Toronto Maple Leafs: Expansion Draft Protection for Martin
Toronto Maple Leafs protected Matt Martin and Social Media doesn’t agree.
Today every team released their lists of protected players. While the expansion draft is a few days away, there are no surprises for the Toronto Maple Leafs. While some people disagree with the Leafs protecting Matt Martin, I believe Vegas would have selected him over Rychel, Leipsic, Marincin or the other options on the Leafs.
First of all, the Las Vegas Golden Knights will not be a very good team. Will they win some games? With Marc-Andre Fleury in net, absolutely. Can they make the playoffs with a cast of 2nd, 3rd, and 4th line players? That is very unlikely. What is important for Vegas is to provide entertainment for their fans while they grow their brand.
Entertainment vs Hockey
LVGK (Las Vegas Golden Knights) will probably remind people of the 2015 Toronto Maple Leafs. With Gerrard Gallant behind the bench, the team will attempt to play an up-tempo and structured system. While the effort will be there and because the losses will mount, the team needs more to keep fans interested.
“Red ice sells hockey tickets.” — Bob Stewart“Ice hockey is a form of disorderly conduct in which the score is kept.” — Doug Larsonwww.habseyesontheprize.com“I went to a fight the other night, and a hockey game broke out.”— Rodney Dangerfieldwww.brainyquote.com
The number of hockey fights has been dwindling the past decade. While talk of head injuries and concussions move to the mainstream, there is more discussion about fighting in hockey. Does it belong? Is it a way for players to police themselves on the ice?
Regular Season Stats
| Season | Games | Fights* | Fights Per Game | Games With Fights | % of Games With Fights | Games With More Than One Fight | # of players who fought** |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-18+ | 1230 | 372 | 0.30 | 306 | 24.88% | 55 | – |
| 2016-17 | 1230 | 372 | 0.30 | 306 | 24.88% | 55 | 285 |
| 2015-16 | 1230 | 344 | 0.28 | 288 | 23.41% | 50 | 269 |
| 2014-15 | 1230 | 391 | 0.32 | 331 | 26.91% | 45 | 276 |
| 2013-14 | 1230 | 469 | 0.38 | 366 | 29.76% | 78 | 288 |
| 2012-13 | 720 | 347 | 0.48 | 264 | 36.67% | 66 | 245 |
| 2011-12 | 1230 | 546 | 0.44 | 423 | 34.39% | 98 | 321 |
| 2010-11 | 1230 | 645 | 0.52 | 458 | 37.24% | 117 | 348 |
| 2009-10 | 1230 | 714 | 0.58 | 493 | 40.08% | 171 | 341 |
* A fight is counted when at least one player involved receives a fighting major.** This is the number of players who have been involved in a fight during the course of the listed season, and does not always exactly match the number of players who have received a fighting major.+ Projectedhockeyfights.com
Don Cherry Will be Thrilled
Toronto Maple Leafs owner Conn Smythe once said, “If you can’t beat ’em on the ice, you might as well beat ’em in the alley” I expect the LVGK to be beating a lot of teams. With fisticuffs. There are many detractors to fighting in hockey, yet it is an incredible 5-60 seconds. Intense, exciting and sometimes bloody, hockey fights sell tickets. Matt Martin is a hockey player who can fight. In addition to fighting 13 times in the 2016-17 season, he won nine times, lost three with one draw as per hockeyfights.com. While Martin had the lowest points production in his seven-year career, his presence allowed the rookies more space. While Matthews, Marner, Nylander, Brown, Zaitsev, and Hyman were setting franchise scoring records, Martin, Roman Polak, and Leo Komarov hit the opposition. The Toronto Maple Leafs are a hard team to play against and Babcock likes the make-up of his forward core.
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The Knights have plenty of NHL level 2-3rd line players to select from. While some players have offensive upside such as Brendan Leipsic, there are few players with Martin’s pedigree. A fighter who can play hockey. That sells tickets. I think that the Knights would have selected Matt Martin had the Toronto Maple Leafs left him unprotected.
all stats and graphs: hockeyfights.com