The league determined on Thursday that both coaches had exceeded the line during Tuesday night’s games.
Granato received a bench minor in the third period of Buffalo’s 3-2 loss to Florida after challenging officials for penalizing Zach Benson for tripping while saying they missed multiple calls against the Panthers earlier in the game.
“At some point, you’ve got to stand up for your team,” Granato said after the game, describing what pushed him over the edge. “You’re assigned to that job as a coach. It’s a difficult position to be in. But you can’t just sit and watch.”
The same night in Toronto, Keefe was removed in the final minutes of the Leafs’ 6-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, ending their seven-game winning streak.
“Not going there,” Keefe responded, denying to explain what triggered him. Keefe appeared to be furious by a tripping penalty called on Toronto forward Mitch Marner a few minutes before he was removed, and the Leafs quickly cut their lead to 4-2.
They are the second and third coaches fined by the NHL this season, joining Anaheim Ducks coach Greg Cronin, who was also fined $25,000 for the same reason in October.
The money will got to the NHL Foundation.
