Hockey Trade Rumors

What a difference a year makes. Last October at this time the Toronto Maple Leafs started out with 3 losses, including 2 in a shootout and garnered 2 of a possible 6 points in the standings. The outlook was not good as captain Mats Sundin lasted less than 2 periods before getting hurt, forcing him out of the lineup for over 6 weeks. The team struggled under the new rules looking slow and very undisciplined. Team defence was non-existent as the Leafs blew 3rd period leads in each of their first 3 games. Armed with the attitude that the league mandate would come and go like all others, the team looked unwilling to make the necessary adjustments with the expectation that the clutch and grab will return. Though the team finally won in their 4th game against Philadelphia, it took a great performance by the backup goalie to bail the Leafs out.

Now fast forward to the here and now. The 2006/2007 season has started out much better as the Leafs have taken 6 of a possible 8 points including 2 wins, one of them even from the dreaded shootout. Points wise, the Leafs have only 2 more than last season after 4 games, but this season it just seems the Leafs are much superior to last year’s squad.

The goaltending by Andrew Raycroft has been superb. After coming in with relatively unknown expectations, Raycroft looks much more like the goalie who won the Calder Trophy 2 seasons ago, than the goalie that was outright horrendous last year. He has made some huge saves when needed such as a huge post to post stop against the Canadiens on Saturday late in the 3rd period to preserve a 2-2 tie and a huge OT stop on Jay Bouwmeester on Monday against the Panthers. These were the big saves the team was missing last season. Instead the Leafs were giving up that deflating back breaking late goal. Though the goaltending at the other end was terrific against the Leafs, Raycroft was his opponent’s equal and he has kept his Leafs in it every game.

When Raycroft was acquired for prospect Tukka Rask, the consensus was the Leafs traded yet another blue chipper for an older washed up goalie. Raycroft is just 26. The potential is still there for him to get better and be a top goalie. Considering it took Ryan Miller until he was 26 to establish himself as a legit NHL goalie, Mikka Kiprusoff until age 29 to be considered the best of the best, and 31 year old Cris Huet to finally be a number 1 guy, the risk was nominal and the potential was sky high. It would have been far too long a wait for Rask as he was 2 or 3 years away. With another top prospect in Justin Pogge around the Leafs were dealing from an area of strength and hardly weakened themselves with this move. Making the deal to get a goalie not yet in his prime who costs just $2 million per is looking like a real good one by the day. Whether Raycroft can keep it up remains to be seen but the doubters so far have been silenced with his play.

The team’s defence has also been significantly better than last. By the numbers the Leafs gave up 15 goals though 4 games last year leading to a GAA of 3.75. This season the Leafs have only given up 7 goals so far after 4 including a shutout win. Though Raycroft has been excellent when required, the Leafs have pretty much kept the chances to score down to reasonable levels. There have been plenty of shots against but many have been from the outside as the Leafs have done a much better job closing off the slot and taking away the passing lanes. The forwards have done a much better job helping out down low and doing a good job controlling the boards.

While fans are still lamenting on the fact the team is paying $17 million per for at least the next 3 years on the top 4 D, the team needed the depth and stability at this position. So far they are getting it. The financial commitment may certainly have cost the Leafs a chance to acquire the scoring winger Sundin needed, but in the words of many, defence wins championships. Kaberle at 27, McCabe at 30 and Kubina at 28 will be around for a while yet and still all in their prime. It has been hard for critics to forget that this is not an aging group of players. The big 3 are young and there are 6 solid young players who were battling for NHL work this camp. The Leafs never had 6 prospects in total never mind at 1 position. Is the money too much? Certainly. Is it any worse than $4 million to an Adrien Aucoin, or $5 plus mil to an aging Adam Foote? Not really. We’re not talking a 15 year deal. The Leafs needed the depth and are getting it so far.

The PK has been much better hovering in the top 10 in the league. Michael Peca and the additions on defence have helped plenty. It has helped a great deal that the Leafs are showing more discipline in terms of the crackdown. After 4 games last year the team gave up 21 PPs with 5 goals against and 13 of the 21 penalties being due to hooking, holding or interference. This year the team has given up 20 PPs and 3 goals against with only 9 being of the obstruction variety. Sure the penalty totals are not much different, but the decline in obstruction penalties is a good sign. It certainly appears the Leafs are adjusting to the rules better and simply accepting them rather than being against change.

