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Marlies championship testament to player development |
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After being pushed to the limit in the Calder Cup Final by the Texas Stars, the Toronto Marlies put forth a dominant effort in a 6-1 Game 7 victory at Ricoh Coliseum on Thursday, winning the first AHL title in franchise history and bringing the first professional hockey championship to the city of Toronto in 51 years.
Unlike Game 6, when Toronto could not beat veteran goalie Mike McKenna until the third period, the Marlies pummeled the Stars with 19 first period shots and took a 2-0 lead on goals by Andreas Johnsson and Mason Marchment.
Texas tried to get back into the game but were thwarted by Garret Sparks in a scoreless second and Toronto pulled away in the third on goals from Carl Grundstrom, Johnsson, Ben Smith and Marchment in front of a raucous and jubilant crowd of 8800 fans.
The Marlies success was due to many factors, but the return of Johnsson to the club after the Leafs elimination two months ago may have been the biggest on-ice contributor. The 24-year-old was clutch in the biggest games for the Marlies. In Game 5 vs. Utica, Game 3 in Syracuse and Games 5 & 7 vs. Texas, the speedy Swede scored 12 points (5 goals and 7 assists). Toronto won all four games and Johnsson finished with 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists) in 16 games and was named the Jack Butterfield Award winner for most valuable player of the Calder Cup Playoffs.
More than anything, the success of the club is a testament to the focus on player development promoted by Team President Brendan Shanahan and implemented by Kyle Dubas and Shledon Keefe.
While the roster has carryovers from previous administrations (Garret Sparks) and veteran support players (Colin Greening, Martin Marincin, Ben Smith, Vincent LoVerde, Chris Mueller), the Marlies are comprised mostly of young high draft picks (Timothy Liljegren, Frederik Gauthier, Travis Dermott, Carl Grundstrom, Jeremy Bracco), in the late rounds of the NHL Draft (Dmytro Timashov, Johnsson, Pierre Engvall, Adam Brooks) and free agents that the organization recognized as potential contributors (Trevor Moore, Mason Marchment, Justin Holl).
This development model will see a number of these same players challenge for jobs with the Leafs at training camp in September or be used as assets to acquire players outside the organization in trades.
Changes will occur fairly quickly throughout the organization in the next few weeks, in part because of the departure of Lou Lamoriello and Mark Hunter, but also because of opportunities elsewhere.
Less than 12 hours after carrying the Calder Cup around the ice at Ricoh, it was revealed that Smith (the Marlies team captain) has signed a three-year deal with Alder Mannheim of the German league (DEL).
Speculation continues that the New York Islanders may have interest in either Keefe or Leafs Assistant DJ Smith for their vacant head coaching position and with Dubas looking for defensive help in the trade market, teams like Carolina might be interested in the 24-year-old Sparks as an NHL option after winning the Baz Bastien Award and Calder Cup.
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Toronto Maple Leafs Blogger • 
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