St. Louis Blues forward Jordan Kyrou had to fight back tears during an emotional interview following his team's 4-2 win over the Ottawa Senators on Thursday night. Kyrou was so emotional because he was booed by Blues fans before and during Thursday's game following his cold response to the firing of head coach Craig Berube.
When asked about his relationship with Berube on Thursday, Kyrou simply said that he had no comment and that Berube was no longer his coach. It was perceived as a cold response, and immediately angered Blues fans because of how highly thought of Berube is in the city among the team's fans.
Berube spent six years as the team's head coach and brought the franchise its only Stanley Cup during his first year on the job.
After the game, Kyrou was clearly feeling the wrath of the fans.
Kyrou on getting booed by fans throughout tonight's game: "I see where they're coming from with how my comment sounded."
— Bally Sports Midwest (@BallySportsMW) December 15, 2023
And he gets emotional when saying: "It's just tough, right? I love playing here. So, it's just tough to hear the fans booing me there." #stlblues pic.twitter.com/FsRZPadaP7
A clearly emotional Kyrou said he loves playing in St. Louis, respects Berube and never intended for his comments to be perceived as they were.
There are a lot of layers to unpack here. The first is that a Stanley Cup champion will always hold a higher place in the eyes of fans over a player who has underachieved and disappointed. Kyrou is one of the Blues' highest-paid players and has not had a great season so far, scoring just five goals in the team's first 29 games. He is probably already on thin ice with the fans, and the Berube comment broke it.
But fans also don't have every piece of behind-the-scenes knowledge between a coach and a player. Maybe Berube and Kyrou had a tense relationship. Maybe it wasn't good. There could have been real issues and his response, cold as it seemed, may have been valid. We don't know. Fans don't know. We get mad at players for not giving honest answers in press conferences and then get mad at them when they do.
More must-reads:
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!