The New Jersey Devils are in a tailspin as they look for answers to get out of it. Head coach Sheldon Keefe has challenged his players to be better in this difficult stretch. Some people think it might be too much tough love, especially singling out a player, but this is the reason he was hired: to hold the players accountable for not playing up to the standard that the organization has set.
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Everyone has seen the viral moment over the weekend, when Sheldon Keefe called out defenseman Johnathan Kovacevic, who just signed a new four-year contract extension, saying he needed to play better.
“Kovacevic needs to play better, that would help,” Keefe said Saturday after the Devils 3-2 loss to the Ottawa Senators.
Keefe pulled a Herb Brooks from the movie Miracle and real life, as the story has been confirmed by Mik Eruzione, that Brooks told him he needed to worry about his own, there’s plenty there to keep you busy. Brooks was irate about how his team was playing against Sweden in Game 1 of the 1980 Olympics. Eurizone got caught in the line of fire as Brooks was dealing with Rob McClanahan.
This is similar to Keefe and Kovacevic. However, Keefe is a competitor and has an edge. Keefe can run hot post-game. We saw it during his time coaching the Toronto Maple Leafs. Unlike in Toronto, where he had to retract his comments about Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews, he does not have to do it in New Jersey.
He has brought a different intensity level to the Devils room, and some of the players are still getting used to it. President and GM Tom Fitzgerald wanted a fiery coach, not to say Lindy Ruff wasn’t that, but Keefe understands that players have to be accountable for poor play, and they will pay a price.
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As Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet stated on his latest 32 Thoughts Podcast, some of the players who have not been in this situation before are having a hard time getting used to his intensity level.
I think in Toronto, I don’t think he, either people didn’t recognize it or he didn’t get enough credit. I think for how much he grinded some of those guys behind the scenes, and I’ve heard it’s been an adjustment for some of those New Jersey guys,” Friedman said. It’s and again, I would never call Lindy Ruff a soft mark or anything like that, but I think Keefe’s intensity is at a much higher level. Like Ruff. He’s seen everything, right? Like, he’s still competitive, but he’s seen it all. He’s been coaching for 30 years in the NHL. I think Keefe’s got another level of edge to him, and I’ve heard that some of those Devils guys have had a hard time getting used to it.
Again, there was nothing wrong with what Keefe did. Some people felt he needed to walk it back for signaling out one player. But Keefe did not tell lies. Kovacevic needs to play better. Again, with the injuries to Dougie Hamilton and Jonas Siegenthaler, Kovacevic is taking on more than he is used to. It was more of a general statement that everyone needs to play better.
“The real message is that we need our players to stop talking in generalities and such, just go out and play, do your job,” Keefe said on Monday night following the loss to Vancouver in a shootout. “We have a lot of guys who can play better. Kovy (Kovaveciv) is certainly one of them.”
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Keefe has done this all season. He called out Jacob Markstrom, who has stepped up. He has also addressed other players in the media, such as Erik Haula and Timo Meier, who are playing better. It is not a bad thing to be called out by the coach. The players need to understand the moment and play better.
It is not like Kovacevic said anything wrong. He actually said the right thing about being in the right frame of mind down the stretch, having that playoff mindset, and understanding they are in a fight. Keefe had the same message before his viral moment, but he is tired of his team not playing the same way night in and night out. It is a tough part of the schedule to get to the finish line and punch their ticket to the playoffs.
“It’s hard coming out of the trade deadline, and we put it together and got it going for a few games. But it’s hard to do it all the time. That’s what we’ve got to push through individually, collectively. It’s hard to do it every second night. That’s what we’re fighting right now,” Keefe said, following the game against the Senators. ‘We talked about this as a team, that is going to be hard. It’s gonna suck the final, whatever stretch of games it was, after the trade deadline, is gonna suck. This period of time it’s gonna be extremely difficult, but you gotta enjoy that, like that’s what you want. You want to be meaningful games, and you want to come out of the right side of it right now, it’s getting better of us.”
Keefe is irate with how the Devils are playing. You can see his frustration boiling over and the competitiveness coming out with their lack of focus, preparation, and execution on the ice. It is mind-boggling to the head coach how things that weren’t a problem suddenly become an issue.
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The coach does not regret the comment. Nor should he. The New Jersey Devils expect to win games and make the playoffs this year. Everyone has a job to do. Step up and stop using injuries as an excuse. Go out and execute, and keep the game simple.
Accountability starts at the top. Sheldon Keefe knows he can be better and wants his players to be better each and every game.
