Toronto Maple Leafs Should Fire Sheldon Keefe and Hire John Tortorella

The Toronto Maple Leafs have once again let their fans down.

The Toronto Maple Leafs aren’t getting past the first round until they find the right mindset to charge at the door, like what John Tortorella expects from his team and what Brendan Shanahan is now asking of his.

Sometimes, players can cultivate a mindset themselves, but they’re more likely to get help from the coaching and team staffs. As for the Leafs, clearly they’re not getting enough of a charge.

Let’s hope Kyle Dubas will put on his creativity cap to find a solution.  I think one solution is to find a new coach.

Toronto Maple Leafs Should Hire John Tortorella

The Leafs G.M. is a creative mind and in just three years on the job has done remarkable work, but clearly, knocking on doors only gets you so far.

Frankly, sometimes more risk needs to be taken to get a job done; that is, if you want to be bold, first you have to act bold.

Will Kyle Dubas take charge at the door and try to bust it down?

I know this might sound like a really bad idea to some of you, but what better inspiration to rise from the ashes than someone who has experienced a rebirth of his own.

If there’s a coach tailor-made for this Leafs team going forward, it’s no longer Sheldon Keefe.

Tortorella’s history is well-documented, but I’m here to tell you he personifies the mindset the Leafs want, just as Torts puts it himself (see video):

"Forget about skills…it’s a mindset of believing. It’s amazing what can happen."

Master of Motivation, Mr. John “Torts” Tortorella is the best means.

Accountability

Accountability has been absent from the Leafs for some time now.

In 2020-21 alone, Marner led all NHL forwards with 22:26 average time on ice (TOI) and Matthews wasn’t far behind (5th) with 21:33 TOI. Do they deserve all this ice time in the world?

How to account for heart-and-soul guy Jason Spezza logging a paltry team-low?  With Tortorella, if you don’t play hard, you don’t play at all. No free passes; doesn’t matter who you are.

The Leafs could use a tough-but-fair approach; it’s been missing ever since Babcock left office.

In his acceptance speech to the Hockey Hall of Fame, 1st ballot hall of famer Martin St. Louis had this to say about Tortorella:

"Torts, you gave me the platform and the confidence to become the player I knew I could be. I went much further because of how demanding you were, physically and mentally. Thank you, Torts."

Here is a no-nonsense coach who coaxes the most out of his team by getting players to dig deep and overcome individual and collective deficits.

As tough as it sounds, that’s part of the mindset to charge at the door to bust it down.

Hey, nobody said it’s going to be easy; but surely, it can pay off – players just have to buy into it all.

Tortorella’s Accolades

Five Jack Adams Coach of the Year nominations:

• 2002-03 Tampa Bay Lightning (1st runner-up)
• 2003-04 Tampa Bay Lightning (winner)
• 2001-12 New York Rangers (1st runner-up)
• 2016-17 Columbus Blue Jackets (winner)
• 2019-20 Columbus Blue Jackets (2nd runner-up)

And he’s gone the distance; 2004 Lightning vs. Flames Game 7 Stanley Cup Finals.

Tortorella’s Leafs Connections

1. Keefe credits Tortorella for inspiring his coaching philosophy, back when he was playing for him in Tampa from 2001-03.
2. Torts stood up for Keefe and the Leafs coaching staff in 2020 after dumbfounded criticism following the Leafs play-in loss to Torts and the Blue Jackets.

There are good reasons why Tortorella and the Leafs aren’t a perfect match, but no doubt he brings a quality the Leafs desperately need.  It’s time to be bold and brave; the three-year window is closing and the Toronto Maple Leafs have to make it count.

If Kyle Dubas won’t take charge at the door and try to bust it down, let’s hope Shanahan will.