When he came to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2024, veteran coach Craig Berube didn't have to prove much to anyone.

He won the Stanley Cup coaching the St. Louis Blues in 2018-19, so Berube had the experience, demeanor and singular focus the Maple Leafs were looking for as they tried to win a championship.

However, in an interview with Leafs Morning Take on Wednesday, Berube said he essentially bent over backward to try to coax great performances out of his Toronto players. More importantly, he said he'd do things differently with the Leafs if he had a do-over.

"I definitely went in (to Toronto) from the get-go when I was first hired to try to get them out of a comfort zone and play a different style of hockey, a style that I believe is what you need to play to be successful in the playoffs," Berube said. "We tried to change a few things and try to get players to play a little differently. I tried to appease them as much as I could, and if I had to do it all over again, I would never have done that." 

While it's admirable Berube is speaking frankly about the factors that led to the Maple Leafs firing him in May, it now sounds clear that he only has himself to blame for his firing.

Berube had the full confidence of now-former Leafs GM Brad Treliving, and he was supported heavily by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment boss Keith Pelley. In his media appearances, Pelley spoke of the respect he had for Berube, and Pelley said the Leafs would get input from Berube regarding the franchise's roster moves.

"I'm a firm believer that the coach has to be involved more than just on the day of the game and in the dressing room," Pelley said in May 2025. "And we have a wonderful asset in Craig."

The organization put a lot of stock in Berube as a coach and an overall influence on the franchise, but this is a bottom-line business. And the bottom line for the Leafs last year was a full and ugly collapse.

So Berube really did this to himself. He didn't have to bend his will to anyone last season.

If he wanted to, Berube could've taken a harder line with core components Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares and Morgan Rielly. Instead, he eased up on the pressure on his players. And in Wednesday's interview, Berube took accountability for his errors, sounding like someone keenly aware he had taken the wrong strategy.

There's much to like about Berube as a coach, and we hope he gets another chance. But this is someone who failed on his own terms, not on the terms of the players he tried to appease.

In the white-hot glare of the Toronto spotlight, Berube had every opportunity to do things his way. But in retrospect, he absolutely should have done things differently. And Berube's successor as Maple Leafs coach, Jim Hiller, will be under the gun to change the dressing-room chemistry by taking a harder line with Leafs players.

The Maple Leafs have sky-high expectations in 2026-27, and Hiller needs to heed Berube's words. Toronto needs a fundamental change in how it treats its players, and that means taking some of the comfort out of the organization.

The Leafs can't be a country club any longer, and Hiller has to push his players to uncomfortable places as they try to take that next competitive step.

See more of The Hockey News on Google and save us as a preferred source. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.