Ex-Maple Leafs HC Sheldon Keefe addresses whether he's still rooting for Toronto in playoffs a year after his exit

Former Toronto Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe doesn't necessarily have a conflict of interest in the playoffs anymore. Keefe's team, the New Jersey Devils, was eliminated in Round 1, while his former team is still in it.

Generally, coaches don't root for teams they're not a part of, but this is different. Keefe understands what the community has gone through during their title drought.

In an interview with Daily Faceoff's Matt Larkin, which was released on Friday, Keefe acknowledged that he couldn't get the job done and takes some responsibility for the anguish they've experienced.

“They’re in a tremendous place right now and playing great hockey," Keefe said earlier in the week, when the Leafs-Panthers series was 2-2. "Chief [coach Craig Berube] has them playing extremely well. He has done an incredible job building up their defense and goaltending. I look at myself as invested in it. Nine years coaching the Leafs and the Marlies, and my kids are huge fans."

Keefe said he and his kids feel "invested in what’s happening and want to see them do well." He added that he has "nothing but love and care for so many people in that organization, both as players and staff members."

He closed by saying that if the Devils are not playing, he is "pulling for" the Maple Leafs to keep going. The Carolina Hurricanes ousted Keefe's Devils in Round 1.

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Sheldon Keefe addresses differences in Toronto and New Jersey

The Toronto Maple Leafs operate in one of the biggest media markets and certainly one of the biggest hockey markets in the world. The New Jersey Devils do not.

Sheldon Keefe is now coaching the Devils (Imagn)

Despite that, Sheldon Keefe believes it's much more similar than different coaching in those two places. He said via Daily Faceoff:

“It’s still the NHL, it’s so much of the same schedule and travel, it’s game day, practice day, off day, the routines are the same," Keefe said in an interview with Daily Faceoff. "And while there are certainly less media obligations, it’s still a very passionate fan base that has high expectations of its team and its coach. And I don’t take that lightly at all."

He added that it's nice to have a little more privacy and to be less recognizable out on the streets, but even in New Jersey, fans will recognize the coach of their favorite team and approach him.