Kyrou ready for fresh start, mum on Berube's firing: 'Not my coach anymore'
St. Louis Blues forward Jordan Kyrou didn't have much to say when asked about his relationship with ex-head coach Craig Berube.
"I've got no comment," he said Thursday, per The Athletic's Jeremy Rutherford. "He's not my coach anymore."
Berube was removed from his post following St. Louis' 6-4 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday. Blues general manager Doug Armstrong discussed his decision to move on from the 2019 Stanley Cup champion in a press conference Wednesday, saying "things weren't changing" under Berube's direction.
Drew Bannister is now running the Blues' bench on an interim basis. Kyrou played under Bannister with the AHL's San Antonio Rampage for parts of the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons.
"It kind of feels like a little bit of a fresh start kind of thing," Kyrou said. "Yeah, we're all excited here. We want to turn the ship around right now and get our culture back a little bit and get back to how we know how to play hockey."
Kyrou has struggled through the first two months of the campaign, totaling five goals and 17 points in 28 games. The 25-year-old is in the first season of an eight-year, $65-million extension. He put up a career-high 37 goals in 79 contests in 2022-23.
In an effort to get Kyrou going again, Bannister put him on the top line with Pavel Buchnevich and Robert Thomas at practice.
"When you talk about Robbie, Buchy, Jordan, the most success they had was last year together," Bannister explained, per the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Matthew DeFranks. "I want to give our team the best opportunity to win tonight and I think it's having them on a line together. Jordan's one player that we have to get going, but both of those players have to help in that progress."
Some of Kyrou's teammates weren't as tight-lipped about Berube's dismissal on Wednesday.
"I guess the first emotions are you feel guilty," Captain Brayden Schenn said, according to NHL.com's Lou Korac. "You feel responsible for a lot of it. ... That one really stings for me personally because I've had him for so long and he's been so good for me throughout my career."
Goaltender Jordan Binnington, meanwhile, understands the onus is now on the players to perform better.
"We've got to be proud to wear that Blue Note jersey and proud to be part of this organization and play for this city," he said. "If you're not, just get out of here, because we're not wasting time. These are special years; being able to play in the NHL, it's a privilege."
St. Louis will square off against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.