Tag: Sheldon Keefe

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Sheldon Keefe sounds off on Stamkos, the Lightning and an NHL referee!

Saturday night’s Game 3 between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Toronto Maple Leafs was the site of something that has never before been seen in the history of the National Hockey League, a fight between a pair of 60 goal scorers.

It wasn’t very much of a fight at all though and in fact you could probably argue that it was more of an assault on the part of Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos, who used a chaotic situation during the game to take a few shots at Toronto Maple Leafs star forward Auston Matthews.

The two men clashed after a scary-looking hit from Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly sent Lightning forward Brayden Point crashing head and shoulders first into the boards, with Stamkos delivering several unanswered punches to the face of Matthews while being restrained by the officials.

Following the conclusion of the game, Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe was asked about the incident and he used the opportunity to sound off on Stamkos, the Lightning, and even NHL referee Jake Brenk.

“The fight itself, that’s a classic example of a veteran championship team like Tampa Bay manipulating the officials and taking advantage of a situation, right?” said Keefe following Game 3. “I mean they know that we’re basically already going on the power play because of the Kucherov situation so it’s a free-for-all. They can do whatever they want and they just know that the way the games get called they’re not going to get another penalty. I mean you watch that sequence back and say that we shouldn’t get a 5-on-3. The officials literally holding Steven Stamkos with one arm and his other hand with no glove on is punching Auston Matthews. Not the linesman, the referee who calls the penalty was holding Stamkos while this was happening. Credit to Tampa for recognizing that situation, it’s a free pass to do what you want. Not only do they get out of it unscathed, but they take Matthews and O’Reilly with them to the box. Brilliant play by the Lightning there.”

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Jon Cooper fires back at Sheldon Keefe after Game 3.

Bruce Bennett/Getty

On Saturday, following the conclusion of Game 3 between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning, Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe made some highly publicized comments regarding the way the Lightning conducted themselves during a scrum that occurred off the back of a big hit. That hit, one that came courtesy of Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly, would send Lightning forward Brayden Point crashing awkwardly into the end boards with his head and shoulder absorbing the brunt of the impact.

Keefe accused the Lightning of “manipulating the officials” during the scrum, suggesting that the Lightning took liberties knowing full well that the officials would not put them in a 5 on 3 situation. The Maple Leafs head coach also accused the Lightning of “taking advantage of a situation” adding that “they just know… they’re not going to get another penalty.”

On Sunday, Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper was asked to respond to the comments made by his counterpart in this series, and Cooper flat out denied any knowledge of Keefe’s accusations. Not only did Cooper deny any manipulation, but he also suggested that it was his squad that should have had the man advantage.

“Manipulated the referees. Alright, I’m not sure what that means, but I would say this. When that hit happened, I think everybody watching at home and everybody in the building, including us, thought we were going on the power play,” argued Cooper.

The Lightning head coach would go a step further by suggesting that none of his players did anything, or would do anything, that would have jeopardized that potential power play for the Lightning.

“Our two best power-play players, I don’t think they would ever sit there and take themselves off a power play unless they thought something unjust happened. Auston Matthews doesn’t kill penalties. That actually worked against us, to be honest. Now, we ended up being shorthanded after that, but I don’t think anybody thought that was going to happen at the time, so I don’t know, that one’s a little different for me.”

It seems clear both coaches have drastically different perspectives regarding what transpired last night.

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Sheldon Keefe praises Matthew Knies for postseason debut

Yahoo Sports

The Toronto Maple Leafs capped back in a huge way against the Tampa Bay Lightning, reversing the tables in nearly identical fashion of what had happened to them in the first game of the series with a dominating 7-2 performance, knotting things up at 1-1 before the two teams shift for Games 3 and 4 in Tampa Bay at Amalie Arena. 

The Leafs were led by captain John Tavares, who netted his first career postseason hat trick. Mitch Marner and William Nylander also tallied, while defenseman Morgan Rielly added four assists. Last night also marked the postseason debut of forward Matthew Knies, who is in the lineup following the three game suspension to Michael Bunting. 

