Craig Berube publicly backed Keith Pelley today even though his own job as Maple Leafs coach is at risk
Photo credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
Craig Berube was asked about Keith Pelley's vision and said 'we should have a lot of confidence in what he's going to do'. For fans that sounds like a worst-case scenario especially knowing that he could potentially stick around.
Berube's tenure has been the topic of heavy discussion for the majority of the year but has been no doubt exacerbated by the firing of Brad Treliving. If the GM is gone before the coach then that basically means he's going to be looking for work elsewhere.
Though it sounds like Berube has no hard feelings and understands the situation with his latest comments explaining showing that he's thrown his full support behind Pelley's vision — with a very interesting tone of voice:
I've talked to him in the past two years a lot ... He knows what he’s doing. He knows how to build things so we should have a lot of confidence in what he’s going to do going forward.
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It makes sense why the two would speak given that there is no President role the mediate between the parties, but it's also quite scary that Berube said 'we'. Reading between the lines, it sounds like the head coach still thinks he may play a part.
Though it very well also could be a case of Pelley and Berube getting on the same page when it comes to the future and Berube's collective comment could also have been a slip of the tongue though there's a tinge of pride behind his comments — believe fans, just believe.
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Berube has basically said that things are going to change and while he clearly desires to be part of it, he's resigning to his fate as well. With news they are already talking to Bruce Cassidy, they are already backtracking on their word.
They are going to presumably go scorched earth, and Berube's words also serve as a warning to his assistants — as much as you believe in the team, it's up to a select few who have to show the same faith.
There's hopefully no more loyalty when it comes to who sticks around and regardless of whether you've been with the team for a year or 30, if you don't mesh with the vision then you're going to be left behind.
Fans are understandably nervous about what Pelley is going to do, and Berube's comments don't necessarily lend a lot of positivity knowing that there's a slight chance he's sticking around.
But he also knows that there's a plan in place. While it's not public yet, when the first domino falls — you can bet we'll see a ripple effect that brings the wave of change Toronto desperately needs.
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| POLL | ||
AVRIL 1|1198 ANSWERS Craig Berube publicly backed Keith Pelley today even though his own job as Maple Leafs coach is at risk Do you think Craig Berube actually has confidence in Keith Pelley's vision? | ||
| Yes | 179 | 14.9 % |
| No | 1019 | 85.1 % |
| List of polls | ||