Craig Berube Fired by Maple Leafs, Toronto Owns No. 1 Pick in 2026 NHL Draft

The Toronto Maple Leafs are installing new coaching leadership after winning the 2026 NHL draft lottery.

Craig Berube has been fired after two seasons as head coach, the Leafs announced Wednesday.

General manager John Chayka described the move as a "fresh start" for the franchise.

The news comes a month-and-a-half after Leafs general manager Brad Treliving was fired after three seasons.

Berube is signed for two more seasons at $4.5 million per year. The Leafs will owe him the remainder of his salary unless he is hired by another team, per TSN's Pierre LeBrun.

The Leafs missed the playoffs for the first time since 2017 this spring and now hold the top pick in the 2026 NHL draft.

Decisions about the futures of the remainder of the Leafs' coaching staff will be made by Berube's replacement, according to the team.

"Craig is a tremendous coach and an even better person," Chayka said in a statement. "This decision is more reflective of an organizational shift and an opportunity for a fresh start than it is an evaluation of Craig."

Berube led to the Leafs to their second conference semifinals appearance of the Auston Matthews era in his first season as head coach, although the Leafs ultimately lost in seven games to the eventual champion Florida Panthers.

He will leave Toronto having marked an 84-62-18 record (.567 points percentage) through two regular seasons as head coach.

The Leafs' struggles this season began last summer when Mitch Marner, who led the team with 102 points in 2024-25, walked in free agency to join the Vegas Golden Knights.

Treliving was unable to find a player who could replace Marner's offensive contributions. William Nylander led the team this season with 79 points, while Matthews recorded a career-low 53 points as his production dropped in Marner's absence.

The leadership turnover in Toronto started in December with the dismissal of assistant coach Marc Savard, who had been in charge of running a power play that at the time ranked as the worst in the NHL.

The Leafs went on a 12-6-4 run between Savard's firing and the NHL's February Olympic break that sparked rumors the team could head into the trade deadline as buyers.

That hope was erased when the Leafs lost four of their first five games following the Olympic break. The Leafs ultimately conceded any playoff hopes by sending out Nicolas Roy, Bobby McMann and Scott Laughton for draft picks at the deadline.

The Leafs finished the season last place in the Atlanta with a 32-36-14 record, the team's worst since selecting Matthews at the top of the 2016 draft.

Toronto capped off the season by sending out Treliving and replacing him with a front office led by former Leafs captain Mats Sundin and Chayka, formerly GM of the Arizona Coyotes.

Chayka's first task in his next stint as GM will be to land on the Leafs' first opportunity to draft No. 1 since selecting Matthews. Penn State winger Gavin McKenna is considered the likely consensus pick, although SHL winger Ivar Stenberg and OHL center Caleb Malhotra are also receiving buzz ahead of the draft.

Whichever coach the Leafs hire to replace Berube will be tasked with both developing that top draft pick and helping Matthews bounce back next season.

Matthews, who led the NHL in goals three times between 2021 and 2024, was held to a career-low 27 goals last season as his even-strength scoring dropped off. Creating an offensive structure that can help Matthews reclaim his previous status as one of the league's best goalscorers will be key to the Leafs' hopes of climbing back into the postseason picture in 2027.