Earlier this month, select members of the Devils Black and Red had the opportunity to submit their questions for new head coach Sheldon Keefe ahead of the start of the season. Keefe recently fielded those questions from Devils play-by-play man Matt Loughlin in an exclusive interview ahead of the start of the season. In a conversation that lasted 30 minutes, Keefe was asked about and shared his thoughts on an array of different subjects pertaining to his team. From the newest additions to working on improving the power play, Keefe covers it all below.

MATT LOUGHLIN: Well, we’ll get right to the questions because I know there is much still on your plate to do, plus you want to enjoy what remaining free time you have with the family. So let’s get to the questions, and we have some from season ticket holders who are of a more recent vintage and some long time, season ticket holders as well. Josh Chavez kicks it off, he joined us in 2019, out of all the head coaching jobs that were out there, what made you want to come to New Jersey?

SHELDON KEEFE: Well, I’ll tell you, things happen pretty quickly for me, coming from the playoffs and being eliminated by Boston there with Toronto a nd then shortly after that, of course, you lose your job and you’re in that process sort of wondering what might be next. You start to think about, you know, the positions that are available and in my case, I happen to have two years remaining on my contract in Toronto. And you start to think about family and all the time lost and the demands that come with the job, and maybe giving some time back to the family, and start to regrouping and recharging and what have you. But you know, you get a call from from (Tom Fitzgerald) in Jersey and you start to thinking now about the things that come with the possibility of getting involved in that process and potentially going into New Jersey.

And the things that come to mind first is the talent that’s there and the players, you know, the group, obviously not happy with the results last season, but showed so much potential and reason for optimism. At times in their play last year, but certainly in 22-23 with coaching against that team and just watching them from afar, and if you weren’t watching them, just watch them climb the standings, and you get excited about that. So there’s that process, you know, from a family perspective, remaining in the East and in New Jersey, a place that is, you know, not far from Toronto, relatively speaking, to the to the NHL, all these things, you know, you start to get excited. And then you’re spending time with Fitz, and you’re talking through things with him, and you’re getting to know him on a personal level. All that stuff just gets you really excited and fortunate that it worked out, and I’ve been given the opportunity here to lead the Devils.

M.L.: You’ve answered some of this next question in your response, but there’s another part of it that was asked, so I’ll go to the question from Benjamin Novak, he too, joining us in 2019 as a season ticket member. So you’ve made some observations about the Devils from afar, but now that you’ve had the chance up close, looking at video, talking with the assistant coaches, etc. what have you seen and what parts of the Devils culture would you like to continue and extend, and what parts might you want to change?

S.K.: That’s been a great process, learning more about what’s gone on to this point, what’s been established, the personalities within the room, both on a staffing level and from a player perspective, That’s something that I haven’t necessarily gone through. My hiring in Toronto with the Maple Leafs came mid season, and was, you know, I was elevated from the American Hockey League to the NHL, prior to being hired by the Toronto Marlies, I was hired mid season, coming from the Junior A level to the Ontario Hockey League in Sault-Ste Marie mid season.

I’ve never had a full off season like this, to really fully be able to take advantage of the time and learn as much as you can, and still learning every single day, of course, and will even when the players come in, you’ll learn each day. You’ll have some opinions and some thoughts and things that have happened, but once you start working with people, one on one, or seeing them in their element, you learn even more. But the culture, what I would say is, first of all, has got terrific people and starts at the top, spending time with David Blitzer, through the process of being hired, you could see how passionate he is for devils hockey, hockey in general, sports in general. He is a great competitor and great supporter, and has been terrific at leading things and then all the way through the organization, there’s just been great people to learn from.

And talking about players, I think there’s a real culture and expectation of winning here, which they’re very disappointed in what’s happened in the past. And I think all through the organization, everybody feels that way. There’s been absolute full commitment on all levels of anyone I’ve interacted with to get it right and get back on track right away, but yet, the belief has never wavered in the within the organization. So, I think there’s tremendous belief there. It’s on me to come in and embrace the positive things that have helped establish the organization to the point that just one that has expectations and then also push and challenge and inspire the group to to meet and exceed those expectations.

M.L.: That leads us to Grant Resnick’s question, what was the team missing last year that they had the year before? And how do you take this dynamic young group and get them back where they were?

S.K.: Well, I think there’s so many different things you can look at and I don’t want to spend a whole lot of time looking backwards, quite frankly, I’ve done my work in doing that to try to be as informed as I can about what’s occurred. But if you really look at it, at a snapshot from last season, there’s a lot of different things that, you know, obviously, the team had a lot of injury situations to very key players. It was bringing along some young defensemen that were going through some growing pains and because of injuries, were probably put into situations that weren’t maybe necessarily the plan.

