The Toronto Maple Leafs are good – but how good is their coach?
Of NHL coaches with at least 100 games under their belt, the highest winning percentage goes to Tom Johnson – ahead of all other coaches, including the Toronto Maple Leafs Sheldon Keefe .
Tom Johnson compiled a record of 142 wins, 43 losses, and 23 ties in 208 games coached for a .738 winning percentage with the Boston Bruins, winning Lord Stanley in the 1970-71 season.
Now, I’m not saying Mr. Johnson here is the greatest coach of all time, but winning percentage is a fair assessment to gauge the quality of a coach. Scotty Bowman, who is the best coach of all-time, sits 3rd in this assessment, with a winning percentage of .657 – in an astronomical 2141 games.
But, the coach sandwiched between does warrant discussing: How good is Sheldon Keefe? (Note all stats prior to last night’s game).
Toronto Maple Leafs and Sheldon Keefe
2019-20
Luckily, the mid-season take-over was the smoothest of smooth. Groomed in the AHL with the Leafs-affiliate Marlies (made-to-order for the team constructed), the eventual happened: present Sheldon Keefe with the keys of a roadster on a silver platter.
Though he compiled a record of 27-15-5 for a winning percentage of .628, not even he could manage to get the team over the 1st hump that his “mentor” predecessor struggled mightily.
2020-21
With the identity of the team challenged, so too was its fanbase. Finding a balance of skill & talent with size & toughness proved to be as elusive as the Stanley Cup itself.
Tweaks made and adjustments finely tuned, but not even going 35-14-7 for a .687 winning percentage – the best in franchise history – and leading the North could propel Keefe and his Leafs past the first round.
2021-22
The Leafs suddenly found that mojo and took it to the top of the Atlantic division. Currently, they sit 3rd, three points back of Tampa, but with two games in hand.
To keep Sheldon Keefe from driving this roadster off a cliff, new assistant coaches (PP Spencer Carbery and PK Dean Chynoweth) have proved (so far) to be helpful, if not vital, additions. The Leafs are currently #2 in PP at 30.6% and #10 in PK at 82.1%.
The Bigger Picture
In 133 games throughout three pandemic-stricken seasons, Sheldon Keefe has been quietly building himself an impressive NHL coaching record, racking up 82 wins, 37 losses, and 14 overtime losses for a .669 winning percentage to date.
He indeed has the second-highest winning percentage of any NHL coach with at least 100 games under the belt.
And among all active coaches, he’s top dog – “better” than Jon Cooper, Rod Brind’Amour, Bruce Boudreau (shout out North Toronto), Bruce Cassidy, and Mike Sullivan (mind you, Dean Evason is on the verge of hitting 100 games with a .668 winning percentage nipping at Sheldon’s back). Hard not to say this select group is (among) the NHL’s best.
Where the Toronto Maple Leafs are concerned, Sheldon Keefe has the best winning percentage of any coach before him – ahead of Leaf legends Hap Day (.549 in 546), Punch Imlach (.562 in 770), Pat Burns (.546 in 281), and Pat Quinn (.591 in 574). (all stats nhl.com).
So far, from afar, he’s doing all right – seemingly.
To know his mettle, in honesty and fairness, first, he needs to get through the grind of an 82-game season and then some.
Certainly making a case as a great NHL coach, but unless Sheldon Keefe lands Lord Stanley or wins a few playoff rounds in consecutive years, he’ll continue playing second fiddle to the team in front of him.