Toronto comes into tonight’s matchup with many similarities to who they were as a team last year. Goaltending is solid, they are a very good shooting team, and possession is below the 50% barrier.
The biggest difference about the Maple Leafs is that they are not as embarrassingly bad at the whole possession thing. Their Score-Adjusted Fenwick of 42.68% last year was amongst the worst that has ever been recorded. Currently they find themselves at 46.74%. Certainly not good but it is trending in the right direction when compared with last year.
Toronto is currently in third place of the Atlantic Division with a record of 9-5-2. They will need to continue to get league average goaltending or better along with an above average shooting percentage to make those possession stats work. It worked in 2012-13 it didn’t work last year, we’ll see what happens this year.
Penguins coach Mike Johnston has decided to jumble up the lines and I have no problem with that. Highlighting Johnston’s changes is the famed Kunitz-Crosby-Dupuis line reuniting. Here are the new lines:
Kunitz-Crosby Dupuis Spaling-Malkin-Hornqvist Bennett-Sutter-Downie Comeau-Goc-Adams
Not quite what I would have done but it is November and it doesn’t really matter. Now is the time to play around with these kinds of things.
Mike Johnston has said in the past that he loves the Bennett-Sutter-Downie line and he has gone back to that trio now that Beau is healthy again. From where I sit that is just another indication that the Penguins will eventually be trading for a top six winger in order to keep that third line together. It certainly has the potential to be a very good third line. Personally, I still view Beau as a top six winger and I really do think he would do well on either one of the top two lines. His injuries have been frustrating for sure, but I want to push him to see what his potential ceiling is. You won’t find that out playing with Sutter and Downie.
Nick Spaling is getting the opportunity to play with Evgeni Malkin. I maintain my assessment that he is nothing more than a fourth line player on a Cup contending team. A line of Spaling-Goc-Comeau would be more than acceptable as a fourth line come spring time.
Olli Maatta’s tumor was indeed cancerous. His recovery has gone excellent and he is on pace to play again in 5-6 days. I think it is safe to say that this has been a best case scenario for Maatta and his health. Good luck Mr. Maatta we are all excited to see you back in the fold.
Robert Bortuzzo is a more skilled Deryk Engelland. He is a better skater, has better puck skills, and is capable of bringing the same level of physicality as Engelland. For 600k the Penguins are getting great value on his cap hit. However, he is a not a top four defenseman and it is showing. In a perfect world for the Penguins he would be the 7th or 8th guy with Scuderi. Maatta's return to the lineup will create the first real log jam of the season. One of Bortuzzo, Despres, or Scuderi will sit.
Assuming Paul Martin is not traded this would be my ideal look on defense:
Maatta-Letang Ehrhoff-Martin Harrington/Dumoulin/Pouliot (pick one)-Despres
I have no doubt that one of the kids in WB/S could be one of the Penguins six best at the defense position in the organization. I don’t have the same reservations as some people about the young players and their experience. I think experience is overrated these days. The only thing that should be used to evaluate talent is their talent and their ability to use it. The other team isn’t carding players at the blue line as they enter the zone, nobody cares how old a player is if they are making plays. I think you have three guys (Harrington, Dumoulin, Pouliot) that all have the potential to be NHL players this year. Odds say at least one of them would pan out and be an upgrade. As a team you are always looking to get better, I think this is an avenue the Penguins should pursue to get better at some point this year.
I hear a lot about how Scuderi is playing better this year and that may be true, but 2013-14 Rob Scuderi isn’t the standard that he should be judged on. Whether or not he is the best option for the Penguins is the only standard that matters.
For some reason in most hockey circles it is more acceptable for a stay at home defenseman with minimal puck skill to make a mistake in their own end than it is for a young puck skilled player who does the same thing. I’ll never understand that. Both may be prone to mistakes but only one of them can try to make up for it on the other end of the ice. Play the better player, age be damned.
I don’t think the Penguins will scratch Scuderi this early in the season, but I do think it will be considered as the regular season winds down towards the playoffs with better options are available. At least I am telling myself that.
This Rob Scuderi stuff applies to Craig Adams as well.
People also made a big deal about Mike Johnston's lack of experience as an NHL Head Coach. I said it was a non issue and that x's and o's don't magically change when you jump up a level in hockey. So far the Penguins are being rewarded for going with the best, not the person with the most experience.
So which Leafs team will we see tonight? The one that buried the Bruins 6-1 on Wednesday or the one that lost 5-2 to the Penguins earlier this year?
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