ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ

For two minutes on Saturday night at Enterprise Center, Blues fans gave former coach Craig Berube the ovation of a lifetime. Now the coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Berube was back for his first game in St. Louis since being fired in December of 2023.

“He’s an icon,� Blues fan Jill Strole said at Enterprise Center. She pulled off her gray Blues hoodie to proudly display a blue Blues T-shirt that read: “Gloria Met Stanley.�

He is forever the one. Berube. He cracked the code. He did what the others couldn’t — and a couple of those other coaches, arguably, had better talent at their disposal. Berube coached the Blues to the Stanley Cup. Their only one. St. Louisans always will remember where they were the night the Blues beat Boston in Game 7 of the 2019 Final.

And so, Berube is beloved.

St. Louis fans refer to him by his longtime nickname, “Chief,� as if they know him. He is a local legend. And while some Cardinals managers are iconic for winning it all — namely, Red, Whitey and Tony — Berube is in unique, rarefied air, since he was the first coach to ever do it in St. Louis. Heck, he was the first coach since 1970 to even lead the Blues to the Stanley Cup Final.

And he did it his way.

“N´Ç°ù³Ù³ó.â€�

â€Æྱ°ù±ð³¦³Ù.â€�

“H²¹°ù»å.â€�

Those were his words, day-in, day-out. It was seemingly simple — to win, simply play this simplified style of hockey. Of course, it was much more sophisticated and demanding and taxing than that. But the no-nonsense Berube, who was one of the toughest players of his era, set the tone.

“A lot of good things happen here,� said Berube, who famously doesn’t speak over-the-top or overshare. “The team, the organization, the players, the trainers, I’m close with all those guys. So a lot of good memories.�

Asked what it meant to be loved in St. Louis, Berube said: “You know, it’s special — like, it really is. And I don’t look for that stuff or, you know, I don’t expect it. But it’s a special thing. It means a lot.�

OB Clark’s in Brentwood opened in 1978. Because of its proximity to the Blues practice rink at the time and the gregarious nature of the O’Brien family ownership, “OB’s� became St. Louis’ hockey bar — and, especially, the St. Louis Blues’ hockey bar. For generations, the Norms and Cliffs of this “Cheers� have been missing a few teeth.

And, naturally, this bar was the destination for Blues players and fans the day after the boys won the Cup.

Jimmy O’Brien first met Berube when he came to the bar with Kelly Chase. Sure enough, Berube became a coach in the Blues’ system and then, of course, coach. Berube would often visit “OB’s,� but always made sure to leave if (or, really, when) the players showed up.

“The reason ‘Chief’ is loved, in my opinion, is he’s a regular guy,� the bar owner O’Brien said. “You can just look at him, he pretty much commands respect, you know, physically. And he’ll sit there and talk to you and be honest with you. And if you said something that (he disagreed with), he would say, ‘No, no, that’s wrong.’ He’s just a normal guy that, you know, doesn’t have a normal job. Everybody can relate to him, because they feel he’s so honest. It’s not fake.�

On Friday, the Maple Leafs arrived to St. Louis. Berube and friends had dinner at Clayton’s Café Napoli and then headed over to “OB’s.� As Berube walked into the bar, numerous tables of fans cheered and applauded the old coach, O’Brien said. And during the night, several people stopped at Berube’s table for a photo or autograph.

At Enterprise Center the next night, Bruno Lacaria sat in the first row in Section 115, right on the glass. A lifelong Leafs fan, he was accompanied by his wife, mother-in-law and two sons, who both have the initials N.H.L. Lacaria lives in the Chicago area, so they drove in to see the his favorite team. And he wore a rare Toronto jersey from 1991-92 with BERUBE 16 on the back.

“I climbed mountains to try to get this Berube jersey,� he said. “I had to buy the jersey off eBay and then ship it to a company called Hockey Authentic in Vancouver, who happened to have the exact same font numbers and everything from the ’90s, because Berube played the one year there. I was determined to get a Berube jersey, and I pulled it off and glad to be here for his return.�

The Blues’ first season was 1967-68. Took them until 2019 to win the Cup.

Well, the famed Maple Leafs, an original NHL franchise, haven’t won the Cup since the year before the Blues existed — 1966-67.

Berube could become their Berube.

“With (previous coach Sheldon) Keefe, he could be hard, but I feel there was a little bit too much coddling and whatnot with him,� Lacaria said. “So I think it was time to just bring in a new voice — someone who’s not going to let them get away with the cute stuff.

“Like, (William) Nylander last game scored two goals, but then didn’t back-check and gave the puck away at center ice — and Berube let him have it on the bench. And he’s let (Auston) Matthews have it. I think it’s good. It’s about the team. It’s not about the name on the back of the jersey. He’ll hold them accountable.�

Yup, sounds like “Chief.