Entering the 2026-27 season, NHL teams are well aware that the schedule format had been changed for the upcoming year. Teams will be playing an 84-game schedule for the regular season, up from 82 in previous years. To accommodate for the extended length of games, clubs have agreed to have a shortened preseason schedule that would see teams play only four games in total before starting the regular season.
That’s where the problem lies when it comes to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Where practically every other team in the NHL has their four preseason games nicely spread out over a week’s time to allow for player evaluation, getting into shape, and experimenting with particular line combinations and strategies, the Maple Leafs certainly got the short end of the stick with their given unorthodox schedule.
Will the Maple Leafs pay the price for having such a ridiculous preseason schedule?
The Leafs were handed two split-squad games, much like how they do it in Major League Baseball, with one that took place last Saturday against the Montreal Canadiens and the other set to take place on Wednesday against the Ottawa Senators. With that, will Toronto pay the price later for having such a ridiculous schedule?
Essentially, it gives the Maple Leafs just two games to do all of their evaluating, experimenting and getting the team ready for the regular season. That is because they are forced to field two different rosters to fulfill the two games in the same night. Meaning that any player will have at most two chances to play and show their worth.
Of course, there could still be benefits with such a setup. For one, the chances of the Leafs players getting injured prior to the regular season would be minimized with the limited game exposure. For a team that was ravaged with injuries last year, that could come as a welcome sight. In addition, the team would save a lot on travel, getting all the games over with in two nights.
The Maple Leafs should be worried about the drawbacks of having such an unorthodox schedule for the preseason
However, the drawbacks by far outweighs the benefits for having such an absurd preseason schedule setup. First of all, what happens to all of the training camp battles for roster spots? With just a small two game sample size, it will be impossible for any fringe Toronto player or top prospect to impress and win out a spot for the Opening Night roster. As a result, players such as Bo Groulx or Ben Danford that could have had a good shot in beating out a regular to make the team now have a slim chance of doing so. That is because Maple Leafs head coach Jim Hiller likely was forced to formulate the Leafs roster already and had to use the two split squad games as one for the main core of players and one for the group destined to start the year in the AHL, juniors or be released.
Secondly, the Maple Leafs will no doubt get in a lot of team practice. But just getting in two real games against real opponents is not enough preparation time for the players to be in top shape ahead of the regular season. As a result, expect the Leafs to come out a bit sluggish to start the 2026-27 season as they try to get their legs going and up to speed.
On top of that, Hiller will not have enough time to experiment with different line combinations. Especially with the high number of new faces that have joined the Maple Leafs this offseason, including top pick Gavin McKenna, along with Jack Roslovic, Nick Paul, Colton Sissons, Teddy Blueger and Brandon Duhaime, it will take some time for some of them to form some line chemistry. Consequently, Hiller may be forced to do that lineup tinkering in-season after the start of the regular season to find the right combinations, and that could cost Toronto a few wins in the process.
Hopefully, it doesn’t end up putting the Maple Leafs in a bind right from the get-go as a result. If they can take any solace from the situation, at least they have some company with their Canadian arch rivals Canadiens and Senators also having the same unorthodox schedule for their preseason. However, Toronto could care less for that company as their main focus is to redeem themselves this season by making it back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs when all is said and done.
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