The New Jersey Devils got a gut check Tuesday night when head coach Sheldon Keefe called out his players yet again after a 4-0 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Keefe again questioned the team’s mental toughness and urged players to dig deep and play with more urgency.
“We need some guys to step up and show some emotion and show some balls and play with some urgency and competitiveness and step out of character,” Keefe told the media after the game on Tuesday night.
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This quote was in response to being asked about the fight between Devils captain Nico Hischier and Matthew Knies with New Jersey trailing 2-0. You thought that fight would give the Devils some momentum, but it galvanized the Maple Leafs, sparking them to victory. While the head coach didn’t like it because others on the team could fight, he wanted more from his players.
This was the third or fourth time during this little stretch that Sheldon Keefe questioned the team’s mental toughness and asked for more from the players. Do what is necessary to win games. Many wondered how the team would respond to this.
Things did not go according to plan for the Columbus Blue Jackets, as New Jersey trailed 2-0 entering the third period with its season hanging in the balance. Remember, the Devils started the season red-hot, with an eight-game winning streak and in a playoff position, but since the injuries, they have been hovering around .500.
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Another loss out of the Christmas break, despite the Eastern Conference being so wide open, would make the hole even deeper for the Devils to climb out of. There was already too much noise and distractions around the team. But a loss to Columbus could have made the Devils sellers rather than buyers, given the expectations for the start of the season.
It was another gut check for this group. What was this group truly made of with their season hanging in the balance? Well, the Devils dug deep and found their “balls” scoring three goals in two minutes, shutting down the Blue Jackets to win their New Year’s Eve rematch 3-2 on goals by Nico Hischier, Arseny Gritsyuk, and Luke Hughes.
But it was nothing the coaching staff said during the second intermission that got this group going; it was two-time Stanley Cup finalist Connor Brown saying something that sparked the group.
“Words were said. Brownie said some things and I think it was very good for our group,” Nico Hischier told NJD.TV post-game. “He stood up. We were talking about the energy that we need to create positive momentum. It was very important that we switch momentum tonight and hopefully this gives us a little spark.”
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Those three goals in those two minutes were exactly what this team needed during this tough stretch. It motivated the team to look at themselves and ask what and who they want to be this season. The noise surrounding the team is that they are mentally weak and soft. But the players have shown through the season that they have the mental fortitude to find ways to win hockey games.
“It was a gutsy effort from the guys, I’m proud of them tonight (Wednesday),” Keefe said post-game Wednesday.
While the players were saying all the right things about sticking with the process during their losses, you could clearly see that their frustration with not scoring goals was carrying over into other areas of their game. Again, having the right positive mentality is a must. The Devils management and coaching staff know how good this team can be when they want to play the right way.
But again, it is playing to the standard in every game. It is hard to play a consistent 60-minute game every night, but the New Jersey Devils need to be reminded about that now and again. Even with the two days off between games, New Jersey carried over the momentum from Wednesday, starting their Saturday game against the Utah Mammoth strongly.
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The Devils were able to score the first four goals of the game, two in the first and two in the second. That was all they needed for a 4-1 victory in the first half of a back-to-back. New Jersey’s top players delivered with Timo Meier, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt, and Dougie Hamilton getting on the board. The Devils are finding their offensive punch as Jack Hughes works his way back, given that he is still not 100 percent.
So the things that weren’t going well for New Jersey when the injuries started to mount are starting to go their way, as they did at the beginning of the season. However, it never hurts to get a kick in the pants every now and again to make a team realize what they are capable of. That is what Sheldon Keefe did this week, heading into 2026 for the New Jersey Devils.
