Sheldon Keefe Fired as Maple Leafs HC After Loss to Bruins in 2024 NHL Playoffs

On the heels of yet another postseason disappointment, the Toronto Maple Leafs announced Thursday that they relieved Sheldon Keefe of his duties as head coach.

Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving released a statement regarding the move, saying:

"Today's decision was difficult. 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."

In parts of five seasons as Toronto's head coach, Keefe led the Leafs to the playoffs five times, but they won only one playoff series during his tenure. This season, the Maple Leafs fell to the rival Boston Bruins in seven games in the first round of the playoffs.

Per Chris Johnston of The Athletic, Keefe was fired despite having two years left on his deal as part of a contract extension that hadn't even kicked in yet.

Before getting hired by the Maple Leafs, the 43-year-old Keefe spent parts of five seasons as the head coach of the Toronto Marlies, who are the Leafs' AHL affiliate.

Keefe helped the Marlies win the Calder Cup in 2018, and after the Leafs got off to a slow start under Mike Babcock during the 2019-20 season, Keefe was elevated to the position of Maple Leafs head coach.

Toronto is in the midst of an eight-year playoff streak, but despite the presence of elite offensive talent such as Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander and John Tavares, the Leafs have stumbled during the postseason.

The Maple Leafs finally won a playoff series last season, beating the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2 in the first round, but they didn't adapt well to their status as the Eastern Conference favorites after that, falling 4-1 to the Florida Panthers in the second round.

Although the Leafs have made eight straight playoff appearances and nine in the past 12 seasons, they have only one playoff series win to their credit since the 2003-04 campaign.

With Marner and Tavares in line to potentially become free agents after next season, there is a sense of urgency for the Maple Leafs to contend for and win a Stanley Cup quickly.

Matthews and Nylander are locked into high-dollar, long-term deals, so it is possible both Marner and Tavares could be gone after the 2024-25 season.

If that happens, the Leafs will have possibly missed their Cup window and may have to rebuild the rest of the roster around Matthews and Nylander.

Because of that, Treliving has to get it right with his next head coaching hire. Luckily for him, he should have the pick of the litter with regard to coaching candidates due to how talented Toronto's roster is.

The Leafs ranked second in the NHL this season with 303 goals scored, they boast three players who had 85 or more points and they have arguably the best pure goal scorer in the league in Matthews, who scored a career-high 69 goals this season.

None of those factors have been enough to get the Maple Leafs over the hump in recent years, but a new voice behind the bench may be the missing ingredient needed to make them true Cup contenders.