Toronto Maple Leafs: 5 Key Questions As Preseason Approaches

As soon as the Toronto Maple Leafs lost their second-round playoff series to the Florida Panthers last spring attention turned to off-ice moves surrounding the team. A lot happened in a short amount of time.

Despite the Toronto Maple Leafs winning a playoff round for the first time since 2004, there was not much cause for celebration.

The euphoria of knocking off the dynastic Tampa Bay Lightning was followed by a clunker series against the Panthers that once again raised questions about the core players’ postseason performance.

Then, an emotionally drained Kyle Dubas gave a lukewarm reaction to the possibility of returning as the team’s general manager. This came after rumors that the Pittsburgh Penguins would be interested in his services should he become available.

Before long, president Brendan Shanahan dismissed Dubas, and Brad Treliving, ex-GM of the Calgary Flames, replaced him.

With little time, Treliving was presented with a lengthy “to-do” list for his first summer on the job.

The Leafs had a bevy of players headed for unrestricted free agency. Among them were key contributors or important trade acquisitions by Dubas. Michael Bunting, Alex Kerfoot, Justin Holl, Ryan O’Reilly, Noel Acciari, and Luke Schenn all left the team.

Treliving replaced them by signing John Klingberg, Tyler Bertuzzi, Max Domi, Ryan Reaves, Dylan Gambrell, and goaltender Martin Jones.

The interesting aspect around Treliving’s free agent signings is that aging enforcer Reaves was his only multi-year commitment. The rest of the newcomers are on “prove-it”, one-year deals.

Treliving also had to decide what to do with the head coaching position. Incumbent Sheldon Keefe has presided over one of the most successful regular-season eras in team history. However, like his players, he hasn’t delivered when it counts.

Rather than start over with his selection for head coach, as new GMs are known to do, he decided to stick with Keefe.

The last, and most significant, item for Treliving was to figure out a way to get his star players signed to new deals. Auston Matthews and William Nylander are franchise cornerstones that can potentially reach unrestricted free agency during the summer of 2024.

Since the activity during free agency, all has been relatively quiet around the Leafs. As the clock on summer winds down that will soon change.

Next month, action around the Leafs will pick up. When preseason begins, there will be no shortage of questions and storylines to contemplate.

Will a Toronto Maple Leafs Prospect Shine?

With much of their salary cap allotment devoted to their star players, the Leafs must get production from a player with a low salary.

Michael Bunting provided that during his two years in Toronto, but back-to-back 23-goal seasons increased his value. The Leafs decided to move on.

The salary cap makes it inevitable that player movement will happen. A team can’t keep all of its free agents and pay them.

Successful organizations build their core, don’t overpay in free agency, and replace outgoing players from within the system.

When players such as Zach Hyman, Jack Campbell, or Bunting leave, their roles must be filled, preferably by a younger player on an entry-level contract.

For the Leafs, Matthew Knies and Nick Robertson are the prospects in the best position to take hold of a spot on the roster. They have had a taste of NHL action and now recognize what it takes to be a regular in the lineup.

After a successful two-year stint with the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers, Knies played in ten games for the Leafs last year, including seven in the playoffs.

The Hobey Baker finalist tantalized with his combination of skill and size. He appears destined for a top-six forward role and he looked comfortable during his brief introduction to the NHL.

Despite his size, Knies had a rude “welcome to the NHL” moment, when Sam Bennett of the Panthers got overly physical with him during Game 2 of their second-round series.

That moment outlines one of the biggest challenges Knies will face moving forward. The NHL regular season is an eight-month grind with more physical play against bigger, stronger, and faster competition than he faced in the NCAA.

He has the size and talent but he needs to take advantage of the training resources the Leafs can provide to help him withstand the rigors of professional hockey.

Robertson’s situation is similar. He must prove he can stay healthy and contribute. Through no fault of his own, he has gone through a litany of injuries early in his career.

It feels like he will soon run out of chances with the Leafs. Should he not make a consistent contribution this year, a younger prospect such as Fraser Minten could move past him on the organization’s depth chart.

