Monday Afternoon Toronto Maple Leafs: Robertson + News + Standings + Trades
The Toronto Maple Leafs played a very good, very entertaining game against he New York Rangers on Saturday night.
The game had it all - a newly acquired player getting injured, a fight between Ryan Reaves and a small giant, a shootout, terrible refereeing that adversely affected the Toronto Maple Leafs, and one hell of a goal by former #1 overall pick Alexis Lafreniere.
The most important thing, however, was that the Leafs took on one of the top teams in the NHL and more or less dominated them at 5v5 (57% Puck Possession, 61% shots, 67% scoring chances, 75% dangerous chances). (stats naturalstattrick.com).
That is a grade A ass-kicking. You are going to win a lot of games with those numbers. Yes, the PP and the PK (and overtime) were weak, but special teams are not the Leafs problem, and I'll take a great 5v5 game every single time.
And let's give a shout-out to the absolutely dominating line of Tavares centering Jarnkrok and McMann.
It was a great game, and the Leafs are showing what a great team they can be. With a couple of additions this could be the best team in the NHL.
Last year after the deadline, the Leafs were the best team in the NHL. They had the most elite talent and they were the deepest. No one else in the league was anywhere close to healthy-scratching players like Gustufsson or Liljegren.
Sure, the Leafs GM seems poorly suited to his current job, and hasn't done a single thing to inspire confidence since he was hired, but as he is showing, it's hard to screw up a team with Auston Mattehws, John Tavares, Mitch Marener, Morgan Rielly and William Nlyander on it.
Here's hoping he has more up his sleeve than just massively overpaying for a waiver-wire defenseman.
Toronto Maple Leafs and Nick Robertson
Speaking of which, Nick Robertson had to go to the minors to make room for Calle, but the Leafs have apparently told him this wasn't play related, and was only because he's the only waiver eligible guy besides Matthew Knies (who is coming into his own on the top line).
There's plenty of lineup iterations the Leafs could use, but I guess with the deadline just a few days away we might as well wait to see what they do.
Personally, I would trade anyone if the price is right, but realistically, I think trading Nick Robertson is a pretty dumb idea - he's an NHL player on an entry level contract who can contribute anywhere in the lineup because of his elite NHL shot.
With Nick Robertson on the ice this year, at 5v5, and granted some fairly sheltered minutes, the Toronto Maple Leafs have won their minutes 20-16 and they have won puck-possession, shots-for, scoring chances, dangerous scoring chances and expected goals.
With Nick Robertson and his elite shot on the ice this year, Leafs are winning 20-16 + are over 50% in every category (shots-for, puck-possession, scoring chances, dangerous chances) all for the league minimum.
— Editor in Leaf (@EditorinLeaf) March 4, 2024
Anyone suggesting trading him is out to lunch. #LeafsForever
Robertson has potential, but whatever his trade value is, I say you move a prospect who isn't contributing at the NHL level instead.
There just isn't any value in trading players who contribute this much for the league-minum. He also scores at one of the highest raters per minute on the team.
Lyubushkin
Making a bad trade for a player you could get on waivers any day of the week and only getting two periods out of him is classic Leafs.
I'm sorry he was injured (on a play that demands a suspension) but like Nick Foligno and Ryan O'Reilly before him, all you can do is laugh.
What are the odds that every single player the Leafs trade for immidietely gets injured? Something like the odds of losing 11 straight elimination games?
Standings and Stats
The Toronto Maple Leafs are on fire (winning I think 10 of 12 and 9 of 10) but their stats still leave a lot to be desired.
The Leafs are 17th in puck-possession (owing to a blue-line that is bad at moving the puck) and 14th in expected-goals (all stats 5v5 unless otherwise mentioned).
However, if we go back and look at only games from February 1st on the Leafs, while still not a great possession team, are just outside the top-five in Xgoals.
Goalies
Gotta get one.
I keep reading what the Leafs priorities should be heading into the deadline, but no one ever says goalie.
I strongly disagree with nearly everyone on this topic.
Joseph Woll might end up being a superstar, and his return from injury the other night was glorious. However, just the fact that he couldn't play in the next game is concerning.
Sure, you don't wanna rush him and get him hurt again, but in a big game against a top team the Leafs played Samsonov.
And he sucked.
Samsonov's redemption is a narrative that makes no sense. It's a nice story, but it's a story. He has played better lately than he did earlier in the year, but that's easy enough to do when you get put on waivers and go unclaimed - literally just showing up and being playable is an improvement.
Either way, there is no chance you can trust him in the playoffs and Joseph Woll can't be trusted to play every single game for two months.
A goalie is therefore a necessity.
Trades
The trade deadline is just five days away, and I find it hilarious reading all the mainstream stuff preparing fans for a letdown.
Who cares if you get let down? Have some fun! Trade Deadline Time is exciting and what's better if you're a hockey fan than day dreaming about a franchise goalie or a great defenseman joining your favorite team for the cup run?
I don't care if it's likely or not, until 3PM on Friday I'll be looking forward to Juuse Saros and Noah Hanifin joining the Leafs.
If the Leafs management is happy with the Lyubushkin add and don't do anything else, they will all be fired when the team busts out in the playoffs and we come to the end of the Shanaplan (which, by the way, is the worst name for anything).
However, with an addition or two, this team is primed to combine it's awesome core with the luck they are overdue for in the playoffs.
You can't keep running into hot goalies every year, so eventually Matthews is going to take over the NHL Playoffs and it really won't matter who else is on the team.
The odds of that get drastically better however if the Leafs add a goalie, a puck-moving defender and a Max Domi replacement later this week.
But Scott Laughton or Adam Henrique? I can't print the words that those trades bring to mind.
Standings
A win tonight against the Boston Bruins would put the Leafs within four points with two games in hand.
The Leafs remain eight back of Florida with only one game in hand.
As luck would have it, the Leafs 9-1 run has coincided with the Panthers going on the exact same run. On the bright side, the Leafs have opened up a six point lead on Detroit with a game in hand, while they have the same lead on Tampa but have played three less times.
Barring a collapse like we've never before seen, the Toronto Maple Leafs are going to the playoffs.
They could still win the division, but the NHL playoffs are so weirdly seeded that doing that could still give them a rematch with Tampa.
Sure, it's not the same Tampa from before, but it's not like they're an easy out. Could you imagine pulling off a miracle Atlantic Division Title and then being rewareded with Tampa?
The Leafs are 8th overall in the NHL right now, with, I think, more room for improvement than any team above them.
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They play Boston tonight, and it is one of the biggest games of the season so far.