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Did Berube Get It Right for the Maple Leafs?
Over the past seasons, the Toronto Maple Leafs have had great regular seasons and lost in the playoffs. Did Berube get it right this season?
Over the past few seasons, the Toronto Maple Leafs have been a powerhouse during the regular season. Season after season, the team built a strong roster and scored a ton of goals. But when the playoffs rolled around, things tended to fall apart. Despite all that regular-season success, they had only won one playoff series over the past few years. Can new coach Craig Berube make a difference for the Maple Leafs?
Sheldon Keefe Was Let Go, and Craig Berube Came
That lack of postseason success led to Sheldon Keefe’s firing and Craig Berube’s hiring. The two coaches are different in several ways. While Keefe was a dynamic east/west coach, focusing on puck control and believing that a team that always set up shop in the other team’s defensive zone had a better chance of winning, Berube was a north/south coach.
Berube’s approach is more defensive. He’s switched things up. Instead of relying on all-out offense, the Maple Leafs are now playing more balanced game. They focus more on solid defense and winning those tight, low-scoring games. They aren’t scoring as much, but they’ve become more structured and disciplined. As a result, they’ve become much better at winning the kind of close games that usually decide the playoffs.
The Question Remains: Can Berube’s New Coaching Philosophy Translate to Success
As Berube and the Maple Leafs head into the postseason, fans have one big question: Will the new defensive style be enough for the team to take a deep Stanley Cup run? Can they win like this, or will it be another letdown in the playoffs?
These next few weeks will be huge as the team prepares for what everyone hopes will be a very different postseason. With the 4 Nations Face-Off break giving them a little breather, they’ve shifted their focus. They might not be the high-scoring machine they were before. However, they look more ready for the playoffs grind than ever. The real test is coming soon. Can this newfound defensive strength carry them all the way?
Could this finally be the year the Maple Leafs breakthrough? Only time will tell.
Related: Marner Has Maple Leafs Fans Dreaming of the Playoffs
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afp1961
February 15, 2025 at 8:56 am
Jim,
Im not a big Berube fan but he does have some pedigree. Seems his straight line hockey works a majority of the time but not all the time. You have to have the right players of course to play this system and as of today the leafs do not quite have this fully deployed across the whole 23 man roster. Guys like Holmberg, Dewar, Robertson come to mind, not to mention Domi and others.
Berube will have to be able to adjust. Teams that clogg up the middle create challenges for him. See what the Canucks did in the last 2 games against the buds. Rick Tocchet set out the perfect game plan and lulled the leafs to sleep.
Still wish the Leafs had gone after Quenneville. No doubt in my mind that Bettman deliberately held off on lifting his BS suspension on Joel until all the teams, this past offseason, had already signed their new coaches, essentially leaving no chairs for Quenneville.