John Chayka and the Toronto Maple Leafs entered the offseason with one focus: adding talent to the roster for a return to the postseason. However, that sudden embarrassment of riches has handed new head coach Jim Hiller a massive tactical headache before the puck even drops.
The arrival of first-overall draft pick Gavin McKenna and high-scoring blue-liner Darren Raddysh has ignited internal competition for spots on the team's top power-play unit, causing Hiller to face some brutal, ego-bruising decisions down the road. It's a looming roster crisis that took center stage on a recent episode of TSN's OverDrive, where analysts Jeff O'Neill and Mike Johnson had a lively discussion over the inevitable emotional fallout awaiting some of the Leafs' key players.
Jeff O'Neill and Mike Johnson debate Leafs power play drama
The OverDrive panel of Bryan Hayes, Jamie McLellan, and O'Neill, plus guest Johnson, first discussed Hiller's decision to put McKenna on a line with John Tavares and William Nylander. Then the conversation got interesting when Johnson wondered whether McKenna would make the Leafs' first power-play unit.
In Johnson's opinion, McKenna will not be with the first unit initially. He sees Raddysh, Tavares, Nylander, captain Auston Matthews, and Matthew Knies comprising the top power-play group. The former Maple Leaf suggested you don't take Knies off the first unit to start the season, especially with this year's limited number of practices and games due to a more condensed training camp schedule.
Johnson described the scenario of McKenna bumping the power forward, goal-scoring presence of Knies, off the first unit after limited practice. If you were Knies, Johnson said, "you feel a little bit miffed." In Johnson's opinion, you wait a while before putting McKenna on the first unit.
O'Neill countered that if McKenna shines "and makes incredible plays on the power play, and he deserves to be out there, someone's going to get their feelings hurt." Instead of rolling out the same players, as in past years, the Maple Leafs now have options for underperforming players while on the power play, said O'Neill.
According to O'Neill, Hiller must capitalize on this internal competition for power-play time. At times, that may mean inserting newcomer Nick Paul for Tavares or McKenna for Knies.
The panel then noted Tavares' increasingly limited effectiveness at even strength as he ages as another factor to consider. Without him on the power play, the Leafs aren't taking full advantage of his net-front abilities. Knies' size and hands are also enticing with the man advantage.
The Maple Leafs' power-play dilemma is the definition of a "good problem to have." Adding talents like McKenna and Raddysh to an already star-studded lineup makes for a more potent offense, but as O'Neill and Johnson pointed out, managing egos is as crucial as drawing up X's and O's. When the puck drops and those final decisions are made, someone's ice time and feelings will inevitably take a hit. Hiller needs to handle the fallout and keep it from becoming a locker room issue.
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