Toronto Maple Leafs Who Could Have Breakout Seasons in 2021-22
Every year, a team will have a player or players who have a breakout season and the Toronto Maple Leafs are no different. Last year’s breakout player for Toronto would have to be Jack Campbell.
Campbell finished last season with a record of 17-3-2 with two shutouts for the Toronto Maple Leafs. His record last season doesn’t happen without his NHL record 11-0 run to start the season. He also finished with a .921 SV% and a 2.15 GAA. (Stats: from naturalstattrick.com and Hockey-Reference.com)
That run cemented him as the starter while Frederik Andersen was injured. The Maple Leafs will be hoping that Campbell can play at the same level this season. They will need it to get through a longer 82 game season.
It is easy to see why Campbell was Toronto’s breakout player of the year last season. Who will be the team’s breakout player this season? The team has a handful of new players this season, as well as some young guys looking to make a name for themselves.
I have chosen five players from the Maple Leafs who I think have the chance to have a breakout season in 2021-22. Some have been around for a few years and others are young guys looking to take that next step.
Rasmus Sandin
Drafted 29th overall in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, Rasmus Sandin has been considered a steal since about five minutes after the Leafs picked him.
In the years since he’s been drafted he has become one of the best defenseman in the AHL, and was named best defenseman of the 2020 World Junior Tournament, and likely would have won MVP had Sweden won the Gold.
Rasmus Sandin only played nine games last season and finished with four assists. He has shown glimpses of high level talent, but hasn’t played enough for it to really get anything going.
He did score a goal in the playoffs last year, where he suited up for five games and saw time on the power-play.
If he can stay healthy and be a regular on the blueline this season, Sandin has the chance to show us what he can really do. From watching him while he was playing with the Toronto Marlies, it will be nice to see him get plenty of playing time at the NHL level.
He could very well become a quarterback for one of the team’s powerplay units and become a offensive threat from the point. Something Toronto hasn’t really had in recent years.
This season Sandin entered training camp with the best odds of winning a job on the Toronto Maple Leafs third pairing, but has faced tough competition from Timothy Liljegren. No matter who wins in the short term, both players could end up being big contributors in 2021-22.
Alexander Kerfoot
Alexander Kerfoot is entering his third year with the Toronto Maple Leafs since being traded from the Colorado Avalanche prior to the 2019-20 season.
In his first season with the Leafs, Kerfoot scored only 9 goals and 28 points in 65 games, but most of those points were at 5v5 where his points per 60 matched that of John Tavares and was good for solid second line production. Throw in a 53% Corsi and a 52% expected-goals rating, and it was a decent first season for Kerfoot.
Kerfoot seemed to struggle under Mike Babcock, but then came the coaching change that season and under new head coach Sheldon Keefe, Kerfoot seemed to thrive a bit more. His ice time went up and he seemed to play better under Keefe’s system.
Although his overall numbers last were similar to his first season in Toronto, we have to remember that the 2020-21 season was a shortened season of just 56 games. Where Kerfoot stood out the most last season was in the playoffs. He had six points in seven games and was one of Toronto’s best players.
If he can carry that over into this season, we could see Kerfoot have a breakout year. We could finally see him reach the 20 goal plateau and try for 50 points. His career best is 19 goals and 43 points from his rookie season in 2017-18.
Michael Bunting
The Leafs signed Michael Bunting over the summer in the hopes that he could be a late bloomer as opposed to a flash in the pan.
Bunting famously went on quite the tear near the end of last season upon being called up the the Arizona Coyotes. He scored 10 goals in 21 games and earned himself a free agent gig with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
As one of the Toronto Maple Leafs newest signings, Michael Bunting will be looking to have a breakout season. He scored 13 points in 21 games last season for the Arizona Coyotes.
If Bunting is indeed ready to be an NHL regular and play a full season, he could be looking at a very big breakout this season. He has looked really good in training camp and pre-season play so far. Some have him penciled in to play in Toronto’s top six to start the season, but realistically, a 26 year old rookie stepping into a competing team’s top six to play with some of the best players in the world is slightly unlikely.
Doesn’t mean that it can’t happen, but preseason goals don’t really mean much, and the odds against Bunting holding on to a top six left-wing job against the likes of Kerfoot, Mikheyev, Kase or even Ho-Sang seem small. If it did happen though, it would be amazing, and it is the potential for the unlikely that makes watching sports fun.
Whether it is in the team’s top six or bottom six, Bunting is good a candidate as anyone else to be the Leafs breakout player of the 2021-22 season.
Nick Robertson
Will this be the season that Nicholas Robertson becomes an NHL regular? You can bet that both he and the team hope it is. Like Bunting, Robertson has been having an impressive training camp and pre-season.
Making the opening night roster will not be easy and Robertson could find himself starting the season in the AHL with the Toronto Marlies. Obviously that is not where he would want to start the season, but it could be beneficial for him.
Robertson would likely get more playing time down in the AHL which would benefit him more than sitting on the bench for 50 minutes a night. he had 16 points in 21 games for the Marlies last season when he wasn’t sitting on the Maple Leafs taxi squad.
He will likely be one of the first call ups if a Maple Leafs forward gets injured. He could use that opportunity to earn a roster spot and have a breakout season.
Nick Ritchie
Nick Ritchie has spent six seasons in the NHL with the Anaheim Ducks and Boston Bruins. He has never recorded more than 31 points in a season. Being surrounded by all the talent within the Toronto Maple Leafs forward group, that could change this season.
Ritchie will likely find himself playing up and down in the lineup between Toronto’s third line and first line. He could finally reach the 20 goal plateau and pass 40 points.
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If he can supply the Toronto Maple Leafs with that kind of offense while still playing his physical style, it would make for a fantastic breakout season. It will all depend on just how much time gets to play in Toronto’s top six.