Has Keefe been the most flexible leaf coach in the last 3 decades???
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Eakins was/is a fitness nut so I bet he can do all kinds of yoga poses.
ACC1224
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The Team is in massive trouble if any of them start listening to the fans.
I don't believe they do.
I don't believe they do.
nuck
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I don't think he pays any attention to the fans. It just seems like that because he has made frequent changes to try to get better results. The pp was horrendous for a long period of time and he tried everything which you can call either flexible or desperate. I don't give him particular credit for finally getting results after a year of tinkering. Even a blind squirrel..... right?
I agree that his inexperience with elite talent has probably been a real learning experience. Like Dubas, who is not at all the same GM he was his first two years, he appears to be evolving and you can see that some players who were not doing that well under him a year ago are back to their game so his lineup use is noticeably better. He may be much better than his detractors say but we definitely are not spoiled
I agree that his inexperience with elite talent has probably been a real learning experience. Like Dubas, who is not at all the same GM he was his first two years, he appears to be evolving and you can see that some players who were not doing that well under him a year ago are back to their game so his lineup use is noticeably better. He may be much better than his detractors say but we definitely are not spoiled
Eternal Leaf
Registered User
More than listening to the fans, I think he prefers running mini experiments throughout the year. Just so he can pull them out in the middle of a playoff series without losing control.
It helps Keefe keep all types of tactical options up his sleeve for different playoff scenarios.
It helps Keefe keep all types of tactical options up his sleeve for different playoff scenarios.
DraftSchmaft
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Keefe has ways to go before he's better than Babcock. Babcock fell out of favor here because he gave off sociopath "my way or the highway" vibes near the end and through leaked stories. Morale way too low to continue with him they zoned him out by then. However Babcock has been a better coach in the playoffs and is a much better option than Keefe to offset a team that is terrible defensively like we were from 2015-2019 (with the help of Freddy). Our record would have been worse with Keefe in the Lou era in my opinion.
You can insert Marleau jokes if you wish but Keefe just cost us a series overusing Joe Thornton, and a Thornton-Simmonds PP1 so let's not be hypocrites.
I'd prefer a 2015-2018 Babcock when the team still liked him over Keefe for the opponents we're about to face, let's put it that way.
Let's keep hyperbole like we're spoiled away since Keefe has the 2 most embarrassing playoff losses in the last decade on his resume.
You can insert Marleau jokes if you wish but Keefe just cost us a series overusing Joe Thornton, and a Thornton-Simmonds PP1 so let's not be hypocrites.
I'd prefer a 2015-2018 Babcock when the team still liked him over Keefe for the opponents we're about to face, let's put it that way.
Let's keep hyperbole like we're spoiled away since Keefe has the 2 most embarrassing playoff losses in the last decade on his resume.
DraftSchmaft
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Not looking to write essays today but Keefe has absolutely nothing to contest this statement so I don't think I need to prove it. His collapse to the Habs is even worse than Phaneuf era Leafs. At least that was only 1 period to a team 1000x better than us.
I'm not writing Keefe off but he still has a lot left to prove before we act like he's some elite coach we're lucky to have. If we had to hold interviews today to replace him for some random reason I wouldn't worry for even a second that we're in trouble.
Meh I disagree... playoffs is where teams are judged. Quinn's teams may have single handedly destroyed the legacy of the early 2000 Senators. He also routinely destroyed refs in post game interviews... he had the clout and I'm sure his players loved him for it. Keefe started as Mr nice guy but he and Dubas are learning slowly why the veteran gms and coaches are so rough around the edges... haha.
DarkKnight
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If he listens to the fan base to make coaching decisions, he should be fired immediately. Obviously, he doesn’t, never take yourself seriously, nobody else does.
Gary Nylund
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I like Keefe, and I don't miss Babcock but I'd say this is fair.
Leafsfan74
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He keeps the game fresh for players. This is paramount in a long season where players can embrace being stale.
Anyone ever do a job that is repetitive? Even if you are investing millions of others money or closing multi-million dollar deals, it can become uninspiring if it's the same routine and/or the same accounts.
The brains adapts to new stimuli. It thirsts for the opening of new pathways. An athlete has made the same move a million times before, the repetition has developed muscle memory. Their neurons fire accordingly.
When the brain seeks to find new pathways it can express itself in learning a new skill, a new move you didn't think you had, a fresh line or approach (taking the body, going to the net) to the game etc.
Of course, NOTHING can surpass the feeling of winning. Once you figure out a dominant approach as a TEAM, stick with it and the wins will be the dopamine one desires.
Adulation from the fans (we need them in the arena ASAP) and that feeling of achievement usually trumps all other considerations for athletes as competitiveness is what brought them to the NHL. Those who want to achieve at the highest level will win Cups.
