Earlier, we took a look at the optimal defensive pairings for the Toronto Maple Leafs for the 2026-27 NHL season. Since the bulk of the Maple Leafs defensive units were returning for the upcoming year, the focus was on where the newly-acquired Darren Raddysh and Emil Andrae would fit in to maximize their blueline effectiveness.
On the contrary, Toronto had quite the overhaul in their forward units compared to their Opening Night roster from 2025-26, considering the departures of Nicolas Roy, Scott Laughton and Bobby McCann at the trade deadline and Matias Maccelli, Calle Jarnkrok and Nick Robertson to trade or free agency this offseason. As a result, let’s examine the ideal forward line combinations for the Maple Leafs heading into the upcoming year. This takes into assumption that Max Domi could be seeing significant time on the IR for 2026-27 for his recovery.
What are the best Maple Leafs forward line combinations?
Gavin McKenna – Auston Matthews – Jack Roslovic
This will certainly be a new-look top line for the Leafs. Auston Matthews will be getting two completely new players as his linemates, but it makes total sense to have this setup. Matthews put up his best seasons in the NHL with the playmaking Mitch Marner as his partner in crime. So replacing him with the elite, playmaking vision of Gavin McKenna should activate the Maple Leafs captain back into beast mode once again going forward.
In addition, Jack Roslovic played with Matthews in the US National Team Development Program prior to their pro careers and has been long-time friends. That added friendship and chemistry should definitely help ignite the stagnant top line from last year. And with all of the offfensive firepower, the Leafs captain can still keep the line in check with his strong two-way play to give it the perfect balance.
Matthew Knies – John Tavares – William Nylander
The rising Matthew Knies gets bumped to the second line, but in reality, it should ultimately be a 1B line instead given its prolific nature. John Tavares proved everyone wrong last season when he showed that he still had a lot of game left in him when he suited up in all 82 games and produced 31 goals and 40 assists for 71 points. As for William Nylander, he led the team in scoring for the first time in the Matthews era with 30 goals, 49 assists for 79 points in just 65 games played with Toronto last year.
All three players have the ability to hit the back of the net, with Knies adding some defensive awareness to the unit while Nylander can provide some elite zone exits and playmaking at the same time. Tavares, of course, remains one of the best players in terms of net-front presence with his delicate hands and coordination. In fact, the trio can even potentially outperform the top unit.
Dakota Joshua – Nick Paul – Easton Cowan
The Maple Leafs third line will have a new look with newcomer Nick Paul centering the young Easton Cowan and veteran Dakota Joshua. Together, they would provide a solid balance of goal scoring, defensive abilities and physicality at the same time. As much as the revamped Leafs roster setup has the top two forward lines focusing in a scoring role and the bottom two in a checking role, this unit could actually surprise everyone with some unexpected secondary scoring.
After all, Paul had actually put up 20+ goals in each of his two years prior to his injury-plagued 2025-26 campaign. For Joshua, he has put up double digits in goals in three of the last four seasons while Cowan has scored as many as 34 goals in his 2023-24 junior season with the London Knights. Also, by getting sheltered minutes, it could give the Maple Leafs sophomore all the space to be at his best for him to take off.
Teddy Blueger – Colton Sissons – Brandon Duhaime/Steven Lorentz
Finally, we have the newly-formed energy line for the Leafs with the complete remake of the fourth unit. Colton Sissons is a master of the faceoff dot, while both Teddy Blueger and Brandon Duhaime will give tough minutes and wear down the opposition with their gritty and physical style of play. Don’t expect them to be lighting up the scoreboard much, but they should ensure the opposing team won’t get much accomplished either.
And when the Leafs want to add a little scoring touch to the unit, they can always swap out one of the players from the unit for Steven Lorentz, who has shown some offensive flare in his brief two-year stint with the Leafs so far. Nevertheless, Toronto hasn’t have this type of line at their disposal for the past few years. So it’ll be up to Leafs head coach Jim Hiller to maximize their effective usage this coming season.
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