Toronto Maple Leafs: Moments From 2016
With 2017 on the horizon and 2016 in the rearview mirror. The Toronto Maple Leafs had an intriguing past calendar year.
From finishing in last place to Auston Matthew’s four-goal debut. There were plenty of moments to reflect on for the blue and white. Now with 2017 upon them, the future continues to take shape.
Auston Matthews continues to come into his own and the rest of the rookies are looking comfortable. After a rocky start to the season, they are hiding their stride heading into the new year.
As a result, they may bypass another bottom five finish, this team has playoff aspirations in 2017. Now before that gets talked about, here are moments that moved the needle in 2016 for the Maple Leafs.
Trading The Captain To A Division Rival
Build them up became the motto for the front office when it came to selling off their veterans. Dion Phaneuf sat at the top of that list of veterans who the franchise wanted to move on.
Nonetheless, his low trade value and high cap hit proved difficult. However, half a year under Mike Babcock saw the captain’s play improve. Then when the time came, Toronto pulled the trigger on a deal.
In late February, the Ottawa Senators made a rare trade with the Maple Leafs. In addition to Phaneuf, Ottawa acquired forwards Matt Frattin, Casey Bailey and Ryan Rupert, and defenseman Cody Donaghey.
Meanwhile, Toronto acquired defenseman Jared Cowen and forwards Milan Michalek, Colin Greening and Tobias Lindberg, along with Ottawa’s second-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft.
With this deal, Toronto put an end to the Brian Burke-Dave Nonis era.
The Kids Get The Call
Pain, the early parts 2016 had lots of it. The lineups were atrocious and the fans wanted to get the season over with. But, after the deadline Toronto decided to call-up some of their top prospects.
William Nylander, Zach Hyman, Nikita Soshnikov, and Kasperi Kapanen all headed from the Ricoh to the Air Canada Centre. Other players like Connor Brown, Rinat Valiev, and Frederik Gauthier followed suit.
As a result, the latter part of the season became interesting. Fans now had an investing interest to see how the kids performed with the big club.
Although Toronto finished in last place, nothing will take away from seeing Nylander, Hyman, Brown, and Soshnikov all score their first NHL goal. These call-ups marked the shift in youth with it continuing into the 2016-2017 season.
Hitting The Lottery
After enduring a painful season. Toronto landed a 20% chance of winning the draft lottery.
The prize in this?
Auston Matthews, a Mexican-American teenager from Arizona who played in Switzerland. A number one center that could change the fortunes of a franchise.
Heartbreak and the history of the Maple Leafs are synonymous with each other. Thus, when they entered the top three in the draft lottery it felt too good to be true. Then Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly unveiled the card showing the new Toronto logo.
For the first time in awhile, the Maple Leafs caught a break. It allowed them the opportunity to get a number one center. A role that Mats Sundin left open when he departed in 2008.
Auston Matthew Becomes A Maple Leaf
Toronto had not selected first overall since 1985 when they selected Wendel Clark. That would change in Buffalo when the entire brass of the organization walked up to the podium.
“Toronto’s proud to announce. From Zurich, men’s league Switzerland. From the U.S. Program, Auston Matthews.”
When Mark Hunter uttered that sentence, the fortunes for Toronto changed. They found their number one center and the key piece to build around.
Since 1967, nothing good has occurred for the Maple Leafs and when it does, it does not last long. However, with the arrival of Brendan Shanahan, everything has gone right. The selection of Matthews marks a culmination of a long and starved rebuild fans were begging for.
Matthews Scores Four In Debut
On opening night of the NHL season, Matthews decided to start his career with a bang. He would score his first NHL goal, but that would not be all for the 19-year-old.
Matthews decided to put Toronto on his back and score four goals against Ottawa. Although his efforts did not result in a win. The Scottsdale native caught the attention of everyone around the league.
Heck, Matthews put Toronto on two NBCSN broadcast in the United States with his performance.
Next: Leafs Turning The Corner
Nonetheless, the lasting memory of this game should go to his mother, Emma. For every Maple Leafs fan shared the same emotions as we watched her son make NHL history and be the superstar fans have hoped for when they drafted him.