The Toronto Maple Leafs' recent winless road trip felt like a breaking point. A sputtering offense with a power play sitting last in the NHL, and a standings picture that has Toronto hovering just one point above the Eastern Conference basement, has escalated the sense of panic.
With the losses piling up and the answers hard to find, the organization reached for the easiest lever to pull, firing assistant coach Marc Savard.
While the move signals urgency to a season that is quickly slipping away, it raises an uncomfortable question: Does this help fix the Leafs' problems? Was Savard a convenient fall guy while deeper accountability issues remain untouched?
Leafs' Assistant Coach Pays the Price While Players Face Little Accountability
Firing Savard was a needed move, but also one of convenience. As is often the case in professional sports, relieving a coach of their duties is much easier than replacing the players. The Maple Leafs know this better than most.
Over the past decade, their core players, including Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares, and Morgan Rielly, have been led by three different coaches. Mike Babcock, Sheldon Keefe, and now Craig Berube have all taken a turn at the wheel in search of postseason success. None achieved it.
With the current 2025-26 season on the verge of spiraling out of control, Berube's status is likely to become the next narrative under the microscope. The Leafs have been there and done that. Finding a fourth coach for a significant core of the roster won't yield a notable change to their results. Recent team history has already shown that.
The original GM of the Brendan Shanahan era, Lou Lamoriello, tried to implement team rules and culture expectations around the franchise. They were quickly tossed aside, and dress code and facial hair restrictions were loosened.
Then came a miscalculation of the NHL's salary cap, with enhanced contracts and no-movement clauses, under Kyle Dubas's GM tenure. Key players were given a lot without any tangible success. The Maple Leafs' best, most important players gained leverage, and a precedent was set.
Berube, to his credit, has at least tried to instill some accountability in his players. In a recent game against the Washington Capitals, he took away power-play ice time from the top players as a consequence for their lackadaisical effort.
After that humbling 4-0 loss to the Capitals at the beginning of the Leafs' recent road trip, Berube gave his telling "Ask those guys, not me" response related to his players' effort.
The Maple Leafs' coach has regularly sat underperforming players such as Max Domi, Matias Maccelli, and Dakota Joshua. He has had frequent conversations with Nylander about his expectations and occasionally called out his top players in the media.
Firing an assistant coach won't change habits. If the Maple Leafs' season is going to be salvaged, Berube may soon have to make far more uncomfortable decisions than cutting a member of his staff. That means holding the team's top players accountable in ways this organization has historically avoided, through ice time, roles, and expectations.
At some point, the message has to land in the dressing room, and with the players. Otherwise, Savard won't be the last fall guy, and this season will follow the same frustrating script Leafs' fans know all too well.