Sheldon Keefe may have inherited a Toronto Maple Leafs team that was in the midst of a six-game losing skid, but coming off of a 6-0 drubbing of the sick and injured Detroit Red Wings, Keefe's club boasts a 3-0 record, all road wins, since the new bench boss was brought on.

Coach Keefe has lit a fire under Tyson Barrie since moving him up to the top power play unit, utilizing him as a trigger man in more offensive situations and has basically given him the green light to pinch in and be aggressive to get involved in the play in the offensive zone. He has also breathed life into veteran Jason Spezza, who until a week ago, looked to be on his way out of town. The new bench boss also blessed Auston Matthews with more ice time, which has resulted in Matthews scoring goals in back-to-back road games against Arizona and Colorado, a feat that he has struggled to do all season long, despite posting an otherworldly goal-scoring rate at home.

What does Keefe have up his sleeve next, you ask? It appears as though he is looking to build the confidence of his backup goaltender as he will give Michael Hutchinson the nod on Friday in the first of back-to-back games against the Sabres in a home-and-home series. Yes - you read that correctly. Frederik Andersen will get the nod on Saturday, in the second of back-to-back games, something that was unheard of under his former Head Coach, Mike Babcock.

Keefe has determined that this is the best course of action for three reasons.

1) Hutchinson is accustomed to the 4pm EST starts from his time spent in the AHL.

2) An early start followed by a short trek back to Toronto will allow the club's starting goaltender, Andersen, to have a more typical game-day routine on Saturday.

3) The team does not yet have a win in the second half of a back-to-back yet, so changing the formula may change the result.

It's almost as if Keefe analyzed Babcock's system this season, turned it on its axis and decided to deploy this club in the exact opposite way that Babcock did. It may be anecdotal, but is it really that much of a stretch, when you consider how well the team has played of late? The Maple Leafs special teams have gone from the basement to the upper-middle of the pack on both the penalty kill and the power play over the last few games. The possession numbers have soared under Keefe as well, as Toronto owns the NHL's best possession numbers over the past week.

I suppose we'll find out if there is a method to Keefe's madness on Friday. Hutch deserves a win here and it appears as though his coach wants nothing more than to give it to him.