Toronto Maple Leafs: Key Ingredient Missing from Winning Formula

On paper, the Toronto Maple Leafs is a team far superior to the Ottawa Senators.

The goaltending situation can be debated all day long, but the Leafs are much deeper up front and on the blue line.

The Leafs were expected to be a bubble team this season, and they're currently meeting that expectation.

The Senators, on the other hand, were expected to contend for 15th place in the Eastern Conference. Remarkably, with their recent win against the slumping Leafs, they're now just one point behind the Northeast Division-leading Boston Bruins.

The Leafs are nine points behind the Senators and are currently on the outside of the playoff picture.

So how is it that a seemingly inferior team is doing so well?

And why is it that such a good-looking team never seems to be able to play consistently?

The answer lies within a team's veteran leadership—or lack thereof.

Looking down the Leafs' roster, you'll realize that the longest tenured Leafs are guys like Nikolai Kulemin, Luke Schenn and Mikhail Grabovski.

Chris Phillips has played in more NHL games (991) than all three of them combined (837).

Ottawa also has Jason Spezza, Chris Neil and of course, Daniel Alfredsson to rely on for veteran leadership.

Phillips, Spezza, Neil and Alfredsson are the four remaining members of the 2006-07 Senators squad that lost in five games to the Anaheim Ducks in the Stanley Cup Finals.

Although Ottawa is largely comprised of young players and rookies, the veteran leaders on the team have done wonders in terms of teaching and being highly positive influences on the younger players.

Mike Komisarek, Tim Connolly and John-Michael Liles are the Leafs' greybeards. Not coincidentally, they are also the ones with the most playoff experience.

However, these players do not bring the kind of veteran leadership that causes everyone around them to elevate their game.

If you took Spezza and Alfie away from the Senators, they would start tanking.

If you took away the Leafs' veterans (Komisarek et al.), the team would still be the same hit-or-miss team we've been seeing the past few months. Nobody would even notice their absence.

Remember the trade rumours revolving around Jason Spezza last year?

A trade involving Spezza was supposed to trigger a full rebuild for the Sens. The team could then tank for high draft picks, and their young players would have plenty of time (and ice-time) to develop.

Well, what better way for a young player to develop than to play with veterans on a winning team.

Just look at Tyler Seguin and the Boston Bruins. He has 40 points in 42 games and is a ludicrous plus-35 in this—his second season in the NHL.

There's nobody on the Leafs' roster that makes their teammates play better, nobody to educate the young players and certainly nobody with significant playoff experience.

The Leafs need veteran leaders; skill alone does not make a winner.