Toronto Maple Leafs: Jake Muzzin Feels Like a Weak Link
By Luke Ryan
On the blue line, the Toronto Maple Leafs are opening training camp with several issues, including injury concerns for Jake Muzzin.
Arriving at training camp with a back injury, the Toronto Maple Leafs are giving Muzzin some leeway to recuperate before the regular season gets going.
However, it highlights an issue that the whole team should rightly be concerned about; the go-to hard-hitter on their regular shutdown pairing has shown his frailties in recent years.
With concussion concerns last season and now this back injury, you have to think the wear on his body isn’t something that can simply be fixed at 33 years old.
Toronto Maple Leafs Might Still Need Jake Muzzin
The Toronto Maple Leafs can’t afford to keep paying money for a player that has missed 40% of the team’s regular season games in the past two seasons.
His cap hit of $5.625 million represents a considerable chunk of change, 6.8% of the team’s entire cap, per CapFriendly.
If the Toronto Maple Leafs are staring down the barrel of another season marred by injury and fitness concerns, it’s a real worry, unless of course it eventuates into putting Muzzin on long-term injured reserve.
That in itself won’t offer much respite because the options below him on the depth chart don’t exactly fill you with confidence.
Even with age impacting his performance, Jake Muzzin is still easily a better option at this point in time than Jordie Benn, Victor Mete or Carl Dahlstrom.
There is argument to be made that Rasmus Sandin represents the future but he has not signed a new contract yet.
Sheldon Keefe seems keen to dispel any great concerns that this latest injury is anything overly sinister, but fact is the sheer fact he’s missing training camp days fills you with dread.
Keefe on Muzzin: "I wouldn't say concern. The last little bit he's had a little discomfort in his back. Today, for the most part, is one of the hardest days of the year. It was a good day to give him some additional time. We're going to evaluate him after a week or so." #Leafs
— Terry Koshan 🇺🇦 (@koshtorontosun) September 22, 2022
While Keefe is right to suggest that some of the early days of camp are grueling, that’s exactly the preparation the Toronto Maple Leafs should be wanting the whole team involved in.
After all, it’s no less grueling in the mid-Winter as the cold sets in outside or in fact once the Stanley Cup Playoffs get underway, assuming of course that the Leafs make it once again.
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The Toronto Maple Leafs need a bounce back year from Jake Muzzin, whether alongside Justin Holl again or with a new partner. Starting the new season with a nagging injury feels like that could prevent that from being a happening thing.