Why this Toronto Maple Leafs season will feel different

TORONTO — When Ryan Reaves first caught wind that the Toronto Maple Leafs were hiring Craig Berube, the former Blue buzzed a bunch of his old St. Louis teammates to get a scouting report on his new coach.

The reports were 100 per cent positive.

"Very honest. Very personable. Very easy to talk to. Maybe not always what you want to hear. But he's going to give it to you direct," Reaves explains.

"Something that gets lost with some coaches is they just kind of tell you what you want to hear — but it's not always the truth. From what I've heard of 'Chief,' it's not just like, 'Hey, you look dog (expletive). I need you to give get better.' He'll talk to you about how to be better."

Which drills down to the greatest year-over-year difference in Toronto, where the main whos are all the same (Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, John Tavares, Morgan Rielly) and the what and why haven't changed in 57 years (try to win a Stanley Cup because glory).

How the Leafs play hockey in 2024-25 — under Cup-lifting, face-punching, truth-dishing "Chief" Berube — is the key to repackaging essentially the same product with a glossy coat of fresh hope.

Less cute; more brute.

North-south is the new east-west.

Fewer one-and-dones; more O-zone time with a grinding cycle game.

Third effort is the new second effort.

Straight lines. Finished hits. Victorious wall battles. And an Edge Walk–high standard for work ethic.

The new man in charge wants to balance a high-flying skill with a hard-checking mindset.

"I’m not here to take the sticks out of guys' hands," Berube says. "But there’s got to be an identity."

Past editions of this era's Maple Leafs were "soft and purposeless" at their worst and dazzlingly dynamic at their Gotta See It best, capable of hanging a touchdown on any given regular-season opponent.

"We want to prove that this is a different identity right from Day 1," veteran recruit Max Pacioretty says. "We want to make sure that it's a good one, that we're going to be a tough group to play against every night, and we've seen it in the practices. Some really intense battling practices, right from Day 1."

If Brad Treliving didn't have the appetite or opportunity to cut to the core after a 1-8 post-season series record, the GM did surround his first hand-picked head coach with support players cut in the Berube mold.

“As far as what gives me hope, I think we’ve improved our roster,” says Treliving, who hasn't dealt an NHLer off his roster since Sam Lafferty a full calendar year ago.

"You don’t hit grand slams every year. Sometimes you’ve just got to keep hitting singles and doubles and picking away at your roster. Getting better isn’t because you airlifted in a bunch new people. Internal growth is the best way to get better in this league; it’s not just flying in the great free agent or making 10 trades."

On paper, prototypical warrior Chris Tanev is the perfect complement to top defenceman Morgan Rielly, and his willingness to throw his face in front of pucks, they hope, could be contagious. That ruggedness is now sprinkled throughout a bigger, bashier blueline that features contract-year Jake McCabe, new daddy Simon Benoit and rehab project Jani Hakanpää.

Can sophomore Matthew Knies and a re-energized Nick Robertson take meaningful steps up front and round out their two-way efforts? Are veteran gambles Pacioretty and Steven Lorentz the right role players?

Last October's big sell was a second wave of snotty scorers and playmakers: Tyler Betuzzi! Max Domi! Power-play quarterback John Klingberg!

This October's pitch is to cut down on the goals against. And when you consider the 2023-24 Leafs ranked 23rd overall in both save percentage (.893) and penalty-kill efficiency (76.9 per cent) — second-worst among all 16 playoff teams in both categories — it's an achievable area of improvement.

“We’ve upgraded our defence,” Treliving says, confidently. “We’ve got the ability to upgrade our penalty kill, an area that was a problem for us. If you look at our team last year, we were second in goals-for [298]. We lost 21 goals in Tyler Bertuzzi. ... I think we can replace those goals, not just necessarily by one person.

“I think we can shoot it in the net. For us, it’s keeping it out.”

The main men in charge of that task, No. 1 Joseph Woll and No. 2 Anthony Stolarz, are capable, health willing. Neither has appeared in as many as 29 games in a single NHL season. Together, can they stay healthy for something close to 82?

That'll be a major storyline, as will the uncertainty hovering over the futures of Marner and Tavares, both of whom wish to stay put. (“Hopefully, they’re going to be great Leafs for a long, long time,” Treliving says.)

There is always something to gab about in Leafland. A fire to extinguish. A lineup controversy or contract debate to wage.

And yet, the success or failure of the group will ultimately rest with the performance (and health) of new captain Matthews (age 27), Marner (27), Nylander (28), Tavares (34) and Rielly (30).

Long-time fixtures on PP1 and prime stars in their window to win.

Again.

"There's a reason why they have success. This is the hardest group I've ever been a part of. I saw it from Day 1. These top guys, it's not a fluke why they're the top guys. They put in the work. They take care of themselves. I saw it within two minutes of being here, but you see it every day, every morning, and it's really nice to be around," Pacioretty says.

"I mean, yesterday morning I saw Auston and Willy go out maybe 30 minutes early and put out a bag of pucks and work on their edges, their shooting. But, I mean, like, full speed. Like, 100 per cent. Johnny T — every day in the gym, same thing, taking care of himself, extra workouts. It makes you realize there's only one way to do it — to be the best — and that's working hard."

Hard work is non-negotiable under Berube and the how that, just maybe, could yield an edgier identity and sunnier result for the same ol' whos come spring.