Playing on a line with Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari, head coach Sheldon Keefe had nothing but good things to say about Knies and his first postseason experience despite a 1st period penalty. 

“I thought the line was terrific. We will watch it all back and everything, but it felt to me like they were in the offensive zone — or at least out of trouble — a lot. Matt, in particular, took a penalty in the first period, but I thought he skated well. He was hard on the puck. He made a couple of great offensive plays. It was a real good performance from him. O’Reilly and Acciari were real pros tonight just with how they took care of him and took care of the game when they were out there.”

Knies would finish the night with two shots on net while also tying the team lead in hits in the game with five of his own. And needless to say, he was excited about it.

“It was unreal,” he said of playing in the playoffs. 

Tampa Bay and Toronto will play Game 3 from Amalie Arena tomorrow starting at 7:00 PM EST. 

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Jon Cooper plays mind games with the Maple Leafs after Game 1

Postgame presser

The Toronto Maple Leafs pretty much faced the worst-case scenario in Game 1 of their first-round series versus the Tampa Bay Lightning…

Both Ilya Samsonov and Joseph Woll faltered, allowing seven goals on 34 shots, with Samsonov getting replaced for the third frame.

The Lightning were simply the better team on Tuesday, but head coach Jon Cooper isn’t taking that for granted.
In his Game 1 postgame presser, the Bolts’ bench boss talked about the Maple Leafs and how they could win the series in comments that could only be Cooper playing mind games with Toronto ahead of Game 2 on Thursday night.

“The Leafs might win the series. They might. There’s so much runway left in this, but what I’ve learned over the years is I sure as hell wouldn’t bet against our guys.”

While Cooper has a way of getting under the skin of the Maple Leafs and their fanbase during the first-round series, he has a point. There’s a reason why playoff series are best-of-seven.

And Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe also had an answer when it comes to where the series might go – almost as a response to Cooper’s comments:

“That’s the nature of a playoff series,” the head coach said. “It’s on us to respond.”

And that response starts on Thursday in Toronto for Game 2 of this series.

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Sheldon Keefe addresses starting goalie for Game 2

Maple Leafs / press conference

Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Ilya Samsonov wasn’t the only one to blame for the humiliating 7-3 loss at the hands of the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 1 of their first-round series on Tuesday night. However, giving six goals over two periods before giving up your crease to rookie Joseph Woll for the last frame isn’t the way for the Maple Leafs to win this series and finally move on to Round 2.

“I will play better. I played like (expletive) today,” Samsonov admitted after the loss.

This, of course, prompted reporters to immediately asked head coach Sheldon Keefe about his plan in between the pipes for Game 2 on Thursday night.

Keefe kept his cool, contrary to during the contest thanks to questionable calls by the officials, and make this statement:

“It’s too early to know.”

Keefe was noncommittal about who he will put in net on Thursday after Game 1. I love the young Woll and what he’s done for Toronto in the last stretch of the regular season, but the playoffs are an entirely different game. While he managed to stay confident for the last period of Game 1, I wouldn’t want him to deal with the pressure of Game 2 on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Keefe finally confirmed that Samsonov will be back in net to start Game 2 against the Bolts tomorrow night.

“Sammy’s going in net for sure.” – Sheldon Keefe

That’s the right call, right? Right? 

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Officiating scandal flares up following Game 1 in Toronto!

Twitter / EDIT

If you ask the Toronto Maple Leafs : it wasn’t supposed to be this way. The Tampa Bay Lightning built a 3-0 lead in the first period and humiliated the Maple Leafs 7-3 in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series on Tuesday.

Despite the Maple Leafs coming out flat and Ilya Samsonov allowing six goals on 29 shots before getting replaced by Joseph Woll to start the third period, fans are still focused on the potential officiating scandal that emerged ahead of the contest yesterday.

