Devils’ Sheldon Keefe’s vocals after the practice was scorched to the ground

It wasn’t that long ago when New Jersey Devils coach Sheldon Keefe called out his stars after their fourth straight loss. Some of New Jersey’s top players, such as Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt, have struggled in recent games. Keefe hoped that calling out the elite in his lineup would spark some reaction. However, it did not seem to have an immediate effect.

Keefe sat out Wednesday’s practice ahead of the game against the Boston Bruins. New Jersey’s bench boss kept going into his team, talking about his problems out loud to those nearby. After practice, Keefe acknowledged the event and explained that his team’s efforts in practice justified such a move on his behalf.

“To me, it wasn’t reflective of a team that’s trying to find a way out of a hole right now,” Keefe said, via Sportsnet . “I expected better, I thought we had a good practice yesterday.” I thought this morning we slept in that skate, in that part of the skate, so to speak. We’re just trying to get their attention and get their energy back and remind them that we have to stick together here, we need our leadership and character to come to the fore to turn things back in our favor.”

Devils’ Jack Hughes reacts to Sheldon Keefe’s practice move

Jack Hughes, by and large, has played well through the Devils’ recent slump. He has three goals and nine points in his last 11 games. The Devils have lost nine of their last 11 gameshowever, including their last four. In the last four contests, Hughes has three points, while he has not recorded a point in three of these four games.

The Devils star spoke on Wednesday about the need to get his team back on track. They have the group to play better, especially offensively. Hughes noted that Keefe’s outburst at practice was should have reminded them what new jersey should do.

“He reminded us that we have to get back on track,” Hughes said, via NHL.com. “We didn’t like our game, but we just didn’t have the great plays that kind of pushed us over the edge to get the win.” He told us what we need to do to get out of this funk and start playing really good hockey again.”

The Devils are hoping for a big win against the Bruins on Wednesday. A win would certainly go a long way toward returning New Jersey to their usual brand of hockey. Let’s see if Keefe’s words in practice affect the players during the game.