Reports: Devils hire Sheldon Keefe as head coach

Sheldon Keefe was named head coach of the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday, according to multiple media reports.

Keefe was fired by the Toronto Maple Leafs on May 9, five days after an overtime loss to the Boston Bruins in Game 7 of a first-round Stanley Cup playoff series.

The Devils finished 38-39-5 and seventh in the Metropolitan Division in 2023-24. Coach Lindy Ruff was fired on March 4 and replaced by interim coach Travis Green, who is now the coach of the Ottawa Senators.

Keefe, 43, left Toronto with a 212-97-40 record (.607) in 349 regular-season games since taking over in November 2019.

His winning percentage in the postseason wasn't as good (.432), with the Maple Leafs qualifying for the playoffs each season under Keefe but going 16-21. Toronto advanced out of the first round only once during his tenure, losing in the second round last spring, despite three 100-point seasons.

This season, the Maple Leafs totaled 102 points, finishing third in the Atlantic Division with a 46-26-10 record.

Keefe was the head coach of the club's American Hockey League team, the Toronto Marlies, for five seasons before moving to the Maple Leafs' bench.