Toronto Maple Leafs: Matt Martin and the Expansion Draft

Toronto Maple Leafs fans have a lot on their mind, and that includes the 2017 Expansion Draft.

Yesterday, all 30 NHL teams, including the Toronto Maple Leafs, released their protected lists for the upcoming expansion draft. There were the obvious protections such as Nazem Kadri, Morgan Rielly, and Frederik Andersen, and then there were some unexpected, such as Matt Martin.

Now, I’m going to answer some frequently asked questions for those who are new to the concept before we get going.

How does protection work?

Teams have two options on how to protect their players for the draft.

1. Protect seven forwards, three defensemen, one goalie.

2. Protect eight skaters (can be forward or defense) and one goalie.

Basically, if you wanted to protect an extra defenseman, you have to pay the price of exposing two more forwards. Most teams took the route of protecting seven forwards and three defensemen, but some teams who are heavy on the defensive side (eg. Nashville Predators) choose to only protect eight.

You can view the protection lists for all 30 teams here.

Why didn’t the Leafs protect Matthews, Marner, etc.?

Both of those players, including other rookies such as William Nylander and Zach Hyman, have not played two full seasons in the NHL. Because of this, they’re automatically protected.

Anyways, let’s continue.

As I was saying before, it came as a surprise to some people that the Leafs chose to protect Matt Martin. Some believed that he should have been exposed in favor of prospects such as Brendan Leipsic or Kerby Rychel.

However, in my opinion, this wasn’t really a bad decision at all.

Matt Martin Last Season

Martin left most fans feeling underwhelmed after his performance from last year. He only managed 10 points through 82 games. For some of the old time hockey fans who expected Martin to be a full time bruiser, he wasn’t all over the other team every time there was a dirty penalty or such. He did, however, appear in 13 fights during the season.

What Leafs fans were more or less hoping for was a 20 point grinder who brought a spark to the team every time he played. They didn’t get exactly that, but he was still a good veteran to have around.

Personally, I’m convinced that he wasn’t himself this season because Lou Lamoriello made him cut his hair. But that’s a different story.

Why protect Martin over Rychel and Leipsic?

Now, for the most part, fans weren’t calling for Martin’s head demanding he would be off the team last year. Personally, while I wasn’t always happy with his play, I still thought he was a good veteran for a team full of rookies and a decent fourth-liner.

The main issue so many fans have with protecting him is because they’re under the belief that Vegas would not have taken him if he was exposed. On top of this, Leipsic or Rychel could have been used as a trade piece for any future deals. Now it’s looking like at least one of those two rookies will be taken tomorrow.

However, let me explain why this isn’t the end of the world.

Yes, those two could have been used as trade pieces. Yes, Vegas might not have taken Martin.

However, is it really guaranteed that Leipsic will help land the Leafs a big name defenseman? Is it really guaranteed that Rychel will be anything more than a fourth liner?

More from Editor In Leaf

I’m not calling either of them busts. But fact is, the Leafs are absolutely loaded on the forward front with youth. And even if Vegas does take Rychel or Leipsic, they still have pieces they could work with for trades. Here are a few examples.

Dmytro Timashov
Andreas Johnsson
Jeremy Bracco
Trevor Moore
Nikita Soshnikov

These are just a few of the names, but my point is that losing one of Rychel or Leipsic wouldn’t be the end of the world. And while I’m not a firm believer that you need tough guys on a team to succeed (eg. Pittsburgh), you do need a healthy mix of offensive talent, two-way forwards, and grinders.

Martin is more valuable to this team than Leipsic or Rychel. It’s really that simple. It’s basically the difference between those who learned the lessons of the Edmonton debacle, and those who didn’t. You don’t just ice a team full of kids. Guidance, protection, etc., are all important in the rebuilding mix. @nicholaskawa

All in all, it certainly might have been better if the Leafs exposed Martin, but all I’m saying is that it’s nothing worth losing sleep over, and his type of game is still one that the Leafs’ need.

All statistics are from eliteprospects.com and hockeysfuture.com

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