Justin Holl Has Solidified Toronto Maple Leafs Top-4

At the ripe young age of 28, Toronto Maple Leafs Defenseman Justin Holl has made a name for himself in the NHL as a top-4 D and the Leafs couldn’t be happier.

After being drafted 54th overall in 2010 by the Chicago Blackhawks, Toronto Maple Leafs Defenseman Justin Holl battled through the NCAA and AHL for nearly 8 years before cracking an NHL lineup.

Since becoming an NHL regular with the Leafs last season playing 68 of the teams 70 games, Holl has garnered himself a spot in the top-four and it seems he’s here to stay.

Holl put up a nice season last year in his first as a full time NHL player, and has solidified the Toronto Maple Leafs top four.

Justin Holl-ing the Blueline Steady

Excuse my poor excuse for a pun, but it’s true Justin Holl has passed both the analytics test as well as the eye test on the Toronto Maple Leafs Blueline. For the majority of his time with the Leafs, Holl has played on the right side adjacent to Jake Muzzin, and they may very well be the Leafs best shut down pair.

Holl stands at a sturdy 6’4″, 205 lbs frame which not only labels him the biggest defenseman on the Leafs (that has to be one pretty scary body to go into the corners with when forechecking), but he’s probably their best right-hand defense on the entire roster.

Last season Holl held a Corsi For % of 51.3 while playing an average of 18:31 a night, not bad. He ranked second in blocked shots on the Leafs with 83, while only trailing linemate Jake Muzzin who had 110. He also ranked third on the Leafs in Hits with 89 sitting behind Jake Muzzin (109) and Cody Ceci (92) (all stats hockeyreference.com). Hopefully, those stats are enough to shut up Rick from Red Deer who says “He’s just another soft player”.

Although only 3 games so far this season is a small sample size, Holl has continued his success from last year. With playing a big part both on the penalty kill and shutting down 5-on-5 in 3 games,  Holl has averaged 22:06 time on ice a night which ranks fourth behind only Rielly, Matthews, and Marner.  Holl also ranks first on the team in both blocks and hits with 5 apiece.

Apart from the stats and analytics, Holl is simply easier on the eyes to watch. In the three games I’ve watched, Holl has been jumping up in the rush and making great offensive plays more times than I can count, and I am all here for it.

Holl already has 2 assists this season. Both being simple smart heads up plays to a player in the high slot. The first came in game one with the one-timer to William Nylander and then the second in game two with the pass to an open Alex Kerfoot at the blueline.

With what Holl has shown alongside the fact that he already has 2 assists in 3 games, I would expect a little bit higher than the 0.26 point per game average he set last season.

Now yes I’ll say it again, 3 games is a super small sample size to base upon any player in one season, but last season the Muzzin-Holl pairing was probably the Leafs best defensive shutdown line, and I believe they are going to continue that trend into this season. Both play an integral part on the Leafs PK and they can both log heavy minutes if need be.

Holl is what some could call a late-bloomer for the Leafs. Hell in just a matter of 2 years, Holl has improved his EA Sports NHL rating from a 67 Overall in NHL 18 to being an 81 Overall in NHL 21. He has improved his game in every area and has become a regular in the Toronto Maple Leafs top-4.

Holl will be a staple on the blue line this year and expect him to play some heavy defensive minutes when the time comes.