The transition and turnover has begun for the Toronto Maple Leafs. And we’re not just talking about bodies and contracts.
We’re talking philosophy. We’re talking the type of player this team will now pursue with earnest, and the type of team that is the objective.
Just think: It was just two winters ago they were the Big, Bad Leafs featuring enforcers Colton Orr and Frazer McLaren, the team whose No. 1 priority was to kick sand in the other guy’s face, a team designed by Brian Burke and his sidekick Dave Nonis that led the NHL in fighting not by accident but by design. There were a couple of Euros on the roster, but Burke explicitly preferred North Americans.
Well, the fighters left town, or at least the roster, last summer. Now, with Brendan Shanahan as president, Mark Hunter driving player acquisition and Nonis doing his level best to implement a new set of priorities, steps have begun to make the Leafs an entirely different team down the road than they were in the winter of 2013.
It’s going to take time, of course. But this is a franchise that will try to value skill and hockey I.Q. ahead of muscle and size going forward.
Shanahan’s model team is the Detroit Red Wings, while Hunter’s London Knights were a junior franchise that pursued skill at all costs.
So Richard Panik was picked up on waivers earlier this season from Tampa, and Carter Ashton and David Broll, two minor leaguers who didn’t fit that description and held contracts the Leafs didn’t need to possess, were dispatched to the Lightning for essentially nothing two weeks ago.
On Sunday, the key piece acquired from Nashville for Cody Franson and Mike Santorelli was the first-round pick, but close behind was prospect Brendan Leipsic, a feisty and skilled 5-foot-10 player who starred for the Portland Winterhawks in junior.
Leipsic may make the NHL, he may not. But he is the type of player the Leafs would like to find.
The transition to this way of thinking began last summer at the draft when William Nylander was selected ahead of big, bruising winger Nick Ritchie, and it will continue as the Leafs continue to revamp their roster. Nylander was the first European selected by the Leafs in the first round since Jiri Tlusty in 2006.
It’s not like this team won’t have any players over six feet or any North Americans. But it’s safe to say if the Shanahan-Hunter priorities were in place at the 2013 draft, the Leafs wouldn’t have picked a big, grinding forward like Frederik Gauthier ahead of slick forward Andre Burakovsky or swift-skating defenceman Shea Theodore.
It’s a new approach for the Leafs. We’ll see if they stick with it.
The quick turnaround: Just a year ago, it was the Predators that were dumping veterans like David Legwand en route to an 88-point season (just four ahead of the Leafs) and another campaign outside the post-season. Now they’re acquiring veterans and sit at the top of the entire league. The return to health of star goalie Pekka Rinne has a lot to do with it, but so does a coaching change, the resourcefulness of general manager David Poile, and the consistency of approach by the organization.
Guess the all-star joshing is over: It was just last month in Columbus that everyone was laughing along with Alexander Ovechkin. But on Sunday night, Anaheim centre Ryan Getzlaf had some harsh words for the Washington star’s style of play after the Capitals walked into Orange County and beat the Ducks 5-3. “I didn’t know he was going to dive the way he did tonight all over the f—— ice,” said Getzlaf. “That part of it’s a little embarrassing. He’s going to score goals and make plays. The other stuff’s embarrassing.” Ovechkin now leads the league with 36 goals.
Next D-man to move: With Franson off the market, along with Tyler Myers and Zach Bogosian, it’ll be interesting to see which defenceman moves next. Jeff Petry, Andrej Sekera and Zbynek Michalek are expected to be dealt before the trade deadline, and there have been suggestions other rearguards, including the likes of Mike Green and Alexei Emelin, could also be traded for a variety of different reasons. Leafs captain Dion Phaneuf is also in play, but his monster contract makes a deal unlikely even with a number of teams, including L.A., thinking he could be a terrific addition to their top four on D.
Champing at the bit: No. 1 draft pick Sam Bennett was so eager to bolt from the gate after being cleared for contact by the Calgary Flames on Saturday, he was apparently convinced he’d be in the lineup that night against Vancouver. No so fast, young man. Bennett has missed the entire season after shoulder surgery, and the Flames are being very cautious with him. The guess here? He’ll be returned to the Kingston juniors in 10 days to two weeks. That would sure make Frontenacs GM Doug Gilmour happy.
Last but not necessarily least: Speaking of the Fronts, there was an interesting collision Saturday afternoon in the nationally televised game between Kingston and the Ottawa 67s. Forward Spencer Watson was in the Kingston lineup and defenceman Jacob Middleton skated for the 67s, the final two players (Nos. 209 and 210) taken in the NHL draft last June. Both are L.A. Kings property, and both were once considered such good possibilities they played in the CHL Top Prospects game last winter. We’ll see if their final NHL draft position holds them back or motivates them.
Best masked man: Of all the individual awards this season, none is likelier to be more hotly contested than the Vezina Trophy, which is given after a vote by league general managers. Montreal’s Carey Price and Nashville’s Rinne are incredibly close, with Rinne leading in goals-against average and wins, and Price with his scintillating save percentage. Tough choice.
Tick, tick, tick: Calgary is talking contract with UFA-in-waiting Curtis Glencross, but the gap is big enough that a trade before the deadline seems a reasonable possibility. Ditto for backup goalie Karri Ramo.
Not lovin’ the sunshine: Forward Sean Bergenheim has asked for a trade out of the Panthers organization. The 31-year-old was a hit for Tampa in the 2011 playoffs with nine goals in 16 games, and then was signed by Florida GM Dale Tallon to a four-year, $11 million contract along with other veterans Scottie Upshall, Tomas Fleischmann and Tomas Kopecky with the Panthers needing to get their payroll up to the cap floor. Now all are expiring contracts, and all are available.
Low-bridge approach: Nobody likes the hit Florida blueliner Dmitri Kulikov laid on the knees of Dallas star Tyler Seguin Friday night, least of all NHL disciplinarian Stephane Quintal, a longtime NHL defenceman. To some, Quintal has been a more lenient judge of things than Shanahan, his predecessor, but he’s likely to hit Kulikov hard for this ugly attempted bodycheck. Seguin, meanwhile, is likely out a month, and that could be it for Dallas and its playoff hopes.
Penguins looking to add: Pittsburgh wants a veteran defenceman and may be convinced to part with one of its stable of blueline prospects to get one. Without a first- or third-round pick, GM Jim Rutherford is determined to hang on to his second rounder, so that means to add a quality player he’s got to move other assets. Interestingly, veteran winger Steve Downie and his $1 million cap hit were a healthy scratch last Thursday. Rutherford may also be looking for an upgrade in goal, but not with starter Marc-Andre Fleury and his eight shutouts. Instead, the focus is on backup Thomas Greiss, who was good in the early part of the season but then contracted the mumps and hasn’t been the same since.
Prized prospects: Whatever the Red Wings do, they won’t be trading University of Michigan centre Dylan Larkin or Grand Rapids winger Anthony Mantha. Wings management loves Larkin and his potential, in particular. Some suggest he’ll be the Detroit captain one day.