Maple Leafs Calle Jarkrok and Willam Nylander playing against Seattle Kraken
The Toronto Maple Leafs announced the firing of their head coach, Sheldon Keefe after being knocked out of the first round of the playoffs by the Boston Bruins. Keefe published a video to X, formerly known as Twitter, thanking the organization for his time there.
Leaf fans Owen Pacheco and Paul Lee, students at Fanshawe, were not phased by the decision made by the organization
“I think he’s a good coach, but I think it’s time to just change the team kind of top to bottom and it shouldn’t stop with him,” said Pacheco. “Honestly, they need to restructure in the sense of the culture of the team, so getting rid of the coach is the first step and then maybe getting rid of some of the dead wood,” said Lee
This comes a day before the Leafs are set to hold their end-of-season press conference, where the president, Brendan Shanahan and Maple Leaf Sports Entertainment (MLSE) CEO, Keith Pelley are expected to discuss the potential plans the organization hopes to take on during the off-season.
“Well, I think TJ Brodie’s off the books, that’s a good chunk of money. I think we should just roll with Joseph Woll, get a solid backup, and let Samsonov walk. Resign Domi and then look to get rid of Marner hopefully for a decent chunk of change even though we won’t get his worth” says Pacheco.
London Knights alumni Mitch Marner and John Tavares are set to enter unrestricted free agency on July 1st, 2025 with uncertainty surrounding their future with the Leafs.
“We have Tavares and Marner where they’re on the last year of their contract and I think if Tavares will sign a cheaper contract next year we should keep him but I think Marner’s gonna want more money, so it’s time to go,” said Pacheco.
The Maple Leafs are expected to hold their press conference sometime during the morning of May 10th.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are tied with the Boston Bruins withholding eight consecutive playoff appearances, with only one series win
