*Photo from Sportsnet*
The boss of the bench is sticking around a little longer. The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed head coach Sheldon Keefe to a multi year contract extension, according to an announcement by the team on Wednesday.
Keefe said of sticking around that "Coaching this team has been a great privilege and I'm truly excited at the opportunity to continue building towards our ultimate goal. I'm thankful for the support from MLSE and it's ownership along with Brendan Shanahan and Brad Treliving, who I've really enjoyed getting to know and work with this offseason. We have so many great players and people within our organization that I'm grateful to work with, and together our commitment to team success remains steadfast."
The contract for Keefe will begin when the 2024-2025 season starts and is a two year deal, running through the end of the 2025-2026 season. In 2023-2024, Keefe will play out the last year of his current two year contract.
When the Maple Leafs fired Mike Babcock during the 2019-2020 season, Keefe was promoted from the head coach of the AHL Toronto Marlies to be the Maple Leafs head coach. Keefe led the Maple Leafs to a 50-21-11 record and the second round of the playoffs.
Treliving, the Maple Leafs GM, said that "Since I've joined the Maple Leafs, I've been very impressed with Sheldon. He has shown great leadership skills with his staff and our players and has a clear vision for this team and where it needs to get to. Sheldon has established himself as one of the top coaches in the league, and I look forward to working alongside him as we head into the upcoming season."
Since taking over for Babcock, Keefe has led the Maple Leafs to a 166-71-30 record, with the Maple Leafs making the playoffs in every season Keefe has been the head coach. Last season was the first time they advanced past the first round of the playoffs since 2004.
When the Maple Leafs were eliminated, Keefe's future was left in question, especially following the news that Kyle Dubas, who promoted him to head coach, was let go as Maple Leafs GM. Now, that question has been erased, with Keefe locked in for the next 3 seasons.
The Maple Leafs will begin the 4th full season and 5th overall with Keefe as the head coach against an Atlantic Division rival in the Montreal Canadiens on October 11 in Toronto.
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