Connor Timmins + Nick Robertson Need To Be In Toronto Maple Leafs Playoff Lineup

The Toronto Maple Leafs dressing room is full of established veterans, an excellent environment for young players to learn and grow.

The problem with having so many established veterans is that it has made it nearly impossible for young Toronto Maple Leafs like Nick Robertson and Conor Timmins to consistently make it in the starting lineup despite taking advantage of every chance they get.

Now, it won't be shocking to hear that an NHL head coach prefers an established veteran over an 'unproven' young guy, and that has been Sheldon Keefe's M.O. since taking over the Maple Leafs head coaching job.

But for the first time while coaching the Maple Leafs this strategy is hurting the Maple Leafs chances to win.

Conor Timmins and Nicholas Robertson have taken massive leaps forward in their games this season. Timmins has increased his wins-above-replacement (WAR) percentage by 30%, and Robertson has increased his WAR% by 20% since the end of last season (via @JFreshHockey).

Despite this, these two are the two most underutilized players on this roster and I wanted to take the time today to give them the respect they deserve and breakdown just how good these two young Leafs have been this season.

All stats below via NaturalStatTrick