NHL: Around the League in 30 Days, Day Two: Toronto Maple Leafs

Day Two: Toronto Maple Leafs

2010 Record: 30-38-14 (74 points), fifth in NHL Northeast Division

Roster Changes

2010-2011 Notable Arrivals: Colby Armstrong (ATL), Mike Brown (ANH), Brett Lebda (DET), Marcel Mueller (DEL), Jussi Rynnas (SM-Iiiga), Kris Versteeg (CHI), Clarke MacArthur (ATL), Matt Lashoff (TB)

2010-2011 Notable Departures: Chris Didomenico (CHI), Garnet Exelby (FA), Jamie Lundmark (NSH), Ben Ondrus (EDM), Phillipe Paradis (CHI), Wayne Primeau (FA), Viktor Stalberg (CHI), Mike Van Ryn (Retirement)

Leafs Report Card

Forwards

Since the departure of Mats Sundin, the Leafs have lacked that No. 1 center and it was thought to many, that Brian Burke’s main goal was to fill that void on the Leafs roster.

This offseason, General Manager Brian Burke has so far failed address the team’s No. 1 priority in acquiring high caliber center to help feed the puck to sniper Phil Kessel.

However, Burke has managed to bring in some very serviceable second and third line players adding the likes of Colby Armstrong and Kris Versteeg , signing hot draft prospect Jerry D’Amigo to a three-year entry-level NHL contract.

As well, the front office expects top prospect Nazem Kadri to crack the opening night roster following training camp. He also just recently inked forward Clarke MacArthur to a one-year contract.

MacArthur will help the Leafs out in the goal scoring department this year. Always a very streaky goal scorer, MacArthur should provide good scoring depth on the Leafs squad.

Kadri certainly stood out during training camp and throughout the preseason leaving many experts to believe he had earned a roster spot with the big club last year. But it was not in the cards for Kadri as he was sent back to junior and proceeded to light up the Ontario Hockey League collecting 93 points in only 56 games.

The addition of these talented and skilled forwards (Versteeg, Kadri, D’Amigo, MacArthur, Armstrong) to the top two or three lines will mean more goals for an anemic Leafs offence.

This was very much an area that Toronto struggled in last season on even the best of nights. The addition of Mike Brown, who adds some much needed sandpaper to the bottom six and will provide Toronto with a wonderful penalty killer, giving the Leafs some more penalty killing depth going forward.

Top Fantasy Forwards in 2010-11

RW Phil Kessel (36G/30A/66Pts/-1), C Tyler Bozak (14G/40A/54Pts/+1), LW/RW Kris Versteeg (21G/31A/51Pts/+3), RW Colby Armstrong (15G/18A/33Pts/80PIM), C Nazem Kadri (17G/30A/47Pts/-10), C Mikhail Grabovski (15G/27A/42Pts/-5)

Overall Grade:  C 

Defence

The Leafs defense is easily the club’s most valuable asset. Brian Burke’s philosophy has always been to build from the goalie out and it is very evident with this year’s edition of the Leafs. Having committed around 65 percent of the cap towards their defense, the Leafs boast a potential Top Six that make at least $2.9 million dollars each. The question remaining is are they really worth that much?

The Leafs recently named Dion Phaneuf captain, and named Tomas Kaberle, Francois Beauchemin and Mike Komisarek alternates. These four will make up the Leafs top two pairings, how they’ll be matched up is anyone’s guess.

The bottom two will consist of Luke Schenn and one of Carl Gunnarsson, Brett Lebda or Jeff Finger. Finger will most likely be demoted to the AHL so his salary comes off the books, leaving the sixth man to be fought over by Gunnarsson and Lebda. The Leafs also have prospects Keith Aulie, Korbinian Holzer, Jesse Blacker, and Jiraj Mikus nipping at their heels.

Top Fantasy Defenders in 2010-11

Tomas Kaberle (5G/51A/56Pts/-7), Dion Phaneuf (14G/20A/34Pts/-1), Francois Beauchemin (9G/24A/33Pts/-4)

Overall Grade: A-

Goaltending

Last season the Leafs were second last in goals against and they really did nothing this offseason to address the situation in goal. At least that is what many critics would say when they see the movement by the Leafs during this offseason.

However, as many non-Leaf fans don’t know, the Leafs last year finished the last 20 games of the season earning 26 points, all of that can be attributed to a new found confidence in their goaltending.

Veteran net minder Jean Sebastian Giguere comes into this season as an expiring contract and will be motivated to earn another lucrative contract for himself. Giguere’s presence alone, along with goaltending coach Francois Allaire, helped young goalie Jonas “The Monster” Gustavsson in his rookie year that started off very shaky.

