Sheldon Keefe addressed the media after his team’s 4-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning that dropped the Leafs’ record to 15-5-6.
On the team’s performance:
I thought we played a good hockey game. The guys played hard. We scored good goals at key times. Our penalty kill gives up two in the third period, but I thought the penalty killing was outstanding all game.
They got one right at the tail end of a 4-on-3 because we took too many penalties, especially that back-to-back to start the third. Our penalty killers were exhausted. In the last few seconds there, you have to use guys you wouldn’t normally use. That one ends up costing us.
Aside from the penalties we took, I thought the guys played a good hockey game that gave us a chance to win on the road. We bounced back with a huge power-play goal to ensure we got a point. That is big. Good effort from our team.
On Mitch Marner breaking the franchise record with a shorthanded goal:
With how the goal materialized, you could almost see him computing it in his mind before it happened. He sensed that a guy was in a little bit of trouble. He got a little bit of luck and a little bit of help from the referee there, but he felt he could put a little bit of pressure there and create a turnover. That is exactly what happened. Good to see him get rewarded and secure the record.
It is great to see. It was very well deserved. He was excellent again tonight. It is no coincidence that he is in the box when they score and get their first power-play goal against us.
On the number of penalties called in the game:
It was a lot of ticky-tack stuff, right? A lot of trips and a lot of hooks. We got caught reaching in a few times. You can’t reach in.
There were a couple of borderline calls that maybe the other night don’t get called, but tonight, they were both ways. I thought our penalty kill did a great job until we got a little overwhelmed there to start the third. It is too much.
The job we did against their first unit on the power play, I thought, was textbook. I love that. It is a big point for us here. We found a way against a really good team to play well.
On Matt Murray’s performance:
I thought he was great. It is a challenging night for him — lots of tough saves, lots of special teams, and lots of traffic in front of him, too.
He is going to want that overtime shot back. He hasn’t let one in like that all season. That is a tough one to end the night for him, but he was great. Obviously, it was a great goalie going at the other end. It was a pretty good battle back and forth between the two of them.
On how much weight he puts on the lack of overtime success given there is no three-on-three in the playoffs:
It is important because it affects the standings, right? We have been talking about working on it.
This is not one we are going to overthink. I mean, we obviously can’t give them the puck back, and we need the save there. Matt knows that. He played a great game, so we will let that one slide. We are going to let that one slide.
Obviously, overtime makes a difference in the standings, especially with the way it is going for us.
