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Toronto Maple Leafs: There’s No One-Hit Wonder With This Group

By Eduardo Razo |
Apr 23, 2017; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) shakes hands with Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews (34) after eliminating the Maple Leafs in overtime in game six of the first round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Air Canada Centre. The Capitals beat the Maple Leafs 2-1 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 23, 2017; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) shakes hands with Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews (34) after eliminating the Maple Leafs in overtime in game six of the first round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Air Canada Centre. The Capitals beat the Maple Leafs 2-1 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

After going from last place to the playoffs, the Toronto Maple Leafs will no longer catch teams off-guard.

The real test, however, will come as the Toronto Maple Leafs make the leap to Stanley Cup contenders. Instead of fizzling out like other young teams who enjoyed a successful surprise season.

For every Chicago Blackhawks and Los Angeles Kings, there’s a Colorado Avalanche and New York Islanders. In the case of Chicago and Los Angeles, they were young teams that broke through. Resulting in five cups in a span of six years (three for Chicago and two for Los Angeles).

On the other hand, there are the Colorado’s of the world. A team that drafted can’t miss prospect; had early success, but haven’t amounted to much since then.

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Take Colorado; they hired Joe Sakic and Patrick Roy. Shortly after, they won the lottery and drafted Nathan Mackinnon. In his first season behind the bench, Roy guided them to 112 points and a division title. However, they had a first-round exit after a seven-game series against the Minnesota Wild.

Following that playoff appearance in 2014, Colorado has fallen off a cliff. For some, Toronto mirrors this specific team. Going from last to playoffs overnight, but if you take a closer look, these two teams are day and night. Let’s dive into the similarities and differences between both groups.

Here are the numbers (all stats are 5v5).

During their 2014 magical season, Colorado’s defense was awful. Their Scoring Chances Against (Scoring Chances against a team) and Scoring Chances Against per 60 (Scoring Chances against a team per 60 minutes of Time On Ice) were awful, near bottom finishes. Colorado gave up 586 SCA and had an SCA60 of 9.02 in a playoff season.

With a 3876 Corsi Against (Shots against a team) and 59.65 Corsi Against per 60 (Shots against per 60 minutes of Time On Ice). Also, possessing a PDO of 101.75, Colorado relied on their offense and a Vezina caliber season from Semyon Varlamov to get them into the playoffs.

Now, as far as the Toronto Maple Leafs go, their defensive numbers were not spectacular either. Their SCA and SCA60 during the regular season topped off at 565 and 8.68 respectively. Also, their CA and CA60 were awful, finishing with a 3873 CA and 59.53 CA60. The numbers aren’t pretty, but again they weren’t expected to make the playoffs.

Here’s where the two franchises differ, Colorado has had three seasons to improve their defense but to no avail. Here’s a how their Corsi For Percentage compared to Toronto’s this season. Also, both teams have offensive talent, but Colorado’s has seen a regression in the Goals For Percentage this past season.

It’s not all about the numbers though. For a franchise to make the leap to Stanley Cup contender, their front office needs to do their part. In Colorado, Joe Sakic holds the keys to the franchise as he has final say on all player personnel decisions.

However, since their playoff appearance, they have gone the wrong way. Over the past three seasons, they have failed to fix their blue line and have tried to patch it with over the hill veterans. Also, their drafting to hasn’t gone well, especially finding talent on the blue line.

They have a plethora of forwards but lack the defense to go anywhere. Also, the franchise was riddled with off-season drama when Roy, after three seasons, resigned. It’s become a franchise in shambles as it finds itself at the bottom, yet again.

So what makes Toronto a different situation?

Well for one the leadership of the group. Brendan Shanahan has identified when there’s an issue and has fixed it in the past. A prime example of this is when he evaluated the core a year into his tenure. He realized it had to be blown up; that a rebuild was clearly needed if the Toronto Maple Leafs wanted to go anywhere.

Thus, we can expect that he is aware of the defensive efficiencies of this team and will address them over the off-season. Expect the blue line to look different as Toronto looks to fix one of the glaring holes on the team.

Furthermore, Shanahan has surrounded himself with smart and fruitful hockey people. Take Mark Hunter, who is in charge of drafting and finding talent for the team. Kyle Dubas holds the title of general manager for the Toronto Marlies and has to develop the talent Hunter finds. Lou Lamoriello is in charge of the big club, providing decades worth of experience. Heck, even through in Jacques Lemaire has a role with the team.

Then there’s the coach, Mike Babcock. Should I go into further detail with this?

Yes, they share similarities with Colorado’s playoff team in 2014. Nonetheless, they differ in important positions for a franchise to go forward. Management in Toronto has shown they will make the right decisions; whether it be trades, drafting, or signings. These two franchises have young offensive talent, but after that, they are nothing alike.

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