LEAFS HUB BIG READ: The Time Is Now

Sep 14, 2018

The start of the hockey season is just around the corner. For Leafs fans, it couldn’t come soon enough.

After an extremely nail biting off-season, things continued to go the Leafs way by landing the biggest free- agent and hometown boy in John Tavares. With the acquisition of Tavares, the Leafs have recently been given 13/2 odds becoming the favourite to win the Stanley Cup according to CBS Sports

The signing of Tavares has increased the team’s expectations drastically. And with greater expectations this year, the window to win a championship has opened up.

It’s easy to see this and be excited considering the Leafs haven’t had much success until recently. I’m not trying to be pessimistic, but I’m not putting too much stock into this until we see some on-ice results. That being said, the Leafs are now in a spot to be considered a contender for the foreseeable future and with the talent on this roster, it’s hard not to believe that this team will be successful.

The fans have a reason to be excited and players on the Leafs equally match the sentiment.

“I was very excited,” said Mitch Marner on Tavares joining the Leafs. “The kind of player he is, is special. He’s going to bring a lot to our team, he’s a leader and that’s something our young team can use is a leader like him. He’s going to do a lot for us.

“It just adds depth to our centre men that are already deep.”

Marner led the team in scoring last year with 69 points, while also surpassing his goals (22) and assists (47) totals from his rookie year. Heading into his third season, Marner can only get better in terms of his on ice production. When Auston Matthews was out of the lineup, Marner stepped up to the plate to fill the offensive void.

With Matthews being healthy and another elite player at the centre position on his line, Marner is excited at the thought of possibly playing with Tavares.

“It’s pretty cool,” Marner said. “I’ve grown up watching him, played against him the last two years and seeing how good he was. I think it’s just more kind of getting on the ice with him and seeing what he likes to do from then on kind of just getting a feel of what he likes to do with the puck once it’s in his hands and what he likes to do when I have the puck in my hands and where he likes to go.”

It’s no surprise that Tavares brings a lot to the table, on and off the ice. While the Leafs lost James van Riemsdyk in free agency, they were easily able to replace the goal production they had with him with Tavares. Here’s a tally of goals provided by the players from this year’s roster from the 2017/18 season.

Tavares (with NYI) 37
Matthews 34
Kadri 32
Marleau 27
Marner 22
Nylander 20

In total, that’s 172 goals combined with our current roster from last year. The Leafs were ranked second at 5-on-5 goals scored with 187, only to trail the Tampa Bay Lightning (196). Add in the fact that the Leafs were tied for third overall in goals for per game with 3.29 and had the second best power-play (behind only the Pittsburgh Penguins) in the league at 25.0 %. Tavares just makes this lineup even more lethal both at 5-on-5 and with the man advantage.

The Leafs were a nightmare for teams whenever they were in the offensive zone, especially in the high danger area. They ranked seventh overall in High Danger Corsi For and were first in High Danger Goals For with 107. It’s safe to say that offense wont be a concern for the Leafs this year with the scoring depth that they have throughout the lineup.

The defense, however, continued to be a major issue for the Leafs last season, as the playoff series against the Boston Bruins suggested. While the Leafs didn’t make a major splash on the blueline, they’ll be looking internally to fill the gaps where they see fit. The final few spots will be a battle with the likes of Connor Carrick, Justin Holl, Andreas Borgman, Calle Rosen, Timitohy Liljegren and Jordan Subban all fighting for the last spot. All of which are looking to make their case and earn a full-time spot on the team.

There are a lot of potential names that could challenge for a spot in the bottom pairing. Who will come out on top will be the question. Liljegren, Rosen and Holl were extremely effective for the Toronto Marlies last year en route to winning the Calder Cup. Borgman showed glimpses of what he was capable when he was up with the Leafs in his rookie season, but was sidelined with an injury during the American League playoffs.

Subban, another hometown kid who is now with his third team, is looking to prove to the Leafs that he is worth the investment and the wait. Judging from his comments heading into training camp, he’s planning on making things difficult for other Leafs hopefuls.

While the defense is a major question mark heading into the season, Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly thinks they’ll be just fine.

“I think we’re in a good spot. We’re eager to get better,” Rielly said. “We have lots of guys who are willing to do whatever it is that we have to do in order to win, if anything more experience and being a bit older I think we’re really comfortable where we are at.”

Marner feels the exact same way, but feels that there needs to be more communication on the ice.

“I think our defense is great. It’s very steady,” he said. “Our D- core can move the puck really well and they see the ice very well. I think they’re smart, they don’t too much with the puck when they have it and they know when to get it out. I think it’s just when we do get in our zone, I think our forwards just need to talk to them and make it easier on them. We got to talk to them right away.”

The Leafs defense looked exciting. They have ample talent and puck movers on the team. Rielly and Jake Gardiner both eclipsed 50 points and finished in the top 20 in points by defensemen and Travis Dermott didn’t look out of place at all during his time with the team. Offensively, their defense is capable of moving the play forward and generating offense.

