but he made his presence known whenever he was on the ice and could always be counted on to work hard and have his teammates’ backs.
Debuting in the NHL during the Broadstreet Bullies era of the Philadelphia Flyers at the young age of 21 and finishing with the Calgary Flames at 37, he racked up 3,149 penalty minutes in 1,054 games. You could say toughness was his middle name.
Berube then transitioned into coaching with the Philadelphia Phantoms in the American Hockey League (AHL) and eventually got his first head coaching gig with the Flyers in 2013-14. His success didn’t start until he was with the St. Louis Blues though when he brought them from the ashes in 2018-19 and to their first Stanley Cup championship.
Unfortunately, Berube couldn’t replicate that success in his next three seasons, and he was fired last season, and replaced by Drew Bannister. Now he’s the new head coach of Brad Treliving’s Toronto Maple Leafs, a roster filled with star-caliber talent that never can put it together in the playoffs.
Is Berube finally the solution to a decades-long problem that has seen 23 head coaches come and go behind the bench? Punch Imlach was the last to lead a Maple Leafs roster to the Cup, and that was back in 1967.
What does Berube have in his repertoire that could push them over the hump? Who will Treliving acquire to help him accomplish something that hasn’t been done in 57 years? Those are all questions we will try and answer in this post. Let’s dive in!
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