Sports

Blues Fire Coach Mike Yeo, Name Craig Berube As Interim

November 20, 2018 / 8:05 AM EST / CBS Detroit

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ST. LOUIS (AP) — Amid a disappointing showing that fell well short of Stanley Cup expectations, the St. Louis Blues fired coach Mike Yeo a quarter of the way into the season and named Craig Berube as his interim replacement.

NASHVILLE, TN - MAY 02: Head coach Mike Yeo of the St. Louis Blues talks to a referee after a penalty was called favoring the Nashville Predators during the third period of Game Four of the Western Conference Second Round during the 2017 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena on May 2, 2017 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)

St. Louis general manager Doug Armstrong announced the change hours after Monday night's loss to the Los Angeles Kings, the Blues' third shutout in the last four games. At 7-9-3, the Blues are in last place in the Central Division, and their 17 points rank next-to-last in the NHL, ahead of only Los Angeles.

DALLAS - JULY 25: General Manager Doug Armstrong introduces five new players for the Dallas Stars on July 25, 2006 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Something had to give for the Blues after they failed to make the playoffs last season, falling one point short when they lost to Colorado in their 82nd game. They lost in the second round under Yeo in 2017, after he was a midseason replacement for fired coach Ken Hitchcock.

After no coaches were fired last season, the 45-year-old Yeo is the third NHL coach to lose his job this month, following the Kings' John Stevens and the Blackhawks' Joel Quenneville. Yeo went 73-49-11 in parts of three seasons with the Blues, with one playoff series victory.

PHILADELPHIA - DECEMBER 19: Assistant coach Craig Berube of the Philadelphia Flyers looks on against the Carolina Hurricanes at Wachovia Center on December 19, 2006 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Hurricanes won 2-1. (Photo by Len Redkoles/Getty Images)

Berube had been an associate coach on Yeo's staff since the summer of 2017. Before that, he was coach of the Blues' AHL affiliate and has NHL head-coaching experience from parts of two seasons with Philadelphia.

The 52-year-old Berube is a midseason replacement for the second time, after replacing Peter Laviolette with the Flyers three games into the 2013-14 season. Berube played 1,054 NHL games and racked up 159 points and 3,149 penalty minutes.

Yeo joined the Blues as an assistant in 2016 after five seasons with Minnesota. The Wild made the playoffs in three of Yeo's four full seasons, and he was fired 55 games into 2015-16.

OTTAWA, CANADA - OCTOBER 11: Head coach Mike Yeo of the Minnesota Wild, speaks to the media following a game against the Ottawa Senators, during the NHL home opener to kick-off the 20th anniversary season of the Ottawa Senators, at Scotiabank Place on October 11, 2011 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Jana Chytilova/Freestyle Photography/Getty Images)

The Blues came into the season with championship aspirations after acquiring center Ryan O'Reilly in a trade from Buffalo and signing forwards Tyler Bozak, Patrick Maroon and David Perron. Yeo was considered to be on the hot seat, and two consecutive losses led to his dismissal.

Following the late-night announcement, the team called a news conference for Tuesday morning with Armstrong and Berube.

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St. Louis Blues