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Before I move into the trade rumors, I’d like to provide a few post game thoughts from last night against the Anaheim Ducks. There is no other way to put it other than the Leafs were terrible during the first period and took some time to get rolling.
Although the Ducks started off strong for the night, you can almost argue that they appeared better than they were actually playing as a direct result of Toronto’s inability to move the puck without coughing it up. As a result, the stat which the Leafs continue to struggle with was in full force last night; giveaways.
It was hard to keep track of the amount of times that the Leafs gave the puck away as they were unable to pass it more than a few feet. Toronto looked sloppy and for whatever reason couldn't complete a single offensive play during the first 20 minutes of the game.
"The first period we were awful tight," Toronto coach Randy Carlyle said. "We couldn't execute a 20-foot pass if the guy was wide open. ... We were tripping over one another the first period."
Anaheim’s first goal would result from Cody Franson running into Troy Bodie, leaving rookie Morgan Rielly alone to care for a two on one. I thought Rielly did an adequate job at defending against said play as the young defender did his best to take away the passing lane despite ultimately being outplayed.
That said, last night marked Rielly’s 8th game playing as an NHLer and has one game remaining before the Leafs brass will be forced to make their decision on whether to keep him or not. I will say, at this point, that it will be awfully difficult for Nonis and Carlyle to send the defenseman down as he has been one of the Leafs best during his eight games so far. Whether he can continue to keep up to the NHL pace as the season progresses however, is left to be seen.
“Sometimes, you’re mistakes are magnified a little bit, and end up in your net. As a forward, you can kind of slide under the radar,” said Lupul.
“He’s got the right attitude, when he makes a mistake he immediately wants to come and atone for it and make up for it. he’s going to have a great career.”
Closing off the first period trailing 1-0, the Leafs must have received a stern talk from their coach between periods as they came out much more prepared during the second than the first period displayed. After being outshot 6-2 in the first 20 minutes of the game, the Leafs answered in the second with ten shots of their own compared to Anaheim’s six. Despite being down 2-0 early in the period, it would be Phil Kessel to put one past Anaheim netminder Jonas Hiller after receiving a gift of a pass from JVR during a Leafs power play, cutting the Ducks lead by one.
It would only take another two minutes for Toronto to put up a second goal as captain Dion Phaneuf pounced on a rebound in front of the net and wired it top shelf to tie the game. The home crowd boos and anguish was suddenly lifted with cheers and excitement again as the Leafs turned things around. The star of the night, Phil Kessel, would end the second period with a third goal for the Leafs as he broke up the ice on a two on one play and put it upstairs on Hiller who appeared to be expecting a pass and not a shot.
With a 3-2 lead moving into the third, the final 20 minutes of the game would be a much more exciting battle from both teams with several scoring chances and physical play.
Looking to extend their record of eight straight wins to start the year, Anaheim was doing just about everything they could to try and tie up the game but was denied halfway through the period as a result of a hattrick from Kessel. During another two on one play for the Leafs, JVR would opt to dish the puck off to Kessel rather than take a shot resulting in Kessel’s third goal of the night which ultimately closed the door on the Ducks for the win.
As a result of a holding penalty against him while on a clear breakaway , JVR would actually have a chance to make it 5-2 for the Buds when he was awarded with a penalty shot. Although Van Riemsdyk would fool Hiller on his attempt, his backhand shot would go off the crossbar and the game would remain at 4-2.
The Leafs were outshot 25-23 for the night and continue to struggle with shot attempts and giveaways. As I mentioned in last week’s blog, Toronto will need to improve upon these two stats if they are going to continue to increase their odds of winning games, in spite of their success so far.
On a side note, it was apparent that the Leafs were missing some grit in their lineup over the last few games and fortunately they will get some help in that department in the next few days. With David Clarkson’s suspension officially served, the forward who was brought in to add energy to the Leafs lineup will get his first chance to hit the ice during a regular season game on Friday against Columbus, and boy is he excited to get out there. As long as Clarkson doesn’t try and do too much upon his return, his presence will certainly be welcomed by his teammates and fans alike.
“There’s nothing worse than watching your team play and not be a part of it,” said Clarkson. “I don’t think I’ve ever been through this in my career. It’s probably the hardest start to a season I’ve had so far.”
“I’m here to play the style of hockey I play,” said Clarkson. “Now I can come here and play and do what I do, which is get to the front of the net and bring that physical presence and that battle level.
“That’s what I’ve done my whole career. That’s what I’m here for.”
**
Onto the rumors currently being circulated regarding the Leafs.
It was reported by Damian Cox earlier this week that the Leafs have been scouting defenseman Dmitry Kulikov from the Florida Panthers for years and that he may finally be available. While I do not personally pay close attention to rumors like these, the Leafs are no doubt seeking some defensive upgrades who fit the Carlyle mold.
With the continuous rumors regarding Jake Gardiner being shopped by Toronto, it seems a little surprising to me that they would go after another smooth skating, 22 year old defenseman who currently makes $2.5M per year and is looking for an increase next year as he becomes an RFA.
Furthermore, Kulikov is a left handed shot and it is well known that Toronto has been looking for a right handed shot in terms of any potential upgrades. I don’t know, maybe I’m missing something here but I don’t see the interest in this particular defenseman for the Leafs at the moment.
It was also reported by TSN’s Darren Dreger that the Leafs are shopping for another impact forward to add to Randy Carlyle’s system. As defense is arguably their biggest concern in terms of needed improvements, I don’t see a whole lot of pressure for Toronto to add another forward to their current group. Not only are Toronto’s pockets rather empty with it comes to cap space, their scoring or physical presence shouldn’t be a problem with the return of Clarkson, Kulemin, and McClaren in the near future.
In addition to his above thoughts, Dreger also recently commented that Toronto is now willing to eat up a large portion of JM Liles’ contract in order to move the veteran defenseman. Given their need for added cap space, Liles’ demotion to the AHL saved the team just shy of $1M which wasn’t much help, all things considered.
Earning $3.875M for another two years, Toronto could retain up to 50%,or shy of $2M, which in turns would provide the team with roughly $2M in added cap space. At $2M for two more years, Liles could be quite attractive to teams looking for some veteran presence and leadership on their backend, especially one who can move the puck and put up points as Liles has demonstrated while playing with Toronto.
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What do you guys think? Is there anything to these rumors being circulated at the moment?
That’s all for this week’s blog, thanks for reading!
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