The Toronto Maple Leafs have named Sheldon Keefe's replacement.

Leafs appoint a new bench boss in the AHL.

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Published 4 years ago
The Toronto Maple Leafs have named Sheldon Keefe's replacement.
AHL

Earlier this month Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas made a huge move when he fired highly respected head coach Mike Babcock and installed his own man, Toronto Marlies head coach Sheldon Keefe, as the new head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Thus far you would be very hard pressed to argue that the move was not the right one from Dubas, the Leafs have seemingly been a different team since the appointment if Keefe as the new coach and the team's record under Keefe has been so good it seems almost unsustainable. One of the things that has been largely overlooked however was that the appointment of Keefe not only came at the expense of Mike Babcock but also at the expensive of Toronto's American Hockey League affiliate the Toronto Marlies. 

When Keefe was hired as the head coach of the Maple Leafs, the Marlies, a highly successful franchise in their own right, lost their head coach in the process. There has been some speculation about who the Leafs would appoint to the role after the departure of Keefe and on Sunday we finally got an official answer. In an official statement Kyle dubas revealed that Greg Moore would be the next head coach of the Marlies.

"Over the last 10 days, we have evaluated all options after Sheldon Keefe's promotion to the Maple Leafs. After a detailed review, it was clear to us that Greg Moore was the best fit to become the Head Coach of the Marlies," said Kyle Duba via the team's official website. "Greg's record in development and winning with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program and the USHL's Chicago Steel to begin his coaching career made us take great notice of him as a candidate. More importantly, it became clear in speaking with his employers at USA Hockey and the Chicago Steel that Greg was the best fit for our program in terms of development philosophy."

"We would like to sincerely thank Larry Robbins, Ryan Hardy, and the entire Chicago Steel organization for accommodating this move in the middle of their season. The Steel not only allowed Greg to speak to our club but also promoted his candidacy. That speaks a great deal to their program's commitment to development of all members."

Given Dubas track record in selecting coaches I highly doubt there will be many objections to this appointment, but only time will tell if he can prove to be as successful as his predecessor. 

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