Toronto Maple Leafs: Why Not Call Up Liljegren Instead?

Yesterday, the Toronto Maple Leafs recalled Andreas Johnsson and Calle Rosen from the Toronto Marlies.

Per a report from Sportsnet’s Craig Johnston, Johnsson will make his NHL debut tonight against the Dallas Stars. He’s having a solid season this year with the Marlies and has posted 26 goals and 28 assists so far.

On the other hand, Rosen is being recalled on emergency basis. The move to recall Rosen is most likely due to Nikita Zaitsev‘s flu-like symptoms. Rosen appeared in four games with the Toronto Maple Leafs earlier this season.

Toronto Maple Leafs fans might be a bit frustrated with the choice to call up Rosen over prospect like Timothy Liljegren.

Earlier today, I sat down with my colleague, Mike Stephens to pick his brain about Liljegren and his development in the AHL. Mike has attended many Marlies games this year in his capacity as the Editor in Leafs beat writer, which means that unlike most Leafs fans, he’s seen a lot of Timothy Liljegren.

Is Liljegren ready?

In my conversation with Stephens, he didn’t seem confident that Liljegren was ready at this juncture to make the jump to the NHL. While Liljegren has shown signs of development since coming to the Marlies, it doesn’t make sense to jump the gun on Liljegren and bring him to the NHL too early. In the past, NHL teams have called players up too early and it has perhaps led to a stunt in their development when they go back to the AHL. Though, to be sure, that is retroactive analysis and there is no way to know if, for example, Luke Schenn’s development was hurt by being rushed to the NHL, or if he was just never going to be great regardless.

In my interview with Stephens, I asked him how Liljegren’s development is going and how Rosen is doing in comparison to Liljegren.

"He’s been banged up a few times this season, and despite his fantastic play, needs to gain a full summer not hampered by injury or sickness (he had mono last year) to put on some muscle and get stronger. He’s shown flashes of a physical edge in the World Juniors, and if he gets stronger, he can add that his already potent arsenal. Rosen gets the call now because he’s developed very well since his demotion, and he’s 6 years older than Liljegren."

Let’s Get Physical

Stephens brought up a solid point around Liljegren and his need build muscle. Liljegren is a 6 ft/190 lbs defensemen and is undersized.

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Let’s compare Liljegren to Travis Dermott. Dermott is similar in height, but has more muscle. At the beginning of the season, Dermott weighed in at 208 lbs. In Dermott’s tenure in Toronto, he’s shown to be physical. In 26 games, he has posted 38 hits with the Maple Leafs. If Liljegren wants to prove to Lamoriello that he’s ready, he needs to hit the weight room. Once he’s added some muscle, he won’t be as timid to be physical. At that point, he’ll show that he’s ready to make an impact for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Isn’t Borgman more physical than Rosen?

It is surprising that the Toronto Maple Leafs didn’t decide to recall Andreas Borgman over Rosen. In Borgman’s stint with the Maple Leafs, he proved to be a solid physical defenseman. Borgman had 121 hits in 48 games with the Maple Leafs, while Rosen had 1 hit in 4 games played.

Perhaps, Lamoriello feels that Borgman isn’t ready to go back into the Maple Leafs lineup. Borgman is two years younger than Rosen and played less than games for the Marlies than Rosen this season.

Next: Impact of Rosen and Johnsson

Depending on how Mike Babcock constructs his lines, Leafs Nation might see Calle Rosen in the lineup tonight. It’ll be an opportunity to see if Rosen has truly developed. If he hasn’t, it’s not a big deal. Lamoriello can still send him back to the Marlies for further development.

stats from NHL.com, hockey-reference.com and theahl.com