Coach Shows Respect by Reaching Out to Debunk False Rumour

Every now and then, a story comes along that isn’t really about what happened — it’s about why it happened. It’s a story that suggests all we hear from rumour-mongers isn’t accurate. It’s also a story about the shared fraternity among coaches, and how someone who’s been there gets it.

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DeBoer Reaches Out to Berube to Dispel False Rumours

On Saturday Headlines, Elliotte Friedman dropped one of those quiet little details that tells you more than it seems to at first. Peter DeBoer, currently unemployed, reached out to Craig Berube through a mutual contact. Not to angle for the Maple Leafs job. Not to wait in the wings. To say, essentially, I’m not circling this thing.

So, why does that matter? It’s because anyone who’s watched the league long enough knows how this usually goes. A coach gets a little heat. The team hits a rough patch. And suddenly, there’s a name floating around like a shadow behind him. Sometimes it’s internal. Sometimes it’s an obvious external fit.

In this case, people connected the dots pretty quickly. DeBoer has coached big teams. He’s handled pressure markets. On paper, the fit made a certain kind of sense.

But DeBoer’s Been There, and He Knows the Deal: He Acted

But DeBoer’s been there before. He’s been the guy on the bench whose name gets whispered while another coach stands in waiting. And by his own admission, he didn’t enjoy it. Who would?

So DeBoer did something rare in this business: he took the time to seek the connection, and he sucked the oxygen out of the rumour.

Both DeBoer and Berube are respected around the league. Old-school respect, too — the kind that isn’t built on social media or sound bites. DeBoer knew that staying silent could add pressure on a fellow coach. So he chose the opposite. He let it be known, quietly, that he wasn’t waiting for the door to open.

Meanwhile, GM Brad Treliving Tried to Blow Away the Smoke

Meanwhile, Brad Treliving did what general managers are supposed to do when they actually believe in their coach. He backed Berube publicly. He didn’t hedge. Treliving just gave his coach a clear vote of confidence. The message was that Berube is our guy.

In this case, a professional coach understood the weight of his name and the situation his colleague was in. He chose not to make things louder but to ease a small part of the stress. It was a moment of understanding, but it tells you a lot about DeBoer.

Good on him.

Related: Maple Leafs Offer Injury Update on William Nylander