Sheldon Keefe Will Become The New Jersey Devils’ Next Head Coach

Sheldon Keefe Will Become The New Jersey Devils’ Next Head Coach

Sheldon Keefe is set to become the next head coach for the Devils I know a lot of people are a little skeptic just based on what happened in Toronto but I think there’s more to that story than what meets the eye and I think ke is gonna be just fine we have a lot to break down today’s episode locked on Devils up everybody you’re locked on Devils your daily podcast on the New Jersey Devils part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day hi this is Bryce Salvador and you’re locked on Devils Trey Matthews oh Steven stepped up nailor got the P what a shot the Devils win the Stanley Cup all righty now what is up New Jersey welcome back to the lockon Devils podcast here on the lockon network I’m your host College hockey PL a play announcer dels rer for Puck and Pitch forks and also part-time credential Mia member Trey Matthews at long last the New Jersey Devils have found their next head coach the keth has arrived Sheldon Keith is set to be behind the bench for the Devils this upcoming season it’s been a long time coming and I was hoping an announcement would be made before Memorial Day and here we are in the first segment I’ll talk about as to whether or not Keith was the right hire for New Jersey because that’s been a Hot Topic amongst the devil’s discourse people have their difference of opinion perspective whatever the case might be about who should be taking the Reigns for the Devils because right now is a critical time for them especially since their young core is locked up for the next few seasons and people want to try to capitalize on the youth while the devil still got it then in the second segment speaking of the core I’ll talk about my expectations moving forward for New Jersey because the main Domino piece has fallen the Devils finally got their head coach but make no mistake the job is not finished and then in the third segment some people have been leaving comments under a decent amount of my videos saying like maybe this former Devil’s player should become the next head coach or how about this first year coach who recently was coaching an NCAA team maybe they should be entrusted to take the Reigns for New Jersey and I’ll express my opinions on that and why I’m comfortable with the Devils hiring Sheldon ke and if any of you are skeptical remember the last time the Devils hired a Toronto Maple Lees Coach Pat Burns and what happened in 2003 I think the Devils were hoisting the Stanley Cup for the third time if my memory serves me well remember I was just I was a little tip then so I I’m I’m asking you but anyway let’s talk about Sheldon ke how did this come about well rear Admiral you might know him best as one of the co-hosts of spit and chicklets he put out on X and said here’s a little nugget for you Sheldon Keith will be the next head coach for the devils and then that sort of set off a chain of a reaction of responses because Darren Dreger said good Scoop Keith is in fact the new head coach of the devils and he followed up and said sounds like four years total including the two years owned by the leag and Pierre LeBron he clarified something he said devils are expected to make the KE hire official today ke had a two-year extension kicking in with the Leafs next season but the Devils ripped that up and signed him to a fresh four-year deal and LeBron also added on to that and said hint gotta raise over what the two-year extension would have paid Tom Fitzgerald he came out to play he got the checkbook and said whatever they’re paying you I will double it of course I think that’s a line from a movie but you get the point the main question that a lot of people have was this the right hire for the devils and personally I am satisfied with this hiring because let’s look at kei’s track history I know he doesn’t have extensive history of being a NHL head coach but in the five years that he was with Toronto he saw some decent success first and foremost his record 212 12 97 and 40 during the regular season that’s incredible if you ask me in 2020 during the NHL bubble they lost in the qualifying round to the Columbus Blue Jackets 2021 lost in the first round to the Canadians I believe they blew a three to one lead 2022 lost in the first round to the lightning who were coming off of backto back titles 2023 lost in the second round to the eventual Eastern Conference Champion Panthers 2024 lost in the first round to the Bruins almost did the improbable Bruins almost blowing another three to one lead and coming out on the losing end but ultimately posto put the game to bed inot and also I don’t want to take this away from Keith but he’s been in the Toronto Organization for quite some time because prior to being a head coach for the Maple Leaves he was Leading The Way for their AHL affiliate the Toronto Marley and he won the culer Cup in 2018 and to add on to that somebody reached out to me on social media and said you forgot to mention that he took the bankrupt Penbrook Lumber Kings to five straight League championships and the RBC Canadian Junior