Editor In Leaf
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Examining the First Week of the Toronto Maple Leafs Season

By Jordan Maresky

Jan 13, 2021; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews (34) skates with the puck against the Montreal Canadiens at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 13, 2021; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews (34) skates with the puck against the Montreal Canadiens at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports /
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Toronto Maple Leafs
OTTAWA, ON – JANUARY 15: John Tavares #91 of the Toronto Maple Leafs  (Photo by Matt Zambonin/Freestyle Photography/Getty Images) /

Jimmy Vesey – Nice Surprise

Coming into training camp, all the hype amongst the Leafs new additions seemed to lie with TJ Brodie, the big addition on the backend, Thornton, the most high-profile acquisition, and Wayne Simmonds, the rugged Scarborough native, brought in for some leadership, size, and muscle. Heck, even Mikko Lehtonen, the KHL defensemen of the year, garnered substantial hype due to his offensive ceiling and NHL readiness.

But Dubas’ sneaky work inking the former Buffalo Sabre to a one-year, $900,000 deal may prove to be the steal of the offseason. Scoring his first of the season in the Leafs home opener, I have been pleasantly surprised with Vesey’s play over the past few games.

Most notably, he has been using his large 6”3’, 202 lbs frame to be a significant force on the forecheck and in creating havoc in the opposition’s crease.

Ranking fourth on this team in hits per 60 and sixth in blocks per 60 among all forwards, Vesey has played a large part in making this Leafs team harder to play against.

John Tavares Revenge Tour

Undoubtedly the Leafs MVP of the season so far has to be their captain, John Tavares. Leading the team in points through three games, Tavares looks like a completely different player from the one we saw in 2019-20.

The Oakville, Ontario native suffered an injury at the World Championships in 2019, which derailed his offseason preparation heading into last season. Add in a fractured finger that caused him to miss a couple of weeks, and Tavares just never looked like himself.

Reading any piece detailing his leadership style, all seem to mention Tavares is a lead-by-example type of captain. That has been extremely evident so far this season with Tavares tied for the team lead in hits with Justin Holl.

Kyle Dubas and Co. have expressed interest in making this team play with more of a competitive edge and with the captain doing so thus far, safe to say the Leafs are on their way to achieving their GM’s goal.

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