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Toronto Maple Leafs Roundtable: Biggest Storylines Out of Training Camp

By Wilbert Timmermans

TORONTO, ONTARIO - AUGUST 07: John Tavares #91 of the Toronto Maple Leafs celebrates his third period goal at 16:54 with Morgan Rielly #44, William Nylander #88, Auston Matthews #34, Zach Hyman #11 amd Mitchell Marner #16 against the Columbus Blue Jackets in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Qualification Round prior to the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena on August 07, 2020 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Andre Ringuette/Freestyle Photo/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ONTARIO - AUGUST 07: John Tavares #91 of the Toronto Maple Leafs celebrates his third period goal at 16:54 with Morgan Rielly #44, William Nylander #88, Auston Matthews #34, Zach Hyman #11 amd Mitchell Marner #16 against the Columbus Blue Jackets in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Qualification Round prior to the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena on August 07, 2020 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Andre Ringuette/Freestyle Photo/Getty Images) /
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TORONTO, ONTARIO – AUGUST 07: Auston Matthews #34 of the Toronto Maple Leafs . (Photo by Andre Ringuette/Freestyle Photo/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ONTARIO – AUGUST 07: Auston Matthews #34 of the Toronto Maple Leafs . (Photo by Andre Ringuette/Freestyle Photo/Getty Images) /

Bram Diamond

Personally, for me, the biggest storyline will be what Sheldon Keefe makes of his line-up coming out of training camp.

With the Leafs set to begin the season this Wednesday night against the Montreal Canadiens, there are still many questions that need to be answered. Most notably; who will make the team and what the line combinations will look like?

One player that many people, including myself, are very excited to watch is the rookie defenseman, Mikko Lehtonen. Lehtonen, 26, is considered to be a rookie by the NHL this season as he has spent the past 7 seasons in the KHL.

Before he was signed, Lehtonen was seen by many analysts and teams as the top European free agent of 2020 as he won the award of KHL defenseman of the year last season. His skill set works well with the team as he is a two way, puck-moving defenseman.

While he may start the season on the bottom pair, I believe that he will bump up to the top 4 in only a matter of weeks. This simply because he is a defenseman that can play in all situations. Being comfortable playing on the right side, a spot the Leafs aren’t particularly well occupied and he’ll likely quarterback the second powerplay unit.

Next. New Years Resolutions for the Leafs. dark

The Leafs are set to become one of the best teams in the NHL this season and if they are successful, Lehtonen’s play will most likely be one of the reasons for this, making him the biggest storyline to follow coming out of training camp.

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