Devils' Keefe Hire by the Numbers
The Toronto Maple Leafs' metrics under Sheldon Keefe over the last 3 seasons further prove the New Jersey Devils made the right choice.
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The New Jersey Devils hiring Sheldon Keefe as head coach was a good move. A very good one. We examined why they aced their first big offseason move a couple of days ago by hiring Keefe. Today, we'll dive into some numbers and see how the Toronto Maple Leafs played under him.
The Maple Leafs were one of the better five-on-five teams in the league under Keefe, and that was with a flawed roster, especially in his latter years as their coach. If that's any indication, the Devils should thrive under him if they make the right moves this offseason.
Keefe's Last 3 Seasons With the Leafs Showed Plenty of Good
A fair warning before you can continue forward with this post, there will be plenty of microstats and advanced stats looking at the Maple Leafs under Keefe. Let's begin with the 2021-22 season, the first where we have microstats available through Corey Sznajder's A3Z project.
The Maple Leafs had a pretty diverse offense under Keefe. They were a middle-of-the-pack rush team and ranked third in in-zone shots. They attempted plenty of high-danger passes and excelled in transition, specifically on exiting the defensive zone with puck possession.
Defensively, the Maple Leafs were solid. They defended the rush well and took away dangerous passing lanes. Their expected goals share (xG%) of 55.24 percent ranked third in the NHL in 2021-22, generating 2.87 xGs per 60 minutes and allowing 2.33 xGs per 60.
The 2022-23 season was pretty similar for the Maple Leafs. Their offense even took a step forward. They were a top-five rush team but still created plenty of in-zone offense. They were one of the best passing teams in the NHL, and they still excelled in moving the puck out of the defensive zone cleanly with puck possession.
However, there was a bit of a step back for the Maple Leafs' defense. Their in-zone defense was still solid, but they weren't as effective at defending the rush or denying teams from moving the puck through the neutral zone in transition. Their 53.54 xG% was still top 10 in the league, but their defense was a reason they took a small step back.
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