{"id":367040,"date":"2025-12-21T02:10:12","date_gmt":"2025-12-21T02:10:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/367040\/"},"modified":"2025-12-21T02:10:12","modified_gmt":"2025-12-21T02:10:12","slug":"hes-not-crazy-negative-craig-berube-firing-talk-sparks-outrage-as-former-maple-leafs-enforcer-defends-coach-under-intense-scrutiny-nhl-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/367040\/","title":{"rendered":"“He\u2019s not crazy negative”: Craig Berube firing talk sparks outrage as former Maple Leafs enforcer defends coach under intense scrutiny | NHL News"},"content":{"rendered":"

\""He\u2019sCraig Berube (Getty Images0 The Toronto Maple Leafs are running out of quiet nights. Each game seems to tighten the air around the team, and patience is thinning fast. Toronto still sits within reach of the playoff picture, yet nothing feels settled. Wins arrive without momentum. Losses linger longer than they should. The sense that something has to give is no longer confined to the locker room.Now, an unexpected report has pushed that tension into sharper focus. According to a Maple Leafs reporter, the organization may already have Craig Berube\u2019s replacement in mind, with a coaching change possibly coming sooner than many expected. The idea feels sudden, but the frustration behind it has been building for weeks, even as Berube remains unlikely to be fired due to the significant salary still owed on his contract.<\/p>\n

Maple Leafs coaching change rumors grow as pressure mounts<\/p>\n

Toronto\u2019s 15-13-5 record places them seventh in the Atlantic, a spot that speaks to uneven execution rather than collapse. The Leafs score enough to stay competitive, but missed chances and an underperforming power play continue to drain close games of opportunity. At five-on-five, they often control play, yet the finishing touch rarely shows up when it matters most. Defensively, allowing more than three goals per game has kept stress levels high, particularly against faster opponents.Those flaws were exposed again in Thursday\u2019s 4-0 loss to Washington. The Capitals snapped their own skid while making Toronto look flat and predictable. Jakob Chychrun scored twice, John Carlson added a goal and two assists, and Aliaksei Protas opened the scoring. Logan Thompson stopped all 22 shots he faced, and Toronto\u2019s top line failed to generate early offense. As the game went on, the Leafs struggled to match Washington\u2019s pace or push back with urgency.After the loss, Berube pointed directly at special teams and emotion. \u201cWe had power-play opportunities,\u201d Berube said, via NHL. \u201cThe power play was not good. It\u2019s got to be a lot better.\u201d He also noted that Washington played with more passion, a difference he felt shaped the outcome.That comment sparked a strong defense from former Leafs enforcer Jay Rosehill. In a video shared by The Leafs Nation on X, Rosehill rejected the idea that Berube has lost the room. \u201cI\u2019ve played for Craig Berube,\u201d Rosehill said. \u201cHe\u2019s straightforward. He\u2019s honest. He\u2019s not crazy negative.\u201d He went further, calling a potential dismissal unfair. \u201cI think these next 24 hours are going to be something,\u201d Rosehill added. \u201cSomething\u2019s got to happen here. And it\u2019s probably going to be Craig Berube fired. And I think it\u2019s a f***ing disgrace.\u201dToronto now turns to a Dec. 20 game against Nashville, with pressure following every shift. Until results stabilize, the noise around the bench will only grow louder.Also Read: Sidney Crosby reacts to new Penguins ownership as Montreal game presents once-in-a-lifetime history opportunity<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Craig Berube (Getty Images0 The Toronto Maple Leafs are running out of quiet nights. Each game seems to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":367041,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5106],"tags":[825,48002,5,26097,20,48004,48005,5172,4,48006,66,31,48003,11248,5171],"class_list":{"0":"post-367040","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-toronto-maple-leafs","8":"tag-craig-berube","9":"tag-craig-berube-firing-rumors","10":"tag-hockey","11":"tag-jay-rosehill-maple-leafs","12":"tag-maple-leafs","13":"tag-maple-leafs-performance-issues","14":"tag-maple-leafs-playoff-picture","15":"tag-mapleleafs","16":"tag-nhl","17":"tag-nhl-rumors-and-analysis","18":"tag-toronto","19":"tag-toronto-maple-leafs","20":"tag-toronto-maple-leafs-coach","21":"tag-toronto-maple-leafs-news","22":"tag-torontomapleleafs"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/115755130804062387","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/367040","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=367040"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/367040\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/367041"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=367040"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=367040"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=367040"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}