NHL News: Maple Leafs HC Craig Berube turns heads with honest comment on relationship with Auston Matthews teammate

Auston Matthews and the Toronto Maple Leafs must right the ship after a deflating start to the NHL season. With Craig Berube making an effort to keep the drama at check, the head coach spoke on his recent on-ice meeting with William Nylander.

While Matthews is the 26th captain in Toronto Maple Leafs history, Nylander often steals the spotlight with his outgoing personality and charisma. However, that can sometimes backfire on the ice. As a result, Berube must find a way to strike the right balance.

Being a head coach in the NHL isn’t just about giving instructions from behind the bench—managers must also maintain constant communication with their players.

Two-way mentoring

On that note, Berube shared a sincere message about his relationship with Nylander, after the two engaged in a lengthy chat during the Maple Leafs’ practice. As Berube indicated, the pupil can indeed become the master in the National Hockey League.

“[Nylander was] teaching me about stuff, power play, where to shoot, this, and that,” Berube admitted about his latest conversation with Nylander, via TSN’s Mark Masters on X (formerly Twitter). “Always a good conversation with him. I enjoy those.”

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Tough love

Based on some of Berube’s comments on Nylander so far this season, one might believe the Swedish has been underwhelming. However, when looking at the stats leaders in The Six, Nylander is atop several rankings. Still, that goes to show just how much Berube expects out of the former 8th overall pick in the 2014 NHL entry Draft.

Seven games into the campaign, Nylander leads the Maple Leafs with 13 points—more than double Matthews’ six tallies. Rounding out the podium are John Tavares and Matthew Knies with nine and eight points, respectively. While Nylander has recorded points in every outing but one, his goal production remains an area of concern for Berube and the Buds.

Nylander is coming off three straight 40-plus goal seasons, yet he’s now averaging just 0.29 goals per game and is on pace for only 23 tallies this campaign. It’s a respectable number, but quite a regression based on recent standards. Moreover, it would only increase the pressure on Matthews to quench Toronto’s thirst for goals.