The Edmonton Oilers have been granted permission to speak with former Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube.

This, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, who reported the news early Monday morning.

Berube, 60, spent the last two seasons behind the bench of the Maple Leafs, before being let go by the team late last week under new general manager John Chayka.

Known as a hard-nosed coach who demands commitment defensively from his players, Berube had a successful first season in Toronto, as the Leafs posted a 52-26-4 record in 2024-25. They beat the Ottawa Senators in six games in the first round of the playoffs last spring, before being bounced by the eventual Stanley Cup-winning Florida Panthers.

This season, however, was nothing short of a disaster for the organization. The team lost captain Auston Matthews to 22 games due to injury, and the Leafs sputtered all season long to their worst season since 2015-16, when they missed the playoffs and drafted Auston Matthews first overall. The Leafs finished at the bottom of the Atlantic Division, going 32-36-14.

Despite the strong initial season overall, the Leafs were a team that struggled to drive play at five-on-five under Berube. In fact, over the last two years, the Leafs had the 32nd-ranked shot attempt share in the league, the 18th-best goal share, and the 30th-ranked expected goal share. Those underlying numbers are unbeknownst to teams looking to make deep runs in the playoffs, as those three metrics have been key signifiers of teams having success in the playoffs — something the Leafs didn’t have under Berube.

But Berube is more known for his time in St. Louis, where he had spent six seasons as the Blues’ head coach from the 2018-19 and 2023-24 seasons, making the playoffs in four of six years. He helped take them on their Cinderella run to winning the 2019 Stanley Cup after taking over behind the bench from Mike Yeo after they got off to a 7-9-3 start. Berube spent the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons as head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers after working as an assistatnt starting in 2006-07.

Berube was linked to the team by Oilers Now host Bob Stauffer late last week.

TSN’s Ryan Rishaug reported Monday the Oilers were expected to have a formal interview with Berube after some “initial conversation between him and Bowman.” Rishaug added the team had yet to receive permission from the Vegas Golden Knights to speak with their former head coach, Bruce Cassidy, whom the team has been waiting on for a week now.

Time will tell what will come from an interview Berube, but the Oilers don’t appear to be sitting on their hands waiting for permission to speak with Cassidy.

Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s managing editor, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the Daily Faceoff DFS Hockey Report. He can be followed on X at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.

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