In their own end, it was extremely questionable. There were some missed clearing attempts, poor positioning and poor decision-making. Nikita Zaitsev had a season to forget and will look to get back to the player that the coaches and fans saw in his rookie year.

Jake Gardiner is heading into a contract year and it’ll be interesting to see what happens. This is a make or break season for him. He’s an amazing and gifted offensive talent. I get that. But defensively, he is weak. At this point in his career, he should know how to play the position and be aware in his own end. The analytics support that he’s great at puck possession, but the eye test shows that can’t even apply simple coverage in front of his own net.

Gardiner was a minus 5 in Game 7 and he took ownership for the loss. If there’s anyone who should be prepared for the season and make a statement, it’s him. This is his time to prove to us that he can be a strong and reliable defenseman in both ends. That game should be his motivation for this year, much like everyone else on the team.

The team fell short again. But Rielly feels that the experience is something to look back and learn from.

“We’re a young team that learned a lot over the course of the past few years,” Rielly said. “I think that moving forward we have higher expectations for our group. As always it’s a lesson to be learned. We’re just trying to get better and get going.”

“Our first year, we were really excited about going to the playoffs,” Marner stated. “Last year we expected to be there, we expected ourselves to be in that position. We played a very good team, obviously we wanted better for ourselves. We have to challenge ourselves to be better. Every year we want to get better and push ourselves.”

And the challenge starts on October 3rd, when they kick off their season against the Montreal Canadiens.

Here is how I think the Leafs line-up would look like come opening night. (*- Tyler Ennis has taken Nylander’s spot on the top line while Nylander remains without a contract.)

Projected Lineup:

Patrick Marleau Auston Matthews William Nylander*
Zach Hyman John Tavares Mitch Marner
Andreas Johnsson Nazem Kadri Kasperi Kapanen
Carl Grundstrom Par Lindholm Connor Brown
Josh Leivo Josh Jooris Tyler Ennis*
Morgan Rielly Ron Hainsey Frederik Andersen
Nikita Zaitsev Jake Gardiner Curtis McElhinney
Travis Dermott Igor Ozhiganov
Calle Rosen Justin Holl
Connor Carrick Timothy Liljegren

The forwards are pretty much set in stone.

The thing the Leafs lacked last year was intensity, not necessarily a loss of grit, but their opponent intimidated them and they had no response. They just sat back. Andreas Johnsson and Kasperi Kapanen have speed, drive and intensity that cold stand up to any opponent they face and with Nazem Kadri as the centre, this line could make anyone angry.

Par Lindholm has excellent two-way qualities including a physical presence and Carl Grundstrom replaces the play that Leo Komarov brought to the table.

I might get some criticism about Josh Leivo. While I think he’s a great player, I feel that Grundstrom might have an advantage being someone that you can use on the penalty- kill. His impact with the Marlies last year would indicate that maybe he’s ready for a spot full time with the Leafs. And let’s not forget about Connor Brown who scored 20 goals in his rookie season might find himself on the fourth line. If a former 20- goal scorer is on the fourth line, this shows the depth that the team has.

Originally, I had Gardiner starting the season with Rielly. However, I think it’s better to have his original defensive partner in Zaitsev for familiarity. If Zaitsev struggles, you can assure that Dermott will see some increased ice-time and responsibility.

The final defense pairing is where things get s a little hectic. It’ll be interesting to see what happens with Connor Carrick. He is someone that would benefit in a third pairing roll, but like Leivo, he had a hard time remaining in the lineup, especially down the stretch and playoffs. With a couple of Marlies ready to come up and make an impact, Carrick needs to have an outstanding camp and pre-season to stay with the team.

Igor Ozghiganov will start off as the sixth defenseman and win the final spot mainly because he wants to be in the NHL. The Leafs wouldn’t have signed him if they didn’t think he was worthy to be on the team. Then again, this was the case for Calle Rosen and Andreas Borgman last year as seeing some time but not permanent rolls. But, it worked out for Zaitsev. Ozhiganov is someone who can make an immediate impact based on his size, strength and shot.

Here is a scouting report by Sportsnet’s Rory Boylen on Ozhiganov.

These last few spots will be interesting. It comes down to a lot of players who are going to do whatever it takes to prove that they belong on the team.

Another season is upon us and the expectations continue to be greater. The Leafs took another step forward last year. Although it ended in disappointment with another first round playoff exit, the desire to win remains their priority. We’ve seen gradual progression the last two years. With another all-star centreman in the fold, the Leafs should be able to take another massive leap forward to break their Stanley Cup drought.

The excitement is there. From the fans to members on the team, they are really excited for this season to start as they look determined as ever to try to win a championship for the first since 1967.

This team is now built to not only be a playoff contender, but to be labeled as a Stanley Cup contender. If at any point the Leafs should try to win it all, the time is now.

Contributing Writers

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