Craig Berube had done thousands of interviews with members of the media over his quarter-century as a player or coach in the National Hockey League. On Wednesday, he’ll turn the tables and be working in the media.
Berube, the only coach to lead the Blues to the Stanley Cup title in their 56 years in the league, is set to join TNT’s studio crew for its programming surrounding the telecast of the Los Angeles-Nashville contest. Coverage is set to begin at 6 p.m.
The assignment will be a way to get back into the game for Berube, who was fired by the Blues in mid-December with the team struggling.
“It’s going to be good,†he told the Post-Dispatch. “They asked me to do it, and I thought, ‘Why not?’ â€
Berube is scheduled to be on set for the pregame, between periods and postgame segments. He’ll fill a gap, as the studio show has been without a coach’s perspective. Rick Tocchet, a former NHL coach before becoming a popular analyst on the TNT program, left nearly 13 months ago to return to coaching — with the Vancouver Canucks — but was back in the studio for last season’s playoffs. However, he is guiding the Canucks again, so TNT is happy to have Berube coming in for what could be more than a one-night appearance.
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“In St. Louis, Craig had such a great run,†TNT ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ vice president and executive producer John O’Connor said. “We’re really excited to have him join the set this week to give a perspective from behind the bench of what he sees, his knowledge of 17 years of playing the game and coaching a Stanley Cup team.â€
Berube is to join former players Keith Yandle and Anson Carter on the show, which will be hosted by Liam McHugh.
“It’s one thing we always cherish on our set is having a coaches’ perspective — a perspective that position players don’t do. (With Tocchet) it was a good balance on the set. We’ve always missed that a little bit, X’s and O’s, breaking it down from a coach’s perspective. That’s important to our show.â€
TNT officials have had their eyes on Berube since he was fired.
“When you’ve got someone of his stature coming available ...,†O’Connor said.
But they did not want to rush things, as they do with people in similar situations.
“We give them a little grace period and let them figure out what they want to do,†he said.
O’Connor is confident Berube will fit in quickly.
“There’s a ton (of knowledge) there, and it will be great to tap into it,†he said. “We’re really excited to lean in on him a bit this week and get him comfortable on the set and get him going.â€
Berube said he has followed the game closely since his departure from St. Louis and returning to his base in the Philadelphia area, where he is mixing following hockey with a rare large amount of in-season family time.
“I haven’t done this in a long time, so it’s good that way,†he said. “I keep tabs of all the games, watch a lot of hockey. I go to games, too, Flyer games†and others. “I keep tabs there.â€
So he will be prepared for his studio work Wednesday.
“You talk about the game that’s on, but I’m sure there are other subjects that will come up around the league that we’ll discuss,†Berube said. “At the same time, we’re going to have fun, tell some stories. It should be a pretty laid-back atmosphere at TNT.â€
O’Connor said the crew will try to have a relaxing environment for Berube to make the transition.
“Day 1, we just want to make sure he’s comfortable and not put too much pressure on him,†O’Connor said. “What we tell folks who come in here who haven’t TV a whole heck of a lot is, as you can tell by our show ... it’s very laid back. We have a lot of fun on the set. We don’t ask the guys to be too serious, although they get serious at times when they need to. Everyone’s got their role, and that’s what we’ll ask of him. Just to tell us about the knowledge that he has, free-flowing conversation. Have fun, don’t worry about the camera (positioning), just hanging out with the guys talking hockey.
“I hope there will be a nice mix, I hope there will be good chemistry and Craig enjoys himself above all else. If he does, I don’t see why we wouldn’t roll him back in there.â€
Berube, 58, said he’ll “play it by ear†with any possible additional broadcasting work this season. But he made it clear what his long-term work plans are.
“I want to get back into coaching for sure,†he said, adding that he hasn’t explored any opportunities yet. “I’ll see what happens, what works out. I want it to be a good situation, work with good people and have an opportunity to win.â€
He looks back fondly on his time in St. Louis.
“It was a great job,†he said. “I loved it there, we had a lot of good seasons, a lot of success and worked with a lot of good people. The city, the town, the people were great. It was a really good spot.â€
Meanwhile, the TNT folks have a simple goal for Berube to try to attain — a target that they hope all newcomers to the studio reach.
“If you teach the fans one or two things over the course of the night, that’s a win,†O’Connor said. “... That’s a huge win for us. I think he’ll obviously deliver on that.â€
O’Connor added that the TNT people are “ecstatic†Berube will be coming aboard “to test the waters on something like this.
“He’s had a heck of a career. The guys on the set are really excited to get him in there. ... It’s going to be exciting. I have no doubt he’ll fit right in.â€