Report: New Jersey Devils Had ‘Serious Talks’ with Craig Berube

According to a report, the New Jersey Devils and general manager Tom Fitzgerald have had extensive talks with former St. Louis Blues head coach Craig Berube regarding the team’s head coaching vacancy.

Berube, 58, coached the Blues from 2018-19 until being fired on Dec. 12 and won the Stanley Cup to triumphantly conclude his first season with the team.

The Blues were 13-14-1 when they fired Berube this season and ultimately ended up missing the Stanley Cup playoffs anyway.

Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen reported Sunday that Berube is “intrigued” by the Ottawa Senators’ job opening but was unable to confirm if the two sides have held official talks. Garrioch then wrote that Berube “. . . had serious talks with Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald about the club’s vacant post, but can pick and choose his next destination.”

If he was to be hired by the Devils, Berube would be making the third stop on his tour as an NHL head coach. “Chief” coached the Philadelphia Flyers for two seasons, making the playoffs in 2013-14 before being fired after missing the postseason in 2014-15.

After spending some time as a coach in the AHL, Berube resurfaced in the NHL three years after his Flyers stint, guiding the Blues to the Stanley Cup in 2019. The team progressively declined each year afterward and eventually missed the playoffs altogether in 2022-23. With another rough year in store, St. Louis decided to make a coaching switch early in the winter.

Berube will bring the hard-nosed, accountability-first style that certain factions of Devils fans have long craved. He is a different kind of coach compared to Lindy Ruff and John Hynes, to be certain, but bringing a new approach to a young Devils team could be the next step toward creating a true Stanley Cup contender.

In other Devils news, Garrioch also shared that “We’re told by league executives (Travis) Green is a ‘serious’ and ‘legitimate’ candidate for the Senators, has ‘as good a shot as anybody’. The belief is he’s met with (Steve) Staios twice.”

Former Los Angeles Kings coach Todd McLellan is also “believed” to have met with Fitzgerald and the Devils.