Every now and then a story comes along that isn’t really about what happened – it’s about Why it happened. It’s a story that suggests that everything we hear from rumor mongers is wrong. It’s also a story about the shared brotherhood between coaches, and how it comes to someone who’s been there.
DeBoer contacts Berube to dispel false rumors
On Saturday headlinesElliotte Friedman dropped one of those quiet little details that tell you more than meets the eye. Peter DeBoer, currently unemployed, contacted Craig Berube through a mutual contact. Not to fish for the Maple Leafs job. Not to wait in the wings. So to put it this way: I’m not circling around here.
So why does that matter? It’s because anyone who has watched the league long enough knows how this usually goes. A coach gets a little heat. The team enters a difficult period. And suddenly a name floats around behind him like a shadow. Sometimes it’s internal. Sometimes it is a clear external fit.
In this case, people connected the dots pretty quickly. DeBoer has coached great teams. He has dealt with print markets. On paper, the fit had some meaning.
But DeBoer has been there and he knows the deal: he has traded
But DeBoer has been there before. He’s the guy on the bench whose name is whispered as another coach waits for him. And by his own admission, he didn’t enjoy it. Who would?
So DeBoer did something rare in this industry: he took the time to find the connection and sucked the oxygen out of the rumor.
Both DeBoer and Berube are respected throughout the league. Also old-fashioned respect, the kind that isn’t based on social media or sound bites. DeBoer knew that silence could increase pressure on a fellow coach. So he chose the opposite. He quietly announced that he wasn’t waiting for the door to open.
Meanwhile, GM Brad Treliving tried to blow away the smoke
Meanwhile, Brad Treliving did what general managers need to do if they actually believe in their coach. He publicly supported Berube. He didn’t cover. Treliving just gave his coach a clear vote of confidence. The message was that Berube is our man.
In this case, a professional coach understood the weight of his name and the situation his colleague found himself in. He chose not to make things louder, but to ease some of the stress. It was a moment of understanding, but it tells a lot about DeBoer.
Good for him.
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