Toronto Maple Leafs: EIL Content Roundup – January 3rd

The Toronto Maple Leafs are back from the New Year, baby!

The regular season is now firmly out of the winter break, and the Editor in Leaf staff have been working around the clock to bring you, our loyal readers, right into the middle of the action. Every angle has been covered, and every stone has been overturned.

With so many stories hitting the wall all at once, it’s easy to lose a few in the shuffle. So, enjoy this roundup of this week’s notable pieces.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Let’s Hope For a Rematch with Boston

Boy, this is a controversial take. To say that the Boston Bruins have been Toronto’s boogeyman would be a gross understatement. The Bruins are responsible for nearly all of the heartbreaking moments in recent Leafs memory. They are evil and should be avoided as much as humanly possible.

Or should they? There’s certainly something to be said about vanquishing the dragon, and to the Leafs, the Bruins are the biggest, badest dragons of all. Taking them out en route to the Cup would be a statement, telling the rest of the league that the Leafs are here to stay.

That’s exactly what Josh tackles in his latest piece. Give it a read.

“First, there is the mental part of it. Twice in the past few years, Toronto has held their own against Boston only to cough up leads in two game sevens. This has triggered instant Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in those who didn’t already have it from watching the Toronto Maple Leafs all these years.

Second, if and when Toronto finally dismantle the Bruins in the playoffs, the monkey would be off their back. Finally, King Kong would be no more. It’s tough to think of a team that has historically given the Leafs a tougher time in the past ten years.

This leads me to believe they would coast right to the Stanley Cup Final on adrenaline alone from finally putting the Bruins to bed.”

Toronto Maple Leafs: The Next Generation of Fans

Today is the Next Generation Game, celebrating the new wave of hockey fans that will shape the sport as it heads into the future. Full stop, this is a great idea. But coming from the Leafs, it’s undoubtedly essential.

I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but prior to 2016, the Leafs were bad. Like, really bad. Bad enough to generate an air of apathy around the team with kids who grew up in the early 2010s. It’s one thing to have the younger be upset with how bad you are. It’s another thing to have them simply not care.

That’s why today’s Next Generation Game is so important. The Leafs effectively played their way out of a generation of fans that should have grown up crazy about the Leafs. This time, they won’t make that mistake again.

Gord dives into all of this in his latest piece.

“Additionally, a select number of young fans will be chosen to attend the game through a draw that can be entered on the team’s website.

It’s unclear exactly how many kids will be in attendance to take advantage of the early start time, however, the Maple Leafs appear to be making a valiant effort to fill out the seats with younger faces this time around. Last season, the Toronto Maple Leafs used their one and only 2 p.m. start to host the “Next Century Game” as a ploy to transition the team’s fanbase into the next one hundred years of action. There was a specific focus on youth and the next generation of Leaf fans—but with a simple glance at the arena’s crowd, this was noticeably absent.”

Toronto Maple Leafs: No Goalies, No Problem…Hopefully

Hey, so remember when the Leafs lost Curtis McElhinney and Calvin Pickard to waivers before the season started? It was a real shame. Especially because either of them sure could have come in handy during situations like this.

Frederik Andersen is out with a groin injury. Garret Sparks took a puck off the brain yesterday so he’s being evaluated for a concussion.

Enter Michael Hutchinson; acquired by the Leafs for a 5th-round pick in 2020 and now the presumed starter until either netminder returns. It’s a testament to how thin the Leafs organization is in the goaltending department that they had to spend assets for Hutchinson in the first place. Neither Eamon McAdam nor Kasimir Kaskisuo has been even AHL-calibre this season, leaving little doubt to how they’d fare against NHL shots.

So, for now, Hutchinson is the guy. James writes why that might not be a disaster. At least, for the time being.

“I feel like the Leafs are a good enough team to get by without Andersen for a while, but it’s never a good thing to have to rely on your third string goalie.  Hutchinson is known as a very good AHL goalie and has had moderate success in the NHL, but obviously he’s never won a job.

There was that one time he filled in Winnipeg with some success, so it’s not like this is a total disaster.  He was acquired because Kaskisuo wasn’t exactly shutting it down with the Marlies, so it is improbable that Kaskisuo will see action.  Actually, he’s been so bad with the Marlies that if Hutchinson does get injured today, the Leafs might just finish the game with six skaters!!”

Thanks for reading!