5 Facts About New Toronto Maple Leafs Coach Sheldon Keefe’s Journey to the NHL

LAVAL, QC – DECEMBER 22: Head coach of the Toronto Marlies Sheldon Keefe looks on after a victory against the Laval Rocket during the AHL game at Place Bell on December 22, 2018 in Laval, Quebec, Canada. The Toronto Marlies defeated the Laval Rocket 2-0. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)

5) He is already quite familiar with this Toronto Maple Leafs team

Being the head coach of the Marlies, the Leafs AHL affiliate, obviously will make Keefe have some connections with the Leafs players.

But as Kevin McGran of the Toronto Star pointed out on Twitter, he’s already connected with many of the Leafs.

Maple Leafs that Sheldon Keefe has coached:
William Nylander
Kasperi Kapanen
Zach Hyman
Andreas Johnsson
Frederik Gauthier
Trevor Moore
Dmytro Timashov
Nic Petan
Pierre Engvall
Justin Holl
Travis Dermott
Martin Marincin
Kasimir Kaskisuo
(And he played against Jason Spezza) #Leafs
— Kevin McGran (@kevin_mcgran) November 20, 2019

The Toronto Maple Leafs are a team built through their farm system. Brenden Shanahan has always stressed the necessity of good drafting and good development, so it only makes sense that the coach developed through the system is the one who should lead these Leafs.

So the keys have been given to Keefe, now we patiently wait and see what he does with this Maple Leafs team.

Although turning this team ‘s season around right away will be a tough task, Keefe should get a few years before he is properly judged.

After all, Marlies general manager Laurence Gilman once said, “He’s one of the best up-and-coming coaches in the American Hockey League.”