So, those sorts of things contribute and then, and then, of course, like anything else, as results don’t go in your favor all of a sudden, the belief or the morale of the team may slip a little bit. And now, instead of expecting to win, you’re maybe playing not to lose, or sometimes, instead of seeing the best and hoping for the best, you start to feel that the worst is going to happen and then that starts to slip. So getting the confidence of the group is so important in any winning team, they have a certain feel and a certain vibe. And I think what’s exciting is that this team is not that that feeling hasn’t disappeared. There’s so many players or key members of a team that really was in the top class of the NHL not too long ago, yet are humbled by the situation the team went through last year. I think they are very hungry and inspired to get it right and build something sustainable together.

M.L.: You mentioned the opportunities that some young players got because of those injuries… Question from Bart Piella is, what are your thoughts about the young core, the duo of Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec? Luke was going to play last year in the NHL, Simon probably ticketed for a year in the A but got a full taste basically, of the NHL. Your thoughts?

S.K.: Both terrific young players, clearly, that’s why they were drafted where they were. For myself as someone who really is just looking ahead a nd focusing on today and building forward, I think you know that myself and our entire organization and those players specifically will have benefited from the experience and being thrown in the deep end, if you will, with last season and having to do so much. They’re terrific young players, they were going to be elite players, and now perhaps that experience that they’ve gained, can can help expedite that. When you look at that and their growth, and then the additions that we made on the blueline as well, I can’t help be excited about the backbone that the team, with the defense, being in a real, real strong place.

M.L.: Brian Scolar wants to know, how would you describe your coaching style?

S.K.: Of course, anytime you go through a process trying to get hired, it’s a struggle to talk about yourself, and that’s one thing I don’t love to do, quite honestly. And then a lot of that I would say is because, it doesn’t really matter how I feel about myself, it really matters how the people that you’re impacting how they feel when you’re they’re being led by you. So it’s a tough question to answer, other than to say that I care about people, I care about what we’re doing, I commit everything that I have to make people, and in this case, our team, our organization, the best it possibly can be. I’m committed to that fully. Sometimes that’s pushing and inspiring people. Sometimes that’s challenging in them, and telling them things that they need to hear, maybe don’t want to hear, but need to hear, being honest and being direct with that. And I think I’ve gained a lot of experience. I’ve coached at essentially every level that there is to coach at, from junior hockey to the American League to the NHL.

I still like to think of myself as a young coach in our sport, yet, I believe I’ve got lots of great experience that I can lean on, and a tremendous coaching staff as well that I’ve come to know and respect greatly that will support me. So, I think the players and the fans can expect a guy that’s going to be honest and direct, yet is going to be mindful of what I say and how I act and how it could impact the group. Some things will be done in a public setting, in a group setting, some things will be done one on one, I think all of that is really the art of coaching and something that I take great pride in being purposeful about. I do think ultimately, how you handle those situations as a coach can greatly impact the morale of the individual and ultimately the team, which, as we just alluded to, I think is so important to have that confidence and that swagger and belief that is so vital.

M.L.: You’re still a young guy, definitely, in my eyes, and in most most others as well, you got some stripes, no question, but you’re still a young guy in this league.

Fred Romano wants to know what defensive changes might you be implementing? And you referenced some of the additions there, Brett Pesce coming along, and Brenden Dillon as well. So what might you change to decrease scoring chances against, which was a bit of a bugaboo last year from a Devils perspective?

S.K.: Well, the players you mentioned, of course, do change sort of the identity of the group a little bit, no question. And you’ll rely on those guys to bring it. ButI look at physicality, it comes in different forms in our game, and different players have their own version of physicality that they can bring. At its root for me, the term physicality in our game really is looking at it as a tool in our game to drive your competitiveness and to give you an advantage in the game. And each player brings that in their own way.

But along the way, you’re gonna need players to step out of character a little bit at different times, at key moments. Sometimes that’s the physicality of engaging in a physical battle and coming out with the puck or establishing body positioning, or sticking up for a teammate or maybe blocking a shot.
There’s so many different areas and levels of physicality within our sport that are important in they are vital to embrace to have any level of success, certainly in the playoffs, as you mentioned, that is no question, but can’t be denied or ignored in the regular season. That’s really we have to foster that identity and that culture within our group.

Along with the defensive piece that we’ve already talked about, being a priority, that’ll be another one. We’ve got to increase the physicality as a group that will come through puck pressure and speed onto the puck. And as I say, every player has their own version of physicality that they’re going to bring and we will ask for players to step outside of character every now and again, because those are the things that ultimately do make the difference, but a consistency in their own identity and bringing physicality to the game it’s going to look different for Jack Hughes than it is for Kurtis MacDermid as an example, but both will have their own version of physicality they’re going to bring to be able to let their own game shine, no matter what the game dictates or the environment that we’re in.

