Toronto Maple Leafs Need to Experiment with the Lines

The Toronto Maple Leafs have one of the best teams in the league  and should continue to be a threat all year.

When you look at the lineup of the Toronto Maple Leafs, one thing that really stands out is just how consistent they have been for the most part. There has been a vision set by the coaching staff from the offseason and barring a few circumstances, they have more or less remained the same.

In theory, that’s a good thing because the name of the game is to win. To do that, a team needs put together the best lineup that can each and every night, all to give themselves a higher chance of success.

At the same time, the lineups a team may have planned won’t always work the way it was initially anticipated.  Whether that be poor chemistry, a disadvantageous matchup, or just simply a lack of success, a line combination sometimes doesn’t work despite the promise it may have on paper.

You will occasionally see professional teams shake up their lineups either during games or over a stretch of time. It can be to either give new life to a struggling team or to try something different to get the most out of cold players.

Which is why it’s so frustrating at times to watch Mike Babcock and the rest of the coaching staff rarely try and practice different lineups on some nights.

Deja-vu from last year

Let’s start by taking a look at the lineup the Leafs used prior to Monday night’s game against the Nashville Predators.

When taking a glance at the combination the Leafs used in what proved to be a 4-0 loss, it looks fairly similar to when the season began. Obviously there are a few differences from what the opening night lineup looked like, but generally speaking, it has been pretty consistent.

The main roster has overall seen very minimal changes throughout the opening three months of the season. Outside of the Josh Leivo trade, the William Nylander signing, and the constant recalls, the lineup has remained more or less the same each passing night.

I understand why the Leafs have done this; they want to win and the lineups they have been using, for the most part, have worked wonders. However, when the team goes through a bit of adversity like they seem to be currently, there are minimal changes outside of a minor tweak in the lines.

This isn’t the first time this has happened. Last season, the Leafs had their playoff position basically locked up by late-January with their playoff matchup against Boston more-or-less established. Yet during those final 30+ games, the Leafs made very minimal changes to their lines.

When the Leafs played the Bruins in the 2018 playoffs, one of the reasons they ultimately bowed out was due to the fact Toronto barely altered their lines at all. The playoffs are about making adjustments on the fly and the fact the Leafs barely did it during the regular season came back to bight them when it mattered most.

Even with all of the sweeping changes during the offseason, it appears that the problem has remained which is a huge concern in my opinion.

Extra players need to be utilized

Last season, the Leafs goaltending situation was essentially Frederik Andersen and no one else. Andersen made 66 appearances during the regular season and appeared to be out of gas once the playoffs rolled around.

Ron Hainsey was one of the Toronto Maple Leafs key acquisitions during the 2017 offseason and Babcock relied on the veteran defenseman into playing heavy minutes. The problem is that Hainsey was on the wrong side of 30 and combined with his relentless usage on the penalty kill, he too looked burned out in the playoffs. To say nothing of his horrendous stats or the WOWYs that show how he drags down Morgan Rielly.

The parallels between these two players highlight the primary reason why experimenting with the lines is critical to the Toronto Maple Leafs success long-term. By giving the veteran players some much-needed rest down the stretch and trying out new combinations, the players Babcock counts on will be more efficient when the games matter.

This season, both Andersen and Hainsey are once again being heavily relied upon by Babcock although the former has missed time due to varying injuries. Regardless of the reason behind this, the same problems can be easily avoided with one simple solution.

Much like Leivo was stuck in press box purgatory, Martin Marincin and Justin Holl have each barely played for the Leafs. The two have appeared in a combined 10 (!) games as of January 8, while Hainsey and Igor Ozhiganov have combined to play in 75 contests for the Leafs. The latter two players each could benefit from some games off while Marincin and Holl need more minutes to remain effective if called upon.

Meanwhile, Garret Sparks has been the Leafs backup goalie and has mainly played when either in back-to-back situations or when Andersen gets injured. While he has done fairly well, all things considered, the fact he has only had two starts when neither of the aforementioned situations occurs is extremely concerning.

If the Leafs want to avoid their key players getting burned out in the playoffs, now is the time to give the extra players more chances. It will be extremely helpful in the long-run regardless of how they fare.

Conclusion

The Leafs currently sit 2nd in the Atlantic Division after passing the halfway mark of the season. It appears that, like last season, Toronto’s playoff positioning has been essentially established barring any unforeseen circumstances.

With this in mind, the Toronto Maple Leafs need to seriously start considering experimenting the lines on a more consistent basis. The lines as constructed have barely changed since opening night which has been the case since last year.

A few of the Leafs veteran players got overused last season because of this and it played a role in their demise in the playoffs. There are a few extra players and the backup goalies that need to get more opportunities to make sure this doesn’t occur again.

People who forget their history are doomed to repeat it. For a team with aspirations of a deep playoff run, now is the time to make sure the same mistakes are not repeated.

Thanks for reading!

All stats unless otherwise noted are from Hockey-Reference.com.