Statistically the Leafs scored more goals at this time last season compared to this year. The team scored 15 goals in 4 games compared to 12. However these numbers dont tell the whole story. The fact is, the Leafs this season appear to be a much more dangerous offensive squad than last. The team is averaging a whopping 40 shots a game this year compared to 23.5 shots last season after 4 games. Not only are shots up, but chances to score are as well. The team would have averaged even more if they did not miss the net over two dozen times in the Montreal game alone. The team is far more willing to go to the net and create havoc in front. The players are not afraid to shoot and are much more satisfied to get the puck on net than try to generate the perfect play.

The undisputed leader of course has been Mats Sundin who appears to be carrying over his strong play from the end of last year. He has received the increased ice time he coveted and has been dangerous almost every shift. The addition of Kyle Wellwood to the top line with Sundin is paying enormous dividends. Maybe the team has found within the skilled forward that can keep up with the Leafs captain. His 6 points tie for the league lead. Toronto would probably have scored a few more goals if the 3rd member of their top line, Alex Ponikarovsky, could bury a few chances. The young winger has had several glorious opportunities only to be foiled almost every time.

The big key to this resurgence has been the increased energy level the team has shown this season compared to last. The work ethic has been terrific almost every game. Rarely have the Leafs glided or taken many shifts off. A key to that is the coaching staff simply not allowing it. A player like Matt Stajan is an example coach Maurice described as he was a non-factor opening night which led to a cut in ice time. Over the next few games, Stajan’s play has picked up and in turn so has his ice time. Jeff O’Neill was another whom coach Maurice was very critical of, especially in camp. O’Neill was not to be part of the Leafs plans early on until he was in better shape. After entering the lineup as an injury replacement, O’Neill has been going hard every shift and getting his share of chances.

Having his players come into the season is better shape has been a big key to the Leafs sound play so far. The team looks quicker and far from the lumbering group last season. The fact is, the team is much better to watch because they are going full blast. Perhaps the difference has been due to the absence of the likes of Antropov, Allison, Lindros, Klee, Berg, but that doesnt take away from the fact the Leafs are much better prepared team this year to handle the new rules, the speed of the game and the parity in the NHL. They look like they will not take nights off against the teams even or worse off in the standings. Last year a team like Montreal or Ottawa would have skated the Leafs into the ground. That has not been the case this season. The games so far have been energetic, exciting and worth the price of admission.

The Leafs do have a few concerns. Some of the bad defensive habits from last year have crept in from time to time. That was noticable on the Mike Johnson goal that tied the game for Montreal. Johnson snuck in to the slot unnoticed while 3 Leafs stood around watching the puck carrier. Thankfully the stellar goaltending so far has been able to mask those deficiencies for the most part.

The mounting injuries on the defence is also a cause for concern. Pavel Kubina is the latest to go down. A long term absence by Kubina could be debilitating as he has been rock solid so far this young season. He has provided Toronto that presence lacking on the 2nd and 3rd defence pairs behind Kaberle and McCabe. He has been strong defensively and shown a real knack for pinching keeping the play alive offensively for the Leafs. The team had as many as 6 young blueliners competing in camp for 2 of the jobs on defence but 4 are currently injured. Only Brendan Bell is on the horizon to return with Andy Wozniewski, Carlo Coliacovo and Steffan Kronvall out indefinitely. The depth will be put to the test the next few weeks.

While the team has generated the chances to score, at some point, the team will need to start burying them. Several point blank shots have simply been devoured into the goalies chest or pad turning a threating play into an easy save for the goalie. This was very evident in the Florida game where many wonderful opportunities were turned aside. It took 42 shots to finally beat Panther goalie Alex Auld. Lacking finish was a big question mark going into the year for the Leafs and the team so far has yet to solve that puzzle.

And a big question is whether the Leafs can keep up their current pace. It was not an easy job for the coaching staff to shed the habits that were the norm the last 8 years under the Pat Quinn regime. Despite a strict regimen, there were some players still who were not ready or able to play the way the team wants. The fact is, the team is probably not even close to where they need to be, to play this fast paced, aggressive style. It is a work in progress and it will be interesting to see if/when the Leafs start to hit the wall

But despite all that, the results so far have been very encouraging. If the team continues to play the way it has the first 4 games this year, there is a very good chance the Leafs will have a playoff spot waiting for them. Yes the season is still young, and anything can happen over the next 78 games, but the optimism today is far greater than at the start of camp and at the beginning of 2005 and that makes life easier for now in Leafs Nation.