Toronto Maple Leafs: Preseason Hockey Is Almost Here
By Josh Tessler
On October 18, the Toronto Maple Leafs will play their first preseason game against Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre in Kanata, Ontario.
Here’s a preview of the Toronto Maple Leafs preseason.
Should I Stay or Should I Go?
Swedish defensive prospect, Timothy Liljegren has been involved in a lot of speculation recently. Especially as the Leafs need to fill their last defensive spots. I believe that Mike Babcock will give Liljegren the chance to play for the last spot during the preseason.
Unfortunately, Liljegren did struggle in the rookie tournament against the Montreal Canadiens. If Lou Lamoriello is smart, he should send Liljegren down to the Marlies at the end of preseason. He needs the time to develop and the Leafs shouldn’t stunt his growth by throwing him into the fire too early.
Defensive Thoughts
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Aside from Liljegren, Babcock has plenty of options with his last defensive spots. He will use preseason play to evaluate Travis Dermott, Rinat Valiev, Martin Marincin, Andrew Nielsen, Connor Carrick, Calle Rosen and Andreas Borgman.
Ultimately, I believe that Carrick will get the fifth defensive spot. I’m not saying Carrick is a great defenseman, but he did have solid Corsi-for (53.8%) and Fenwick-for (52.3%) percentages last season. Carrick’s Corsi-for and Fenwick-for are much better than Marincin’s. If you look at Valiev, he does have similar Corsi-for and Fenwick-for but the sample size is low. Valiev played ten games for the Leafs last year while Carrick played 67.
With the last spot, I believe Babcock will give it to a rookie. It will go to the hot hand and it will be interesting to see who shows up during preseason play. It’ll be fun to see Dermott, Nielsen, Rosen, and Borgman battle it out for the last spot.
But Babcock could also surprise us all and bring back Roman Polak. Or, he could go sign Rob Scuderi to stick in his last defensive spot. Time will tell.
Other Notes
Just like James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak has been in the rumor mill as of late. He could be dealt during the preseason as the Leafs have a tremendous amount of depth at center.
I could see Bozak being traded to a team like the Washington Capitals. The Capitals lost many valuable players in the off-season due to free agency and by trade. They dealt Marcus Johansson to New Jersey and will be looking to fill that void. Bozak could be a nice fit in Washington and provide them with a solid third liner.
Matt Martin, Toronto’s Goon
Of course, I had to reference Goon. I’ve seen the speculation lately surrounding Matt Martin. Folks in Toronto would like to see him in a Marlies uniform or fade away somehow.
But truthfully, you need Martin in the lineup. He is top-notch fourth line grinder and is a leader on this young Maple Leafs team.
Babcock will evaluate Carl Grundstrom, Adam Brooks, and Jeremy Bracco during the preseason. Ultimately, Babcock will continue to put Martin in his lineup. In the final months of the regular season, you’re going to miss a grinder like Martin as you battle for the top seed in the Eastern Conference.
Leafs Nation, let your Goon step up and be a dominant force on your fourth line and on the penalty kill.
I can’t wait for preseason hockey to begin and I’m sure you can’t either.
It’ll be very interesting to see who wins the last two defensive spots in Toronto. Dermott, Borgman, Rosen, Carrick, and Nielsen all look like solid options for the Leafs.