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Craig Berube's past run-ins with star players raise some concerns in Toronto
Photo credit: USA Today Network
New Leafs bench boss Craig Berube's bluntness has caused issues with star players in the past, which leads to concerns about how the "Core 4" will handle his style.
In 2015, Vicent Lecavalier did not appreciate being scratched for almost 20 games and playing on the fourth line under Berube and during the Philadelphia Flyers end of season media availability, he made it very clear how he felt about Berube.
"He's got his views and he showed that. I think 17 or 18 games, I was scratched, so it's going to be tough to change his mind. But we'll see what happens," said Lecavalier. "The fans are great, the organization is great, living here is great. My wife and my kids absolutely love it here, but, yeah, things did change when Chief came on board."
The following season, Lecavalier played just seven games under Berube before being traded to the LA Kings. More recently, in February of last season, while head coach of the St. Louis Blues, Berube called out the Blues' top players for their lack of passion and emotion as they sat 11th in the Western Conference at the time.
"Our best players don't play with any passion, no emotion and no inspiration at all. They don't play inspired hockey. You cannot play in this league without emotion, grit, being inspired. They're getting paid lots of money and they're not doing the job. End of story."
Those comments by Berube led to Robert Thomas to become frustrated.
"I've been a part of this team for a long time, and what he said couldn't be further from the truth. I know everyone in that room cares, and it's frustrating to hear."
In both instances, the depth guys on the Flyers and Blues were supportive of Berube while there were obvious issues created with more high-profile players.
The fact that it was star players that had issues with Berube may not bode well for Auston Matthews, William Nylander, Mitch Marner and John Tavares in Toronto, given how many times we saw former head coach Sheldon Keefe have to walk back his public comments when he criticized them.
Source: goerie.com
Many Flyers want Berube Back
Many Flyers want Berube Back
Source: Hockey Reference:Craig Berube coaching history
| POLL | ||
JUILLET 31 | 1410 ANSWERS Craig Berube's past run-ins with star players raise some concerns in Toronto Will there be tension between the "Core 4" and Berube? | ||
| Yes | 728 | 51.6 % |
| No | 516 | 36.6 % |
| Only with Marner | 166 | 11.8 % |
| List of polls | ||