Toronto Maple Leafs: Hard-To-Swallow Pills For Every NHL Fanbase

Toronto Maple Leafs

There are four “hot takes” listed below. Whether you’re a part of the “old-school” camp or the “new school” camp, some of these are gonna be hard to take, but it needs to be said.

William Nylander is an elite power forward. Stop including him in your silly trade proposals. He’s found the perfect role that makes him one of the best players on this team. His contract is a steal for the value he provides and the Toronto Maple Leafs are lucky to have him.

Kyle Dubas is here to stay. Noted tough guy Brendan Shanahan has put his full vote of confidence behind the whiz kid. If he didn’t believe in Dubas, it would have been him who got fired in November and Babcock would still be the head coach. So if you are among the “fans” who spew hatred and vitriol towards the GM because he’s not a “traditional hockey man”… maybe it’s time to go find a new team? I hear the Rangers are taking applications for fans who can’t get beyond old, outdated ways of thinking.

The Leafs are not getting Alexis Lafreniere. No team in their right mind is “throwing” the playoffs just for a slim chance at being awarded the rights to draft the very skilled winger, especially not Toronto, who completely lose their first-round draft pick in the event that they do not win the Lafreniere Lottery. It’s fun to taunt other teams with the possibility though.

Lastly, defense handedness is overrated. St. Louis aside, the list of recent Stanley cup winners who had a perfect mix of left and right-handed defensemen is basically nonexistent. It’s a lazy narrative that needs to stop here, particularly with the rumors that the NHL will be keeping the salary cap flat for a couple of years.

The Leafs simply won’t be in a position to add a top-end RHD without severely detracting from their strength in numbers at forward, they will not do that, especially not for a terrible player like Rasmus Ristolainen.