national champions Devil’s getting a gift all right I I I guess add that to the resume as well in three straight Seasons the leas finished with 100 plus points they were also one of the top teams in the NHL in the expected goals four category says a lot about their offense I think that track history whether it was in juniors AHL NHL it’s pretty respectable and he’s a young guy he’s only 43 he’s in his early 40s and he definitely has a lot to Showcase and I think he’s only begun to scratch the surface of being a head coach at the NHL level here’s a classic argument that people have brought up on social media or have left a comment under one of my YouTube videos which is Will Keith just be satisfied with getting the Devils to the first round and that’s that I have to debunk that narrative I think it’s complete BS and here’s why the Maple Leaves are not the devils and I mean that in the most respectable way possible if you’re a maple Le fan and you’re listening to this I mean no disrespect because the Maple Leafs they play in the mecca of hockey Toronto Ontario Canada they’re an original 16am and they are very popular regardless of where they finish but since 2004 they have only Advanced to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs once and who was at the Helm of the leavs it was Sheldon Keith we cannot take that away from him and since 2004 the Devils have seen themselves in the playoffs a few times including a Stanley Cup run in 2012 ultimately they lost to the LA Kings but that’s further than what the maple have gotten in the past 20 or so years just putting that out there in my opinion I don’t think that narrative is relevant in this case because it’s not Sheldon Keith’s fault that the Maple Leaves didn’t build a more successful playoff roster because here’s the thing the maple leafes they will always see a lot of great regular season success because you got the core four you got Austin Matthews Mitch Marner William nander John tavarus that’s great and all but what is the one thing or two things that the maple Lees are missing and I think the Devils can definitely relate to that and I’ll talk more that in the second segment it’s defense and goal tending that’s what’s going to kill them going forward and my buddy Jersey Joe of draft Pro Hockey texted me this analogy which is Keith is the chef and the Maple Leafs are giving him the ingredients it’s like make a five-star course but you’re missing this ingredient you’re missing that ingredient you’re also missing this third ingredient and we expect Perfection I don’t think think Keith was given a fair shot in Toronto because that’s more of on the front office and the GM for not fixing the issue a few years ago because it’s wash rinse and repeat with this Maple leafes team which is why they get bounced out in the first round frequently the Devils on the other hand they’ve had their fair share struggles as well and uh to keep to keep myself honest they’ve only made the playoffs what like twice in the last decade or so but they’ve made it to second round more often than Leafs had since 2004 just putting that out there I think ke did a good job with the Maple Leaves and I don’t think it’s his fault that his team didn’t advance past the first round because he’s got to work with what he’s being given and I also talk about how a coach needs to be adaptable and I think he did do that during the playoffs Matthew sustained a quotequote weird hit which sideline him for games five and six and the Maple Leafs ended up winning both of those games and awesome Matthews is their Superstar player I think Keith did a good job of being adaptable and trying to work with what he’s being given and I think that showcases his potential so I I don’t agree with the narrative saying like he’s only going to lead the Devils to the playoffs and they’re never going to advance past the first round it really depends on the team and it depends on the organization but I will add on to that and say like the Devils still have some work to do so that way they don’t become Maple Leaves 2.0 what do I mean by that well I’ll talk about that momentarily but before we continue let me tell you guys about indeed indeed is the hiring platform where you can attract interview and hire allinone place instead of spending hours on multiple job sites and searching for candidates with the right skills indeed it’s a powerful hiring platform that can help you do it all indeed streamline hiring with powerful tools that find you match candidates with instant match over 80% of employers get quality candidates whose resume on indeed matches their job description the moment they sponsor a job according to indeed data us one of the things I love about indeed is that it makes hiring all inone place so easy I used indeed before to book myself some play-by-play gigs and I continue to do so to this day start hiring now with a $75 sponsor job credit to upgrade your job post at indeed.com logdon offer good for a limited time claim your $75 credit now at indeed.com lockon indeed.com loock on terms and conditions apply need to hire you need indeed and maybe the devil’s found Sheldon Keef on indeed okay