St. Louis Blues Officially Make Craig Berube Head Coach With New Deal

Craig Berube Stanley Cup Championship, NHL Blues vs Bruins, Boston, USA - 12 Jun 2019. Photo by Eric Canha/CSM/Shutterstock (10303551de)

Craig Berube coached St. Louis Blues to a Stanley Cup win as an interim head coach in the past season. In the 2019/20 NHL season, however, he will try to do it again but this time as a full-time head coach.

Blues confirmed on Tuesday that they have officially signed Berube to a three-year contract which will keep him with the organization through 2022.

“Craig made an enormous impact on our team when he took over last November,” – said general manager Doug Armstrong in a statement. “He restored our identity and provided our players with a clear sense of direction and purpose. The chemistry and trust that he developed with our players was integral in bringing our franchise the 2019 Stanley Cup.”

Craig Berube joined the Blues organization in 2016 when he took over the head coaching duties for the team’s AHL affiliate Chicago Wolves. The following year, he was elevated to an assistant coaching position with the Blues.

After St. Louis Blues fired head coach Mike Yeo due to a poor start of the season, Berube took over and led the team to an improbable run which saw them win 38 out of following 63 games. The fairytale continued in the postseason as Blues managed to clinch their first ever Stanley Cup in the franchise’s history.

“This is a proud day for me and my family,” – Berube said in the statement. “I have a tremendous amount of respect for this team and this organization and the city of St. Louis has embraced me as one of their own. This past season was the experience of a lifetime and I’m anxious to get started on our title defense.”

Berube’s previous coaching experience in NHL includes a two-year stint with the Philadelphia Flyers. He posted a 75-58-28 record with the Flyers before being relieved of his duties in 2015.