Maple Leafs HC Craig Berube bluntly pushes back on Toronto’s prior 'Core 4’ label

Toronto Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube made it clear that he doesn’t like the “Core 4” label that has followed the team for years. The term referred to Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander and John Tavares, but Berube believes hockey is about more than four players. For him, success depends on the whole team working together.

Berube said he has always believed in a team-first approach.

“It’s a team game, I’ve always been team-first,” Berube said, via TSN on Friday. “Every guy has to put the team ahead of himself to be successful in this league.”

Berube wants everyone to contribute and focus on team success rather than individual names.

The “Core 4” era came to an end this summer when Mitch Marner was traded to the Vegas Golden Knights. That move ended a long period where those four players carried most of the attention and pressure in Toronto. While they were important to the team’s success, Berube feels that too much responsibility was placed on them alone.

“I hear ‘Core 4’ all the time,” Berube said. “But it’s not just those four guys winning or losing hockey games—it’s the whole team.”

He added that even the players involved were likely tired of the label.

“The guys who were lumped into that ‘Core 4’ probably had enough of it.”

Berube understands that top players have to perform, but he also believes hockey is about balance and consistency.

“You need your best players to be your best players, I get that,” he said. “But over the years, with the ‘Core 4,’ it felt like it was all on them all the time. And it’s not all on them—it’s a team game.”

He pointed to Game 7 last season as an example of what can happen when pressure builds too much.

“You don’t have to be great every night,” Berube said. “You just need to be good, predictable, and consistent. I think maybe that hurt us in Game 7 a little bit. After the first period, we started doing some uncharacteristic things, and that ended up costing us the hockey game.”

---

Former Maple Leafs president talked about "Shanaplan"

In the recently released Prime Video series, "Faceoff: Inside the NHL," former Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan spoke about his “Shanaplan”. It focused on drafting young players like Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander. When he traded for John Tavares in 2018, the Leafs' "core four was officially formed.

He talked about his plan in episode four.

"I think what we’ve built, I’m confident that they can still get the job done," Shanahan said.

Now, the Leafs will start the 2025-26 season on October 8 without Marner as part of their core. They will open their season against the Montreal Canadiens.