The Toronto Maple Leafs Potential New-Look Top Line

The Toronto Maple Leafs lost their top line left-winger this summer when Zach Hyman went to the Edmonton Oilers.

The Oilers gave the beloved, slightly overrated, Hyman a contract that the Toronto Maple Leafs wouldn’t have matched if they could. It’s a huge overpayment that will end up being highly regrettable.

Regardless, it’s left a hole in the Leafs lineup that they will try to fill on the cheap with a selection of potentially undervalued players who will try to win the role in training camp.

Candidates include Nick Robertson, Michael Bunting, Nick Ritchie, and potentially maybe even Ondrej Kase, or as an extreme longshot, Josh Ho-Sang.

Here is a different, perhaps better idea.

Toronto Maple Leafs New Top Line

The Leafs should promote William Nylander to the top line and use a super-line similar to what Boston has done for years with Pastrnak, Marchand and Bergeron.

Nyhlander has said before he prefers the left side, and a superline would giver the Leafs a ton of options.  Crucially, though, it might help the Leafs avoid the kind of top-line silence that has put them out of the playoffs twice in a row.

Nylander has the skill to be a first-line player, and he’s clicked with Matthews in the past. His ability to transition the puck and enter the zone with possession might be the best in the NHL. He would add a dynamic to the Leafs top line that they haven’t had – a secondary goal scorer.

One thing that may have led to the top line’s failure in the past two playoffs is that Marner always looks for Matthews and rarely ever tries to score himself.   Hyman, as good as he is, isn’t a sniper and could really only be counted on for garbage goals.

With Nylander, the Leafs have a 30 goal, potential 40 goal player who gives Marner a real option. This would in turn help Matthews get open more often and also give Marner a ton of room to try to add a goal scoring element to his own game.

The second line would still be anchored by Tavares, and this would also make room for  Ondrej Kase to play second line right-wing, which is a great spot for him.  There also wouldn’t be so much pressure on Bunting or Ritchie to be “the new Hyman” and everyone would win.

Having two first lines has worked for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the past, but I think its time to try out the superline and see what happens.  We know Keefe hasn’t been shy to load up a line in the past (usually with Tavares), and so this is, at least,  a realistic idea.

Furthermore, William Nylander is an elite first-line player and should be used as such.