A Way Too Early Look At Toronto Maple Leafs Contending For NHL Awards

Jack Adams Award - Craig Berube

Following the Leafs first-round exit to the Boston Bruins, Sheldon Keefe was fired and the front office brought in Craig Berube to be the next head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

From a coaching perspective, Berube enters a situation any coach would want. He has three superstar players and a rebuilt defensive core that should be much better than in years past.

However, from a winning coach of the year perspective, Berube could not be walking into a more challenging situation. The Maple Leafs have produced the same results in the regular season for years.

They have now finished second or third in their division in six straight years (excluding the 2020-21 year with the modified Canadian Division) and are also tied with the Bruins for the longest active streak of making the playoffs.

If Berube wants to win this award, the Maple Leafs will have to be dominant; they will have to win the Atlantic Division and likely the Eastern Conference for Berube to get a sniff.

Honestly, this award is going to belong to Sheldon Keefe at the end of the year after going to the New Jersey Devils. The Devils have an excellent young core that is only getting better, and they brought in a top-tier goaltender in Jacob Markstrom.

With the Devils missing the playoffs last year, mainly due to injuries and goaltending, Keefe is in a great spot to join a loaded team that will look more like the 2022-23 Devils, which tallied 112 points in the regular season.