Sheldon Keefe has words for Mark Giordano

The Toronto Maple Leafs certainly knew what they were doing when they made the call to bring aboard former Calgary Flames and Seattle Kraken captain Mark Giordano at last season's Trade Deadline. A Toronto native, he was certainly thrilled to be suiting up for his hometown team at the time of his acquisition. 

And he made sure to extend the relationship, agreeing to a massive hometown discount in his new deal that carries an AAV of $800K over two years, a far cry from the $5.4 million he made last year. And he's been a steady part of the Leafs blue line, as well as a huge part of the penalty killing unit. 

And head coach Sheldon Keefe was dripping with praise for the veteran blue liner ahead of his team's upcoming two game road trip that begins tomorrow night in Manhattan.

"First of all, he has made a career of doing things like that or doing what the game calls for at that moment and leaving it all out there," Keefe said of Giordano's defensive abilities. 

"He is obviously a huge part of our penalty kill, which is where a lot of those situations would present themselves," he continued. "We have talked about it a lot. His will is off the charts. He does whatever is required to keep the puck out of the net."

Needless to say, Giordano's play on the ice as well as his leadership have certainly rubbed off on the rest of his teammates.

"Gio has been unbelievable," Keefe said. "He stepped up in a big way for us. He has been huge in so many ways — not just on the ice, but in the room and all of those things."

"All of our guys have stepped up," Keefe continued. "If we have learned anything through this, it’s that no matter who you lose out of your lineup, the group can take care of one another. I don’t think it about in those terms, but we are, of course, grateful for the fact that we have him here. His leadership, his tenacity, his competitiveness, and his intelligence on the ice are all things that help us win games."