Toronto Maple Leafs: Top Playoff “X-Factor” Candidates for Next Season
The Stanley Cup Playoffs are a long, tough grind. To be the team who wins the last game of the season, you not only need your stars to shine, but also contributions from further down the lineup. Can the Toronto Maple Leafs find this much needed production from their depth?
Just look at recent Cup winners if you doubt the importance of depth. The Tampa Bay Lightning had an insane amount of depth both on forward and on the back-end. Ditto for the Blues and Capitals before them. Even when you go back further to the run of Stanley Cups for the Kings (x2), Blackhawks (x2), and Penguins (x2) between 2012 and 2017, those teams obviously possessed elite talent at the top of the lineup, but had crucial performances from players further down the lineup.
Let’s face it, when teams go into the playoffs they have a full scouting report on their opposition, and are going to game plan to shut down the opposing teams’ best players. This makes the importance of these “X-factors” come playoff time gigantic.
For the Lightning, the “X-factor” was the leap made by Brayden Point from star to superstar, as well as a great deadline pickup in Blake Coleman, who penalty killed and forechecked like a madman. For the Blues, it was Patrick Maroon coming up big in big moments and an insurgent Jordan Binnington that took them over the top.
After a couple of years learning from Mr. Game 7 himself, Lars Eller stepped up into the 2nd line centre role for the Capitals in 2018 when Nicklas Backstrom missed four games and played some of the best hockey of his life. Then of course there was Tom Wilson, Brett Connolly and Devante Smith-Pelly who set the tone with their grittiness, not to mention Brooks Orpik and Matt Niskanen on the defense.
Even the top-heavy Penguins found key contributors in the bottom of their lineups in 2016 and 2017. In 2016 it was Matt Cullen and Nick Bonino who helped support Crosby, Malkin, Letang and the Penguins stars. In 2017, it was the ability to get key minutes from Ron Hainsey (21:07), Ian Cole (18:50) and Olli Maatta (20:37) which supported their stars (stats via HockeyReference). Not to mention the goaltending duo of Marc-Andre Fleury and Matt Murray.
The lesson from all this? In order to succeed in the NHL Playoffs, a team needs to have players who can step up and play an important role when called upon.
The Toronto Maple Leafs had shades of it last season, with Nick Robertson providing a short-lived spark and Jason Spezza getting into a fight to ignite a miraculous comeback, but there was not consistent support from the bottom of the lineup. To win in the NHL Playoffs, you can’t wait until your back is against the wall to play desperate. Will any of the new additions to the lineup add the support necessary for a long run in the 2021 NHL Playoffs?
Joe Thornton
Looking to add another veteran presence to the locker room, GM Kyle Dubas added Joe Thornton on a cheap 1-year deal. Can he be the difference come playoff time?
With the 7th most assists (1,089) in NHL history (via ESPN), Joe Thornton is inarguably one of the best passers of his generation. While his skating has declined, and he has never been an elite goal-scorer, hockey IQ is a skill that does not age, and Thornton has plenty.
As I’ve covered in previous articles, Thornton is going to be a huge asset to the Toronto Maple Leafs power play and their bottom six, wherever he ends up playing. While at this stage in his career Thornton isn’t nearly the difference maker he once was, but he still adds another dimension to the Leafs attack that teams have to game plan for.
There are still many questions about how Thornton will be used with the Leafs. While he has sometimes played the wing in the last few seasons with the Sharks, it is still unclear whether he will be willing to do so more often with the Leafs.
If he is willing to move to the wing, even just for the playoffs, Thornton’s smarts and passing could be used to set up open shots for one of the Leafs’ big guns – a rare occurrence against the Blue Jackets in the playoffs last season.
It will take a lot of creativity and line juggling for Sheldon Keefe to keep him involved enough in the game to make a big difference, but if managed right Thornton could be an essential piece to the puzzle for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Zach Hyman
Improving every year, Zach Hyman once again is penciled in for a top six role with the Toronto Maple Leafs next season. Coming off a rough playoffs, can he bounce back and be an “X-factor” for the Leafs in 2020-2021?
Hyman is a highly debated player amongst Leafs fans, and for good reason. While he’s undoubtedly a fan favourite because of his relentless forechecking and ability to make the simple play, he can frustrate at times. He has drawn criticism in the past for not producing enough offensively to play with guys like Matthews and Marner, and rightfully so. There have been countless times where he’s been in a great scoring situation, just to fumble the puck or make an errant pass that ends the opportunity.
However, Hyman had an excellent season in 2019-2020, scoring 37 points in just 51 games (via HockeyReference) and showing improved skill and finishing ability. While that boost in scoring may price Hyman out of Toronto when his contract is complete at the end of the season.
In the short-term, if Hyman can produce another strong regular season and carry it into the playoffs this time, it will open up possibilities the Toronto Maple Leafs haven’t had in postseasons past. When Hyman is buzzing, he’s all over the opposing team on the forecheck, not allowing for clean breakout passes and often forcing turnovers. When he’s scoring, it’s because he’s living in front of the net and getting the dirty goals.
In the playoffs, when the play is tight and offensive chances are kept at a minimum, forcing turnovers in the offensive zone and scoring dirty goals could be the difference between going home early and hoisting the Cup.
Rasmus Sandin and Timothy Liljegren
Sometimes, the playoff “X-factor” is someone who wasn’t in your lineup at the beginning of the season, whether it’s a late season call-up, or a deadline addition to bolster your team.
Some obvious candidates for players who aren’t firmly on the Toronto Maple Leafs opening day roster right now to make a difference come playoffs are the Leafs top two defensive prospects, Rasmus Sandin and Timothy Liljegren.
Both had short NHL auditions last season, but the Leafs offseason moves would suggest that they would like to give both a longer time to develop. The path ahead is particularly crowded for Sandin on the left side, but should Travis Dermott fail to impress, Sandin could get a shot on the third pairing, and possibly move higher up from there.
The path is a little easier for Liljegren. While T.J. Brodie and Justin Holl firmly occupy the first two spots at RD, the third pairing spot is up for grabs. European signee Mikko Lehtonen and free agent signing Zach Bogosian have to be considered the frontrunners out of the gate, but it is likely that Liljegren factors in at some point.
If either of those two – or Nick Robertson on forward – are playing solid minutes with the Leafs come the playoffs, they have the talent to be an “X-factor.”
Next. 2 Very Interested Joe Thornton Stats. dark
Another possibility is an in-season or deadline acquisition, when Assistant GM and Leafs’ cap wizard Brandon Pridham will have more salary cap flexibility to play with. You don’t have to look too far back to find a deadline acquisition who played a key role in a cup run – the Lightning had a few.