Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube calls out his team on being too soft
The Sheldon Keefe era of the Toronto Maple Leafs may be over, but the remnants of his style are still there for Craig Berube to fix.
While Craig Berube, who won the Stanley Cup with the St. Louis Blues in 2019, has clearly laid down the law with the Toronto Maple Leafs, doing controversial things such as taking music out of practices, and stripping John Tavares of the team captaincy in favour of Auston Matthews, he still has a lot more work to do.
After the team's almost entire NHL roster lost to the Ottawa Senators B-team 6 to 5 in overtime last night, with the overtime winner being scored by 18-year-old Carter Yakemchuk, Craig Berube didn't mince his words - he made it clear, his team is too slow, and plays too cute.
In Lance Hornby's column for the Toronto Sun, he went more into detail about Craig Berube's comments:
«We come out just slow, just didn't move the puck quick enough,» he said. «That's why we ended up with two shots in the first period (to Ottawa's 15). We didn't want to shoot, got too cute at times. It got better, but overall there are things we've got to clean up our directness.»
While highlights included rookie Nikita Grebenkin's standout performance, Max Pacioretty stole the show with a two-goal performance. He commented that he hasn't been as nervous for a game as he was last night in over fifteen years:
«I felt nervous out there, the most I've felt in a pre-season since I was 20-years-old. I found myself overcomplicating things. But John was always in the right spot. I'm happy, but I have a lot to improve on.»
Finally, new signing Chris Tanev, who GM Brad Treliving brought in on a massive six-year deal, had three assists. As a clear leader on the team, he equally called out the team on their sloppy play:
«We didn't play how we wanted, a bit of a sloppy game, we needed better breakouts, better defensive zone (coverage). That's what we'll focus on the next few games. I'm not worried about my offence.»
Previously on Markerzone
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 23 | 289 ANSWERS Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube calls out his team on being too soft Do you think the Toronto Maple Leafs are too soft? | ||
| Yes | 264 | 91.3 % |
| No | 25 | 8.7 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
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