How do the Canucks compare to the Toronto Maple Leafs?
The Canucks and Leafs are a few years apart in regards to how their teams are structured and Toronto is the team that’s further ahead.
Prior to the Leafs getting the likes of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander via the draft, they were a bottom feeding team that went through a tough phase. They piled up on draft picks from their rebuilding years and built the team into the contender they are today.
It wasn’t too long ago that the Canucks were at the bottom of the standings as well. They used their high draft picks on the likes of Pettersson, Hughes, Horvat and others to turn themselves in a better position to contend.
The Leafs are clearly more loaded up front than the Canucks are but this goes towards comparing Toronto’s forward depth to any team. Having a forward group that consists of Matthews, Marner, Nylander, John Tavares and many others is hard to compete with.
On the blue line, the Canucks have a great balance with a playmaker in Hughes, veteran presence in Edler, grit/toughness in Jordie Benn with Tyler Myers, Schmidt and a young defenseman in 21-year-old Jack Rathbone to round it out.
The Toronto Maple Leafs really revamped their blue line this offseason by bringing in T.J. Brodie and Zach Bogosian and that’s without mentioning Jake Muzzin, Morgan Rielly and Travis Dermott.
The edge goes to the Leafs on the defensive corps but the Canucks have put together a solid core on the defensive side of the puck.
Until Holtby can show that he can go back to his superstar form, Frederik Andersen is the better goalie but the Canucks do have an intriguing young backup netminder in Thatcher Demko.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are better but the Canucks are not a team that should be taken lightly.