Veteran presence
As the Leafs are a pretty young team, three of their core four are under the age of 25, they need a true veteran leader. While they have a captain in John Tavares and brought back Spezza who’s 37, someone a little older would have been a perfect fit to truly mentor the young guys.
It worked out really well when they experimented adding a veteran presence in Patrick Marleau. Marleau bonded really well with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner and while the veteran is no longer apart of the organization today, the bond between the three stands strong.
As the only thing that prevented the partnership between Marleau and the Leafs continuing was money on his previous contract, the front office sought out a different veteran. While they could have brought back Marleau, they signed his long time teammate Joe Thornton who’s known by the name Jumbo Joe.
In his age 40 season with the Sharks, he scored seven goals with 24 assists which proves that he can still perform at a solid level, especially for his age. He should have no problem centering the fourth line with the Leafs.
Thornton has had an illustrious career that includes multiple all-star appearances, a Hart Memorial Trophy as well as an Art Ross Trophy. His gold medal with Canada at the 2010 Olympics also can’t be forgotten. All that’s missing is a Stanley Cup. Let’s hope he can get that with the Leafs this season so he can ride off into the sunset.