Toronto Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe speaks to media during an end-of-season availability in Toronto, on Monday, May 15, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
NASHVILLE – Sheldon Keefe kept his job after an unsettling process.
The Maple Leafs head coach also knows he’s getting a second chance.
On the job a month after replacing the fired Kyle Dubas, Toronto general manager Brad Treliving announced this week Keefe will return behind the bench following a series of meetings between the two men to ensure the fit was right.
“Thrilled to be back,” Keefe said Thursday on Day 2 of the NHL draft. “It’s been a process, but a good process – a thorough one. Obviously, at times uncertain and uncomfortable, but a good process and a necessary one in understanding the position that Brad in the organization are in.
“Thrilled to continue on.”
Treliving didn’t know Keefe before signing on as GM in hockey’s biggest market, and drilled down on the coach to see if they could work together.
Keefe, who is entering the final year of his contract, made the grade.
“Approached it as though I was starting anew,” Keefe said. “That interaction with Brad to me was over the course of a number of days and very thorough – a mix of my beliefs and my philosophy and going through that process as you would as though you’re interviewing for any job.
“Where we’ve been, what we’ve been through, how we’ve handled different situations, where I think the team is at. And then there was some time there where there was uncertainty.”
Keefe is 166-71-30 since taking over as Toronto’s coach in 2019, including 115- and 111-point showings the last two seasons, but playoff success has been much harder to come by for the Original Six franchise.
The Leafs advanced in the post-season for the first time in 19 years this spring before meekly exiting in the second round.
There were questions about Keefe’s future even before Dubas was fired following a bizarre stretch that culminated in team president Brendan Shanahan handing the GM his walking papers.
“I’m on the sidelines, right?” Keefe said of that awkward period. “It’s out of my control and there’s a lot of things playing out.
“Knew that when it was my turn, that I would get some sort of communication.”
Dubas hired Keefe in the Ontario Hockey League, American Hockey League and NHL.
“He’s been a massive part of my career,” said the coach. “I’ve grown tremendously working with him. He’s done a terrific job to put our organization in a really good spot.
“Also worked without him at different times along the way, and I’ve enjoyed those as well.”
Dubas indicated he would either remain with the Leafs or take time away from the game before getting fired. He then surfaced with the Pittsburgh Penguins as their president of hockey operations some 30 minutes before Treliving met the Toronto media for the first time at Scotiabank Arena in late May.
“I’m happy Kyle’s landed on his feet,” Keefe said. “Fresh perspective and working with new people thus far has been really good for me.”
Treliving and Keefe spent somewhere in the neighbourhood of 17 hours in those meetings before the call was made on his future.
“Important decision for him, so I was available for whatever he needed,” Keefe said of his new boss. “While uncomfortable at times in terms of some of the questions and the uncertainty for myself, he was easy to talk to and made it comfortable.
“The more time you spend together, you get more and more excited about working with him.”
Keefe was also asked about a potential contract extension.
“That’ll play itself out,” he said. “A lot of things on (Treliving’s) list right now. I understand that, and when the timing is right, we’ll spend some time to talk about it and see what works for both the organization and myself.”
Keefe said Treliving indicated he was impressed with how Toronto’s best players – Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, John Tavares and William Nylander – have defended the last few seasons.
The pair also share a belief the Leafs can win with its “Core Four” moving forward.
“Brad’s put it very well in that it’s really hard to get good players,” Keefe said. “Brad’s gonna continue to go through his process and do everything possible to give us the best possible team on the ice.
“As much as we haven’t gotten to exactly where we need to get to, it’s hard not to acknowledge the fact that there has been progress … (but) we still live in the reality of just how difficult it is to get all the way through it.”
Keefe will get the chance to help make that happen.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 29, 2023.
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