TORONTO -- Toronto Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube spent his morning press conference trying to downplay the fact that he will be facing his former team, the St. Louis Blues, for the first time on Thursday.
His actions, however, told a different story.
When the Blues arrived at Scotiabank Arena for their morning skate, there was the 58-year-old Berube standing outside the St. Louis dressing room offering a warm handshake to several of his former players, some he coached to a Stanley Cup in 2019, and checking up on how they were doing.
You don’t help bring a championship to a team, an organization, a city for the first time and simply turn the page, as much as Berube would like you to believe. It’s not that easy.
“Chief, he’s a guy that came over and was talking to us before we went on the ice,” Blues captain Brayden Schenn said. “He’s a guy that loved the city of St. Louis and the city loved him back.”
He asked about the players’ families, their health and briefly exchanged hockey war stories with them.
“I text him now and then so it’s just the ‘Hey, how you doing?’ type of thing,” Schenn said. “Nothing crazy. It’s just good for him to come over and show respect for the players.
“It’s always good to see him. All the players, training staff and everyone, made sure to go over and say hello.”
Such is the bond they built before and after skating around TD Garden in Boston with the Stanley Cup following a Game 7 victory against the Bruins. They would go on to enjoy their ring ceremony too, although Berube joked that he wasn’t sure where his is.
“It's probably somewhere at home. My wife’s probably got it. Maybe she sold it, don't know," Berube said with a chuckle. "I haven't seen it in a long time, so I'm not sure exactly where it's at.”
Berube was fired as coach of the Blues after five seasons on Dec. 12, 2023, and hired as Maple Leafs coach on May 17, replacing Sheldon Keefe, who could never deliver to Toronto what Berube did to St. Louis.
That’s why, when the Blue and Maple Leafs square off Thursday (7 p.m. ET; TSN4, BSMW) sporting identical 4-3-0 records, the laughing will stop and the serious business begins.
With Toronto coming off its worst performance of the season, a 6-2 defeat at the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday, the coach’s priority is righting the ship.
"Obviously, you know, there's a lot of emotions," Berube said. "But once the puck drops, it's over. We're just playing. Like, we need a good response here tonight with our team. That's what I'm focused on."
Asked what happened against the Blue Jackets, Berube replied: “We didn’t check, it’s as simple as that.”
Schenn isn’t surprised that Berube is taking an all-business approach to the game. That’s “the type of guy he is.”
“I don’t think he gets too high or too low with things like this,” Schenn said. “He just kind of focuses on the day, focuses on the game. And for him, it probably feels like just another game here. I think it’ll be a little different for him when he comes back to St. Louis for the first time on (Nov. 2).
“Like I’ve said before, you always know where you stand with him. One minute he’s telling you you need to get your butt in gear, then 20 minutes later he wants to know how your day is going.
“He’s such a good guy and good coach. It’s great to see him again.”
