Devils' Keefe hails Hischier's surprise fight: 'We need more of that'

New Jersey Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe doesn't want Nico Hischier to become an enforcer, though he didn't mind his captain dropping the gloves with Matthew Knies on Tuesday in an effort to provide his team a spark.

Hischier and Knies went toe-to-toe with the Devils trailing the Toronto Maple Leafs 2-0 in the third period. Toronto went on to win 4-0, and Keefe addressed his club's need for more emotion following the loss.

"I mean, do I want our captain and one of our best players fighting when we're down 2-0 in the third period? Absolutely not," Keefe said, per James Nichols of NJ Hockey Now. "But do we need some guys to step up to show some emotion and some balls and play with some urgency and competitiveness and step out of character? Yeah, we need more of that.

"So to that end, I like it. I like that Nico did it and hopefully it rubs off on the rest of the group in a positive way," Keefe added. "I didn't think that it did in that moment, but you want to talk about gut checks, there's one. Your captain's out there taking on a big guy stepping out of character."

Hischier only had one previous scrap in his NHL career, according to Hockeyfights.com. The 2017 first overall pick took on Mikael Granlund during the 2021-22 campaign.

Keefe continued, "We'll see what we have with our group, but we need more guys that are going to show a little bit more if you're not going to score. If you're not going to score, give us a little bit more competitively and physically and show that you're working to find your way. There's not enough of that. We're just kind of going about our business."

Hischier ranks second on the Devils this season with 30 points in 39 games.

The Devils have lost three in a row and four of 10. New Jersey is three points back of a wild-card seed. The crowded Eastern Conference standings currently has eight teams within five points of the last playoff spot.