While the Toronto Maple Leafs have been hit by the injury bug, it has given their depth chances to prove themselves and will be beneficial long-term.
The start of the 2019-20 season hasn’t been exactly smooth sailing for the Toronto Maple Leafs. They have experienced some tough losses, aggravating setbacks, and had seemingly no luck go their way at times.
With the injuries beginning to pile on, it appears at first glance that the bad luck is only going to snowball from here to create impediment on the campaign. It’s easy to conclude that the Leafs are going to struggle as a result of some key players missing time, even if it’s only for a few games.
For a team like the Leafs, however, losing important members of their lineup presents a unique opportunity for the rest of their roster that will be more helpful than harmful. It awards the stars an increased role, the depth players a larger challenge, and allows for testing out line-combinations that may not have been realized otherwise.
Having to deal with this type of adversity will be valuable to the Leafs because it will help them grow as a team and increase confidence levels for everyone on the roster knowing the next player available can step-up.
A next man up mentality
Losing John Tavares and Andreas Johnsson to injuries in consecutive games was no doubt a huge blow to the Leafs, especially considering how they both got hurt. Combined with Zach Hyman and Travis Dermott still recovering from their own injuries, a huge hole was left in the lineup on Saturday night.
If this kind of scenario would have happened to the team in the past, it would have been extremely devastating. It could have sent them into a downward spiral with little chance of overcoming it.
Here’s the thing, this year’s version of the Leafs isn’t like the ones of recent memory.
Unless you have been living under a rock, the Buds significantly improved their depth this past offseason. From big trades to acquire defensive parts to countless fringe players signing to cheap deals, the make-up of the roster had been overhauled in dramatic fashion. Combined with all of the talented prospects in their system nearly NHL-ready, it presents the Leafs with plenty of options to replenish the roster should the injury bug strikes again.
We saw that on full display during their game against the Boston Bruins. With Tavares out, Mike Babcock shuffled Auston Matthews with Mitch Marner and William Nylander at various times. Just as Andreas Johnsson was forced to exit, the likes of Trevor Moore and Dmytro Timashov stepped up and thrived in their increased roles. As a result of a large void down the middle, guys like Frederik Gauthier and Alexander Kerfoot were given large responsibility on the faceoff dot.
When the supporting cast gets their chance to prove themselves, it helps boost their confidence while simultaneously improving the depth. This was on full display against the Detroit Red Wings where it was their secondary scoring that was critical to their win.
Having to face this type of adversity helps the lesser names increase their morale on the ice and provides assurance that the team will be just fine when a big name is out of commission.
Better equipped this time around
It’s not like the Toronto Maple Leafs haven’t had to deal with life without a key player absent for an extended period of time.
In the 2017-18 season, the team had to deal with a good chunk of their season without the services of Matthews who experienced numerous injuries that year. Toronto was able to stay competitive as the rest of the roster stepped up in his absence on route to a successful regular season.
Just last year, the Leafs had to deal with life without both Matthews and Nylander early on. Additionally, guys like Hyman, Dermott, Frederik Andersen, and Jake Gardiner missed time for various reason and the team was forced to adapt with mixed results. This is due to the fact that the core had minimal handling a large plethora of players out of the lineup.
This time around, the team is not only better prepared to utilize their roster in these scenarios but also has the depth to overcome it.
Look no further than the 2018-19 Bruins when it comes to a blueprint in overcoming injuries. They were able to remain competitive throughout the regular season and made it to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals despite all of the nagging ailments.
Obviously, the Toronto Maple Leafs would like to have a healthy roster throughout the year, but injuries are an inevitability. It is critical for a contending team to be willing to handle this type of hardship for any amount of time, and it will be helpful for everyone on the roster.
While the season is still in its early stages, it is becoming apparent that the Leafs have demonstrated their ability to step up their play when a player goes down with an ailment. As mentioned above, it has given management confidence that the roster won’t falter in the event of further loss of talent.
At the end of the day, the Toronto Maple Leafs are likely going to deal with more injuries as the season progresses. Unlike in seasons past, they seemed better equipped to handle this type of adversity should it come up again at some point because of the improved depth stepping up.
For a team that has aspirations of doing something special in a few month’s time, this valuable experience of hardship to the lineup is going to be beneficial to their continued development and growth as a whole. An eagerness to answer the bell, if you would.