Former NHLer Mike Rupp believes Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube should return next season
On Thursday, Mike Rupp of the NHL Network joined Leafs Morning Take with Nick Alberga and Jay Rosehill to discuss Mehta’s decision to accept the New Jersey Devils GM position over the Maple Leafs, on if he thinks Craig Berube should return as the Maple Leafs’ head coach, and how he feels about Auston Matthews within the Maple Leafs’ locker room.
Mehta was ultimately hired by the Devils on April 16, returning to an organization he had previously spent four years with, where he held the Director of Analytics title. The hiring has created an excitement in New Jersey, as the club feels Mehta can help bring a new perspective to a team that, like the Maple Leafs, has struggled to get over the hump come playoff time.
“It’s funny. I think in this situation, it’s almost like a free agent in some regards, and it’s at least how he’s viewed in this marketplace. Just with the experience and success that he has had in Florida, it kind of feels like a big thing for Devils fans,” Rupp said. “It’s wow, someone chose us, especially with the Toronto Maple Leafs. We can sit here, and I have too in the past, poke fun at the Maple Leafs, but at the end of the day, that’s the biggest franchise in hockey. That’s quite an opportunity, whether you’re coach, GM, President of Hockey Ops., whatever the title is, Toronto is the spot to be. So, I think Devils fans are like wow, Sunny chose to come home to New Jersey.”
Since Treliving’s firing, many have speculated that Berube would soon follow, as the club missed the playoffs for the first time in the Matthews era. The Maple Leafs were routinely outshot and appeared to lack an identity many nights, something that a Berube-coached team has rarely shown through his tenure.
“I think he should be back. Sometimes those year-end meetings could be a real telltale on if the coach is going to be around or not. I’ve been on teams where you kind of sit around, and no one likes the coach, and then if you make a coaching change, it’s a slippery slope because now all of a sudden it feels like the players are calling the shots,” Rupp said. “I’d like to see Craig Berube get another run here. I’d like to see the group get shaken up a little bit, but at the end of the day, they were a team that didn’t really have an identity, and that’s Craig Berube’s job, no matter the personnel.”
This season, Matthews didn’t look like himself, finishing with 27 goals and 26 assists through his 60 games played. With only two years remaining on his contract, the noise has started to swirl about the Maple Leafs potentially moving on from their captain if they deem a rebuild is necessary in Toronto.
“I love Auston Matthews as a player. What I don’t like is, I don’t think he’s been coached or challenged the right way. He plays the game the right way, but I think when you’re the captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs, there’s responsibility. I’m not saying he’s not a leader, but to make him the pivotal guy with the “C” on his sweater, they’ve kind of been criticized for the way the core-four was treated, giving them the keys to everything,” Rupp said. “You got a great player, but you need something different out of him. He doesn’t know any different; he hasn’t been asked to do anything different or lead in a different manner, and I think that’s the biggest thing for me. Leadership is getting uncomfortable and showing you are willing to get uncomfortable.”