Referee Wes McCauley called Game 1 action, but there appears to be a conflict of interest. Most of us remember the David Frost and Mike Danton scandal, right? David Frost was a former junior coach turned NHL player agent who was accused of sexually assaulting a number of underage hockey players, including Danton. Frost was acquitted of the charges and Danton was subsequently arrested and convicted for conspiring to murder Frost.

Here is where McCauley comes in: he and Frost are brothers-in law and are reportedly very close. On the other side, Danton and Keefe are lifelong friends. The two grew up playing hockey together and were teammates on a junior team coached by Frost when the alleged abuse took place. Fast forward to Danton’s trial and it was Keefe who was on the stand testifying against Frost.

You see what we mean?

Well, several fans saw exactly what we were pointing to and took on social media to call out the officiating scandal in Toronto:

Captain John Tavares even appeared to blame the referees for the Game 1 loss and all the penalties than landed he and his teammates in the box.

On broadcast, former NHLer Chris Chelios called it “Absolutely terrible officiating. Worst in a while.”

The Maple Leafs host the Lightning for Game 2 on Thursday. Let’s see how this one goes…

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Maple Leafs’ playoff record under referee Wes McCauley only adds to officiating scandal

NHL

The Toronto Maple Leafs are behind 0-1 in their first round series against the Tampa Bay Lightning after Tuesday’s humiliating 7-3 loss. While some blamed the performance of goalie Ilya Samsonov or the lack of discipline and energy across the Maple Leafs’ lineup, others, including captain John Tavares, have pointed at the officiating.

It’s no surprise seeing all the drama surrounding head coach Sheldon Keefe and referee Wes McCauley.

Most of us remember the David Frost and Mike Danton scandal, right? David Frost was a former junior coach turned NHL player agent who was accused of sexually assaulting a number of underage hockey players, including Danton. Frost was acquitted of the charges and Danton was subsequently arrested and convicted for conspiring to murder Frost.
Here is where McCauley comes in: he and Frost are brothers-in law and are reportedly very close. On the other side, Danton and Keefe are lifelong friends. The two grew up playing hockey together and were teammates on a junior team coached by Frost when the alleged abuse took place. Fast forward to Danton’s trial and it was Keefe who was on the stand testifying against Frost.

Scouting the Refs dug a little more and offered on Wednesday the Leafs’ playoff record under McCauley.

It does not look good:

This will only add fuel to the emerging scandal happening in Toronto with fans calling for justice in this conflict of interest.

But will they start blaming Wes McCauley too for the Maple Leafs’ lack of success in the postseason since 2004?! Come on, the Maple Leafs will need to focus on what they can control, stay disciplined and get the win in Game 2 before heading to Tampa. 

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Sheldon Keefe appears to give Matthew Knies some bad news on Sunday.

There will be tremendous pressure on the Toronto Maple Leafs as they head into their first round Stanley Cup playoff matchup against the Tampa Bay Lightning, pressure that will be felt at all levels of the Maple Leafs organization.

Keeping that in mind, it will fall to head coach Sheldon Keefe to field the lineup that he feels will give the Maple Leafs the best possible chance of emerging victorious in Game 1 of this series, and that means making some tough decisions when it comes to personnel.

That appears to include giving some bad news to newcomer rookie forward Matthew Knies, who on Sunday was spotted wearing a grey jersey out on the ice. That color is usually reserved for players that will be extras and that appears to indicate that Knies will not be in the lineup for Game 1, although of course things can change quickly at this time of year.

There’s a good case to be made for not using Knies, including giving the opportunity to players that have grinded all year to showcase their compete factor in the playoffs. Knies is also relatively inexperienced at the NHL level, having played only 3 regular season games and having just 1 assist to his name thus far, but that doesn’t mean that the 20 year old winger couldn’t slot in later in this series or even further down the line.

