Does Extending Sheldon Keefe’s Contract Improve the Maple Leafs’ Cup Odds?

Every NHL offseason features subplots involving head coaching jobs, but few organizations have the spotlight on them like the Toronto Maple Leafs. It was made public on Wednesday that the club has agreed to keep Sheldon Keefe after 2023-2024, the final year of his current contract. Sportsnet’s veteran reporter Elliotte Friedman made it known that it’s a two-year extension. This keeps him behind Toronto’s bench until the end of the 2025-2026 season

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Sheldon Keefe Signs Two-Year Extension with Maple Leafs

Despite what one can argue about the team’s struggles in the postseason, since taking over the job in 2019, Keefe sports the fourth-best regular season winning percentage in the NHL at .622. The Maple Leafs have gone 166-71-30 over four seasons. The 2021-2022 campaign was a historically good season for the franchise, amassing 115 points. Last year was nearly as good, with Toronto finishing 50-21-11 and 111 points.

In his defence, even though the team was bounced out of the playoffs by the Florida Panthers in the second round, he was behind the bench for its first series win since 2004.

Sheldon Keefe shared some thoughts in a statement.

“Coaching this team has been a great privilege, and I’m truly excited at the opportunity to continue building towards our ultimate goal.”

As such, in the span of a week, the Maple Leafs have locked in two key ingredients for potential success. Last week they finalized a four-year contract with superstar Auston Matthews worth $53 million.