Craig Berube Only Has Himself To Blame For Toronto Maple Leafs Exit
When he came to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2024, veteran coach Craig Berube didn't have to prove much to anyone.
He won the Stanley Cup coaching the St. Louis Blues in 2018-19, so Berube had the experience, demeanor and singular focus the Maple Leafs were looking for as they tried to win a championship.
However, in an interview with Leafs Morning Take on Wednesday, Berube said he essentially bent over backward to try to coax great performances out of his Toronto players. More importantly, he said he'd do things differently with the Leafs if he had a do-over.
Craig Berube Admits The Crucial Mistake That Cost Him His Job With The Maple Leafs
"If I had to do it all over again, I would never have done that.": Inside the final meeting and the tactical concessions that ultimately forced the Maple Leafs to cut ties with Craig Berube.
If he wanted to, Berube could've taken a harder line with core components Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares and Morgan Rielly. Instead, he eased up on the pressure on his players. And in Wednesday's interview, Berube took accountability for his errors, sounding like someone keenly aware he had taken the wrong strategy.
There's much to like about Berube as a coach, and we hope he gets another chance. But this is someone who failed on his own terms, not on the terms of the players he tried to appease.
In the white-hot glare of the Toronto spotlight, Berube had every opportunity to do things his way. But in retrospect, he absolutely should have done things differently. And Berube's successor as Maple Leafs coach, Jim Hiller, will be under the gun to change the dressing-room chemistry by taking a harder line with Leafs players.
Maple Leafs Part With Hayley Wickenheiser Despite Her Expectation Of Staying
Hayley Wickenheiser said during her conversations with new Toronto Maple Leafs GM John Chayka, she expected to continue to have a significant impact within the organization. Now, the assistant GM is no longer with the club.
The Maple Leafs have sky-high expectations in 2026-27, and Hiller needs to heed Berube's words. Toronto needs a fundamental change in how it treats its players, and that means taking some of the comfort out of the organization.
The Leafs can't be a country club any longer, and Hiller has to push his players to uncomfortable places as they try to take that next competitive step.
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This story was originally published July 10, 2026 at 6:01 PM.