Look for Knies, being more physically equipped and likely to play up in the lineup, to be the young prospect to step up for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Is Defensive Help on the Way?

It is hard to imagine the Toronto Maple Leafs defense, as it currently stands, being championship caliber.

Luke Schenn and the polarizing, but useful Justin Holl departed during the offseason. Free agent John Klingberg was signed coming off a terrible season that was split with the Anaheim Ducks and Minnesota Wild.

The puzzling part of adding Klingberg is that offense is his strong point. He is better suited to distribute the puck and help on the power play. Blocking shots, physical play, and removing opposing forwards from the front of the net are not his calling card.

The Leafs must hope that Klingberg’s improved performance with a stronger Wild team is more a reflection of the player they are getting. If they get the version that was in Anaheim, the losses of Schenn and Holl will be felt.

With the future of rugged defenseman Jake Muzzin uncertain, the Leafs once again find themselves short of a tough, physical presence on the blue line.

Right now Morgan Rielly, TJ Brodie, Jake McCabe, and likely Liljegren make up their top 4. Klingberg and Mark Giordano are the third pair, with Connor Timmins in reserve.  Though obviously with Klingberg’s salary and Keefe’s lack of faith in Liljegren come playoff time, it wouldn’t be surprising if they are swapped,

McCabe is the only one who brings a physical presence. Giordano can block shots, but he is beginning to show his age and should not be relied upon for important minutes.

Rielly will once again log huge minutes for the Leafs. He showed he is capable of handling the role based on his performance during last year’s playoffs. However, should he miss any significant time the Leafs are in massive trouble.

The play of the Leafs defense will be a key early storyline this season. It’s the most substantial weakness this team has.

The offseason addition of Klingberg won’t be enough. Reinforcements must be acquired for the Leafs to be considered a serious championship contender.

Should Sheldon Keefe Be Worried?

Sheldon Keefe has one of the most impressive coaching records in Toronto Maple Leafs history. His points percentage of .678 is the highest of all Leafs coaches.

With him at the helm, the team accumulated franchise-best point totals during the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 seasons.

The problem, of course, has been carrying that regular season success through to the playoffs. Much like his players, Keefe has not matched his regular-season prowess with postseason achievements.

His underwhelming playoff resume had some wondering if Treliving would start fresh with a new coach. Instead, Treliving decided to retain Keefe.

This was the right call as Keefe has made strides with this roster. The Toronto Maple Leafs are a more responsible defensive team than when he started. He has managed to make them defensively aware while not sacrificing their strengths on offense.

Keefe deserves another shot with the Leafs, especially after the progress made during the last two playoff appearances.

Treliving had multiple conversations with Keefe during his orientation with the Leafs and came away satisfied that the incumbent head coach would keep the job.

Interestingly, keeping Keefe provides a scapegoat for Treliving. Should the Leafs stumble out of the gate this season, Treliving can fire Keefe and look for a new coach.

Being able to place blame on a coach that he did not inherit, takes the attention away from any ineffective personnel moves by Treliving. Removing the coach is also an easier option to change a team’s trajectory than making major in-season player transactions.

Treliving has the “fire the coach” card at his disposal. Will he use it should the Leafs disappoint?

Can Distractions Be Avoided?

It might be overdramatic to suggest the Auston Matthews and William Nylander extension talks hang like a dark cloud over the team, but they do have the potential to cause distractions.

As soon as last season concluded, the focus immediately turned to the contract situations surrounding these two players.

The 2023-2024 season will see them enter the last year of their deals. Speculation has already started about what the Leafs should do.

One way or the other the status of these players will determine the future direction of the franchise. Up until they sign new deals or free agency arrives next summer, their circumstances will be discussed ad nauseam.

As soon as the Leafs congregate for the start of the preseason, Treliving, Matthews, and Nylander will be inundated with questions about contract talks.

It has the potential to be a huge distraction for the team. It will probably take professional and cordial statements from all involved to help temper the angst, especially in the Toronto market.

When the Toronto Maple Leafs soon arrive for the start of the preseason these will be some important questions worth monitoring.

How they are handled and resolved will go a long way in dictating the tone of their season.