M.L.: That is music to a lot of fans ears, of course. And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Stefan Noesen rejoining the club as well. He brings a little bit of that edge and that physicality too.

Hank Sadala wants to know, during your time with Toronto, your team’s always had a potent power play states, based on the current roster, do you have the pieces to continue this excellence? And if not, is there something that needs to be added?

S.K.: Well, I do think there’s certainly great tools there. I was fortunate to coach great players in Toronto, no doubt. But you know, the skill sets are perhaps a little bit different, but elite players in their own right that we have to work with, and we have enough depth to have two units as well that can be successful and can push and challenge one another. But Jeremy Colliton is coming in, and he’ll lead our power play, and we’ll work together there and they have great players on both units.

We’ve got different handedness of defensemen that we can work with. So there’s some options there for sure. So we’ll get to work on that and building out a plan and like everything else. It comes through consistency and habits. Obviously doing that, then your skill starts to really come out. But we’ll get to work at that. But I’m excited about the group. The group produces offense at a really high level at 5-on-5, and there’s no reason why it shouldn’t be able to do that consistently at 5-on-4.

M.L.: Ken Siegel asks, we know he says you think highly of Jack Hughes, but who else on the roster is a standout player in your eyes?

S.K.: There’s so many guys, and you’d hate to start being pinpointing guys, because there’s each guy I think it brings so many different things. The top players, of course, they’re going to come to mind to jump off the page, but there’s just, there’s a lot of guys, I think, especially as with the additions that have been made here, this is a well-rounded team, lots of depth players that can play multiple positions and contribute on both special teams. Guys that are going to be really good and skilled and play making, guys who are going to go to the net front, and I don’t want to get into at this point in really singling out anyone in particular.

My hope is that we’ve got everybody thriving and I’m excited to get to work with everyone that’s going to be in camp, and then ultimately travel with us out to Prague to start off the season and get going.

And I think our coaching staff shares in that, that we’re just, we’re refreshed and renewed on so many levels, whether it’s myself coming in and some of the changes we’ve made on the coaching side of things and how we’ll play, and then also the player editions that have come, I think, have the entire organization, whether you’ve been here or you’re new, like myself, everyone is excited to get to work.

M.L.: This one from Matt Caravello, coming from Toronto, you’re obviously well versed in media pressure, outside pressure, the spotlight burns so brightly in Toronto. How do you take some of the lessons you learned there and impart them or help this team, which may not face the same crushing pressure from the outside that exists in Toronto, but nonetheless, they want to win too, and there is pressure to perform. How might some of the lessons you learned be imparted on those you’re trying to elevate their play and get back to at least where we were two seasons ago?

S.K.: All I could say to that is, is that, I guess I would say there’s nothing that I haven’t seen or experienced and I’ve seen it at the highest level, perhaps we didn’t get deep enough in the playoffs for it to really elevate. But I guess the deeper you go in the playoffs, everyone, no matter where you are, there’s the attention and and what have you, is going to increase. But it’s on an everyday basis in Toronto, and I’ve experienced that.

I think the biggest thing is just to remain true to yourself, keep the focus on the things that matter and things that you can control. So that is the perspective of game, which comes through any experience in life, but certainly what I’ve been through as it relates to the media attention and the expectations that were on the team in Toronto.

But the reality is, I felt well equipped, even as someone who had never coached in the league for that, and simply because, everywhere that I’ve coached, I felt like there’s expectations. First of all, I’ve only ever coached teams with expectations, and I love that. I’m a competitor. That’s where I want to be, going to go back to your first question about what’s exciting about the New Jersey Devils, one of those things certainly was it is a team with expectations. Because there’s expectations, well, there’s going to be talent, and there’s going to be, you know, a really good group to work with.

So everywhere I’ve ever coached there has been expectations. And everywhere I’ve coached, I coached seven years Junior A level in a small town in Pembroke, Ontario, in junior hockey and every game I coached there, certainly in the playoffs, that was the most important thing in my life. And there was a lot of people who loved our team and loved our game and our players had a lot at stake. I gave everything I had for that, so I put great expectations on myself, and everywhere I’ve been has felt like I’m competing for the Stanley Cup.