I've had only a few criticisms of Keefe, he has done a very good job without question and he has tried to balance criticism with positive reinforcement. He and Dubas both seem willing to find creative approaches, this appears to be a good working relationship.
Hopefully the players find the courage to reward them when it matters most.
TLDR, np I.have time today and type very fast.
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That is a lot of opinion and not a lot of fact.
"I'm not writing Keefe off but he still has a lot left to prove before we act like he's some elite coach we're lucky to have."
I agree with this, I don't think he is an elite coach yet, but to act like Babcock was better in the playoffs is insane. Keefe's teams outplayed the opposition, his stars didn't convert, but it was clear the system he deployed worked well at driving play.
Keefe is fine. And probably my favourite Leafs coach since Pat Quinn (RIP legend)
I don't know who else I'd want tbh. We have to wait and see what happens in the playoffs.
That's the next step that needs to be succesful and it's that simple. If it's not succesful to some degree, something will probably be changed but that's a while from now.
Leafs are rolling right now. It ain't broke even though it isn't perfect. Nothing is perfect for any team ever. We're just getting really comfortable having a high end team and still nit picking because of the playoff busts.
I just want to enjoy the regular season games for now.
I don't know who else I'd want tbh. We have to wait and see what happens in the playoffs.
That's the next step that needs to be succesful and it's that simple. If it's not succesful to some degree, something will probably be changed but that's a while from now.
Leafs are rolling right now. It ain't broke even though it isn't perfect. Nothing is perfect for any team ever. We're just getting really comfortable having a high end team and still nit picking because of the playoff busts.
I just want to enjoy the regular season games for now.
123offtheglass
Registered User
From what I've watched in games & heard from him in interviews, I really like his approach, even if he isn't currently one the top coaches in the league, he is above average.
Keefe to me is a more modern-day coach who'll improve, hopefully along with this group. He seems pretty open to being creative & I think his perspective on learning/studying tactics from other sports to transfer to the NHL is really going to help him rather than being another typical stubborn egotistic old-school coach that doesn't care to adapt & improve; not so much strategically, but his emphasis.
The only major complaint I have with him is how he handled the top line in last years playoffs; it's possible that it could've worked out but in hindsight he doubled down on the top line multiple times where he should have just split them up.
Keefe to me is a more modern-day coach who'll improve, hopefully along with this group. He seems pretty open to being creative & I think his perspective on learning/studying tactics from other sports to transfer to the NHL is really going to help him rather than being another typical stubborn egotistic old-school coach that doesn't care to adapt & improve; not so much strategically, but his emphasis.
The only major complaint I have with him is how he handled the top line in last years playoffs; it's possible that it could've worked out but in hindsight he doubled down on the top line multiple times where he should have just split them up.
I saw that playoffs as a way of Keefe giving marner and Matthews the keys to show their worth and show they on the big stage after they rightfully gave Babcock the cold shoulder after the Patrick Marlue fiasco. They both didn't rise to the occasion and I hope now it's a more hybrid approach where if Keefe rides a hot line more than the first line, they need to accept it.
Buds17
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I can't imagine Keefe is trying things out in an attempt to appease the fanbase. I think it's already tough for the group we have on here to be in complete agreement on the majority of matters relating to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Go beyond that then and understand that we comprise only a segment of the fanbase as a whole. Mrazek versus Andersen certainly made for a nice sidebar during tonight's game. I'd hope that both Keefe and Brind'Amour had winning in mind though in choosing as they did. At the end of the day, winning is what's paramount and I won't nitpick the journey if the destination is sound.
The Iceman
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Quinn was the best game day bench boss I have ever seen.
He figured out who was going well on any given night and played the heck out of them.
He figured out who was going well on any given night and played the heck out of them.
I think Sheldon Keefe is a pretty good coach. I think the Leafs could do very well with him. We'll just have to wait and see.
ShaneFalco
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Totally failed to adjust in the playoffs and had Jumbo and Simmonds on the PP
Had no answers to stop the skid
Had no answers to stop the skid
ACC1224
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Mickey Marner
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Quinn-Sundin had a good dynamic. You have a coach with his finger on the pulse of his team and a star captain that never complains about ice time, linemates etc. This relationship allows the coach to bump players up & down the lineup and the players respect his decisions because if Sundin ain't complaining, who are you to complain. Everyone fell in line and the team often played like more than the sum of their parts.
2 most embarrassing losses as a Leaf? TB being swept by Columbus after setting a record has to be the worst loss.
However, it did seem to fire them up and they won the Cup the next two years so there is optimism the Leafs really felt humiliated last year and are readu to do something about it
