Toronto Maple Leafs: Conor Timmins Has Earned a Roster Spot

Last night, the Toronto Maple Leafs took on the Buffalo Sabres in St. Thomas, Ontario for some pre-season action.

The Toronto Maple Leafs took home a 5-2 victory led by a 2-goal, 4-point effort by Conor Timmins, who has looked very solid through the preseason so far.

Timmins is one of many hopefuls looking to earn a full-time spot with the Toronto Maple Leafs this upcoming season, and if you ask me, he deserves a roster spot with the team.

The Leafs have a fairly weak defense group and cracking the top-6 shouldn’t be too hard for anyone who exhibits quality NHL play. If Timmins keeps up his strong play, there’s a good chance he does.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Conor Timmins Has Earned a Roster Spot

Timmins is an extremely versatile player.

He can skate well, move the puck well, contribute offensively, as well as play well in his own zone. He’s exactly the type of defenseman the Leafs need, and he’s doing everything right to earn his spot.

Now, 2 pre-season games is a small sample size, but Timmins now has 6 points in 2 pre-season games so far. If he keeps this up, there’s no doubt he will make the team.

Last season, due to lengthy injuries to Jake Muzzin and Morgan Rielly, Timmins earned himself a 25-game stint in the big leagues, notching 2 goals and 14 points.

That is a very solid stat line for a d-man. His 14 points in 25 games pro-rates to about 45 points in a full 82-game season. Not too shabby for Timmins.

Can he perform that well over a full season? Highly unlikely, but can he put up 30+ points? I don’t see why not.

According to capfriendly.com, Timmins is currently the 7th defenseman on the Leafs roster. The player he has the best odds of beating out for a spot is (in my opinion) Mark Giordano.

I love Gio, and the Leafs and coach Sheldon Keefe do as well. However, Giordano is not the same player as he once was. He is still useful to the team, but Timmins might be the better option at this point.

Even if Timmins doesn’t crack the roster right away, as soon as there’s an injury on the back end, he’ll be the first one called up to play.

Regardless, the final pre-season games will be exciting to watch, with Timmins hoping to keep his strong play up.

We’ll see if he cracks the opening night lineup. He deserves to.