When Craig Berube was a player in the NHL, there was no doubt about his status as a tough guy. If an opponent angered him or if he felt like standing up for a teammate, he was more than willing to throw down and engage his opposite number in a fight. Berube ranks seventh in NHL's list of penalty minutes leaders.
Craig Berube looks like he just got into a major street fight. 😅
(🎥: @Sportsnet)pic.twitter.com/fxsBwprsZS
— theScore (@theScore) January 23, 2026
Berube is a head coach now, and he is in his second year behind the Toronto Maple Leafs bench. Nobody expects him to get in fights any more, but Berube looked like he had been in a major battle when he met the media Friday morning. He was sporting a black eye and when he removed his cap, it was clear that he suffered a major head wound. He had multiple stitches on the top of his head.
Berube did not provide a lot of details about his appearance. He explained that he had gotten into an accident in the gym, but he wasn't going to discuss it further.
“I’m not going to talk about it. Nobody needs to know. It’s all good,” Berube said. “It was just a bad accident. It’s on me. My fault. I’m fine.”
Berube's condition is certainly a newsworthy event, but it is not the only big issue going on with the Leafs. Toronto is hosting the Vegas Golden Knights and the game marks the return of Mitch Marner to Toronto. Marner spent the first 9 years of his career with the Maple Leafs and he was one of their core players.
The reaction of the fans to his return to Toronto will be a key story. However, Marner's return will share the headlines with Berube's nasty looking head wound.




















