Toronto Maple Leafs: Where the Bar Should be Set This Season

The Toronto Maple Leafs are an intriguing group thanks to their talented core. Where should the bar be set for their level of success in this coming season?

The Toronto Maple Leafs have been busy this offseason after once again being bounced from the playoffs in the first round. The disappointment of that failure has resonated with both fans and management.

Kyle Dubas has been active in trying to build a team that he hopes can be successful under the constraints of the salary cap.

There’s been a lot of movement and with approximately a month and a half until the start of training camp, there is more to come. With the way that the roster is currently constructed, the Toronto Maple Leafs may have a different end to next season.

Expectations

In order to help set the bar, it’s important to deconstruct the moves following the conclusion of last season.

The Leafs have parted ways with Garret Sparks, Nazem Kadri, Nikita Zaitsev, Ron Hainsey, Patrick Marleau, Connor Brown, Tyler Ennis, Andreas Borgman and Calle Rosen.

In their places, the team acquired Tyson Barrie, Cody Ceci, Jason Spezza, Alex Kerfoot, Jordan Schmaltz, Nick Shore, Ben Harpur, Pontus Aberg, Kenny Agostino, Kalle Kossila, Garrett Wilson, Kevin Gravel, and Ilya Mikheyev. Obviously, not all of them will play in the NHL.

There’s also Jake Gardiner, whose contract expired and Mitch Marner, who has yet to re-sign.

Despite there being no resolution in sight between the Leafs and Marner’s camp, it is still possible to prognosticate on the team’s future.

Ideally, Marner remains a part of the organization and the two parties can come to terms soon. His presence will help the club excel through both the season and playoffs.

Overall, the offseason acquisitions helped the club improve its blueline. It was a significant area of need last year. By adding Barrie, the team now has three true top-pairing defencemen. The other two are Morgan Rielly and Jake Muzzin.

There is also still time for the Buds to continue to bolster their roster through free agency. Picking up a player like Ben Hutton or reuniting with Jake Gardiner, continues to help them improve.

Offensively, the Maple Leafs took a big hit when they shipped out Kadri. Though he may be remembered for his final play as a Leaf, getting himself suspended for a second consecutive postseason, Kadri was an integral member of the team.

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Losing his scoring and grit hurts the Leafs up front, but the team has excess offense and was trading from a position of strength. They hope that Kerfoot will be able to fill a portion of that void. Their point totals are quite similar. Kadri had 16 goals and 28 assists in 73 games last season, while Kerfoot scored 15 goals and 27 assists through 78 games.

The Maple Leafs will also miss Brown’s play on the penalty kill. As a role player, his presence on the ice was a useful one.

The rest of the Eastern Conference was also busy fixing their teams. The Leafs should look at the rest of the Atlantic Division to help determine where they may finish.

The Tampa Bay Lightning should still be feared next season. The Boston Bruins will certainly remain a strong group and will likely challenge the Leafs for the second seed in the division. The Montreal Canadiens, Florida Panthers, and Buffalo Sabres have improved, but are likely to be fighting for a wildcard position.

Though we don’t know what the final composition of the Toronto Maple Leafs will be, there are enough players in place to know that they can still be special.

With stars like Austin Matthews, John Tavares, Morgan Rielly and Fredrik Andersen, the Buds should never go into a game as heavy underdogs. They may also feature a William Nylander who has returned to form thanks to him starting his season in training camp.

If that’s the case and Dubas manages to re-sign Marner without it causing more casualties, expect Toronto to be better than last season’s iteration.

If the season plays out as predicted above and Toronto finishes in the second or third slot of the division, it would set up a difficult postseason. They could once again take on the Bruins in the opening round. It’s a series they could once again go either way. Should they advance, the Lightning would be an early favorite as their next opponent.

Leafs fans should be satisfied with their team progressing past the opening round. It’s something they haven’t done since the 2003-04 season when they beat the Ottawa Senators only to be eliminated by the Philadelphia Flyers in the Conference Semifinals.

The team’s composition is strong enough to end the year by hoisting the Stanley Cup. That is certainly the goal of each member of the organization. Fans may want to temper those expectations. A second-round berth should be where the bar is set.

No matter what the 2019-20 season holds, fans should enjoy the ride. The Leafs have enough young, exciting players to make all their games must-watch. Hopefully, they can exceed all expectations.