Some Thoughts as We Head into The Playoffs

 

Photo From The Star

Last night was simply put, an ugly performance from the Leafs. Last night they hosted the Buffalo Sabres who had their top prospect and Toronto native Owen Power making his much-anticipated NHL debut. This would be the final meeting of the season between this too teams and for the final meeting the starting goalies would be veteran Craig Anderson for Buffalo and for Toronto their starting goalie would be Erik Kallgren. Now, I’m not going to break down every goal like I usually do with these writeups, instead for this one I am just going to talk about a few thoughts I have about this team as they prepare for the post season.

 

I want to start by saying that heading into last nights matchup the Leafs had not lost a game in regulation in nearly three weeks and of course no team is ever going to win every single game, but the team could at least give a consistent effort. All season we have seen the Leafs when playing a top team like Tampa Bay or Boston for an example we have seen the Leafs pay attention to details, we’ve seen this team match their opponents skill and intensity but when this Leaf team plays someone below them in the standings we have seen this team sink to the opponents level and in the case of Buffalo we have seen a team at the bottom of the standings look like a Conference powerhouse.

I want to give an example of something I have done over the years with the handful of teams I have coached throughout my time in the game of hockey. I have always tried to teach my players the difference between a good team and a great team. A good team is one that has all kinds of talent, but they bring their best effort occasionally, while a great team (the Lightning are a perfect example of this) but a great team brings their best effort every single night regardless of their opponent. Last night we Leaf fans saw the Leafs perform with an effort that looked of a team content with just making the playoffs and with the way they played it looked as if the two points up for grabs didn’t matter to them. Aside from Auston Matthews who saw many dangerous scoring chances turned aside the rest of the team was nonexistent. William Nylander as an example when he had possession you noticed him as he happened to pick up an assist on the Timothy Liljegren goal but when Nylander was without the puck we saw a player who seemed disinterested. Speaking of Nylander a few weeks ago I believe it was Elliott Friedman who tweeted that on trade deadline day the Leafs and Ducks apparently discussed a trade package that involved Willy going to Anaheim and in return the Leafs would receive a package that included goaltender John Gibson. Friedman believes that although a deal couldn’t be reached before the deadline it wouldn’t surprise him if the two teams circled back and talked trade at the draft or during free agency.

Now after reading that I am sure there are many fans that will point out that Kyle Dubas said he wouldn’t trade Nylander at all. Too those fans I want to remind you that when PK Subban was a member of the Canadiens former GM Marc Bergevin when asked about the speculation of a possible PK trade said and I quote “PK Subban isn’t going anywhere” that was on night one of the NHL draft, the next morning at the second day of the draft PK Subban someone who wasn’t going anywhere was traded to Nashville for Shea Webber. A GM could have every intention not to trade a player, but his job is to always try and make his team better so that they can compete for and one day win a Stanley Cup, Bergevin felt moving Subban for Webber although many questioned the trade Marc felt it was a move he couldn’t pass on. Kyle Dubas is no different he could fully intend to keep Nylander on the roster but if an offer comes along that would improve his teams goaltending overnight or any area for that matter Kyle would have no choice but to make the trade and if that means Nylander in this case would be a player leaving then so be it it’s all part of the business. By no means am I saying this deal happens because honestly if I’m GM of the Ducks I hang onto Gibson as my goalie but on the other hand if I am Kyle Dubas, I make that trade in a heartbeat because Gibson becomes your team’s automatic number one goalie, and your backup goalie can either be found in house or on the goalie market.

 

For those who have read and followed my blog for the year plus that it has been around you would know I am a big supporter of coach Sheldon Keefe but there is one thing specific question I have for Sheldon. Before I start, obviously Keefe has years of knowledge and experience compared to me after all he is behind an NHL bench making millions while I’m sitting in front of a computer in my bedroom blogging for fun. However, my question for Keefe simply is What does he see in Justin Holl that keeps him in this Leafs lineup? Holl in the last run of games in my eyes hasn’t played well at all and for me last night it really stood out. Holl when in his own end seems to be a liability on the ice, we had seen the Muzzin Holl pairing many times and each time that pair struggled. Last night we saw Justin Holl paired with TJ Brodie, and once again a pair involving Justin Holl had a tough time. Currently Justin Holl is consistently in this lineup in my opinion because Rasmus Sandin is recovering from a knee injury, and it is believed that if he returns it won’t be untill the final few games of the regular season. I hope that when Sandin returns for game one of the playoffs that Justin Holl sits is the press box. Do I think Holl is a terrible defenseman? No, I don’t, I think he is a good bottom pair D who has had success in the game, but I don’t think he is a good fit on this current team’s blue line. In recent games we have seen Justin lose races for pucks, we have seen him lose battles for pucks in his end of the rink and on more than one occasion we have seen Justin Holl have to turn and chase the puck carrier. Trust me when I tell you a team’s most important key to success when on offense is to make your opponents D turn. A defenseman is supposed to keep a puck carrier in front of him. If you’re seeing the puck carrier’s chest, you’re doing your job but if a defenseman is constantly seeing the carriers back then you are behind the play therefor your team is having to work harder to defend because the defenseman is out of position. In the Leafs win streak we saw Holl lose battles almost on a nightly basis but majority of the Leaf fanbase brushed it off because the Leafs won. To those fans, the Leafs won those games because they were able to score their way out of trouble, but the thing is that method won’t always work, defense is crucial and come playoff time defense is the most important thing needed if a team wants to win a championship.

 

Am I pushing the panic button after losing to the Buffalo Sabres? No not at all but I am a passionate fan like everyone who supports any team but if I, someone who has a handful of years working as a volunteer assistant coach can spot some concerning signs with a team then imagine what Sheldon Keefe and his staff are seeing. There’s no question this team will rebound and gather several wins in the final weeks of the season but in the first week of May the Leafs will start a stretch of games where they hope to win 16 of them but they need to nail down their defense pairings prior to that because if not then we will spend the rest of our summer over analyzing this roster and asking What do the Leafs do next.

 

That’s all for this one the Leafs are in action against Ovechkin and the Capitals Thursday night, thanks as always for reading.