After Friday’s practice, head coach Craig Berube discussed Joseph Woll and Easton Cowan rejoining the team, the message to the players after four straight losses, and the latest on Auston Matthews and Chris Tanev’s injuries.
What kind of tone did you want to set in practice, given what the team is looking for?
Berube: Solutions. We did some of that before the last game. I liked some of what we worked on. It is more of the same today. We’re just defending too much. We need the puck more. We need to advance it more and get more of the play in the offensive zone.
The guys worked and had pretty good energy out there. Things aren’t good right now, and a lot of the time, you can come in and everyone is hanging their heads or going through the motions. I didn’t see that today. We had energy, the guys worked hard, and they did what we asked them to do.
We are trying to reinforce things here and get going in the right direction. You never know.
How do you feel about Easton Cowan and Joe Woll entering the lineup in the current situation?
Berube: Well, I’ve liked Cowboy this year, too. He has given us some really good games up here. It was just a move made for roster reasons, but he is back. He looked really good out there today, and we’re excited to have Woll back, too.
What are you hoping to see from William Nylander from a leadership perspective?
Berube: To me, he has shown it, and he has shown it in the room, too. On the ice, it is a little bit more consistency; there is a lot of good, but it is a little bit inconsistent. It’s just about staying with it and working.
When you get into these situations, as a team and as individuals, you have to work your way out of it. That is how you get out of it; yes, confidence is a funny thing, but if you want to get your confidence back, you work to get it back. That’s how you get your confidence back.
We are facing some adversity right now, so what are we going to do? We are going to go through that adversity. We’re going to go through that wall. Find a way to do it — climb over that wall, or whatever it is — and push your way through it as a team and as every individual.
How rare is it to have a team meeting on a day off, like on Monday?
Berube: In Boston? It wasn’t a day off. It was a travel day. We were traveling after back-to-back games, so when we got into Boston, we wanted to have a meeting after the weekend. That’s it.
What have you seen from Joseph Woll as he approaches his return to the crease?
Berube: Well, we haven’t seen him that much. He is the same old Joe to me in practice, from what I see. He is a hard worker. He looks good in the net. He went down and played a few games with the Marlies, and it is good to get game action. He seems normal and ready to go.
What does it mean to the team to have Woll back?
Berube: It means a lot to the team. His leaving at that point was a surprise. Obviously, it catches everybody off guard. He was a big part of our team last year.
You’ve coached a team that’s gotten off to a slow start before and turned it around, most famously in St. Louis in 2019. What’s the difference between the way the fans and media react in Toronto versus other places you’ve coached?
Berube: Well, you can answer that question for yourself, can’t you?
Obviously, there is a lot more media here. The Leafs are a huge part of hockey, obviously, and the NHL, obviously, and in Canada. There is a lot more talk and a lot more noise. We discussed that today, too.
You guys are going to do your job, and there are a lot of people who are going to talk. The Leafs are big. There is going to be a lot of talk about it, but you have to shut it off as best you can and focus on what you need to do night in and night out and every day in practice. You have to focus. That’s all.
It is a lot more. We know that. It is the nature of the beast.
How do you balance highlighting positives and inspiring confidence, but also pointing out the areas in need of improvement during a spell like this?
Berube: It is a balancing act, but you have to do both. You have to keep teaching and improving on mistakes, but at the same time, there is good stuff, too. You try to instill confidence that way. It is a balancing act, but you can’t just look away from mistakes and not try to correct them. That isn’t going to do anything.
What’s the latest on Auston Matthews, Anthony Stolarz, Brandon Carlo, Matthew Knies, and Chris Tanev?
Berube: Auston will be a week; I talked to you guys about that. Anthony is still day-to-day. Carlo and Knies were maintenance.
Nothing new on Tanev. It is trending in the right direction, but it is going to be a bit. I don’t know how long it will be yet for him.
Practice Lines – Nov. 14
Lines at Leafs practice
Robertson – Tavares – Nylander
Maccelli – Domi – McMann
Blais – Roy – Cowan
Joshua – Lorentz – Jarnkrok
Laughton (🛑)Rielly – Myers
Benoit – McCabe
Mermis – Ekman-LarssonWoll
Hildebyat Chicago tomorrow@TSN_Sports
— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) November 14, 2025
