Is Sheldon Keefe the Front Runner for the New Jersey Devils Head Coaching Position
TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger was on SportsCenter with Jay Onrait. When asked about Sheldon Keefe and the New Jersey Devils, Dreger said the Devils are waiting on him if he wants to coach right away.
** NHLRumors.com transcription
Jay Onrait: “Let’s talk about Sheldon Keefe. You know, FanDuel seems to think that Devils and Tom Fitzgerald have the inside track. Would you concur on that?”
Darren Dreger: ” Well, the inside track might be a little strong, but there’s been a few conversations between Tom Fitzgerald and Sheldon Keefe. And I think that, again, this is Fitzgerald doing his due diligence, and I wouldn’t call Sheldon the front-runner just yet, but he’s a strong possibility.
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And I think Fitzy just wants to make sure that when he makes the final call on who the next head coach of the Devils. He’s dealing with a flat market so he knows every piece that is potentially in play. Sheldon Keefe is interesting though, because in his video message to Leafs Nations and to the National Hockey League fan base, he basically said look, I’ve had a great time in Toronto. I didn’t get the job done. Now, I need to recharge my battery and spend time with my family.
Well, you don’t recharge your batteries as an NHL head coach in a handful of days. So, the New Jersey Devils are waiting for him to make sure that he’s ready to jump back on an NHL bench. If he is, then yeah, he’s a strong contender. There’s no doubt about that. He’s a very good coach.”
New Jersey Devils Not Close On Hiring a Head Coach
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet on Sirius XM NHL Network Radio with Scott Laughlin and Gord Stellick was asked why the Devils are taking so long to hire a head coach.
** NHLRumors.com transcription
NHL Rumors: Just Who Will Be New Jersey Devils Next Head Coach
Elliotte Friedman: “New Jersey has been an interesting one. I think they really had a long interview process with Berube. I think he met with the owner and for a time, I thought it was going to be him.
Then I think they took a long look at Jay Woodcroft then I think they took a long look at Sheldon Keefe. And then I also think I heard that a second interview was scheduled with Todd McLellan.
I’m not sure where that stands. So I thought they were getting close. A couple of people told me not yet. But, they’ve had some pretty serious people there for interviews. And I thought they were close a couple of times. I just gotta wait to see how this one plays out.”