Craig Berube Takes a Subtle Shot at Mitch Marner in Training Camp Press Conference

As the Toronto Maple Leafs were eliminated from the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Head Coach Craig Berube buried his team after the defeat to the Florida Panthers, and it's led to a summer of many changes.

The biggest change of all was of course Mitch Marner's departure, and while it will create a hole on the team's top line, it could also be a positive given all of the negative attention around No. 16 in recent years, especially with hat happened following his departure.

As the Maple Leafs return for training camp ahead of the 2025/26 campaign, Berube was asked about Marner's departure, and while he went into further depth, he fired a subtle shot at the star forward, as he stated that he's glad he no longer has to hear the term 'Core Four'.

Clearly Berube was joking around, but given the firestorm that followed Marner and his subsequent departure from Toronto, it's easy to see why a no-nonsense coach like Berube would be excited by less drama around the team moving forward.

Ultimately, Marner's departure brought up many emotions for fans, teammates and coaches, but now that they're beyond that drama, this is a team looking forward to a potentially successful run in 2025/26 without him, but the Head Coach couldn't let him depart without one final, hilarious shot at the veteran forward.