let’s talk about my expectations for this Devil’s team moving forward and we’ll touch on the offseason and also next year Ryan osinski spoke spoke with a Devils player and this player anonymously said quote he’s got a very motivated group to work with after the year we had I think the devils are a little ticked off because they missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs despite having such a historic season last year and let’s face it it was a complete circus for New Jersey with the amount of injuries they dealt with the head coaching change a little more than halfway done and now this is going to be like the group’s third head coach within the last few months they had Lindy Ruff Travis Green and now Sheldon Keefe and I really hope that Sheldon Keefe is here for the long run and I know that NHL coaches usually have a very short leash but you need to have some sort of consistent voice with this young Corp for the devils and I talked about how the Devils could sort of become like the mapley 2.0 here’s how they have to avoid it Tom fitgerald the job is not finished this team still needs a decent goalie and grittier defenseman because the issues that the Devils had this season are similar issues that the maple Lees have been dealing with which is very being very topheavy and being a a high octane offense but no defense to really balance it out because it doesn’t matter if you score three goals if you surrender four or five and I think there’s been a decent amount of examples in which the Devils lost games in that sort of manner and I really hope that they fix the issues during the off season because it doesn’t matter if Sheldon Keefe is behind the bench it doesn’t matter who’s behind the bench if the Devils do not improve their goal tending or if they don’t improve their defense it’s going to result in the same thing that he saw in Toronto I think Sheldon Keith is a good higher I think he has a lot of potential but the one thing I got to say for Fitzgerald is that you need to give him a chance you really need to make sure he’s here for the long run and you need to give him a better roster to work with because an inexperience blue line and a goalie tandem of kakenan and Allen that’s not going to get you far in the playoffs if you reach that point but the goal for the Devils for a time being is to get back to the player so for anyone who’s saying like the devils are going to be bounced out in the first round well first they need to get to that point before they’re bounced out that’s the goal for New Jersey they’re not again they’re not the maple Le where the maple Le have Championship aspirations and I have the utmost faith that Keith will lead them back to the playoffs but the devil still need to work the phone lines and see who else they could get for this roster to give Sheldon Keith a better chance because the core for that he worked with in Toronto they’re established NHL players ausome Matthews superstar in this league Mitch Marner and William neander they’re also solid contributors as well and they know how to rack up the points and John tarz he’s the captain he’s sailing that ship and he’s been in the league for a while but for this Devils team here’s their core four Jack Hughes Nico heser jper brat teimo Meyer all those guys have a lot of respect around the league but their ceiling can go much much much higher they haven’t even begun to scratch the surface I think Jack Hughes he can get his name into the same breath as Austin Matthews Nico heser can do similar things as Patrice buron being a good two-way player jper brat a sniper a Bonafide score and teimo Meyer what power Ford scores 40 goals it doesn’t just grow on trees he’s been given a gift in my opinion and I think that’s one of the reasons why he couldn’t pass up the devil’s gig because he saw how this roster is constructed now a lot of people are wondering how will he treat the players because that’s also been a big talking point the last few weeks some people think that the Devils need a drill sergeant others think that the Devils need a mellow type of coach and I’ve said it on this show I really don’t care the personality of what a coach brings I don’t care if it’s like John torella I don’t care if it’s uh someone who has Lindy ruff’s uh coaching metric which is just being a little more calm cool collected and more patient with the media it just comes down to how do the players respond to that coach you guys got to remember this isn’t like a travel program this isn’t High School these are grown men and I think all them will be motivated in more ways than one I don’t think they need to hire a drill sergeant to get underneath their skin here’s the thing I liked Craig baru based on his track history but some people brought up the fact that he can be a little bit of a hard ass and I didn’t really care I said okay I think his track history is just fine and it’s the same reason why I’m okay with Sheldon keth I don’t really think personality plays a big factor here can the Devils be a little immature at times yeah yes but they’re one of the youngest teams in the NHL I just said the core four they’re established NHL