Although as I’ve mentioned things could change, Sheldon Keefe and the Maple Leafs may have given us a preview of their Game 1 lineup with their lines in practice on Sunday.

Forwards:
Bunting — Matthews — Marner
Tavares — O’Reilly — Nylander
Aston-Reese — Kämpf — Lafferty
Kerfoot — Acciari — Järnkrok

Defensemen:
McCabe — Brodie
Giordano — Holl
Rielly — Schenn

Presumably it will be Ilya Samsonov who gets the start in goal, but no official confirmation on that front just yet either.

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Sheldon Keefe hints at Matthew Knies’ status for postseason

Yardbarker

The Toronto Maple Leafs are in the midst of preparations for their opening round Stanley Cup playoffs series against a familiar opponent in the Tampa Bay Lightning, who broke their hearts last season by overcoming a 3-2 deficit to earn a Game 7 victory on the road in Toronto and send the Leafs home once again for an early summer. 

This year, the Leafs are hoping that things will be different. Not only have they added several key depth pieces to their lineup that include the likes of 2019 Conn Smythe Trophy winner Ryan O’Reilly from the St. Louis Blues, but they’ve also gotten a glimpse (albeit in a short sample size) of highly touted Arizona native Matthew Knies.

The former University of Minnesota Golden Gophers forward, whom the team inked to a three year entry level contract earlier this month, has made a positive impression on the team coaching staff in the three games that he’s skated in so far. What are the chances that head coach Sheldon Keefe elects to have a baptism by fire by including Knies in his lineup for the postseason? 

“Another good game and some really strong moments in the game, for sure,” Keefe said. “All three games he’s done a really good job of showing he belongs. I’d feel very comfortable (playing him in the playoffs). In the playoffs, it still remains to be seen, right? It is a different animal.”

“As far as the only test he could have — these three games for him — he has certainly fit in. Those are three very good playoff teams he has played against — a Florida team that was desperate, the same team we are going to play in Tampa, and then here tonight.”

“In all three games, he certainly looked like he belongs to me.”

Leafs fans, it certainly sounds as though you can expect to see Knies suiting up for the team in their upcoming series against the Lightning based on Keefe’s comments.

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Maple Leafs sound off on Matthew Knies NHL debut

Editor in Leaf

The Toronto Maple Leafs were able to pick up two points in the standings thanks to last night’s 2-1 victory over the Florida Panthers in overtime; it was captain John Tavares playing the role of hero with the game winning goal, snapping the six game winning streak of the Panthers. 

But the theme of the evening was the National Hockey League debut of highly-touted prospect forward (and Arizona native) Matthew Knies, who was signed to a three year entry level contract after completing his season with the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers. 

He skated in 13:09 of ice time while playing a total of 18 shifts. And while he didn’t find the scoresheet, the Leafs had plenty of good things to say about his first appearance in the NHL. 

“I thought he did a good job,” head coach Sheldon Keefe said in his postgame media remarks. “I thought the pace didn’t faze him at all. His feet were moving. He made some smart plays with the puck. There were a couple of mistakes out there, but I think some mistakes are good. You can learn through that and adjust your game, which I thought he did. I thought he did a nice job.”

“Listen, it hasn’t been easy for him in terms of what he has been through with not just the devastating loss that they had after such a long season but the turnaround he had to get here,” he continued. “I don’t know how much he enlightened you about that, but his day leading up to the game and then getting here in the arena. When I went to go talk to him before warmup, he was still talking to doctors and going through all the medical stuff that they have to do.”

It may as well have been a postseason game for the Panthers, who are desperately attempting to secure a postseason berth for the fourth straight year and need every point they can get. And Keefe was impressed with how the rookie handled himself in a high pressure situation. 

“To see it in the NHL in what was really a playoff-calibre game tonight in terms of intensity, competitiveness, and urgency of every play,” Keefe said. “To see it live, he looked like a guy that was comfortable despite clearly not being comfortable as you are making natural adjustments.”