The Toronto Maple leafs are making another big change after their playoff streak ended this season. After leading the team to a 32-36 record, head coach Craig Berube was fired by the Leafs on Wednesday, the team announced. After a promising first season with the team, Berube and the Leafs saw a significant drop-off in Year 2.
The team finished eighth in the Atlantic Division and missed out on the playoffs for the first time since 2016. Despite Berube still having multiple years left on his contract, that was enough to get him fired. Team general manager John Chayka called Berube a “tremendous coach” in a statement, but added that the team was in need of “an organizational shift and an opportunity to start fresh.”“Craig is a tremendous coach and an even better person,” Chayka said.
“This decision is more reflective of an organizational shift and an opportunity for a fresh start than it is an evaluation of Craig. We are grateful for his leadership, professionalism and commitment to the Maple leafs organization and wish Craig and his family nothing but the best moving forward.”The Leafs did not announce additional coaching changes, though said the team’s next head coach will “determine the makeup of the remainder of the coaching staff.”Berube initially joined the Maple Leafs on a four-year deal in 2024. Berube was just months removed from being fired by the St. Louis Blues and was working as an analyst for Turner Sports just before being hired by the Leafs.
Play 2026 soccer Pick ‘Em with FOX One and make your picks for the world’s biggest soccer tournamentThe team turned in a fantastic first season under Berube, going 52-26 and winning the Atlantic Division. It was the first time in franchise history the team finished at the top of the division. The Maple Leafs won their first-round playoff matchup that year, taking down the Ottawa Senators.
But they couldn’t make it past the Florida Panthers in the second round, losing in seven games. After that performance, the 2025-26 season was a massive letdown. The team dropped all the way to last in the Atlantic Division, and decided it was time to make changes.
In May, team CEO Keith Pelley announced the hiring of Chayka as the team’s new general manager and Mats Sundin as its senior executive adviser of hockey operations. With new blood in town and the team winning the NHL Draft lottery, the franchise decided to completely overhaul things and fire Berube. The move could cost the Leafs moving forward.
berube is still owed $4.5 million per season over the next two years. The Leafs will be on the hook for that unless Berube joins another team. Berube, a former player who spent 17 seasons in the NHL, has a lengthy history as a head coach.
In 10 seasons, Berube has a 365-252 record. He led the Blues to a Stanley Cup win during the 2018-19 NHL season. In addition to coaching the Blues and Maple Leafs, Berube spent his first two seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers.
Despite how things ended in Toronto, Berube could draw interest on the free-agent market given his past success as a head coach.
