Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman revealed earlier this week on his "32 Thoughts" podcast that the Leafs' management group was set to meet on Wednesday to discuss how they'll proceed following yet another first round loss. Friedman also revealed that Keefe was being inducted into the Brampton Sports Hall of Fame on Tuesday, which explains why the Leafs didn't relieve the coach of his duties a day earlier.
TSN's Darren Dreger believes that "the writing is on the wall" when it comes to Keefe's tenure in Toronto, putting the estimated time for a decision earlier in the day on Thursday, which Dreger mentioned would set the scene for Friday's press conference, involving Brendan Shanahan, Brad Treliving and Keith Pelley.
Keefe himself owned his playoff failures during his end-of-season media availability, admitting that coaching is a "results business", and he was the first to say that the results haven't been there under his charge.
The Leafs' season-ending presser for Shanahan, Treliving and Pelley was originally set to take place on Thursday, so the trio has had an extra day to speak and make their determinations, but I don't think anyone is going to be shocked if and when the Keefe announcement is made on Thursday.
Keefe has had a good run behind the Leafs' bench, particularly during the regular season. The postseason success simply has not been there, and when you can't get results at the most important time of the year, then changes need to be made. End of story.
POLL | ||
9 MAI | 745 ANSWERS Announcement incoming on Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe Is Sheldon Keefe the scapegoat for Brendan Shanahan and the $40M Core 4? | ||
Yes, they're doing Sheldon dirty | 307 | 41.2 % |
No, Keefe has a share of the blame | 373 | 50.1 % |
Honestly, nobody's at fault. it's just bad luck | 65 | 8.7 % |
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