Craig Berube Explains Why He Lashed Out at Maple Leafs During Wednesday's Win Over Kings
Craig Berube surprised some when he called a timeout during the 3rd period of the Leafs' win over the Kings to scorn his group for poor execution.
For the first half of the third period of Wednesday's 6-2 victory over the LA Kings, the Leafs looked like the Leafs of old when playing with a lead. The Kings scored less than three minutes into the period and then again six minutes later. The second goal, scored by Kevin Fiala, led to Leafs head coach Craig Berube calling a timeout and going on a profanity-laced rant on the bench. The rant seemed to spark the Leafs as they looked much better in the second half of the period and scored a late power-play goal to add an exclamation point.
While Berube didn't address the timeout following the game, he addressed the reason for calling it after practice Thursday.
Given the response to the timeout from the players, any doubt about players not buying into Berube's play style should be put to rest. The Leafs controlled much of the play after the timeout and got back to the basics of Berube hockey - simple, physical, and competitive.
Through four games, the Leafs have done well adjusting to a drastically different play style than Sheldon Keefe's, including their response to the timeout. Time and time again under Keefe, when a timeout was called, the Leafs would not respond appropriately and the pressure from opponents would continue. There is clearly a difference between being yelled at by Keefe compared to Berube.
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