Many of the Leafs worst goaltending games were played when they had Vesa Toskala and Joey MacDonald in net, so the Leafs goaltending is not really as bad as it seemed.

I fully expect Gustavsson to eventually become the Leafs No. 1 goalie and Giguere to be dealt to a team in need of cap relief, just a little prediction for discussion sake.

Top Fantasy Goaltender in 2010-11

Jonas Gustavsson (20 W/18L/8OTL 2.65 GAA, .903 SV%)

Overall Grade: B

Top Five Prospect Watch

1. C Nazem Kadri

Age: 20

Drafted: Seventh overall by Leafs in 2009 NHL Entry Draft

Current Team: London Knights (Ontario Hockey League)

Key Attributes:  A very skilled, speedy forward. He’s fearless, plays with reckless abandon and it’s not scared to get physical. His size and strength remains his greatest issue going forward, but many people in the organization believe, at least Kadri’s strength with get better as he gets older and more used to the NHL game. Easily projects as the Leafs top line center in the coming years. 

2. G Jussi Rynnas

Age: 23

Drafted: Undrafted (Signed as a free agent in 2010)

Current Team:  Ässät (SM-liiga)

Key Attributes: Coming in at a lofty 6’5” and 215 lbs, Rynnas is one of the larger goaltenders the Leafs have ever had. When he sprawls out he can cover the bottom half of the net very well. Rynnas, who is the latest addition to an explosion of talented Finnish goaltenders hitting the NHL, joins Boston’s Tuukka Rask,Nashville’s Pekka Rinne and Calgary’s Miikka Kiprosoff among others.

3. LW Jerry D’Amigo

Age: 19

Drafted:  Sixth Round, 158th overall by the Leafs in 2009 NHL Entry Draft

Previous Team: Renesselaer Polytechnic Institute [RPI] (ECAC of the NCAA)

Key Attributes: A very skilled offensive talent, who is crafty and can finish well around the net. At 5’10” questions remain about his size, but again that part can be worked on. D’Amigo for all the good he can do, also is prone to the occasional brain fart in a game, making a terrible pass or forgetting assignments on the ice. At 19 years old though, the more experience he’ll get, the better his overall game will become. 

4. LW Brad Ross

Age:  18

Drafted: Second Round, 43rd overall by Leafs in 2010 NHL Entry Draft

Current Team: Portland WinterHawks (Western Hockey League)

Key Attributes:  Was regarded as the hardest player to play against in the Western Hockey League. Playing on a line with top draft picks Ryan Johansen (CLB) and Nino Niederreiter (NYI), allowed Ross to maybe gain a little more offence than he may have been capable of with other players. Still though, he has the potential to be a 20 goal, 200 PIM player in the NHL. 

5. D Keith Aulie

Age: 21

Drafted: Fourth Round, 116th overall by the Calgary Flames, 2007 NHL Entry Draft

Current Team: Toronto Marlies (American Hockey League)

Key Attributes:  Aulie is a classic stay-at-home defenceman, who brings size, leadership and a big body to the table. Not overly gifted offensively, Aulie will be mostly relied upon in the future to become a shut-down defenceman who the Leafs can play against other teams’ top players. Aulie is a very good skater for his size, which lends itself very well to the new, faster NHL. 

Fantasy Outlook

Analysts’ Fantasy Stud: RW Phil Kessel

He should easily get 30 goals if healthy, and provide a wonderful power-play option for your fantasy team.

Analysts’ Player to Avoid: D Dion Phaneuf

Has seen a rapid decline in offensive numbers lately and should not be a plus defenceman with the Leafs. Even with Kaberle feeding him the puck on the power-play last season, Phaneuf struggled mightily to score goals in his short time with the Leafs last season.

 Analysts’ Sleeper Special: D Carl Gunnarsson

One of Toronto’s best young defenders on the team, Gunnarsson is blessed with a gun from the point and will get to use it on the second unit of the powerplay. He was a plus defenceman last year and should be this year as well. Has the potential to put up 30-40 points this year if given the opportunity.

Expectations and Predictions

The Leafs should have a better season this year and could potentially push for a playoff spot if they manage to acquire or sign a few more offensive talents. For Leafs to succeed this year, they  will need to cut down on their goals against, improve their special teams, score more consistently, and lastly, get consistent goaltending for them to make the playoffs.

There are still a lot of “ifs” with this team, so right now we expect them to be on the outside looking in at the end of this season in the Eastern Conference.

Prediction: 11th place in Eastern Conference

Overall Team Grade: B-

Look for Day Three: Florida Panthers being posted tomorrow by Anthony Bumbaco. 

These article can be all found at SportsHaze.com