Toronto Maple Leafs: Pros and Cons of First 2 Games
CON: Roman Polak
In one of my recent articles I talked about how in order to be successful Polak needed to keep his feet moving to keep up with the game, he has not done well in this regard thus far. Here are some of the goals Polak has been on for during this series.
Game 1: 1-0 goal. Polak (right defensemen) has a tough time deciding whether he wants to step up to the puck carrier or stay with his man, Brad Marchand. He also doesn’t stop the pass from going through.
2-1 goal. Once again, Polak is in-between challenging the puck carrier and properly blocking the passing lane. In the end, he does neither, as Krejci has an ample amount of time to pick out a pass. Hainsey could have done a lot better tying up Backes too.
PRO: Travis Dermott
Travis Dermott has been excellent after two games. He has been able to elevate his play without changing the major aspects of what makes him successful.
Dermott’s skating allows him to fit right into the playoff tempo and his confidence with and without the puck has been a real bright spot for the Toronto Maple Leafs. His first pass has led to a number of clean breakouts, something the Leafs have had trouble with in the first two games. In addition, he has played with a physical edge which is something we have seen glimpses of during his time with the Marlies.
Dermott is already looking overqualified for his current role with the Toronto Maple Leafs and I can’t wait until his responsibility grows with the team. Not only will he improve when he gets a different partner, but the Leafs will improve when he gets more minutes.
It may be time or Babcock to consider playing some of the Lefties together, because at the moment, Rielly, Gardiner and Dermott are good, while Zaitsev, Hainsey and Polak are not.
CON: Frederik Andersen
Take away the Leafs bad goaltending so far this seriers, and it’s much, much closer. Granted score effects were a factor, but the Leafs controlled over 60% of last nights game while getting only a 77% save percentage from their goalies. It’s not hard to see why they got smoked.
If the Toronto Maple Leafs want to be competitive in this series, they are going to need Frederik Andersen to be better. While one cannot blame this deficit solely on Andersen, the Leafs just cannot afford soft goals to go in. A GAA of 6.67 and a save percentage of .822 is surely something that must improve for the rest of the series.
Here are a few goals that Andersen might want to have back.
PRO: Kasperi Kapanen and Andreas Johnsson
One minor positive of Kadri’s suspension has been the inclusion of Andreas Johnsson into the lineup. Johnsson looked hungry and was flying all over the ice in game two. At 5v5, Johnsson and Kapanen looked dangerous and exposed the Bruins defence using their speed.
Below Kapanen blows by Torey Krug before unluckily hitting the post. A goal here could have drastically changed the game as the Bruins scored moments after this.
After Komarov got injured, Johnsson was used on the penalty kill and excelled in that role. His defensive awareness is under-appreciated in my opinion and I think a penalty kill pairing of him and Kapanen would be highly successful. The penalty kill has been awful in the playoffs thus far and could benefit with a new look.
CON: Tyler Bozak and James van Reimsdyk
Line matching has been a major storyline going into this series and after two games, the Bruins’ privilege of getting the last change has been detrimental to the the Leafs.
In game 1, a shift between the Bergeron line and JVR line resulted in offensive zone time for the Bruins and a lazy JVR penalty. This ultimately led to Marchand’s powerplay goal to make it 1-0. In game 2 two straight icings by the Bozak line allowed Coach Cassidy to throw out Bergeron and company. This led to the first goal in game 2.
While Tyler Bozak and JVR have never been known for their defensive play, their inability to properly suppress scoring chances has put the Leafs at a major disadvantage against the Bruins. Ideally Babcock has tried to match this unit with the other teams’ bottom two lines but sometimes it is out of his power, especially on the road. This has been the case in both game 1 and 2.
CON: Morgan Rielly and Ron Hainsey
Morgan Rielly might have just had two of his worst games of his season. It is tough to pinpoint what has gone wrong with Rielly at even strength, although the play of Ron Hainsey is the most likely cause. Rielly sas been on for five goals in two games (most out of any Leaf) when playing 5v5. In addition, he currently ranks last among Leafs in both shot differential and expected goals against at even strength.
Below are the goals that Rielly has been on the ice for.
Hard to blame Rielly here. Although he loses the race to the puck, he stays with Bergeron and takes him out of the shooting lane. Plekanec is late (twice) when getting to Pastrnak who is sitting comfortably in the slot. It’s a mini three on four that goes horribly wrong for the Leafs.
An unlucky bounce off the post leads to Kurally batting the puck into the goal. Rielly could have done a better job staying with Kurally but it is an incredibly fortuitous bounce for the Bruins.
Once again, a mini 3 on 4 goes horribly for the Leafs. Marchand somehow gets a pass through both Marner and Nylander, Rielly sluggishly challenges Pastrnak then Hainsey completely ignores Krejci going to the net. It is a fast, precise tic-tac-toe from the Bruins, but one that the Leafs should have prevented.
Rielly turns the puck over in the neutral zone which leads to a giant mess. Pastrnak gets his second. The Leafs are down three here and willing to be riskier, so hard to blame anyone here.
Here, Rielly elects to throw the puck up to open space. Unfortunately, it lands on a Bruins stick. He then instinctively attempts to break up Bergeron’s pass along the boards which allows Pastrnak to freely skate to the front of the net. Matthews and Marleau probably should have done a better job helping their defensemen here. Once again, a mini three on four goes horribly for the Leafs.
PRO: The play at even strength
While the scores might not suggest it, the Toronto Maple Leafs have been pretty close to Boston at even strength thus far. The Leafs and Bruins have generated chances at a similar clip, the only difference being the Bruins have capitalized on theirs. After Komarov got injured, the Leafs’ speed seemed to be on full display. Kapanen’s promotion was refreshing and gave the Leafs another puck carrier in their top nine.
Babcock faces another tough decision regarding his game three lineup with Komarov potentially out. The Leafs would benefit from dressing Josh Leivo, a player with a track record of scoring goals and playing with a physical edge. The strategy of trying to match Boston’s physicality seems to be feeding the Bruins game plan while weakening the Leafs’ largest strengths; their speed and skill.
This series is still very winnable for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Their puck luck should change soon but they will have to do a better job limiting high danger chances, especially from the Bergeron line. They will also have to tighten up their penalty kill and goaltending if they have any shot at winning four out of five games against one of the league’s elite. If any roster can do it, it’s this one.
What do you think about the first two games? Did I miss any pros and cons? COMMENT BELOW!
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