#2. Hiring Sheldon Keefe
Ever since he was hired in May, 2018, Kyle Dubas has been trying to fix the mess he inherited. One of those messes was Mike Babcock, who he fired in November, 2019 and replaced him with Sheldon Keefe.
Don’t get me wrong, Babcock did a lot of good things for the Toronto Maple Leafs, but his time was up. He wasn’t playing his superstars enough and was using old coaching tactics that should have been eliminated 20 years ago. He was a stale presence in a young dressing room and it was time for him to leave.
Prior to becoming the G.M. of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Kyle Dubas and Sheldon Keefe were having success everywhere they went. From the Soo Greyhounds to Toronto Marlies, this combination has been brilliant. I know the team lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets in the Qualifying Series but this has been the weirdest year in history. The Leafs played great and lost, and I don’t put any blame on the G.M. or coach.
In his short timeframe as head coach, Keefe has a record of 27-15-5, which was a huge turnaround from the start of the 2019-20 season. Keep in mind that Keefe is still technically a rookie head coach at the NHL-level, so the ability to have such a great record so quickly, speaks volumes to him.
Keefe is a winner and is young, which is extremely important to the core of the Toronto Maple Leafs. His addition will be a huge important to the success of the team and if history has taught us anything, the duo of Keefe/Dubas will win at the NHL level.