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The Toronto Maple Leafs will take to the ice tonight against the Washington Capitals and it’s safe to say that we don’t really know what to expect.
The Leafs have played some damn sexy hockey and some damn terrible hockey over the past month. A few back to back losses where effort and anything resembling NHL hockey was lacking, followed by a few games where the Leafs looked like they could compete with just about any team in the league.
That being said, it appears that some of the areas in which Toronto continues to struggle is toward certain aspects of their specialty teams. We all know that the penalty kill and powerplay has historically been an issue for this group, however they had seemingly found success in recent years…at least to a degree. So far this season, Toronto sits 18th in their PP abilities and 9th in PK.
I suppose with years of issues in their own end Toronto may have started to focus more on their defensive game and or system. We have begun to notice that the Leafs are improving in certain areas when it comes to their defense, and being 9th in the league at killing penalties would support this. Moreover, Toronto currently sits 7th in blocked shots, 4th in hits, first in takeaways, and 11th in giveaways. Anyone else get the feeling that most of these stats are a direct result of Komarov!?
I digress.
While 11th in giveaways is nothing to be proud of, the Leafs have been bottom five with respect to this stat for far too many years and 11th is, at the very least, sitting close to the middle of the pack. There is still work to do here, but with some of the youth who continue to take on big minutes, it’s kind of expected. Toronto is actually working on improving their overall defensive game and when they play together, they actually look good!
Now, here is where things get tricky. When the Leafs try to force the play or do too many things, they start to fall apart. When certain players…I won’t name any names *cough Gardiner*….skate the puck up and try to do too much, at times we can see some confusion on the ice as assignments are missed and structure goes out the window.
What I have noticed is that when Toronto can play simple hockey, they can play great hockey. When they try to make fancy plays, rely heavily on Kessel, or move away from a strong fore-checking game which has been one of their strengths, they begin to fall apart.
And this takes me to my next point. Toronto has started to get some success and strong play from certain guys like Kadri and when they do, they’ve done noticeably well as they don’t need to rely on Kessel’s line to spark some offense and offensive hustle, if you will. In fact, Carlyle has been quite pleased with Kadri’s effort and has been rewarding him with more ice time which is good for the players confidence, but also takes some weight off other lines.
The part where I am a little disappointed with is toward the fact that the coach and media seem to be now turning to the top six guys and offering that if they don’t start producing more often, that this team will suffer.
Let me be the first to call bullshit.
Bullshit.
This team plays it’s best when they have their 2nd and 3rd lines contributing, which often leads to the first finding success of their own. Let’s be honest here – the first line is usually good for a point or two on any given night, but if the 2nd and 3rd isn’t good for any, well it’s tough to get wins. You’re simply not going to win too many games with points coming strictly from your top guys.
What I do like, however, is that Kessel seems to understand it’s not always about his line maintaining these stupid point streaks which is ever so important to the fantasy hockey owners. Yes you need points from your top line, and yes you need guys like Kessel to put up some serious points…but the difference is that in previous years when Kessel would “disappear… he didn’t have anything else to offer.
To me, it almost seems that Phil has been accepted as a veteran player on the team who leads by example. He now back checks, hustles, and doesn’t give up on the play..at least not as easily as he once did. If he could pick up a little more on Leo Komarov’s play he could be one hell of a player! Point is, while Kessel may only have two points in his last 6 games played, he’s still helping this team succeed and it’s up to the rest of the team to round out the scoring.
In fact, Toronto still sits 3rd in the league in goals per game and Phil has been “slumping…. Toronto is getting goals from more than just their top line which has been very much absent over previous years. And while this is nice, their goals against per game are still their Achilles’ heel as they sit 24th in the league in that respect. This needs to improve or you’re not going to win too many games, Toronto.
"We haven't been going great, but we're winning," Kessel said. "And winning helps you get back on track. We're getting chances, shots. We've been cold, but with some puck luck it will go in for us."
Seems funny to me that goals being scored is what is being stressed by the media and the team. Guys, you need to focus on not letting that other team on the ice score goals too! Sure goaltending could stand to be better…but I try as best I can to not blame a team game on any one particular individual.
In terms of the powerplay needing to be improved upon, it appears as though Kadri will be rewarded with first line PP time alongside Dion Phaneuf on the point. But leave it to Carlyle to make it sound like a painstaking idea…or something.
“We banged our heads around the desk this morning and felt this is what we could come up with,… Carlyle said. “We’d taken Naz off the power play the previous game so we think this will stimulate his competitive juices. We hope he’ll defy us and go out and make a contribution.…
Anyways, I am looking forward to see how Kadri accepts the challenge and tries to prove himself capable of top line duties when asked. The kid has a tremendous amount of talent, but his attitude at times and effort isn’t always there. If we can curve that and get his confidence back up, I certainly feel that he can do some special things.
Thanks for reading!