Leafs head coach Craig Berube calls out one of his young players in press conference

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Julien Trekker
October 20, 2024 (11:34)

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The Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube called out one of his young players, Pontus Holmberg, in his post-game press conference last night.

After only five games played into the season, it's not surprising to see that some players still haven't found their stride. Last night, in the Toronto Maple Leafs game against the New York Rangers, a few players performed well for the Leafs, but the best player on the ice was without a doubt the Rangers' goalie Igor Shesterkin. He ended the night with a .971 save percentage, stopping 34 shots fired at him and allowing only one goal.

In his post-game comments, coach Berube went straight to the point as always: they have to execute better.

In his own words:

"We had opportunities. I think we can do a better job of taking his eyes away a little bit more. We had a lot of looks. We got to execute better in the third on the power play and 6-on-5."

The coach didn't stop there, as he called out one of the Leafs young players: Pontus Holmberg. According to Berube, Holmberg is a step behind right now, but could get back in the right direction if he battled harder:

"He's got to battle a little bit harder for pucks and hang onto the pucks a little bit more like he was in training camp. He looks just a little step behind right now maybe"

The Rangers are one of the top teams in the NHL, but the Leafs are too. If the team wants to win a Stanley Cup, they must be able to beat any organization, including other top contenders.

We'll see how Holmberg bounces back on Monday, as the Leafs receive the Tampa Bay Lightning in an Atlantic Division matchup.