The Toronto Maple Leafs want to be the Penguins and Blackhawks.
By which I mean, the Toronto Maple Leafs are hoping to parlay some top-of-the-draft luck into a decade of competitive hockey and multiple championships.
The Penguins drafted Malkin, Crosby.
The Blackhawks drafted Toews, Kane.
The Leafs drafted Matthews and Marner.
It’s no coincidence that the two best teams of the last decade picked two hall of famers each at the top of the draft, and it’s obvious why the Leafs (and their fans, critics, and league analysts) would all look at those two teams when discussing the current Leafs.
But one thing that goes sort of un-talked about: The Penguins and the Hawks both fluked out by grabbing no-doubt, first-ballot hall of fame defenseman in later rounds. In 2002, in the second round, the Hawks got Duncan Keith. In 2005, in the third round, the Penguins got Kris Letang.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Now, full disclosure: I can’t predict the future.
I have no idea if Travis Dermott is going to be a superstar. I certainly don’t want to put the idea in your head that he might be a first-ballot hall of famer who is going to be a cornerstone to multiple future Tornoto Maple Leafs Stanley Cups.
But the serendipity of the idea does have some merit. The Leafs drafted him in the second round and should he turn into something special, it would not only go a long way in helping the team and its fans realize their dreams, but it’d fit the script..
Not to get you too excited, but in Keith’s rookie season, he scored a point every four games, while Dermott is averaging about one every other game. No pressure!
Dermott
Since making his NHL debut against the Canucks on January 6th, Dermott has played in every game but one. Originally, he was scheduled to be part of a rotation between Borgman, Carrick and himself, but he sat one game and the Leafs lost, and was so good ever since that Babcock hasn’t been able to take him out.
The Leafs are 11-2-3 when they dress Travis Dermott.
Dermott has posted a 50% possession rating while the Leafs have outscored opponents 13-5 while he’s been on the ice.
While he has the weakness of allowing a lot of shots against (he is allowing a bad 34.5/shots per 60) he makes up for it by getting the most shot-attempts and shots per minute on the team. He is – at this point – a river boat gambler, a player who plays a high-pace game that leads to tons of shots for both teams. It’s also worth pointing out that even though 34 shots against per 60 minutes is bad, Polak averages 39 and is his most common partner.
More from Editor In Leaf
- Toronto Maple Leafs: Nick Robertson Healthy and Ready
- Ryan Reaves Will Have Zero Impact on Toronto Maple Leafs
- Toronto Maple Leafs: Playing Max Domi In Top-Six a HUGE Mistake
- Top 10 Scandals in the History of the Toronto Maple Leafs
- Toronto Maple Leafs: Results from the Traverse City Prospects Tournament
I think, also, that when your team has Matthews, Nylander, Marner, Marleau, JVR and Kadri, you can afford to play such a high pace game.
The most impressive thing about Derott is that he has scored this much and put up such impressive numbers while having Roman Polak as his most common linemate.
Dermott’s overall possession rating is 50%. He’s played almost half his minutes with Polak where they are about a 45% pairing, however, if you get him away from Polak he jumps to a 51.5% rating, which is good for anyone, but amazing for a rookie defenseman.
Without Polak, Dermott has gotten 56% of the shots while he’s on the ice. The Leafs are clearly a better team when he plays, since having an above average defenseman on the third pairing is something most teams don’t have.
Next: Five Point Games Like Mad!
Travis Dermott might not end up the first ballot hall of famer that Duncan Keith is, but he is on track to be a legit top pairing defenseman and I don’t think it’s too early to say he’s passed Nikita Zaisev on the depth chart.