HC Craig Berube makes his thoughts on revamped Maple Leafs PP unit's effectiveness extremely clear

By Abhilasha Aditi

Modified Nov 04, 2024 15:49 GMT

Coach Craig Berube has made a bold change to the Toronto Maple Leafs’ power play, deciding to use five forwards in the lineup. Usually, there are three forwards and two D-men in the power-play unit. This shift comes as the Maple Leafs struggle to find success with the man advantage, even with some of the league’s top scorers on their roster.

In Sunday's game against the Minnesota Wild, Berube put out a five-forward power-play unit in the third period. The lineup included captain Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, John Tavares, William Nylander and Matthew Knies.

Berube explained that his main goal is to build the team’s confidence and focus, areas he feels need improvement. By putting the team’s best offensive players on the ice together, he hopes to create more scoring chances and build momentum in upcoming games.

"Well, confidence, right? It is one. We have to keep working on it," Berube said. "If you look at that power play, we shot a lot of pucks. There was a little more directness, which was good, and then a seamed opened up, and we hit it. We have talked about [running five forwards] for a bit, and we decided to go with it today."

This adjustment is Berube’s latest attempt to solve a problem that has persisted since the season began. He has put in extra practice time focusing on special teams and has experimented with various player combinations, even rotating Morgan Rielly and Oliver Ekman-Larsson as the power-play quarterback.

Recently, Berube decided to separate Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner from John Tavares and William Nylander, forming two balanced power-play units. He believes this approach will spread offensive threats across both lines, reducing the team’s reliance on one stacked lineup and making each unit more effective independently.

Still, these lineup adjustments may not solve everything. Issues like zone entries, urgency and careless penalties have also hurt the team’s power play.

Mitch Marner calls for positivity as Maple Leafs struggle with discipline and power play

Mitch Marner of the Maple Leafs also stressed the importance of staying positive and confident, even though the results haven't come yet.

"We're working on it nonstop. We're trying to figure things out. It's not like we're not," Marner said. "It'll eventually click, so we can't get frustrated with one another. We gotta stay confident. We gotta know we're doing the right things. And we will get results."

Despite the new strategy, the Maple Leafs' power play is still not working, as shown in their recent 4-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues. Max Domi, an important player, is also under pressure this season. He is still looking for his first goal since signing his biggest contract and has struggled to make an impact without Nylander on his line.

Until the team starts scoring, Berube's changes may seem more like a work in progress than a true solution.