Toronto Maple Leafs 2024 New Years Resolutions
I have decided to take a spin on a classic tradition and make three new years resolutions for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Although the Toronto Maple Leafs currently remain in a playoff spot, there have been very well documented struggles thus far in the 2023-24 season.
Currently sitting 13th league-wide and in the final playoff spot in the Atlantic division, this is not where the Leafs hoped to be heading into this year. If things don’t turn around soon, they could be on the outside looking in.
As we transition into the new calendar year, it is commonplace for people to make new years resolutions. Things that they would like to improve upon for the coming year, goals they would like to accomplish.
As such, the Leafs have quite a few resolutions to choose from and unlike the resolutions we all make, hopefully the Leafs actually stick to these ones.
Better Health
Although this resolution is more of a wish than an actionable goal, there is no hiding from the fact that a lot of the Maple Leafs’ struggles this year have spawned from injury.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have been plagued by injuries this season.
They started the year with both Jake Muzzin and Matt Murray reportedly being out for the season on LTIR.
Since puck drop, they have had longer term injuries to Connor Timmins, Timothy Liljegren, John Klingberg, Joseph Woll, and Mark Giordano.
This has lead to a majorly depleted blueline as well as a rocky crease. This is made even worse by the struggles plaguing Ilya Samsonov, who was the projected number one heading into the season.
In saying all of this, the Leafs are by no means the team that has been hit the hardest by the injury bug.
Yet, the team has lost significant man games from three regular defenders and their starting goalie. These are significant blows any way you look at it and has hurt the team in a big way.
If the Leafs are to make a serious run in the postseason, they will need to have better injury luck to make it happen.
Better Defence
Although in some ways this issue is likely exacerbated by the pileup of injuries on the backend, it is still a legitimate issue.
They currently rank 27th in the entire league in expected goals against per 60 minutes (xGA/60). They are also 23rd in actual goals against.
The issues on the backend have been exposed with the struggles of T.J. Brodie this season. Since signing with the Maple Leafs in 2020, he has been the team’s most consistent blueliner, especially with Muzzin’s decline due to injuries.
Unfortunately down the stretch last season he showed signs of slowing down but this year has proven people’s worries correct.
The problem has also been compounded by the loss of defensive forwards over the past year. The acquisitions of Sam Lafferty, Noel Acciari, and Ryan O’Reilly last season improved the team’s defensive presence.
Losing such players via free agency and trade has not helped the team from a defensive standpoint. As well, the losses of Zach Aston-Reese and Alex Kerfoot didn’t help in this department.
Likely this means that the team will have to make trades leading up to the deadline to bolster depth up front. A trade for an impact defenceman also wouldn’t hurt.
Currently, the Leafs are rotating deployment of Simon Benoit, William Lagesson, and Connor Timmins and could definitely upgrade this position.
Consistent Goaltending
Joseph Woll has been a revelation and his .916% save percentage (SV%) has largely saved the team. Sadly, he suffered an injury this past month. In his absence, Martin Jones has been surprisingly steady boasting a
Ilya Samsonov has not been good enough, though with a putrid .862 SV% through 15 games. As the goalie currently occupying the highest caphit on their payroll at $3.55 million, it is nowhere near enough.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a team that is pushed right up against the cap ceiling, they cannot have that money allocated to a goalie that is bleeding wins.
There are a few different solutions to the goaltending issue. The Leafs have called up Dennis Hildeby, who is currently dominating the American Hockey League (AHL) in his first full season in North America, with a .919 SV% through 15 games.
The counterpoint many bring up is that you don’t want to rush the 22-year-old netminder and risk shaking his confidence. However, Felix Potvin and James Reimer were both under 23 when they were handed the reigns to the Leafs crease.
The other option would be to also make a trade. If you can somehow dump Samsonov’s contract and get back a playable goaltender, it wouldn’t be a bad idea. For example, if you could swap Kaapo Kahkonen and Ilya Samsonov with the San Jose Sharks or Samsonov for Karel Vejmelka with the Arizona Coyotes. However, this doesn’t seem likely and given the needs in other areas of the roster, spending assets on a goalie (and to dump Samsonov) seems risky and unwise unless you’re making a major improvement.
The last and most likely option is that the Leafs continue to try and work with Samsonov in hopes he can regain his form. This becomes even more likely after the other day's announcement that the Leafs had placed Samsonov on waivers.
He was a .919 SV% goalie last year over 42 games in the regular season. His worst season before this was his final year in Washington where he held a .896 SV% over 44 games. Although, time does seem to be running out and the Leafs will need to do something soon.
All advanced metrics via moneypuck.com
Next. The Leafs Top 10 Prospects . The Leafs Top 10 Prospects . dark
Last season, the Leafs broke an 18-year drought by advancing past the first round. They need to make adjustments if they plan on building upon that season in hopes of making it to the second round and beyond this season.