The Toronto Maple Leafs Need to Stop Scratching Their Best Defensemen

The Toronto Maple Leafs have made some head-scratching moves recently and I haven’t been around to complain about them because I have been off work with a medical issue.  Please allow me to rectify this by putting forth several dozen complaints about the team’s recent moves

The Toronto Maple Leafs acquired Luke Schenn, traded Rasmus Sandin and Pierre Engvall all of which I would describe as extremely stupid moves.

Additionally, I would suggest that failing to bring in any of the three superstar players available at the trade deadline was a major error.

Clearing cap space to play Matt Murray? Error.

Allowing Auston. Matthews to return to the lineup in a meaningless game after he was injured int he first period, only to have him injure the team’s prized trade deadline addition? Error.

But all of those things can be justified by saying that they don’t matter – in the NHL all that really matters is how your star players and your goalie perform in the playoffs,  and if Matthews, Marner, Tavares and Samsonov play well, it won’t matter who else is on the roster or who could have been.

What cannot be justified is scratching Timothy Liljegren.

Toronto Maple Leafs Coach Appears to Be Incapable of Icing Proper Lineup

What in the hell is Sheldon Keefe thinking lately?

Timothy Liljegren was the Toronto Maple Leafs most effective defensemen last season, and this season, in a bigger role, he has once again been the team’s best defender.

Last season the Leafs outscored their opposition at 5v5  57-42 (58%) with Liljegren on the ice, while posting a 60% Expected Goals Rating.

This year, they are outscoring their opposition 39-21 (65%) with a 54% Expected Goals Rating.

That is 2 years of a top team winning the game whenever their 21/22 year-old right-hand puck moving defensemen is on the ice.  (stats naturalstattrick.com).

No one on the team’s blue-line has gotten better results over the last two seasons, which makes it extremely questionable when the team sits him for anyone, let alone to play the likes of Justin Holl or Luke Schenn.

It’s common practice in the NHL to underrate players who do not throw big hits or rack up points, but the entire point of the Toronto Maple Leafs is that they aren’t as clueless as teams that are run in a more traditional fashion.

You hope that Sheldon Keefe is only exercising caution due to an injury (and Liljegren did leave the game before he was scratched with an injury) but all the news I can find on the topic says it was a healthy scratch.

Perhaps we’re jumping the gun with our criticism, since at today’s practice he had TL up with Rielly on the top pairing, which is something as great as scratching Liljegren is bad.  But, just so we are clear: if Liljegren sits a single game in the playoffs, that’s a fireable offence.

I’d like to give Keefe the benefit of the doubt, but then again, today’s lines listed Sam Lafferty as the 2nd line centre, which is completely crazy, so who knows what he’s thinking?  However, there is a bright side to this nonsense: no idea I ever write about hockey can again be criticized if a real NHL coach follows through with his plan to play Sam Lafferty on the second line.