players you just got to be a little bit more patient with them and they exceeded expectations so we see where they can take their team and I think regardless of what coach is behind the bench I’ve said in the prior episode this Devil’s team is going to be just fine in my eyes and Sheldon Keefe being I guess reportedly a mellow type of person I don’t think that’s going to have that bad of effect on the Devils just like I don’t think Craig baru style of coaching would have had a bad effect on the Devils I think it just comes down to how do the players respond because an example that I gave in Prior episodes is like Mike Babcock he is notoriously known for being a hard ass and he’s a former Stanley Cup champion with the Detroit Red Wings but his players didn’t respond all that well to him but the difference between him and John torella the player respond well to torts and I think the players in Toronto they responded well to Keef it was just like they they had to work with what they’re being given that’s my point regardless drill sergeant Mr Rogers whatever the case might be I think it just comes down to how do the players respond to this coach and I think they’re going to be just fine all right we know that Sheldon Keefe is set to become the devil’s next head coach at the time of recording it is not made official but when this episode goes live within the next few hours I would expect the Devils PR team to release something but there was an article recently put out there by Ryan novinski that the Devils conducted an interview with Ryan warski who is an assistant coach for San Jose and he would have been a first year head coach if hired by the devils some other people brought up Jay pandoo who won two Stanley Cups with the devils in 200 2003 right now he is a head coach for the Boston University Terriers and one of his players is set to become the first overall pick in this year’s draft and that is Macklin celebrini pandoo respected former player amongst the devil’s discourse and other people were entertaining the fact maybe get Larry Robson out of retirement Scott Stevens somebody to become the head coach behind the bench because people were saying like this Devil’s team does need a spark and I do agree with you to an extent but I am more focused on coaches who have coached in the modern NHL because the game is constantly changing and I don’t know how I feel about bringing a first year coach or a coach who hasn’t been behind the bench in years I I just think it’s in the devil’s best interest to just play it safe and just find a coach who coached recently in the NHL and maybe if put in the right system and has the right set of players can really do a lot of good things and I think Sheldon Keith can definitely be that person and it’s not a knock to warski or pendo whomever but it’s just like one of the criterias I had for a potential new coach for Devils is like how do they coach in the modern NHL the game is involving the game is changing and we don’t know how they would adapt in the NHL that’s the thing and yes they have some decent success wherever they’re at or sofsky being an assistant coach with San Jose he’ll probably get a job down the line pandelo I just said one of his players is set to become the first overall pick in this year’s draft but I just don’t feel comfortable with like thrus them into a situation where the devils are trying to get back to the playoffs and not only that the devils are trying to become legitimate tile contenders they’re not there but they’re heading in the right direction if the Devils were in full rebuild like just starting over from scratch then you do that because you can build both parties up together the head coach and also the players all in all I get that some people have nostalgic memories I get that people are big into college hockey and I’m no exception but I think Sheldon Keef was the correct hire for New Jersey he wasn’t my first choice I would have loved to see Craig baru just because he won a Stanley Cup with the St Louis Blues in 2019 and he took a hopeless team and made them Champions but he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to become the next head coach in Toronto and he’s Canadian himself and I totally get it but I still think the devil’s did well let me know what you guys think what do you think of Sheldon Keef and what are your expectations for the Devils moving forward I’m curious to hear you guys’ thoughts I will have more content surrounding Sheldon Keef in the near future hope to attend this press conference and give you guys some sound bites but as for today’s episode that’s all time I have for you continue to stay safe have a wonderful day New Jersey go Devils I’ll catch you guys in the next episode thanks for listening once again

Sheldon Keefe is set to become the 31st head coach in New Jersey Devils’ franchise history. He previously coached the Toronto Maple Leafs for five seasons and qualified for the playoffs every time. Toronto’s Core Four also saw great offensive success under his leadership. This seems to be a good hire from Tom Fitzgerald and company.

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