Toronto Maple Leafs Sign Tyler Ennis for League Minimum

Nothing spices up a Friday afternoon quite like a Twitter notification from the Toronto Maple Leafs PR account.

Solidifying their forward depth, the Leafs signed winger and former Buffalo Sabre, Tyler Ennis. At only one year in length, Ennis’ deal carries with it a cap hit of $650,000, league minimum.

Yesterday, while breaking down available forward options the Leafs could target for depth, Ennis’ name was among the three mentioned.

The undersized winger has certainly endured his fair share of struggles in recent years. Struggles of which are highlighted by a combination of repeated bouts with concussions and groin issues. Finishing 2017-18 with a point total of just 22 – his highest in 4 years – Ennis appears lightyears removed from his 20-goal days in Buffalo.

Although, diving deeper into his numbers hints toward a solid contributor buried under the box scores. If put in the circumstances most conducive to his success, which remains an ‘if’ at this time, Ennis could very well thrive as a Leaf.

Here’s why.

Sheltered Minutes

Even prior to signing John Tavares, the Leafs found themselves in a position which allowed them to shelter their fourth line without any significant consequence. It would indeed take some juggling, but it could be done. With a centre corps now featuring the likes of Tavares, Auston Matthews and Nazem Kadri, it’s a whole different story.

For Ennis, this is good news. Especially when contrasting his prior usage.

Dating back to his most successful stint as a Sabre, Ennis never received minutes sheltered to a noticeable degree. Between the 2012-13 and 2014-15 seasons, where his average point production was highest, roughly 51% of his shifts started in the defensive zone.

Obviously, zone starts are just one metric used to decipher the difficulty level of a players’ minutes. Still, it’s important to note that Ennis produced to his highest level all while over half his shifts began 200 feet from the opposing net.

In Toronto, he won’t be forced to repeat such success. Injuries have cost him a step or two, but the gift of regularly lining up in the offensive zone will inevitably endow a positive impact on his production.

Furthermore, handling the various top opposing assignments will likely be a responsibility exclusive to the top-nine. With the real work taken care of, Ennis can feast on the weakest his opponents have to offer.

Linemates

As a member of the Minnesota Wild last season, Ennis spent the majority of his playing time alongside Matt Cullen. It didn’t go well.

In over 294 minutes of even strength together, the pair culminated in a CF/60 of 45.83%. Yeah, not good. When separated, however, the numbers tell a different story.

Free from Cullen, Ennis’ ability to drive possession became heightened, with his CF/60 immediately elevating to 47.23%. Without Ennis, Cullen’s drastically dipped, bottoming out at a dreadful 37.59%.

It’s pretty clear who was doing the dragging.

As a Leaf, Ennis now finds himself surrounded by a different, namely higher, calibre of teammates. Assuming this is the last of Dubas’ NHL signings, Ennis is set to spend the bulk of his time alongside Par Lindholm and Connor Brown.

While Lindholm remains a mystery, Brown is a proven 20-goal scorer. Worst case scenario, even if Lindholm materializes as a replacement level or below producer, it’s hard to downgrade from a sub-40% corsi.

In signing with the Leafs, Ennis is in a position extremely conducive to success.

Outlook

So, what will Ennis become?

If you’re expecting a return to the player who once earned a cap hit that grazed the $5 million range, you’ll be disappointed. Rather, Ennis will likely assume extremely sheltered minutes, providing the Leafs with above average production while injecting a burst of speed into their bottom unit.

At league minimum, you can’t help but walk away satisfied with that.

Next: With Tavares, A New Era Begins

Thanks for reading!

Stats courtesy of hockeyreference.com & naturalstattrick.com