We’re at the point of the New Jersey Devils‘ disaster where Sheldon Keefe is fielding questions about his job security.
Rightfully so, as the Devils’ dysfunction continues day in and day out.
However, that’s not entirely on New Jersey’s head coach, as the issues go above him at the managerial position.
After Thursday’s 4-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Keefe responded when asked if he was worried about being fired.
His answer was astute.
“That’s out of my hands. It’s not in my control,” Keefe started. “Like I said, I liked a lot about our game here. I know what this team needs, and we got to get them going, but I’m also well aware of the reality of the business and how it works.”
The Devils’ head coach went on to advocate for himself with a well reasoned defense.
“I’ve got to focus on getting our team ready for the next game and keep building here,” Keefe continued. “To me, we can use this, as an organization, as a great opportunity to take great steps in the big picture. We’ve got a lot of things that we need to get better at. When we lose focus on that, and we get ahead of ourselves, this kind of thing happens.”
Then, Keefe injected some truth serum.
“We’ve got work to do to become a real hockey team,” Keefe said. “I think there’s a perception that we were a real hockey team before the work was put in. And you get exposed, and that, to me, is where we’re at. We’ve got to keep on building our game. And you see lots of elements out there. It’s closer than you think. Some of those pucks fall in the first period, some of these chances [fall], we win this hockey game here today. But, that’s where we’re at right now.
“We’re going to keep working at it, and I’m going to keep working on it. Part of coaching is you’ve got to deal with crisis and challenges. This kind of thing excites me. I believe I can be part of the part of the solution here, and I’m going to keep doing my job to find the answers.”
The Devils signed Keefe on May 23rd, 2024, just a few short weeks after he was let go of by the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Since he’s been the bench boss in New Jersey, the Devils hold a 64-53-9 record through a season and a half. In 2024-25, Keefe’s first year as head coach, he led an injury decimated team back to the playoffs after missing the postseason in 2023-24.
However, it was short-lived. The injuries proved too much to overcome, and they were bounced in the first round by the Carolina Hurricanes.
Jack Hughes missed the remainder of the 2024-25 season after getting shoulder surgery in March. Although it was their most devastating injury, it wasn’t the only one.
Still, Keefe managed to steer an underdeveloped roster back to the playoffs with few, underwhelming reinforcements at the trade deadline in Cody Glass, Daniel Sprong—who isn’t even a regular in the KHL this year—Brian Dumoulin and Dennis Cholowski, all tasked with replacing the likes of Jack and Dougie Hamilton who were shelved.
General manager Tom Fitzgerald went into the following summer seeking depth scoring. He reeled in Connor Brown and Arseny Gritsyuk. Yet, the Devils’ roster still lacked a top-six forward, and a third-line center.
The Devils started well, and amid an eight-game win streak, Keefe continued to stand firm that the early narrative that the 2025–26 Devils were “mature” due to early success was premature.
“I don’t know. I mean, we’ve been talking about [being mature] a lot,” Keefe explained in October after a strong start to the season. “Media has stuff to talk about and ask me about, [but] we’ve played five games here. I think you can’t make any proclamations, positive, negative, any of this kind of stuff. It’s way too early. I like how we’ve handled different situations that have come up in games. Whether it’s the early penalty kills, you need them, not letting the other team get life, whether it’s scoring early and getting the lead and taking care of it. Or getting behind, but not panicking and finding your way back. All of those things are good and positive signs.”
Keefe went on to explain New Jersey’s faults despite a strong record.
“There are so many things that we can do way better, and we need to do way better. It’s one thing to win games in the early goings in October, while teams are trying to find themselves, but we’re trying to build something sustainable here. In order to do that, we have to play a lot better.”
Boy, was he right.
Fast-forward to today, and the Devils are in a disastrous position. Early injuries derailed a strong start, and now that everyone is back and healthy, the Devils still can’t seem to get it together.
New Jersey ranks 31st in the NHL with 2.55 goals per game. Their power play and penalty kill continue to fall in the ranks, and since December 1st, they rank near the bottom of the league.
Yet, this isn’t on Keefe for the most part.
Is he utilizing the Devils to their strengths as a speedy, high skill, rush team? Not necessarily. Instead, he’s trying to instill responsible two-way hockey, and for good reason.
However, has Keefe been equipped with what he needs to be successful? Not necessarily, he’s working with what he’s got.
An underwhelming roster construction by Fitzgerald is a key factor. They came into the season with a clear needs, as previously mentioned, which is something the Devils GM scoffed at when asked about.
Neither of those issues have been addressed. In fact, Fitzgerald’s backed himself into a corner here, potentially running into trouble to even move Johnathan Kovacevic off long-term injured reserve without clearing out cap space.
It would be foolish for the Devils to move off of Keefe this early into his tenure. He hasn’t been given a fair shake. Keefe deserves a trade or two to get the Devils’ roster right. He adopted a flawed roster when he came to New Jersey, and it has yet to be rectified under Fitzgerald’s management.
Put it this way. The head coach who has never had a true No.1 defenseman to work with, or who was forced to use Ondrej Palat in the top six over and over, or the man who had no choice but to deploy Glass as his 2C heading into the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, and then Dawson Mercer as his 2C this season when Jack went down, while having to stomach below average goaltending by his so-called No.1 goaltender—after an ill-advised extension—has to fall in the sword?
All while Fitzgerald continues to contemplate what depth scoring is? Heck, contemplate what scoring is in general?
The Devils’ downfall in 2025-26 is purely on roster construction. Keefe hasn’t had the adequate parts for the machine to run properly.
Head coaches are recycled like plastic these days. Martin St. Louis was hired four seasons ago, and he’s one of the longest-tenured coaches in the NHL right now. Bringing in yet another head coach, or naming an interim, will do little for the Devils.
Word is Fitzgerald’s job is safe, for now.
Until the Devils GM adequately provides Keefe with what he needs to be successful, New Jersey’s head coach should not have to fall on his sword.
Using Keefe as the scapegoat for the Devils’ shortcomings thus far would be a mistake, and if anyone is going to let him go, it shouldn’t be Fitzgerald.
