Report: Maple Leafs grant Oilers permission to speak with Craig Berube about head coaching vacancy
Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman reported on Monday morning that the Oilers requested, and were subsequently granted permission from the Maple Leafs to speak to head coach Craig Berube, who was fired on May 13 after the Maple Leafs missed the playoffs for the first time since Auston Matthews was drafted (or 2020 if you’re not counting the bubble play-in series as a playoff round). TSN’s Ryan Rishaug then followed up on the report, saying that a formal interview was expected after an initial meeting between Berube and Oilers general manager Stan Bowman.
Hearing a formal interview with Berube is expected after some initial conversation between he and Bowman. Permission to speak with Bruce Cassidy had still not been granted as of Sunday night.
While the Maple Leafs’ offseason situation has been one that’s taken centre stage among discussion around the league, even with the playoffs ongoing, the Oilers have quietly been having a tumultuous offseason themselves. They just fired head coach Kris Knoblauch after losing in the first round to the Anaheim Ducks following back-to-back Stanley Cup Final appearances. Connor McDavid is about to enter a two-year contract, and the Oilers as a whole are going to be ringing in that new deal by looking for their sixth head coach since McDavid was drafted.
While the on-ice results of Berube’s Maple Leafs were horrendous in every facet, he did lead them further than either Sheldon Keefe or Mike Babcock were able to, with the Maple Leafs pushing the 2025 Cup-winning Florida Panthers to Game 7 before getting squashed on home ice. The Maple Leafs had an admirable commitment to team defence that was propped up even further by elite goaltending, and it seems like the Oilers are looking for a similar commitment between their team and next head coach.