Former Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe wasn’t out of a job for long, as the New Jersey Devils are set to introduce him as their new bench boss.
According to reports, Keefe will join the Devils on a 4 year deal, replacing Lindy Ruff who will coach next season in Buffalo, and interim head coach Travis Green who was hired by the Ottawa Senators.
After spending parts of 5 seasons with the Maple Leafs, Keefe joins a Devils squad loaded with young talent, which has failed to turn their potential into postseason success. During his time in Toronto, the 43 year old amassed a 212-97-40 record behind the bench.
New Jersey has had an uneven showing over the past 3 seasons. The club posted a merger 63 points in 2021-22 before exploding for 112pts the following year. Unfortunately that success was short lived as the club fell back to earth in 2023-24, securing only 81 points and once again missing the playoffs.
The Devils will hope that Keefe’s track record of developing young players will pay dividends for the franchise after winning 5 straight CCHL championships and a Calder Cup during his rise through he coaching ranks.
New Jersey is expected to make the announcement official on Thursday, May 23rd.
Photo: TheAHL. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.