Sheldon Keefe has never been one to shy away from being critical of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ performances throughout his 4 1/2-year tenure as their coach, but rarely has his captain, John Tavares, drawn his ire.
And yet after a 6-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday, Keefe didn’t hesitate to do just that, calling out Tavares and several other veteran players for a performance he said he “hated” a lot about.
The Leafs came out firing with a strong first period bolstered by 26 shots on goal. But hours later, after squandering multiple opportunities with the puck, one of Keefe’s more forceful and fiery but still shorter postgame news conferences became the story.
I don’t understand Keefe. Disclaimer - I didn’t watch the full game, but watched the 3rd period and the full game recap from the NHL.
Tavares:
- was -1 on the night and one of the goals against he was on for was the empty net goal
- had 6 shots, tied for second most on the team
The goals against included a couple of odd man rushes, with the 5th New Jersey goal being a brutal pass/giveaway by Domi.
The Leafs out-shot the Devils 45-25 and Allen made some fantastic saves. Offense was not their problem.
How is it that Tavares is one of the guys to get called out?
Not that I necessarily think he should’ve been called out but I think Tavares’ stats were better than his defensive performance. He made a bunch of uncharacteristically dumb plays that resulted in high quality chances against. I also think Domi is what he is. Leopards and spots.
I can’t remember if it’s mentioned in the article, but on the Leafs Report podcast, they say that calling out Tavares may have been meant to shock the room more than the player. But who knows?
