Leafs prioritize Stanley Cup winners as they try to build a winning culture

Yesterday, the Leafs announced they hired Marc Savard to replace Guy Boucher, who was recently let go from his position. Savard is expected to take over the power play and run the forwards, much like he did during his time in Calgary and St. Louis.

With the hiring of Savard, Craig Berube's coaching staff is complete and one thing is clear - the Leafs are prioritizing Stanley Cup experience behind the bench this season.

Lane Lambert, Marc Savard and Mike Van Ryn all have their names etched on the Stanley Cup, as does Berube himself, and have all been able to thrive under the pressure of the Stanley Cup Playoffs - something that Sheldon Keefe and his coaching staffs had failed to do.

While Keefe set records for the Leafs during the regular season, his playoff success was essentially non-existent. With the current staff, the Leafs may not be the best team in the East, Atlantic Division or league, but they should be better equipped for the playoffs behind the bench than they were in previous seasons.

Of course, coaches can only do so much and it will be on players like Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews, William Nylander and John Tavares to buy into the Leafs' new style of play and lead by example. If the new coaching staff can get their stars to buy in, it won't be hard to get the rest of the team to do the same. When the coaching staff has more Cup rings than the entire roster, one would think it wouldn't be that hard to get your point across, but only time will tell.

Source: Toronto Maple Leafs
Leafs coaching staff