3 Reasons Why the Toronto Maple Leafs Can Contend Without Auston Matthews
The Leafs will become a predominantly defence-first team
Without Auston Matthews, the Leafs are destined to become a defence-first, shutdown team. They have the pieces to do it, but will need more worker bees to forecheck the daylights out of the opposition. Guys like Bobby McMann, Steven Lorentz, Connor Dewar, and Matthew Knies will become key pieces in harassing the opposition.
Most importantly, the Leafs defensive core will need to step up. Chris Tanev, Jake McCabe, Simon Benoit, and Philippe Myers could all play huge roles in pounding other teams into submission. The Leafs will need to rely on strong checking and tight-defensive play to ensure opponents don’t run amok.
Blue liners like Morgan Rielly and Oliver Ekman-Larsson will need to play a dual role in moving the puck and driving offense while being responsible in their own end. If they can manage that, the Leafs blue line should be in good shape.
Then, there are the remaining Core Four members. John Tavares is still acting like the team’s captain while wearing an A on his jersey. Mitch Marner is the Leafs’ MVP, while William Nylander is proving he’s money in the bank.
However, that leaves a gap that must be filled. Max Domi, Nick Robertson, and one of Max Pacioretty or Matthew Knies will need to emerge as the club’s top secondary scorers. Perhaps all could flourish in a Matthews-less system where the team relies on turnovers and transitions.
In fact, that’s the key. Forget about the high-flying Sheldon Keefe days. The Craig Berube philosophy will likely instill a hard-hitting style the Leafs must embrace giving Marner and Nylander an opportunity to use their speed to punish opponents.