After dropping the first four games of a brutal homestand against some of the NHL's elite, and not earning a single point, Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Jim Hiller is leaning on a player-friendly approach to pull his club out of a potentially season-wrecking tailspin.
Now 20 games into the schedule, the Maple Leafs are languishing near the basement of the Atlantic Division as a playoff berth slips further out of reach with each lost game. With the critical U.S. Thanksgiving benchmark fast approaching, patience is no longer an option. It is time for Hiller to abandon the gentle touch and take a more drastic measure, like slashing ice time, to light a fire under his underperforming veteran stars.
Jim Hiller needs to hold underperforming stars accountable
Star winger William Nylander was right behind captain Auston Matthews as the Leafs' offensive catalyst and leader for the Leafs before the recent homestand. Over the first four games of this crucial home stretch, Nylander has just one goal and is a minus-seven. Among forwards, he has been on the ice for the second-most (25) goals against at even strength.
In recent games, as Leafs fans are accustomed to, Nylander has displayed a questionable effort in puck battles. He didn't have a single shot on net in the team's 6-3 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday. During his media availability on Wednesday, the right winger spoke of his need to work harder to get the puck and have more possession.
Sergei Bobrovsky was in the Leafs' net against the Avalanche. It was his 13th start of the year and the 12th time he has given up 3 or more goals. His .881 save percentage (45th) and goals-against average (57th) rank near the bottom of qualified goaltenders. Meanwhile, backup Anthony Stolarz has won five of his seven starts and ranks in the top 20 of both categories.
While Bobrovsky is a traditionally slow starter, many observers have been surprised that Stolarz has not been given more playing time, since he has performed better. Maple Leafs GM John Chayka has stated that the team has a plan for its goalie rotation, and they intend to stick to it. That strategy to keep both goalies healthy is costing the Leafs valuable points.
In the loss to Colorado, Toronto had a late second-period power play and a chance to get back into a game they were trailing 3-1. The veteran-laden first power play unit fizzled and barely entered the Colorado zone. The Leafs' second power-play group, led by Gavin McKenna and Easton Cowan, immediately threatened, and Cowan's goal, just after the penalty expired, gave Toronto momentum heading into the third.
Maple Leafs' veterans such as Matthews and Jack Roslovic have done all that could be asked of them over the first twenty games. Nylander, John Tavares, who can be excused for coming off an injury, and Bobrovsky need to give the Leafs more.
Hiller has had no problem benching McKenna as he goes through rookie growing pains and acclimates to the NHL. Cowan has been one of the Maple Leafs' best players through the first twenty games. It's time that the Leafs' coach does something more drastic with his underachieving veterans.
Maybe Nylander and Tavares get less ice time if their even-strength play doesn't improve as part of the Leafs' second line. Maybe McKenna or Cowan gets back on the Maple Leafs' first power-play unit for a shift or two. Play Stolarz for a run of three to four games if he is playing better.
Understandably, Hiller wants to back his veterans and give them more leash than his younger players, but twenty games is enough time. The Maple Leafs have reached a critical point in their season, and Hiller needs to do something drastic before it's too late.
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