Toronto Maple Leafs left wing Matthew Knies (23) fights with New Jersey Devils center Nico Hischier (13) during the third period at Scotiabank Arena. Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe calls out his team after Nico Hischier fight

Originally posted on Daily Faceoff | By Ryan Cuneo | Last updated Dec 31, 2025 1:18 AM ET

Most coaches wouldn’t want to see their skilled, former first-overall pick center dropping the gloves against a 6-foot-3, 230-pound opponent, but New Jersey Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe wasn’t entirely displeased after Nico Hischier fought Matthew Knies in the third period of Tuesday’s 4-0 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

It wasn’t exactly a bout to remember, as Knies dropped Hischier almost immediately, but Keefe showed some appreciation for his captain’s mettle when speaking with the media after the game.

“I mean, do I want our captain and one of our best players fighting when we’re down 2-0 in the third period? Absolutely not,” Keefe said.

“But do we need some guys to step up to show some emotion and show some balls and play with some urgency and competitiveness and step out of character? Yeah, we need more of that.”

Knies vs Hischier pic.twitter.com/len4Bu8gMW
— Omar (@TicTacTOmar) December 31, 2025

While fighting is certainly out character for Hischier, he wasn’t a complete stranger to NHL fisticuffs before Tuesday. The Swiss national fought once before, against the Nashville Predators‘ Mikael Granlund, another unlikely combatant, in the 2021-22 season.

every time i hear granlund all i think of is nico punching him. that is his legacy to me. a bum in my eyes pic.twitter.com/33kOKhR58J
— m ‍♀️ (@spelunky_) October 16, 2024

Unlike Granlund, Knies proved to be out ofHischier's weight class, but Keefe continued to express that Hischier demonstrated a level of toughness that the rest of his team needs to develop.

“So to that end, I like it. I like that Nico did it and hopefully it rubs off on the rest of the group in a positive way. I didn’t think that it did in that moment, but you want to talk about gut checks, there’s one. Your captain’s out there taking on a big guy stepping out of character. We’ll see what we have with out group. But we need more guys that are going to show a little bit more if you’re not going to score, give is a little bit more competitively and physically and show that you’re working to find your way. There’s not enough of that. We’re just kind of going about our business.”

This article first appeared on Daily Faceoff and was syndicated with permission.

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