So that experience isn’t a whole lot different. All the other stuff is exterior, but without a doubt, you know, when you’re a representative of a fan base such as Toronto, as vast as it is, that’s exciting, and it kind of really gets you going. Coming to somewhere like New Jersey to me, perhaps it’s a different market, but it doesn’t change the passion. Just right here on this interview alone, you all have been referencing specifically season ticket members and how long they’ve been, there’s a personal connection to a team like this that I think maybe gets lost at times when you’re in a bigger market and all these sorts of things. And I’m excited for that, and that’s a little more to my roots, perhaps in the junior hockey’s and even in the point of my time with the Marlies, there’s a lot of Leafs fans who support the Toronto Marlees, but there’s also a group and a core of fans that supported us through that there were true Marlees fans.
I think that personal connection is something that has me excited just the same. And as I said, through all the various experiences I’ve had at different levels, I feel equipped for anything that comes my way. But certainly the focus has to remain on what you’re doing on a daily basis. But I’m excited to do my job and lead and put something together that the Devils fans will be proud of.

M.L.: Really glad you mentioned the fans and you have throughout this interview, I mean, they are the lifeblood of any team’s existence. No fans, no game, let’s be honest. And they bring so much and mean so much. And you’ll find out, I know you have already, you’ll find out even more as the season unfolds, just how passionate and involved this fan base can be. They have a history of winning, and they want to see it continue.

Getting back to that question about pressure, right? This is the most competitive league with the best players in the world, best coaching staffs in the world, they want to win. I know it’s a trite answer from a media standpoint, you hate to hear that answer. ‘No one can put more pressure on me than I put pressure on myself’, but that is the God’s honest truth. Everyone on any team, you know, it’ll vary from day to day, they’re human, but their compete level, their desire to perform for themselves and to show everyone on their team and around the league, this is who I am, I got the goods. It just drives them. So, yeah, there’s pressure everywhere, though Toronto is perhaps, from other standpoints, a different animal altogether. But it doesn’t matter where you’re playing, man, you’re out there to just play your best. These athletes are so uber-competitive. It’s unbelievable.

Last ones, these are a couple about you away from hockey. Patricia Groiter: What are some of your favorite things to do outside of hockey?

S.K.: For the last number of years, my favorite thing to do is to spend time with my kids and wherever they lead me, I’ve got two young boys, they were at the press conference, and it was terrific to have them, have them in New Jersey, to be a part of that. But they’re now 12 and 14, and both heavy into both hockey and lacrosse. And that’s kept, my wife, Jackie, and I extremely busy to move them around and to be there for them, but that’s certainly has dominated any of the free time that I’ve had. And just love watching them compete and being a part of that and just making so many great friendships along the way that come through your kids and their sports that they play.

And that’s allowed us opportunities to travel as they’ve gotten older too, which my wife and I we love to travel and love to get about, we haven’t ventured too far, it’s, you know, outside of North America, but we love to travel and spend our time together. I’m not a big golfer, I don’t fish or golf or anything like that, that doesn’t take up too much of my time. If we’ve got free time I’m focused on my family, my kids, and trying to capitalize on that as much as I can.
And then otherwise, you know, you look at an off season such as this, I’ve stayed extremely busy with just trying to learn about where we’re at and what we’ve been through, and who the people are and what they do and how to work best and support them as best I can. All of that is as part of what I enjoy the most. If I have time to get to a concert or a show or a ball game or something along the way through the off-season, and then we’ll find our way to do that too.

M.L.: So the last two questions are food questions combined. Mark Paleki wanted to know, are you ready to enjoy Jersey pizza and bagels? Eric Wittlinger asked, are you okay switching from Canadian bacon to pork roll?

S.K.: Well, first on the Canadian bacon thing, what I’ve kind of learned through my travels, my wife’s from Scottsdale, Arizona, so I’ve spent a lot of times in the U.S., I think the only people who know what Canadian bacon are people who don’t live in Canada. I don’t even know where to go to get Canadian bacon here in Canada. So there’s that, but pork roll, I’ll have to give that a try.

But we’re just so excited to try everything that New Jersey has to offer. We’ve really enjoyed our trips out there, our time that we’ve spent, while brief and kind of in and out fleeting a little bit, each time has been just terrific for us. And by the way, anyone I talk to players staff and trying to learn more about the area, our people in our organization, love living in New Jersey, and so many players have told me it’s one of the best kept secrets in the NHL, is how great it is, and that, to me, was actually very much reflected in our free agency process and how quickly players wanted to come here and want to be a part of it.
And don’t kid yourself, hockey is a big reason. But when you start talking with folks with families and wives and kids, where they come to live is a major factor, and there was no hesitation.

And I think that we’re starting to really spread, obviously the organization, as I mentioned, the support of David Blitzer, and that he’s put in to everything in the organization, is one thing, but New Jersey is something that has been really great in spending time there.
And that is right through the organization, and nothing but great things and their experience and time spent. And I’m looking forward to really, really spending time and embracing that.

M.L.: