Tortorella defends Keefe to Toronto media: 'I hope he jams it to you all'

John Tortorella stuck up for Sheldon Keefe hours before their teams played each other.

The Philadelphia Flyers bench boss directed his ire at the Toronto media for criticizing the Maple Leafs head coach amid the Atlantic Division club's disappointing start to the season.

"You guys don't know anything," Tortorella said Wednesday, according to the Canadian Press' Joshua Clipperton. "I coach against Sheldon, and I think coaches know other coaches. You guys don't know what he does, you don't know what he's done for that team. I've watched so far, and I have to admit ... I coached him."

Keefe suited up for Tortorella over his entire NHL playing career, joining the Tampa Bay Lightning for three seasons in the early 2000s. The pair have apparently kept in touch since.

"We've had conversations (as he's) a young coach in this league," Tortorella said. "You guys chuck darts at him because you want some results. It's always the coach that gets the darts chucked at him. But I know in watching him and coaching against him, I think he's a terrific coach. And I hope he jams it to you all, quite honestly. Not (Wednesday night). But I have a tremendous amount of respect for him.

"You guys don't have a clue what he does for that team."

Keefe has come under fire following a slow start to the campaign that included losses to the lowly Montreal Canadiens, Arizona Coyotes, and San Jose Sharks, as well as a crushing defeat Sunday to the Anaheim Ducks in which the Leafs led 3-1 in the third period before blowing the advantage and losing in overtime. Toronto finished its five-game road trip with four straight losses.

The Maple Leafs beat the Flyers 5-2 on Wednesday night to improve to 5-4-2.

Keefe declined Tuesday to specifically address his job security, instead saying he's solely focused on getting the team to improve.

The 42-year-old is in his fourth season behind the Leafs' bench. The team has a 120-54-21 regular-season record in that span but has failed to advance to the second round of the playoffs. Toronto hasn't won a postseason round since 2003-04.

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