Toronto Maple Leafs: The Enemy’s Insight – Debut

Being a fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs is a lot like living in a bubble.

We care about one thing, and one thing only: the Toronto Maple Leafs.

When news breaks around the league, we immediately wonder how it impacts the Leafs. A player hits the trade block? I wonder how can the Leafs get him! Is that a pending free agent? What are the chances he’ll sign in Toronto? Dedicate five straight hours of coverage to this, pronto!

Personally, I think it’s high time we start looking outward and learn more about our rivals.

With that said, welcome to “The Enemy’s Insight” a new series here at FanSided.

Each Monday, Omar White, expert for FanSided’s Montreal Canadiens branch “A Winning Habit“, will ask me a series of Leafs-related questions to be answered here, while doing the same for my Habs questions on his site.

These questions will provide some valuable insight into how these two fan bases perceive each other. Plus, the Habs are really bad. There’s no way I’d ever pass up an opportunity to make fun of them.

So, without further adieu, let’s get started.

“What’s the game plan going into the trade deadline? Is it a guarantee that the Leafs make a deal or could they stay with what they have?”

Being a Leafs fan around trade deadline time is exhausting.

Everyone goes on and on about how acquiring a top-four defenceman is a necessity, declining to acknowledge that we’ve been having this same exact discussion for the last 15 years.

Personally, I don’t think the Leafs need to waste assets on defensive upgrades at all.

In fact, they have capable parts already in their organization, ie. Travis Dermott, Andreas Borgman, Timothy Liljegren next year, etc. Throwing away a second round pick for an underwhelming half-season of Erik Gudbranson would not only make precisely zero sense but also serve as terrible asset management.

So, if the Leafs do choose to swing a deal at the deadline, the position most in need of improvements is at centre.

As I wrote last week, Tyler Bozak just isn’t cutting it this year. He’s a defensive liability, while seriously underperforming on offence despite logging the most sheltered minutes of any Leaf not named James van Riemsdyk.

Being three centres deep is essentially a pre-requisite for playoff contenders these days. And with this current version of Bozak, the Leafs just aren’t. This begs the question; who could they go after?

Frankly, I have no clue.

The trade block doesn’t feature a Brain Boyle-calibre upgrade this year, leaving the pickings noticeably slim. I’ve mentioned names like Mark Letestu or Jean-Gabriel Pageau before, but even those guys each come with their own baggage.

Barring a miracle, I think this trade deadline will be a quiet one in Leaf Land.

Minor tweaks here or there withstanding, if you’re expecting a swing for the fences, don’t hold your breath.

“What does Mike Babcock do with the pairings once Morgan Reilly and Nikita Zaitsev return to the lineup?”

This question can be answered in two ways.

What should Mike Babcock do with the D pairings when Morgan Rielly and Nikita Zaitsev return from injury, and what he will do.

What he should do, is load Roman Polak into a medieval catapult and launch him as far away from this team as physics will allow. The second Polak enters orbit, Babcock should then inform Travis Dermott of his new permanent spot in the lineup, to the delight of fans across the globe.

What Babcock will do, unfortunately, is inexplicably keep Polak in the lineup, while either shackling Connor Carrick to the press box or resuming the previously attempted three-headed rotation of Carrick, Dermott and Andreas Borgman.

Ugh.

When all’s said and done, I’d bet my bottom dollar the D pairings will resemble something along these lines:

Rielly- Hainsey

Gardiner-Zaitsev

Dermott-Polak

Extras: Borgman, Carrick

I’d love nothing more than to be proven wrong here, but I highly doubt that will happen. Search your feelings, Leafs fans. You know it to be true.

On the bright side, at least we don’t have Shea Weber!

“Are you as confident in going up against the Boston Bruins in the playoffs now as you were earlier?”

You better believe I am.

The Leafs haven’t lost a game to the Bruins since 2016, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. Yes, they have a phenomenal top line of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak. And that’s good for them!

You know what the Leafs have? Actual depth.

If deployed correctly, the Leafs could run out four scoring lines, each capable of going toe to toe with the Bruins’ three-headed monster. Toronto’s PP units are led by Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and Patrick Marleau, while Boston’s feature the likes of Danton Heinen and Ryan Spooner.

So yeah, I’m not too worried about it.

In all seriousness though, the only thing holding the Leafs back from dispatching Boston is Babcock.

If he chooses to ice his skilled players and embrace speed, like he did right before the All-Star break it’s a cakewalk. But, if he focuses on line matching and scratches Kasperi Kapanen for Matt Martin while playing Leo Komarov 24 minutes a night, my confidence will start to plummet.

As has been the case all season, this team possess the pieces capable of dominating their opponents. Whether they actually choose to use them is the real question.

Next: Marlies Notebook: Hey Now, You're a Holl-Star

Be sure to check back each Monday for another instalment of The Enemy’s Insight.