For a good part of this decade, the Toronto Maple Leafs had been a dominant force with the man advantage. With the core four of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, John Tavares and William Nylander loaded on the Leafs’ top unit, the Toronto power play was consistently ranked among the top 10 in the league since 2021, including holding the No. 1 spot during the 2021-22 season.
However, last year, the Maple Leafs actually fell outside the top ten teams in the league and found themselves down in the middle of the pack at No. 15 with a 21.3% success rate. In fact, towards the early parts of the season, Toronto was actually among the bottom five in terms of power play success rate. However, the Leafs should no longer need to worry too much as they are likely to improve in it drastically this coming 2026-27 NHL season. Why is that?
The one area the Maple Leafs should improve this coming 2026-27 NHL season
First of all, the Leafs regression with the man advantage in 2025-26 had a lot to do with the departure of Marner. As one of the main driving forces on the Maple Leafs power play due to his elite vision and playmaking on the ice, he was often the “quarterback” for Toronto despite not being a defenseman on the unit. If they needed a tight pass, a smart board play, or even a fake shot or pass, Marner was able to do it flawlessly, often throwing the opposing team’s defenders off guard. That was why it was to no one’s surprise that the Leafs struggled immensely near the beginning before becoming a little more dependable as the season went on.
This year, the Maple Leafs essentially have the solution to that missing link with No. 1 overall pick Gavin McKenna. Often described to have tremendous hockey sense with exceptional creativity on the ice, McKenna is an elite playmaker in the mold of Marner and perhaps even more. As a result, it will be a no-brainer for the Leafs to insert the young rookie into the top unit and re-establish the dominance they have had been used to since the turn of the decade.
On top of that, with the defensive-minded Craig Berube no longer at the helm and Jim Hiller taking over as the Maple Leafs new head coach, it should unleash their offensive style of play more so that they will be more dangerous with the man advantage as a result. Especially with Hiller’s familiarity with Matthews and company during his previous stint with the club as an assistant coach, he should be able to get the most out of the players as he would know exactly their strengths and weaknesses.
Therefore, Toronto fans should fully expected a rejuvenated Leafs power play for the 2026-27 NHL season. In fact, it could even be more dangerous than before with McKenna in the heart of it, so watch out!
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