Sheldon Keefe was fired as coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday. No replacement was named.
The Maple Leafs lost the Eastern Conference First Round in seven games to the Boston Bruins and have advanced beyond the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs once (2023) since 2004. They went 46-26-10 in the regular season to finish third in the Atlantic Division with 102 points.
“Today’s decision was difficult,” Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving said. “Sheldon is an excellent coach and a great man; however, we determined a new voice is needed to help the team push through to reach our ultimate goal. We thank Sheldon for his hard work and dedication to the organization over the last nine years, and wish him and his family all the very best.”
Just once in their past 14 postseason games have the Maple Leafs scored more than two goals in a game, when they defeated the Bruins 3-2 in Game 2. They were 1-for-21 on the power play (4.8 percent) in the series after they were seventh in the regular season (24.0 percent).
In a video posted to his social media account on Thursday, Keefe took responsiblity for Toronto’s postseason failures.
“I didn’t get it done in the playoffs, I didn’t help push our team over the line and deliver. I accept responsibility for that. No excuses. That’s the job, I didn’t get it done,” Keefe said. “It’s the reality of the business and I accept it. To the players, I appreciate all your efforts. Your talents, your work ethic made me look good on a lot of nights. Anyone who stood up for blue and white I appreciate you. To the support staff of the Maple Leafs, you’re tremendous people, you’re elite at what you
