On Monday evening, Sheldon Keefe spoke with the media and didn't hold back on his team's play coming out of the All-Star break, calling the 2nd goal against something that happens in "Peewee" hockey and not in the NHL. Not only did he talk about the loss to the Islanders on Monday, but he also discussed the team's performance as a whole on Tuesday, following practice.
As Keefe stated, this is the NHL and you cannot be good only some of the time. Consistency is needed every night. Players coming together as a group and reaching the team's potential every game is required. He feels that his team is only living up to their potential in half of their games so far this season. That is not good enough in this league.
The Maple Leafs' head coach is in his fifth season with Toronto and has put up a solid points percentage over the years in the regular season, but like many of his predecessors, has seen very little playoff success behind the bench.
With this season clearly being a down year thus far, Keefe continues to walk along a tight rope as he struggles to get the best out of his players on a nightly basis. Time may be running out for him in Toronto.
